The University of San Diego School of Law has a longstanding practice of welcoming attorneys, judges and government officials from around the world to enroll in our graduate law programs. This information is designed to make your transition to USD Law as easy as possible. You should always feel free to contact our Office of Graduate and International Programs with any questions.
Entrance Requirements
Applicants to the LLM in U.S. Law program or an alternate LLM program (as approved) must have the equivalent of a U.S. law degree from an accredited institution outside the United States. Candidates must have also graduated in the upper half of their law school class or otherwise establish qualifications indicating their ability to complete graduate law work successfully. More information can be found on the LLM Admissions page.
Language Requirements
The USD School of Law requires that all LLM applicants establish competency in English if the applicant's native language is not English, or the applicant graduated from an international law school. An applicant may establish competency in English through successful completion of either the TOEFL or the IELTS. For the TOEFL, the minimum suggested score is 583 points for the paper-based test or 93 points for the Internet-based test. For the IELTS, the minimum suggested score is 7.0 for the academic IELTS. Applicants who do not meet the minimum score requirements should consider additional English study, specifically in the area of legal English skills. USD also has an English Language Academy, which offers programs such as Intensive English and Business English.
Health Insurance Requirement
International students and scholars at the USD School of Law are required to fulfill the health insurance requirement. For additional information on how to enroll in the USD International Health Insurance Plan or how to waive the USD Health Insurance Requirement, please refer to the Health Insurance Requirement web page.