An article takes you through the basics of law majors at American universities and popular colleges

　As one of the majors with the best job prospects today, the law major has gradually become the most desired major for many students to study in the United States.

　　Studying law abroad is the most talked about topic by students in this major. In response to some applicants' questions about foreign legal professions, today The small editor of Yunxue Education Group will briefly introduce the basic information of law majors in American universities and the recommendations of colleges and universities.

　　American law schools offer three main degrees: J.D., LL.M., and J.S.D. in Legal Science.

　　JD

　　In fact, it is equivalent to a "bachelor's degree in law" and has a duration of 3 years. Students are required to graduate from the undergraduate program to apply, there is no background requirement for the pre-legal major, but the LSAT test results need to be submitted.

　　The duration of study is three years:

　　In the first year, the basic knowledge of U.S. law, including the Constitution, civil law, criminal law, contract law, etc. In the second and third years, students can choose the laws and regulations courses they are interested in according to their personal interests and hobbies, combined with the future employment direction.

　　LLM

　　THE LLM is a one-year program specifically prepared for international students, strictly speaking, 9 months.

　　Anyone with a Bachelor of Laws degree or above may apply for an LLM in the United States. There are usually two main types of people who read LLM: one is a lawyer with work experience. The second is some students who have just graduated from undergraduate degrees.

　　LLM, generally divided into two types:

　　Generalized Studies

　　Specialized Studies

　　Generalized Studies provides a brief introduction to the basic institutions and systems of the United States, focusing on the study of legal theory knowledge. The Specialized Program is a course for specific research directions, providing specialized legal research and study, including environmental law, comparative law, bankruptcy law, intellectual property law and other professional laws.

　　JSD

　　JSD is a doctorate in law, equivalent to PhD in other fields, with the goal of cultivating legal research talents.

　　This degree is the most advanced degree in the U.S. law school education system, and if you want to apply, you need to earn two law degrees. For Chinese students, an UNDERGRADUATE LAW DEGREE is required to have an LLM degree in the United States, and for U.S. students, they need to obtain a JD and LLM degree before they can apply.

　　In addition to completing a certain number of credits, students are also required to write a research paper that has an impact on the legal academic community. As a result, S.J.D. students typically take three to five years to complete their degree.

　　There are many specific legal branches of American colleges and universities, although they are all related to law, but the content of research between different fields varies greatly.

　　In general, the branches of the law school include administrative law, constitutional law, criminal law and criminal procedure, commercial law and labor law, court and trial procedure, family law, property law, tort law and insurance law, intellectual property law, international and comparative law, and legal history.

　　If you want to apply to the top 14 law school in the United States, you also need to meet the following conditions (reference conditions):

　　· GPA 3.8+；

　　· Internship experience in well-known foreign law firms;

　　· Overseas academic exchanges: obtaining letters of recommendation from professors, publishing research papers, etc.;

　　· The toefl admissions score is around 110.

　　Recommended by American law schools

　　The U.S. Law School Rankings is an independent branch, often referred to as the Top 14 law schools, or T14 for short. These 14 universities have never fallen out of the 14th place, the teaching level is very stable, and it has always been a "place of contention" for law school applicants!

　　In lao Mei's eyes, these 14 American law schools are also divided into three major groups, namely the "YHS" Group, the "CCN" Group and eight others:

　　· "YHS" Group: Yale (Yale), Harvard (Harvard), Stanford (Stanford). The top of the top, the gold content is particularly high, of course, for international students to apply for the difficulty is also very high.

　　· "CCN" groups: Columbia (Columbia), U Chicago (University of Chicago), NYU (New York University). As the second class of T14, the three schools have in common that they are very well located, and for children's shoes for law majors, employment is also key.

　　· The remaining eight: Upenn (Penn), UC Berkeley (University of California, Berkeley), Umich (University of Michigan), UVA (University of Virginia), Duke (Duke), Northwestern (Northwestern University), Cornell (Cornell University), georgetown (Georgetown University).

　　Yale Law School

　　Yale Law School has been named "America's Best Law School" by various rankings for many consecutive years, and offers a number of programs, in addition to JD, LLM, JSD, MSL and PhD programs.

　　LLM is a General program that only accepts STUDENTS with a JD or bachelor's degree in law. JSD only accepts graduates of yale LLM programs. MSL, an abbreviation for Master of Studies in Law, is a one-year program for those who have no legal background but are interested in law, requiring applicants to graduate with a Ph.D. or a journalist with many years of experience. The PhD program lasts three years and requires applicants to have a JD degree from an American university.

　　Harvard Law School

　　Harvard Law School is the oldest law school in the United States, with a variety of law degrees: JD, LLM, JSD, and many dual degree programs in collaboration with other colleges, such as JD/MPP, JD/MPH, etc.

　　Among them, the JD and LLM programs are domestic students can directly apply for the program, JSD belongs to the highest degree program opened by Harvard Law School, only 10-12 students are enrolled every year, generally requiring applicants to have an LLM degree from Harvard Law School or other top law schools in the United States to apply, in fact, non-Harvard Law School graduates are difficult to admit to the JSD program.

