Admissions: Application Procedure

Eligibility

U.S. applicants to our LLM programs must possess a juris doctor (JD) from an ABA-accredited law school.

• Admission to our LLM programs is competitive and is based primarily upon previous excellence in law studies
• Admitted applicants have excellent academic credentials and may also have significant professional experience
• Almost all of our admitted U.S. applicants are in the top half of their class of a nationally ranked law school
• Applicants currently enrolled in U.S. law schools may apply for admission after completing two years of law school at an ABA-accredited institution

Full-Time or Part-Time Student Status

• An applicant may apply to be either a full-time (9 or more credits) or a part-time student (8 or fewer credits)
• The choice to apply as a full-time or part-time candidate is not a factor used in the admissions process
• Some evening courses are available in most programs, but the part-time option is not exclusively an evening program
• All students (full-time or part-time) are responsible for completing all degree requirements within the time limit specific to each degree

May I apply as a transfer student?

• With advance approval and depending on the degree program, students currently enrolled in an LLM program at another school may apply as transfer students
• Up to 3 credits of non-USD law school work may be applied toward the LLM in Comparative Law, provided the candidate received a grade of at least C
• Up to 6 credits of non-USD law school work may be applied toward the LLM in Business and Corporate Law, LLM in International Law, LLM in Taxation or General LLM, provided the candidate received a grade of at least B
• Transfer grades do not count toward the degree candidate’s USD School of Law grade point average; any approved credits earned elsewhere will transfer to USD as pass/fail credits

May I apply as a visiting student?

• Applicants enrolled in an LLM program at another ABA-accredited law school may apply for admission as a visiting student
• Applicants who wish to enroll as a visiting LLM student must submit, as part of their application materials, a letter from the applicant's current law school dean, dated after issuance of the required transcript, indicating that the applicant is in good academic standing and has approval to study at the School of Law as a visiting student
• Visiting students are permitted to enroll for courses, but are not considered degree candidates at the School of Law
• Credits earned by visiting students may be applied toward the degree requirements at their home school, per the approval of such institution