10 of the best JD MBA programs | Tuition fees, average GMAT & LSAT

A JD MBA is a double degree comprising a Master of Business Administration (MBA) and a Juris Doctor (JD) law degree. While most MBA programs in the US take two years to complete, and most JD degrees a further three, the majority of combined JD MBA programs take only four, allowing you to launch your desired career one year sooner.

Legal knowledge is useful in any business context, but JD MBA programs are especially suited to professionals interested in corporate law settings where business knowledge is necessary to excel, a key example being mergers and acquisitions.

Aspiring startup leaders should also consider a JD MBA, as the legal knowledge you will gain on the program can help you prepare your business plan and set up a legal entity for your entrepreneurial venture.

But before you can reap the benefits, you need to choose your program. Here are the top 10 JD-MBA programs* to consider, along with their total fees**. We have also listed the average or median GMAT*** and Law School Admission Test (LSAT) achieved by the most recent cohorts at each school to be indicative

10. NYU Stern School of Business

Length: 4 years

Apply: Directly to the JD/MBA program, or to Stern in your first or second year of law school studies at NYU.

Median GMAT: 682

Median LSAT: 172

Tuition: $350k

There can’t be many better places in the world to study a JD MBA than New York, the global hub of the business and legal industries. And New York University (NYU) offers one of the leading JD MBA programs of its kind—both the JD and MBA programs are ranked seventh by U.S. News and World Report in 2026.

As is customary for a JD MBA degree, it can be completed in four years rather than the five it would normally take if you studied the programs separately. You’ll spend the first two years studying at NYU’s School of Law, the third year at the Stern School of Business, and then divide your time equally between the two schools in your final year.

9. University of Chicago Booth School of Business

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Length: 3 years accelerated or 4 years traditional

Apply: A joint application 

Median GMAT:  675

Median LSAT: 174

Tuition $384k

Chicago Booth offers students the chance to accelerate their JD MBA program while getting relevant workplace experience.

Law is the focus for students for their first year before they undertake a law or business internship alongside two business courses in the summer.

In their second year, students pursue a mix of business and law courses followed by another internship, before focusing solely on law in their third year.

Alongside studying law and business, Booth students benefit from an added emphasis on leadership teaching through the Leadership Effectiveness and Development (LEAD) class.

LEAD classes run throughout the MBA and JD portions of the program and focus on building students’ understanding of their leadership styles, challenges, and priorities, which helps them develop a personalized leadership development plan for their time on the program.

8. Darden School of Business

Length: 4 years

Apply: Separately to each program. 

Median GMAT:  665

Median LSAT: 173

Tuition: $339k

The JD MBA program at the University of Virginia is extremely flexible, with candidates able to choose whether they want to start their degree in the School of Law or Darden School of Business. It’s also highly regarded in the US and globally, with the MBA program appearing in the top 20 of the 2026 Financial Times MBA Ranking.

Content-wise, the program is centered around teamwork, social responsibility, and community. The University of Virginia has a dedicated Darden JD/MBA Society that exists to support JD/MBA students. It helps fellow dual-degree students to connect and help each other through an intense period of study.

7. Yale School of Management

Length: 4 years

Apply:  Separately to each program, to Yale Law School during your first year at Yale SOM, or to Yale SOM during your first two years at Yale Law School.

Median GMAT:  675

Median LSAT: 174

Tuition: $310k

Yale has one of the most famous law schools in the world, and along with Harvard and Stanford makes up the top-tier of American law schools. Yale SOM’s MBA program is similarly respected, featuring in the top 20 of the Financial Times ranking and the top 10 of the U.S. News ranking.

The university’s combined MBA/JD program takes four years to complete, during which students spend two years at Yale Law School, one year at Yale SOM, and one year taking electives at both schools (and elsewhere at Yale).

6. Duke Fuqua School of Business

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Length: 3.5-4 years

Apply:  Separately to each program.

Median GMAT:  615-755

Median LSAT: 171

Tuition: $320k

Duke offers students the chance to accelerate their JD/MBA program by completing it in just three-and-a-half years.

Duke’s JD/MBA program is the oldest of its dual degree programs, allowing students the opportunity to engage in cross-disciplinary study so you can better serve your business clients in a legal setting or to leverage your legal knowledge in a business setting.

Students can choose to spend their first year at the law school and their second year at Fuqua. In the third and fourth years they take classes from both. Or, choose the first two years at the law school followed by a year of study at Fuqua then two years of blended study. Students take corresponding law or business summer internships through first to third year.