　　Stanford Law School

　　Stanford Law School offers 5 law programs in JD, LLM, JSD, JSM and MLS.

　　The LLM program has four research directions, including environmental law and policy, international economic law and business and policy, and the applicant must have more than 2 years of work experience. JSM is run by the Stanford International Law Studies Program, which is independent of the LLM application, so international students can apply for both the JSM and LLM programs.

　　University of Chicago School of Law

　　The University of Chicago is a mecca for the field of economics, and its law school is also known for its economic law, so it has become one of the popular institutions for applicants who like economic law. The University of Chicago LL.M. program does not have compulsory courses and does not prescribe courses that cannot be taken, meaning students can organize their course content with complete flexibility.

　　The LLM program belongs to the General Program, and students have the flexibility to choose courses for 1 year. The JD program is aimed at undergraduate applicants with no legal background and lasts for 3 years. The MSL program is designed for students who have completed the core doctoral program and are studying their dissertations, and graduates who mostly become scholars in their doctoral disciplines or legal fields for a period of one year.

　　New York University School of Law

　　NYU is the watershed of T6, and one of NYU's strengths is its geographical advantage – located in the heart of Manhattan, its international law and tax law are the first in the United States, and commercial law, intellectual property law and financial law are also very strong. NYU is not as difficult to apply as the previous five schools, and the number of students enrolled is also larger.

　　Attached is a list of application materials for U.S. universities:

　　● Universal application form

　　Standardized test scores, such as SAT or ACT/SAT special tests/AP tests, as well as English language proficiency tests such as TOEFL or IELTS

　　● Letters of recommendation

　　● Essays (personal statements, personal statements)

　　● Resume

　　● Provide school transcripts (recorded from grade 9 onwards)

　　● Others (e.g. art majors will require portfolios, creative courses will require you to perform live, etc.)

　　● Proof of financial guarantee

　　Universal Application Form

　　The application form is generally divided into two types: paper and electronic, and most schools recommend that students apply online, which saves time and can check the status of the application online.

　　The application form is usually the first material that the admissions officer sees about you, so don't have low-level problems such as capitalization, spelling errors, etc. First impressions matter!

　　Standardized test scores

　　Original transcripts of IELTS, TOEFL, GRE or GMAT. These are the language test scores specifically requested by American universities to prove that the applicant has sufficient language proficiency to study and live in the United States.

　　Prepare letters of recommendation

　　Applicants are generally required to provide 3 letters of recommendation in English, and some schools only require 2 letters. The letter of recommendation should explain the basic situation of the recommended person and introduce the achievements of the recommender, including academic papers, scientific research achievements, awards obtained, and abilities possessed.

　　Generally, the head of the department and the professional tutor write a letter of recommendation, and it is best to get a letter of recommendation from the president or a tutor with a senior academic title or a more influential tutor in the academic community, which greatly strengthens the strength of the recommendation, but the 2-3 recommenders must have real contact with the applicant.

　　Prepare paperwork

　　Paperwork is the main way for admissions officers to get to know you! The instrument is also a personal statement, and its main purpose is to tell the admissions officer: Who you are.

　　A personal statement is an important document that affects admission. Personal statements should be truthful, comprehensive, concise, and meet the requirements of U.S. university regulations, and should not be omitted. A personal statement is especially important for whether or not to receive a scholarship. You can fully reflect your abilities through text to the school you are applying to. In addition, schools applying for undergraduate students usually require one to several propositional or essay essays.

　　Prepare your CV

　　The CV is the applicant's instruction manual, and the admissions office teacher can learn all your information in the fastest time. So a good resume can add luster to your application.

　　In addition, pay attention to the English resume as far as possible in line with the Writing Habits, Format and Expression of Americans, so that they can have an accurate understanding of you.

　　Provide transcripts of your school

　　Applicants are required to provide academic certificates and school transcripts. This proves that the applicant has completed the domestic stage of study and met the admission requirements of the American university. At the same time, the transcript can show the applicant's past learning ability and educational background, proving that he or she is also capable of successfully completing his studies in the future.

　　Transcripts need to be issued by the school, one in both Chinese and English, sealed by the school and stamped with the official seal. Transcripts are best provided by the school to provide the average grade in school and converted to the U.S. four-point GPA, the higher the GPA, the better it is to apply to a good school.

　　Other supporting documents

　　To highlight your strengths, it is advisable to provide other documents that fully demonstrate your talents. For example, experience in participating in social activities, certificates of expertise, certificates of invention, certificates of awards for published articles and various competitions, resumes, copies of published papers, information on subjects to be studied, fields of study involved in studies, and information about tutors, etc.

　　Proof of financial guarantee

　　Proof of financial support is mainly used to confirm that you can indeed afford to pay tuition, which can be done at the beginning of the application. The issuance of relevant bank deposits or financial aid certificates for relatives and friends needs to include the total expenditure of tuition and living expenses in the first year of the school, so the application materials for studying abroad are indispensable to go to the bank to freeze the proof for 3-6 months, indicating that the money can fully cover future expenses and promise to the school. Different schools and majors will be different, generally about 30w-50w.

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