Legal education abroad

Legal education abroad is distinguished by the high cost and difficulty of studies. Moreover, it is often necessary to pass several exams before you could start working in a specialty, for example, in the USA and Canada. An important factor when applying for a law program is a high level of language proficiency. If a student plans to stay in the country of study, it is necessary to know the local language perfectly for further employment.

Description of the specialty

To become a lawyer, you must be able to convey and defend your point of view, think analytically and critically, have writing and research skills, persistence and creativity. In turn, the profession of a lawyer has many advantages:

• High salaries (in most countries);
• Continuous intellectual development;
• Prestige and status in society;
• The ability to help others;
• Job prospects.

Much depends on the place of work, but often lawyers overwork, especially in high-paying positions, speak in public and regularly read tons of literature and regulations.
Judges, lawyers, civil servants, teachers in universities, consultants at companies and mediators in disputes — these are just a few examples of positions for specialists in the field of law.
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Best law schools in the world 2021

View a list of the best law schools in other countries here.

Legal education by country

When choosing a country to receive legal education, it is necessary to keep in mind the differences between general and civil law. Another important factor is your future place of residence, as the curriculum is based on the legal system of the country of study. Universities also put high language requirements, because a lawyer deals with papers, speeches and constant communication.

Requirements for admission to law programs

Requirements for admission differ depending on the country, university and program. General criteria are as follows:

• Secondary education certificate / bachelor's / master's degree. Top universities and prestigious countries have high GPA requirements (usually at least 3.5 out of 4.0, or 75%);
• Language certificate. As a rule, a higher level of language proficiency is requested for legal programs compared to other specialties (C1, TOEFL or IELTS);
• Motivation letter;
• Letters of recommendation;
• LSAT (Law School Admission Test). Test for admission to the USA, Canada, some universities in Australia. It assesses logical, critical, analytical thinking, general level of intelligence;
• Interviews, resumes, work experience, entrance exams, extracurricular achievements, etc.

Cost of legal education in English

Budget legal education in English

Cost of legal education in other languages

Foundation courses for law students

Types of law programs

Most popular law programs

The most promising legal programs

The trend in the labor market is that due to the high competition among general lawyers, employers need more highly specialized professionals. In addition, the development of technology and modern problems of humanity are making their own adjustments to the formation of demanded specializations. For example, robotization of the sphere of law is gradually being introduced, namely, programs and systems that perform routine work: search and analysis of information, drafting contracts and claims. So in 2017, artificial intelligence replaced about 70% of all mid-level management staff working at Sberbank which also included lawyers^[0].

Law degrees

Such degrees are designated differently from country to country. Bachelor’s degrees are usually called:

• Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) — a degree in the field of laws in England and in most common law jurisdictions. For example, in Scotland, South Africa, Israel, Australia, New Zealand. Not used in the United States and Canada;
• Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence (JD, D.Jur. or DJur) is a professional degree in law and one of several doctoral degrees. Used in Australia, Canada, the United States, and some other common law countries.

Some regions offer both types of degrees (LL.B. and JD), such as Australia and Hong Kong.
Master of Laws (ML or LL.M.) — a postgraduate degree for those who already have an academic degree in law / professional degree in law / bachelor's degree in a related subject. In some jurisdictions, the Master of Laws is a required professional degree to begin legal practice.
Doctor of Law or Doctor of Laws. The name also depends on the country:

• Doctor of Juridical Science (JSD or SJD) — Argentina, Canada;
• Doctor juris (Dr. iur. or Dr. jur.) — Germany;
• Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) — Canada, Czech Republic, Slovakia, France, Great Britain;
• Juris Doctor (JD) — USA, Australia;
• Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) — Canada, South Africa, Malta, Great Britain, Sweden.

Juris Doctor (JD) is a professional degree in North America. JD has academic status as a Professional Doctor in the United States and a Master's degree in Australia.
Learn more about degrees

Scholarships and free law education

Free law education can be found in countries that do not charge tuition fees. For example, in Germany, Austria and Norway, but there most programs are taught in the local language instead of English.
Another opportunity to study for free is scholarships and grants from the country of study. For example, the Turkish government offers the Turkey Burslari Scholarship, which covers 100% of the tuition fees and other expenses. Also Hungary and Germany provide free education to talented students through grants from Stipendium Hungaricum and DAAD. In Sweden, all PhD programs are free, among which you can find legal programs.
There are general and separate scholarships for law students from the universities themselves. For example, Dean’s Scholarship from the Faculty of Law, University of Sydney or grant CAHR at the University of York in the UK. Additionally, various competitions are held, for example, for writing an essay. Typically, they offer a one-time amount to help cover small expenses.
You can track current opportunities here and on the websites of universities.

Internships for lawyers

• Lawyers Without Borders (LWOB) corporation offers unpaid internships for students and lawyers in the United States. The duration is from 1 month to a year. Typically, applicants are residents of nearby cities or locals. The main requirements are knowledge of English, strong academic background and international experience.
• Private organization Connect-123 offers paid internships in major capitals of the world. For Buenos Aires, Cape Town, Shanghai and Sydney, the program fee for 2020 is 2,850 USD excluding housing expenses. For Barcelona and Dublin — 3,396 USD per year. Connect-123 has a database of internships available which can be viewed here.
• Internships Amnesty International has offices in London, Geneva, New York and other cities. Internships are offered in partnership with universities or work within the organization itself in the field of international law. Duration of internships — 4-6 months full-time or part-time^[1].
• International Bar Association offers a Legal Internship Program that is available to law students, doctoral students and young professionals at the offices of the International Bar Association in London, Washington and The Hague^[2].

Employment prospects with a law degree

The career path in law largely depends on the country of study and further residence. In some countries, for example, in Canada and the USA, one cannot become a lawyer immediately after graduation — you must first pass the exams.
Despite the fact that the profession of a lawyer is popular among applicants, and the number of graduates is increasing every year, private and state structures almost always have vacancies and are looking for competent specialists. The main employers for lawyers are: courts, private law firms, government agencies, international organizations (UN, UNICEF, Council of Europe), non-profit legal organizations (Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch), etc.
Responsibility for legal practice during studies usually falls on the student. Sometimes universities and professors give tips and help students, but mostly students are looking for internships and employment on their own.

How much does a lawyer earn?

Interesting facts about legal education

• The word "Jurisprudence" comes from the Latin words jūris — “law” and prūdentia — “foresight, knowledge”. Legal education originates from ancient Rome, while the first textbook on jurisprudence is considered to be the Institutes by Gaius.
• Sharia law is fully or partially implemented in the legislation of many Islamic countries. For example, in Malaysia, Maldives, Qatar, UAE, Egypt. In the universities of these countries Sharia law is taught alongside the state law.
• Of the 44 US presidents, 26 were lawyers. Some of the universities that have graduated the heads of state are Harvard Law School, Yale Law School, Duke University Law School, Columbia Law School, University of Cincinnati College of Law.
• In the modern world, many law graduates do not work in their specialty.This also happened in the past, among law graduates there were those who had achieved great success in another field. For example, Mahatma Gandhi, Lev Tolstoy, Honore de Balzac, Gabriel Garcia Márquez, Anna Akhmatova, Pyotr Tchaikovsky, Gottfried Leibniz, Alexander Alekhin studied to be lawyers.