Duke boasts students will gain expertise in Contract Law, Mergers & Acquisitions, Venture Capital, and Corporate Litigation, which could help you find career opportunities in Law, Consulting, Venture Capital, and Investment Banking.

5. Cornell University SC Johnson College of Business

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Length: 3 years accelerated or 4 years traditional

Apply: Separately to each program

Median GMAT: 655-665

Median LSAT: 173

Tuition: $265k (three years)

Students on the JD-MBA at Cornell have the option to accelerate their learning with a three-year program, gaining an additional JD qualification with only a year more study than a traditional MBA degree.

Students on the JD-MBA at Cornell have the option to accelerate their learning with a three-year program, gaining an additional JD qualification with only one year more study than a traditional MBA.

In the three-year program at Cornell, students take a mix of law and business courses across all three years.

The four-year program is more traditional, with students focusing first on law, then business, then mixing the two programs in their final two years.

4. Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management

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Length: 3 years

Apply: With one joint application through Kellogg Admissions. You’ll need a GMAT/GRE score. You will also need to register with the Law School Credential Assembly Service (CAS).

Median GMAT: 687

Median LSAT: 173

Tuition: $336k 

After one year of law study and one year of business teaching with internships each summer, JD-MBA students at Kellogg dive into a mix of electives with the law school as their home base.

As well as gaining a legal qualification, students can also choose to major in one of seven areas during their time on the MBA, selecting from accounting, economics, finance, marketing, operations, strategy, and managing organizations.

On top of this, they are also able to pursue global experiences through both the law school and the business school, which includes working on challenges for international organizations with the business school’s Global Lab.

Aspiring startup leaders have a slate of opportunities at Kellogg, for instance working at an incubator with the Venture Lab or providing legal and strategic consulting to small businesses with the university’s Entrepreneurship Law Center.

3. Harvard Business School

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Length: 4 years

Apply: Separately to each program. 

Median GMAT (for MBA program): 685

Median LSAT: 174

Tuition: $315k 

Harvard Law School and Harvard Business School are two of the most highly respected learning institutions in the world. The four-year JD MBA program brings together the core components of the curricula at both institutions. The program typically has ten students in each cohort.

The Harvard MBA, in particular, is known for its large class size of over 900 students. The class is broken up into more intimate sections of around 100 students. With this setup, students can create a network that is both broad and deep, with a large international cohort to mingle with and a smaller support system to study alongside.

As well as excellent academics, Harvard Business School also has a strong record for entrepreneurship, with more than 50% of graduates creating ventures.

2. UC Berkeley Haas School of Business

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Length: 4 years

Apply: Separately to each program. 

Median GMAT: 675

Median LSAT: 170

Tuition: $342k

In the JD-MBA at Berkeley Haas, students spend their first two years focusing on law and their third in business classes. The final year is spent on business electives and law modules.

Throughout the program, JD-MBA students have access to the Berkeley Center for Law and Business, which runs frequent events and initiatives to support learning around entrepreneurship, corporate social responsibility, capital markets, and mergers and acquisitions.

Examples of the groups available at the Center include Startup@BerkeleyLaw, whose programming focuses on issues facing early-stage companies, and the Women In Business Law Initiative, where students of all gender identities can connect with peers and mentors through meetings, conferences, forums, and lectures.

1. The Wharton School

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Length: 3 years (or 4 years for Wharton first-year law students)

Apply: Using a joint application during round 1 or 2. You must also register with LCAS.

Average GMAT: 676

Tuition: $278k (if completed in three years)

With a JD/MBA at the Wharton School, you get access to an accelerated program and earn one of the world's most desirable MBAs.

The cross-disciplinary program features business courses designed specifically for the JD MBA program, which are undertaken in the summer after the first year of legal study. In the second and third years of the program, students take a combination of business and law courses plus a JD-MBA capstone course.

The JD/MBA cohort usually consists of 15 to 20 students. However, in the Wharton Class of 2026 there are 12 JD MBA students in a wider cohort that represents 65 countries. Women account for 47% of the MBA cohort.

Unsurprisingly for the top-ranked MBA program globally, post-graduation employment prospects are good. Compensation for the class of 2022 records a median base salary of $175,000 and sign-on and guaranteed bonuses of $30k.

*This list comprises the top 10 MBA programs ranked by the Financial Times in 2026 that offer a JD MBA option. **Cost figures for all the JD MBA programs are estimates of total cost using current quoted fees. Actual cost may differ. *** GMAT scores refer to the equivalent of GMAT 11th Edition (Focus) scores.

This article was updated most recently in April 2026.