Columbia Law School

Columbia Law School



Admissions Standards



Strong preference is given to applicants who have at least one year of work experience after earning their first law degree. Only in exceptional circumstances are applications from candidates who are in their final year of law school considered. Applicants who have not yet graduated must demonstrate that their admission to the program would enable them to realize an immediate and specific career objective that would not otherwise be attainable. Foreign applicants who have already had a year of residence in an American law school are ineligible for admission.

Graduates of All Other Law Schools

The purpose of the LL.M. Program for these degree candidates is to provide an introduction to new areas of interest to them as well as the opportunity to further specialize in their current area of practice, and is generally restricted to those who achieved honor status in their undergraduate legal studies.

International lawyers who intend to reside permanently and to practice law in the United States should apply for the J.D. degree, the first degree in law, rather than the LL.M. The J.D. program is normally three years of full-time study. Generally, a maximum of one year's advanced standing toward the J.D. degree at Columbia may be granted for graduate legal studies completed in the United States or another common law country. Such standing, however, is determined on an individual basis by request of the student after an offer of admission has been made. No advanced standing is given for legal studies completed in a civil law country. Completion of an LL.M. degree at Columbia Law School does not guarantee admission to the J.D. program.  Law firms have proved generally reluctant to offer permanent employment to foreign-trained lawyers. Internships for periods of up to one year may be available, but should not be expected.

Special Application Procedure for LL.M. Admission

(Not applicable for admission to the J.S.D. or Associates-in-Law Programs)  We recommend that applicants to the LL.M. program who graduated from law schools outside of the U.S.A. or Canada register with the Law School Admissions Council's (LSAC) LL.M. Credential Assembly Service. This service is designed to save you time and money, especially if you intend to apply to a number of U.S. or Canadian graduate law degree programs. For a registration fee of U.S. $185, LSAC will collect and authenticate your university records and TOEFL/TOEFL iBT and TWE scores, and will distribute them to the schools to which you are applying. Thus you will need to obtain only one set of transcripts and other required academic credentials. The registration fee includes five law school reports; for an additional fee, applicants can purchase additional reports. Further information about this service is available at www.LLM.LSAC.org. Please note that all applicants for admission to the LL.M. Program, including those who register with LSAC, must complete Columbia Law School's application form and submit it directly to Columbia Law School, together with your letters of recommendation, Personal Statement, and application fee (see below).  LSAC will not collect these materials for Columbia.

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Application Deadlines

Completed applications for both the Early Review Program and the regular admission cycle, together with the required supporting materials, should be sent to: Office of Graduate Legal Studies Columbia University School of Law 435 West 116th Street, MC 4036 New York, NY 10027-7297 The Office of Graduate Legal Studies telephone number is (212) 854-2655; the fax number is (212) 854-9742; and the e-mail address is gls@law.columbia.edu. We regret that we cannot acknowledge receipt or completion of applications by telephone, fax or e-mail. Faxed applications will not be accepted. We cannot download any attachments. If you plan to send your application by courier, please note that Columbia University does not accept courier deliveries on Saturdays or Sundays. All application materials become the property of the Graduate Legal Studies program and as such will not be returned to the applicant under any circumstances. Please note: Applicants who submit an online application should not include a paper application with their supporting documents, as doing so will significantly delay the processing of the application and the timing of the admissions decision.  Early Review Program (LL.M. Applicants Only) LL.M. Program applicants for the 2009-2010 academic year except those who are in their final year of law school in their home countries and reapplicants from 2008-2009 have the option of applying through the Early Review Program. Applicants wishing to be considered under the Early Review Program must submit their applications online; we will not accept paper applications for the Early Review Program.  In addition, to be considered for Early Review, all application materials, including supporting documents and TOEFL scores, must be postmarked no later than November 3, 2008, and the applicant should specify that he or she wishes to be considered for Early Review by checking the appropriate box on the application form. If all materials are not postmarked by November 3, 2008, the applicant will automatically be considered for admission in the regular cycle. The Office of Graduate Legal Studies will provide a decision for early applicants at the end of December. Applicants will be admitted, rejected, or deferred to the regular admission cycle. Applicants admitted through the Early Review Program will not be required to withdraw their applications to other LL.M. programs or to make an early binding commitment to Columbia Law School. Admitted candidates will be required to notify us of their intention to matriculate in early March. Regular Application Deadline Applications and all supporting documents for the 2009-2010 academic year must be postmarked no later than December 15, 2008. Applications postmarked after this date will be returned unread. Admissions decisions are made on a rolling basis, in most cases no later than late April.

Application Forms

Applicants for admission to the LL.M., J.S.D., and Associates-in-Law Programs must complete, sign and submit Columbia Law School’s Application for Admission to Graduate Legal Studies (“application form”). Applicants should carefully follow the application instructions.  We strongly encourage all applicants to submit their applications online. While submitting a paper application will not affect an applicant’s admissions decision, it may significantly delay the processing of the application and the timing of the decision.  If you are unable to complete the application online, you may send an e-mail to the Office of Graduate Legal Studies (gls@law.columbia.edu) to request a paper application.  Include in your message the reason you are unable to complete the application online.  (Please note: if you are applying online, you should not submit a paper application form with your supporting documents, as doing so will significantly delay the processing of your application and the timing of your admissions decision.  Send the documents alone, with your name clearly marked on each piece, and we will match them to your online application.)  Provide as much information as possible on the online application. To avoid any confusion or delay in the processing of your application, please make sure to consistently use the same form of your proper name and to keep us informed of any changes to your contact information (including mailing address, e-mail address and telephone number). When mailing your supporting documents, please do not place each sheet in a separate folder or sleeve.

