UNIVERSITY OF SAN DIEGO SCHOOL OF LAW
LLM Program in Comparative Law
August 15, 2011 – May 12, 2012

Dear TBI Colleagues,

In 2009, the University of San Diego (USD) and the Universidad Autónoma de Baja California (UABC) created a partnership to promote legal education and cross-border exchange, thanks to the generous support of Higher Education for Development (HED) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). As part of this initiative, the USD-UABC Legal Education Program is pleased to announce two full tuition scholarships for Mexican students from Baja California to study in the University of San Diego’s (USD) LLM program for the academic year starting August 15, 2011 and ending May 12, 2012. These scholarships are intended to enrich students understanding of U.S. and comparative legal systems for the purpose of transferring skills and knowledge for professional practice or academic instruction in their home country.

Please forward this opportunity to any interested applicants who have valid TOEFL scores. Applications and visa paperwork must be submitted to the USD LLM program according to the instructions indicated below by Friday, July 1, 2011. To obtain the necessary visa documents, please contact Stephanie Borrowdale at (619) 260-4148 or stephanieb@sandiego.edu. Successful scholarship recipients will be notified by Friday, July 8, 2011. Any additional questions or concerns about the USD-UABC Legal Education Program Scholarship should be directed to Meredith D’Angelo at (619)260-4596 or llminfo@sandiego.edu.

Kind regards,
Trans-Border Institute



ABOUT THE LLM PROGRAM
For 30 years, the LLM in Comparative Law has provided international law school graduates with the opportunity to design a program that specifically suits their academic interests and professional goals. The program offers candidates maximum flexibility in selecting courses from a contemporary and dynamic curriculum, and is ideal for attorneys, judges, professors, and other graduates of international law schools.

• Courses for this program may be selected from many subject areas, including Business and Corporate Law, Criminal Law, Environmental Law, Intellectual Property Law, International Law, Public Law and Tax Law.
• Combining fundamental courses in U.S. Law with the opportunity to select from a broad variety of electives allows candidates to develop a highly personalized LLM program.
• Studying alongside JD and LLM students from the U.S. and around the world prepares LLM candidates to deal effectively with U.S. attorneys on questions of common interest, and to gain a comprehensive understanding of the law and policy in a wide array of subjects.

DEGREE REQUIREMENTS
• Students will begin in the Fall term and complete their degree requirements in 1 academic year.
• A candidate for this LLM degree must successfully complete 25 credit hours of appropriate coursework
• Required courses comprise 3 of the 25 credits:
• Introduction to U.S. Law (2 credits): This course provides a comprehensive overview of the U.S. legal system and comparatively introduces approaches to law, lawyering, and legal processes.
• Lawyering Skills for LLM in Comparative Law Candidates (1 credit): Students learn the research and writing techniques used by practicing U.S. attorneys, including training on both the Lexis and Westlaw electronic legal research systems.
• 2 of the 25 credits must fulfill a written work requirement, which may be satisfied by a thesis or through successful completion of a designated written work course.
• Remaining credits may be chosen from our extensive upper-division elective offerings.
• Full details of the degree requirements may be found in the School of Law Academic Rules in the Student Handbook

APPLYING TO THE PROGRAM

ABOUT THE PROGRAM
International applicants to our LLM programs must possess the equivalent of a U.S. law degree from an accredited institution outside the United States.
• Admission to our LLM programs is competitive and is based primarily upon previous excellence in law studies and significant professional experience.
• Applicants must have graduated in the upper half of their law school class or must otherwise establish qualifications indicating their ability to complete graduate law work successfully.
• Applicants whose native language is not English must establish competency in English through successful completion of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL).
FULL-TIME STUDENT STATUS
• For the USD/UABC Scholarship, An applicant must submit paperwork for a J-1 visa (see below).
• Other visa types may have additional restrictions on enrollment.
• All students are responsible for completing all degree requirements within the time limit specific to each degree.
• All applicants are responsible for submitting all application materials to the University of San Diego’s Law School NO LATER THAN JULY 1, 2011 (see checklist for more detail).
**APPLICATION FEE
• The LLM application fee will be waived when a cover letter indicating your interest in the USD/UABC scholarship is included with your application.


APPLICATIONS MUST BE SUBMITTED NO LATER THAN JULY 1, 2011
USD SCHOOL OF LAW LLM APPLICATION CHECKLIST
http://www.law.sandiego.edu
llminfo@sandiego.edu
(619)260-4596

 APPLICATION (with original signature)
• Apply online through the Law School Admissions Council (LSAC). International applicants may use LSAC’s LLM Credential Assembly Service to submit other required application materials, or may submit them by mail to the address below.
• Complete our PDF application and submit the application with your supporting documents by mail to:
University of San Diego School of Law
Graduate Programs – Warren Hall 207
5998 Alcalá Park
San Diego, California 92110-2492
 APPLICATION FEE WAIVER COVER LETTER: EXPLAIN IN A COVER LETTER WHERE YOU ARE APPLYING FROM, IF YOU ARE APPLYING FOR THE SCHOLARSHIP AND THAT YOU REQUEST AN APPLICATION FEE WAIVER.
 PERSONAL STATEMENT (2-4 pages)
• Personal Statement should address the nature and extent of your legal background, other related professional experience, why you will be a successful candidate for this degree, how you plan to make use of your graduate degree, and any additional information you deem important.
 CURRENT RÉSUMÉ OR CURRICULUM VITAE
 LETTER(S) OF RECOMMENDATION
• Applicants are required to submit one letter of recommendation, but may submit more if desired.
• Letter(s) should be from a legal professional who is familiar with the applicant’s work.
• Letter(s) may be sent directly to the Graduate Programs Office by the recommender, or may be submitted in a sealed envelope along with other application materials from the applicant to the address listed above.
 OFFICIAL LAW SCHOOL TRANSCRIPT(S)
• International applicants must submit an official English translation or evaluation of an official transcript from each law school attended.
• Transcripts should be sent directly from the law school, or may be submitted in a sealed envelope along with other application materials from the applicant.
• For applicants from countries in which a university will only release official transcripts to the student, the applicant may submit a photocopy if a notary or other official third party certifies that the photocopy is a true and correct copy of the original document.
 OFFICIAL TEST OF ENGLISH AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE (TOEFL) SCORE
• Graduates of international law schools are required to submit a TOEFL score.
• Minimum required TOEFL score:
o 98 points on internet-based TOEFL
o 250 points on computer-based TOEFL
o 600 points on paper-based TOEFL
• Applicants must request that the Educational Testing Services submit the applicant’s official TOEFL score directly to our office (institutional code 4849, department code 03).


USD TRANS-BORDER INSTITUTE J-1 VISA CHECKLIST – CONTACT STEPHANIE BORROWDALE AT (619) 260-4148 OR STEPHANIEB@SANDIEGO.EDU TO OBTAIN NECESSARY VISA PAPERWORK.
PLEASE SUBMIT ALL VISA DOCUMENTS TO THE FOLLOWING EMAIL NO LATER THAN
JULY 1, 2011: stephanieb@sandiego.edu


 Color scan of passport (photo page)
 Color scan of visa
 SPN Drug Certification Form
 Biographical Data
 Stakeholder Compact
 Conditions of Sponsorship
 Medical Certification Form

________________________________
Trans-Border Institute
University of San Diego
5998 Alcala Park
San Diego, CA 92110
(619) 260-4090 phone
(619) 260-4161 fax
transborder@sandiego.edu
http://www.sandiego.edu/tbi/