LLM Degree Requirements

U.S. Law Graduates

To earn the Master of Laws degree, U.S. law school graduates must fulfill the following requirements: completion of 24 credit hours, including the required curriculum and written work in the specialized programs (see Written Work Requirement and Curriculum, below); attendance for an enrollment period of a minimum of two consecutive semesters; and achievement of a cumulative grade-point average of at least 2.67 at the time all requirements are met.

U.S. students who are full time (those enrolled for 9 or more credit hours per semester) are expected to complete all degree requirements within one calendar year of matriculation; those who are part time (enrolled for 8 or fewer credit hours per semester) are expected to complete all degree requirements within two calendar years of matriculation. Determination of the applicable time limit will be made on the basis of the number of credit hours for which the student enrolls in the first semester of his or her degree program. Students may be granted extensions of these time limits under appropriate circumstances. The Law School may exclude a student from further study once the student’s degree requirements are satisfied. Graduate students may be excluded or put on probation for low scholarship or for violation of Law School or University Codes. For example, a student who fails or receives a grade of No Credit (NC) may be excluded from further study and may not graduate unless the student petitions for and receives the permission of the Academic Scholarship Committee. The procedure for reinstatement is as described in the respective sections of the Bulletin for Juris Doctor degree students.

Non-U.S. Law School Graduates

To earn the Master of Laws degree, all non-U.S. law school graduates must fulfill the following requirements: completion of 24 credit hours, including the required curriculum in the specialized programs (see Written Work Requirement and Curriculum, below); attendance for an enrollment period of a minimum of two consecutive semesters; completion of Legal Research and Writing for International LLM Students I (6692) and Fundamental Issues in U.S. Law (6694); and achievement of a cumulative grade-point average of at least 2.00 at the time all requirements are met (2.67 for non-U.S. law school graduates who previously earned an LLM from a U.S. law school); a thesis is not required, although students may complete a thesis in connection with the degree.

Non-U.S. law school graduates are expected to complete all degree requirements in one academic year. An extension for one semester may be granted by the program director in exceptional circumstances. The Law School may exclude a student from further study once the student’s degree requirements are satisfied. Graduate students may be excluded or put on probation for low scholarship or for violation of Law School or University Codes; the procedure for reinstatement is as described in the respective sections of the Bulletin for Juris Doctor degree students.