Application Fee

You must submit an application fee of U.S. $75 with your application. This fee is non-refundable and will not be credited against tuition if you enroll. The fee must be paid in U.S. dollars, and may be paid by credit card (MasterCard or Visa only), a check drawn on a bank located in the U.S., traveler’s checks, or a bank or postal money order. Checks must have mica numbers and fraction numbers (the numbers at the bottom of the check) which may not be typed in. Payment should be made out to “Columbia University.” To pay by credit card, please provide the following information: (1) type of card: MasterCard or Visa; (2) the name exactly as it appears on the card; (3) the account number; and (4) the month and year of expiration (month first, then year). We cannot accept Japanese International or Canadian Postal Money Orders; checks drawn on foreign banks (even if in U.S. dollars); UNESCO coupons; wire/bank transfers; or cash.  Online applicants will be able to pay the fee by credit card after they submit their application.

TOEFL/TWE or TOEFL iBT

(Test Of English as a Foreign Language/Test of Written English)  All applicants except those whose both native and working language is English or who earned their first law degree entirely in English must take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and the Test of Written English (TWE) or the TOEFL iBT.  The minimum scores required for admission are: TOEFL iBT: 105 overall score, 26 on the Reading and Listening sections and 24 on the Writing and Speaking sections; Paper-based TOEFL / TWE: 620 overall score, 59/60 on the Structure/Writing and Reading sections and 60/61 on the Listening section, and 5.0 on the TWE If your scores fall below these levels, your chances of admission could be adversely impacted even if other factors in your application are strong.  You must decide whether to repeat the test based on how far below these scores your results fall; we cannot make this decision for you. Applicants should register for and take the TOEFL by the November 3 or December 15 deadline.  Although applicants may include a copy of their student score report with their application, Columbia must receive the official test results directly from ETS. Applicants who register with LSAC (see “Special Application Procedure” above) do not need to send an official report to Columbia Law School; LSAC will send it. Columbia University’s institution code is 2163; the Law School’s code is 03. No other examination is required. Waivers of the TOEFL/TWE requirement are almost never granted. Therefore, applicants who request a waiver should assume the request will be denied and make arrangements to take the test by the deadline. Requests for waivers on the grounds that an applicant has run out of time to take the exam or works primarily in the English language will not be granted.

Certificate of Proficiency in English

This form must be completed and returned with your application.

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Personal Statement

You must submit a detailed Personal Statement describing your background, academic interests, the program of study you wish to follow and your reasons for doing so. This statement should be prepared without assistance from others, and should not exceed three double-spaced pages. Your application will not be considered without such a statement. We will not accept a résumé or curriculum vitae in place of the Personal Statement.

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Resume or Curriculum Vitae

While resumes are not required, you may submit one for consideration as part of your application. Individuals applying for an Associates-in-Law position must include their resume with their applications.

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Transcripts and Diplomas

(Forms are not provided.)  If you have not registered with LSAC, you must submit an official transcript and, where applicable, a diploma or proof of degree from each college, university, graduate school and law school you have attended, whether or not you earned a degree. If you are unable to submit original documents, you may submit certified copies. If the originals are not in English, you must submit an official, certified translation of each document in addition to the original document. If you are in school at the time you submit your application, please send us your most recent transcript with your application, and send us an updated one once your fall grades are available. Please note: evaluations of transcripts from companies other than LSAC, such as those from WES, are not acceptable alone as they do not include original or official copies of your transcripts.  They are acceptable only if accompanied by both the original (or certified copies of the original) and certified translations of your official transcripts.  If your rank does not appear on your transcript, we must receive a separate, official statement of rank from your law school. If your law school does not rank its graduates, we must receive an official statement to this effect.

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Letters of Recommendation

(Forms are not provided.) We require two original letters of recommendation from your law school professors, employers, supervisors, or other persons qualified to appraise your academic potential for graduate legal studies. At least one letter should come from a law school professor. If you have work experience (in addition to internships while in school), one letter should also come from a work supervisor.  "To Whom It May Concern" letters (which tend to be very general), letters from friends, and letters from prominent persons who have not supervised your work are not helpful. Letters of recommendation must be written by the recommender on official letterhead and addressed to the Office of Graduate Legal Studies. If your recommenders are unable to print the letters on official letterhead, ask them to include an explanation as to why they are unable to do so. (If your recommenders cannot write in English, please submit certified translations together with the original letters.) We reserve the right to disqualify letters written or translated, in part or in whole, by the applicant.  Please do not submit more than two letters. Even if you indicate that you are submitting more than two letters of recommendation, we will consider an application complete once we have received two letters of recommendation and all other required supporting documentation. Note: Transcripts and letters of recommendation should be sent with your other supporting documents in sealed envelopes.

Admissions Decisions

Admissions decisions for the Early Review Program are made at the end of December.  Applicants will either be accepted, rejected or deferred to the regular admission cycle.  All other admissions decisions are made on a rolling basis, in most cases no later than early May.  Decisions will first be sent by e-mail.  It is therefore imperative that you give us an e-mail address that is valid.  Many companies have put up firewalls and messages get returned to us.  Therefore, we recommend using a personal e-mail account (gmail, hotmail, yahoo) or speaking with your firm's or company's IT department to make sure that messages from Columbia Law School will not be blocked.  All decisions are mailed from gls@law.columbia.edu.