Tax LLM Program Overview
The Tax LLM curriculum at the University of San Diego School of Law is highly flexible. With few required courses and a wide range of electives, you can tailor your Tax LLM experience to fit your interests and meet your professional goals. Learn about how our curriculum blends traditional classroom instruction with unique hands-on experiences.
Key Curriculum Features
Program Timeline
- Students may begin the program in the Fall, Spring or Summer term (Summer option is only for part-time applicants).
- Candidates may complete the degree requirements in as little as 1 semester (applicants with prior JD tax coursework) or may take up to 4 years.
- Full-time (9 or more credits) and part-time (8 or fewer credits) options are available.
- Coursework is offered in both the day and evening to accommodate different student needs.
Degree Requirements
- A candidate for this LLM degree must successfully complete 24 credit hours of graduate tax coursework.
- The four required courses are: Corporate Tax, Partnership Tax, Tax Research and International Tax.
- Remaining credits may be chosen from our advanced tax course offerings.
- Tax I is a prerequisite for most graduate tax courses. It is presumed that all applicants have taken Tax I as a JD student. If an admitted applicant has not taken Tax I, the student is normally permitted to audit Tax I in the first semester, but the course will not count toward the required credit hours needed to graduate.
- Full details of the degree requirements may be found in the School of Law Academic Rules in the Student Handbook.
Practical Training
Clinics
Tax LLM students have the opportunity to earn credit toward their degree while working at the California State Tax Clinic and Federal Tax Clinic. Students who participate in one of the tax clinics at USD receive practical training in legal skills including interviewing clients, identifying evidence, drafting appeals briefs, and representing clients in negotiations with the State Board and at hearings.
Learn more about the Legal Clinics at the USD School of Law.
The one-semester option
The one-semester option is a unique accelerated program option for students who completed advanced tax courses as a JD student, regardless of where their JD was completed. With the one-semester option, up to 12 credits of advanced tax courses (excluding Tax I) may be applied toward the LLM degree, thereby reducing the number of credits needed to complete the LLM program. The student must have earned a grade of 2.0 or better for the credits to transfer, and the courses must have been completed within 30 months of enrolling in the LLM in Taxation program.
Students considering this option should contact Graduate and International Programs for planning and advice.