Mercer University is looking to offer four new degree programs, including a master of laws degree in federal criminal practice and procedure that would be the first of its kind in the country.

Mercer’s board of trustees approved the master of laws degree as well as a bachelor of musical arts degree, according to a Friday afternoon news release from the university. The release described the music degree as a “hybrid between the bachelor of music in performance and the bachelor of arts in music degrees.”

Both degrees still require approval by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, and the law degree requires the American Bar Association to sign off on it.

Separately, Mercer plans to offer two additional degrees that do not need SACS approval -- an interdisciplinary major in law and public policy in the College of Liberal Arts and a major in sports management in the Stetson School of Business and Economics.

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