University of Amsterdam - Amsterdam Law School

The Law School

The Amsterdam Law School (http://www.studeren.uva.nl/law-programmes) of the University of Amsterdam has a long standing tradition of offering English taught LL.M. programmes. The programmes draw students from all over the world, which brings a truly international atmosphere to the Law School.

The LL.M. programmes are designed to qualify their graduates for international careers in European and international institutions, international business, law firms, government departments and nongovernmental organizations. They also provide a strong writing and research basis for those seeking to write a Ph.D. in the fields of international and European (public or private) law.

The Amsterdam Law School offers a great variety of specialized courses. Professors of the Law School all participate in the Faculty’s research institutes and bring current insights and developments into their teaching.

The Amsterdam Law School and Columbia Law School present the LLM in International Criminal Law.

Since September 2008, the Amsterdam Law School, together with Columbia School of Law offers the Master in International Criminal Law, which is the first programme of its kind to focus on international criminal law as a distinct field of legal study. The central aim of the programme is to train a new style of international criminal lawyers by obtaining a broad and deep understanding of international criminal law issues and to develop academic skills by analyzing such issues. This is accomplished by benefiting from a dual perspective on international criminal law, a common law and criminal law oriented focus at Columbia University and a civil law and criminal law perspective at the Amsterdam Law School.

From September 2009 onwards, the Amsterdam Law School offers a challenging 2 year LL.M. programme in Public International Law (research masters). The programme focuses on ‘the international rule of law’, and the core courses explore this theme from the perspectives of International Criminal Law, International Human Rights Law, Law of Public International Organizations, State Responsibility, and International Law in the National Legal Order. In addition, students are trained in Methods of Legal Research, Comparative Law and Comparative Legal Research, Research Skills, and will participate in research projects of the renowned Amsterdam Center for International Law (ACIL).

The Faculty of Law publishes two international English language journals.

The Program

The Amsterdam law School offers the following LL.M. programmes:

1. International Criminal Law

2. Public International Law: The International Rule of Law, 2 year programme (research master)

3. European Private Law

4. International and European Labour Law

5. International and European Law with the following options:

* Public International Law
* International Trade and Investment Law
* European Union Law
* European Union Business Law

Entry Requirements

General Entry Requirements:

The programmes are open to students who have completed a bachelor degree in law or have attained a comparable level of legal education. In addition, applicants are required to have a solid basic knowledge of European Union Law. Applicants without (part of) this basic knowledge shall take the necessary introductory course of European Union Law (5 EC), which is provided by the Law School in September: the credits thus obtained will not count towards the 60 European Credits requirement of each individual programme.

For all programmes, proficiency in the English language is a prerequisite. The School accepts the following tests:

* TOEFL level 100 (= 250 computer based)
* Cambridge examination: Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE, minimum level C)
* IELTS Test (minimum score 6,5 with a minimum of 6,0 on each sub scale).

The Amsterdam Law School only accepts English language proficiency test results that are no more than one year old at the time of application.
The Netherlands´ immigration rules may exclude a particular proficiency test for nationals of specific countries. Applicants are advised to ascertain the applicable rules prior to application. For information on the applicable immigration rules, please visit the Nuffic website (www.nuffic.nl).

Specific Entry Requirements Research Master Public International Law:

Completion of a Bachelor's programme in law (LLB) at the University of Amsterdam or elsewhere in the Netherlands; or an equivalent degree from a foreign university with an average grade of at least 7,5 (on a scale of 1-10). The Bachelor's programme should, in addition, have been completed at a pace that warrants the expectation of a successful completion of the Research Master within two years.

Applicants will be selected on the basis of study results and motivation by an Admission Board. Selection criteria include prior study results, analytical and writing skills as apparent from the submitted essay or paper, motivation and stamina for pursuing a career in research, curiosity, creativity and independent mind-set. Communications skills and foreign languages skills (particularly English, German and French) are also relevant factors.

Specific Entry Requirements International Criminal Law:

The programme is open for 12 students of the Amsterdam Law School. Students who will obtain their LLB before August 1 2010, and graduate with at least a 7,5 grade average (on a scale of 1-10) can apply for the programme. Please note, for admission to this LLM programme Toefl score of 110 is needed!

Application Procedure

Application for admission to the LL.M. programmes commencing 1 September 2009 need to be filed before 1 May 2010. Application is done online through: pontifex.hum.uva.nl/intake/index.jsp?formid=ALS-LL…

In oder to expedite acceptance, please study and observe the precise requirements. Please be advised that obtaining a residence permit (M.V.V.), should one be required, may take considerable time depending upon the country of application.

Tuition and Fees

For each of the programmes, the tuition fees are for EU-EEA citizens:

* appr. € 1.700 for full-time students;
* appr. € 1.500 for part-time students

For non EU-EEA citizens:

* € 12.000 per year for full-time students.

Note that:

1 applicants are required to pay an administration fee of € 100 and that applications will not be reviewed until the fee has been paid

2 the Netherlands immigration authorities do not issue residence permits for part-time non EU-EEA students.

Financial Aid

Students from outside of the European Economic Area can apply for an Amsterdam Merit scholarship. For further details please visit our website at www.studeren.uva.nl/law-programmes.

Location

Amsterdam Law School
International Office
room A016
P.O. Box 1030
1000 BA Amsterdam
The Netherlands

Visitors:
Oudemanhuispoort 4-6
1012 CN Amsterdam
The Netherlands

Accommodation

The Amsterdam Law School does not guarantee housing.

Summer Program

In July 2011 the Amsterdam Law School organises the Columbia Summer Program in American Law. The Columbia Summer Program has been in existence for almost 50 years, and is a cooperation between Columbia University Law School, Leiden University Law School and the Amsterdam Law School of the University of Amsterdam. Since 1963 the program is held alternately in Leiden and in Amsterdam.

The program is entirely taught by Columbia professors, and is designed to provide a general introduction to the American legal system for lawyers and other (legal) professionals, or (graduate) students interested in the program.

Besides the excellent educational aspects, the Columbia Summer Program is also known for its exceptional fine atmosphere amongst participants and professors from Columbia University.

For more information on the program, please see: www.columbiasummerprogram.org/home.html