Do I need a Law Degree/Masters for five years to read International Law?

inactive

Hey 7Sagers,

Had someone email me with this question and thought you could help! Here it is:

I have completed my degree program in Strategic Communication and would like to read International Law. However, is it true that I would have read Law for degree and masters for five years ? Again, is it true that if I pass my LSAT exams very well I could read Law for three years ? Lastly, I desire to enroll at either Harvard or Yale University, how do I get admission and a full time scholarship?

ddakjiking

I'm not quite sure what "reading international law" means. As a general rule of thumb, don't go to law school unless you desire to be a practicing attorney....or unless you can afford $300,000+ and 3 years of your life.

If you are serious about entering law school, you would need a really high GPA (think 3.8+) to be considered for Harvard and/or Yale in addition to a superb LSAT (think 172+).

*EDIT* If you are trying to say you would like to PRACTICE international law, a reputable law school is much needed and Harvard/Yale fits the bill perfectly. As far as I know, international law is somewhat of an "unicorn" field so your best chances would definitely be a top, top, top law school and a 2nd/3rd+ language.

jdawg113

Schools like Yale and Harvard also don't really have full tuition scholarships

Pacifico

It appears from that quote that the person's first language is not English. If that is the case and the person is not from the US then it might be beneficial for them to consider going to law school in their home country and then coming to a top school in the US for an LLM.

Nilesh S

I think the person (who seems to not be a native speaker) wants to go to law school and see if they can specialize in International law... its certainly possible to do that in a JD program... and yes if the person writes the LSAT they will be able to complete a 3 year JD... being an international student who has completed (a number of) LL.Ms and specializes in (private) international law (among other areas)... the LL.M will allow you to tailor your specification the way you want... my LL.M at London was in International Dispute Resolution... My LL.M at Penn was Law and Economics and IP (via modules - Copyright, Trademark, Patents, Law and Economics, Statistical Analysis for Lawyers and Health Law Economics and Policy with other miscellaneous courses- the degree was just an LL.M ) and my LL.M at Chicago was Comparative Constitutional Law and Legal Philosophy - again via modules with the degree just being called an LL.M. - however if the concerned person just wants to study international law they have to decide which area of international law they want to study - public or private - International law in the US is geared towards the USA in general and unless its a specialized place (even then I have my doubts - US law schools are very US centric even in their "international" options) its not the best place to study international law (unless you want to end up practicing in a US law firm working on international transactions - again more US centric and commercial - and getting a job is difficult with just an LL.M) - MUCH better options are LL.Ms in Europe... OxBridge and the London schools - Leiden, Lund, the Graduate institute at Geneva, and even further, the student can complete a law degree in their own country and then do the highly specialized diploma in international law at the Hague Academy of International Law either in public or private international law or do the summer courses at the TMC Asser institute.
https://www.hagueacademy.nl/summer-programme/diploma/
http://www.asser.nl/education-training/summer-programmes/
These are very prestigious courses. Moreover, Leiden, the Hague Academy of International Law (and the other continental European schools) actually give you access to the Peace Palace library and internships in international law and the opportunity to interact with people working at the ICC, ICTY, ICTR, ICC,LCIA,PCA and the rest.

AlexanderL0

Full ride to Harvard? Probably a 175+ and a 4.0 and be economically disadvantaged

ddakjiking

@AlexanderL0 said:
economically disadvantaged

Quite the understatement. Harvard/Yale/Stanford don't do merit-aid scholarships so you would have to be super poor to get some financial aid and even then isn't likely to be a full-ride.

VegMeg55

Yes, for Harvard and Yale there is a bit of a financial trade-off. You have a high earning potential but more potential debt since I can't imagine anyone attaining a full-ride unless there are extenuating, extenuating circumstances. @"Nilesh S" is totally accurate in terms of degree acquisition, but if Harvard and Yale are really what you want, well... you'll need a superb undergraduate GPA and LSAT score. The 'icing on the cake' application components are fantastic letters of recommendation, a solid resume, and brilliant personal and diversity statements (Yale has a more general optional writing sample, don't skip either of them as they can definitely help you). If you were born and/or are living abroad, it might be prudential to hire a law school advisor who could help you mold your application components to your strengths and unique perspective.

sarkisp23

Doesn't Stanford offer free tuition for students of parents making "less than $125,000 annually"? (previously $100,000). However, I'm not sure if this only applies to undergrads. Just something to check out.

jdawg113

doubtful but cant say for sure, sounds like an UG and not a LS thing

emli1000

Some schools allow a dual JD/Master's program in 4 years..

AlexanderL0

@sarkisp23 I would be very surprised if they gave free tuition to those whose parents are lower than the top 20%

cnguye15

Speaking as an international student from vietnam, i think a Jd is much more valuable than llm in terms of prestige and career opportunities . A jd gives you more job oppprtunities in the u.s. i dont think international students with llm even from t14 have hard time finding a job in good u.s law firms.
If you want to do in-depth research in international laws, one year isnt enough. I did my master at uchicago where i spent a great bulk of my time at the lawschool. I hung out with lots of llms. Most of them didnt have time to finish course reading let alone doing research. Just my 2 cents

VegMeg55

Another thing to consider: your scholarships don't have to come 100% from your law school. There are many outside resources for scholarship funding based on essay contests, minority status, etc. It might only be a little bit here or there but anything helps so don't rely solely on offers through school admissions. Do some digging on outside funding and you might be surprised with that you find.

sarkisp23

@AlexanderL0 http://money.cnn.com/2015/04/01/pf/college/stanford-financial-aid/index.html?sr=fbmoney040115stanford0400story

http://time.com/3769491/stanford-financial-aid-tuition/

Still doesn't specify if it's only undergrads, but if you can get in, that might be your scholarship right there.

Nilesh S

@cnguye15 when did you do your LL.M from UChicago... it could be that you and I did it the same year or we know the same people.