Law

Eligibility

Admission Standards

Admission to candidacy for the LL.M. degree is restricted, in the case of graduates of law schools in the U.S., to graduates of A.B.A.-accredited law schools who achieved honor status in their undergraduate legal studies as evidenced by very high academic standing, by membership on their law reviews, or by outstanding work in research. Generally, preference is given to candidates who have acquired at least one year of significant professional legal experience subsequent to graduation.

To be eligible for admission to the LL.M. Program, applicants must hold a first degree in law. A degree in a field other than law, even if followed by a master\xc2\x92s degree in law, generally does not suffice for admission. Applicants who have earned a law degree by correspondence course work or distance learning are not eligible for admission. As the LL.M. is a full-time program of study, students are not permitted to accept off-campus employment while enrolled in the program.

Strong preference is given to applicants who have had at least one year of work experience after earning their first law degree. Only in exceptional circumstances are applications from candidates who are in their final year of their first law degree accepted. Applicants who have not yet graduated must demonstrate in their personal statements that their admission to the program would enable them to realize an immediate and specific career objective that would not otherwise be attainable.

A. Graduates of Law Schools in the United States

Admission to candidacy for the LL.M. degree is restricted, in the case of graduates of law schools in the U.S., to graduates of A.B.A.-accredited law schools who achieved honor status in their undergraduate legal studies as evidenced by very high academic standing, by membership on their law reviews, or by outstanding work in research. Generally, preference is given to candidates who have acquired at least one year of significant professional legal experience subsequent to graduation.

B. Graduates of Law Schools in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom or English-speaking Caribbean Countries

Admission for these degree candidates is generally restricted to those who achieved honor status in their prior legal studies as evidenced by very high academic standing, by membership on their law reviews, or by outstanding work in research. As a general matter, applicants from law schools in these countries who have not completed at least five years of post-secondary undergraduate and legal education combined must have been admitted to the bar and practiced for at least one year after completing their legal education.

C. Graduates of All Other Law Schools

The purpose of the LL.M. Program for these degree candidates is to provide an introduction to new areas of interest to them as well as the opportunity to further specialize in their current areas of practice, and is generally restricted to those who achieved honor status in their prior legal studies.

International lawyers who intend to reside permanently and to practice law in the United States should apply for theJ.D. degree, the first degree in law, rather than the LL.M. The J.D. program is normally three years of full-time study. Generally, a maximum of one year\'s advanced standing toward the J.D. degree at Columbia may be granted for graduate legal studies completed in the United States or another common-law country. Such standing, however, is determined on an individual basis by request of the student after an offer of admission has been made. Completion of an LL.M. degree at Columbia Law School does not guarantee admission to the J.D. program.