LLM Law

Graduate Taught (level 9 nfq, credits 90)

The LLM General programme affords you the opportunity to choose any combination of the graduate modules offered by the Sutherland School of Law. Members of staff in the Sutherland School of Law have engaged in major research across the areas of law reflected in the modules offered in the programme ranging from cross-border divorce law, the socio-economic rights of asylum seekers to the regulation of charities in Ireland.

  • To understand and think critically about various facets of Law;
  • To apply their knowledge and understanding of Law to real and hypothetical factual situations;
  • To conduct independent research and write coherent, well-structured papers.

Careers & Employability

The deeper understanding and knowledge of law acquired through the programme is highly regarded by employers and has been the basis for many successful varied careers, both domestically and internationally. Recent employers include Mason Hays & Curran, Eversheds LLP and Maples & Calder.

Several UCD careers events are held throughout the year, including dedicated law careers fairs which are attended by top employers. For specific careers advice, the UCD Sutherland School of Law has a dedicated careers advisor on its academic faculty.

Curricular information is subject to change


Full Time option suitable for:

Domestic(EEA) applicants: Yes
International (Non EEA) applicants currently residing outside of the EEA Region. Yes

Part Time option suitable for:

Domestic(EEA) applicants: Yes
International (Non EEA) applicants currently residing outside of the EEA Region. No

The Sutherland School of Law offers a wide range of modules for the Masters programmes. Modules of especial interest to those undertaking this programme include:

Environmental Law and Policy - Environmental law forms a fundamental part of how our society interacts with its natural surroundings. This course comprises a practical, in-depth examination of environmental law, with a focus on European and international perspectives. It will trace the development of EU and international environmental law to date and will analyze the legal principles applied to environmental protection. 

Immigration and Asylum Law  - States have a right under international law to limit access by non-citizens to a state. However, this right is necessarily limited and prescribed. Immigration and asylum law raise questions regarding the ability of states to regulate or control in-ward migration for certain categories of non-citizen. Immigration & Asylum: Law, Politics & Rights is designed for both law and non-law students. With profound changes expected to the Irish immigration and asylum systems over the coming years, this course will be useful to a wide variety of individuals. A sound knowledge and understanding of the legal rules and principles that have evolved to govern immigration and asylum law is useful and necessary for all persons operating in government, national and international governmental organisations, politics, business, as practising lawyers, policy makers, or as rights advocates within the international and national non-governmental sector (NGOs). 

Corporate Governance will cover both the legal and regulatory environment and the informational and market infrastructures which apply in Ireland and the wider EU. The objective of this module is to develop an understanding of the development of corporate governance and its importance to companies and their stakeholders. It seeks to provide a framework for analysing how regulations impact on corporate decision-making, ethics and planning. The module will investigate the processes of supervision and control within companies and determine what the primary aims of those processes should be. It will examine the regulations and norms which seek to ensure that directors act in the interests of shareholders or wider stakeholder groups as appropriate. It will examine both the theory and the reality of shareholder democracy. Throughout the module, consideration will be given to the important question of determining the appropriate form of regulation to achieve the desired aims of corporate governance.

CIEL

The Comparative International and European Law (CIEL) programme is an exchange programme for registered full-time LLM students. The programme includes joint thesis supervision with academic colleagues at both the home and host institution. Upon successful completion students are awarded the CIEL certificate in addition to their LLM award.

 

Maastricht University (Courses through English: English as first language or an overall score of score 6.5 in IELTS)

Universität Mannheim (Courses through German: German as first language, Leaving Certificate B2 or equivalent)

Universitat Pompeu Fabra (Courses through English: English as first language or an overall score of score 6.5 in IELTS)

Université Toulouse 1 Capitole (Courses through French: French as first language, Leaving Certificate B2 or equivalent)

University of Antwerp (Courses through English: English as first language or an overall score of score 6.5 in IELTS)

University of Zagreb (Courses through English: English as first language or an overall score of score 6.5 in IELTS)

 

Students admitted to LLM programmes holding a 2:1 in their undergraduate Law degree and relevant language results are eligible to apply in late September/Early October when they have begun their programme. Spaces are allocated on a competitive basis. Open to September start students only.​

 

LLM Exchange to the University of Melbourne

Sutherland School of Law will offer one full-time registered LLM, September start, student the opportunity to spend Semester Two of their full-time LLM programme in the University of Melbourne. This is open only to students admitted to an LLM programme holding a high 2:1 in their undergraduate Law degree. Allocation will be based on academic performance to date and interview. Application to this will open in October.

Additional Notes for Applicants:

  • Please note that the Part Time programme has the same timetable as the full time programme but is held over 2 years rather than 1 year.
  • There will be dissertation seminars in weeks 1-4 on Tuesdays and Wednesdays 11-1pm (Jan-May term)
  • January start full time students will be expected to submit a dissertation title as soon as they have registered for the programme, January, and will have to submit a proposal and poster within the first  weeks of their first  semester.

NEW Double Degree Masters in Law with University Western Australia located in beautiful Perth

This 1+1 Double Degree consists of two separate awards: a UCD SSoL  one-year taught Masters Degree  followed by a UWA Law School one year taught Masters Degree.

The UCD SSoL degree will be from one of the following programmes

● LLM General,

● LLM International Commercial Law,

● LLM in Criminology & Criminal Justice,

● LLM in IP and IT Law,

● LLM in International Human Rights,

● LLM European Law and Public Affairs,

● MSc Criminology and Criminal Justice,

● MSc International Law and Business AND

 

The UWA Law School one year taught Masters Degree can be taken in one of the following fields:

● Master of International Commercial Law,

● Master of International Law,

● Master of Taxation Law,

● Master of Law, Policy and Government,

● Master of Commercial and Resources Law, and

● Master of Mining and Energy Law. 

More details on the UWA programmes available

https://www.uwa.edu.au/able/schools/law-school#anchor-Courses-9D61DB9F-11D2-4ED0-AFA5-9AC77FF94CCB

 

The academic calendar at UWA extends from February to June (Semester 1) and July to November (Semester 2). So the first entrants from UCD will take place in February 2020

Students transferring from UCD will be required to meet normal overseas admission standards before being admitted to the UWA Masters programme i.e. the equivalent of a Weighted Average Mark of 60% overall in the first year of their UCD Masters study

Each student shall pay the full annual fees for the programme to the institution they are studying at for the year of payment.

         Each year, UWA may award full or partial tuition fee scholarships to the best qualified UCD candidates who commence the UWA Masters programme. The number of these full or partial scholarships and eligibility for them may be determined by UWA in accordance with the number of students entering the programme and/or their academic performance.

It is expected that these will be as follows:

-    For Students with a UWA WAM equivalent of 70% (UCD GPA of 3.08) or greater a fee waiver of $A5,000 per annum.

-    For Students with a UWA WAM equivalent of 75% (UCD GPA of 3.38) or greater a fee waiver of $A8,000 per annum.

-    For Students with a UWA WAM equivalent of 80% (UCD GPA of 3.68) or greater a fee waiver of $A10,000 per annum.

 

The programme gives students, who already hold an undergraduate law degree or have practised law for a significant period, specialised and in-depth knowledge of the law and acquire a profound understanding of how law works in theory and in practice, both in Ireland and elsewhere. The qualification enhances students' prospects of employment or promotion in law firms, domestically and internationally, while providing knowledge, skills and experience applicable in a wide variety of careers.

Students are challenged to think critically about the social, cultural and political dimensions of the law, as well as the technical aspects of its applications. The understanding thereby acquired is relevant to their contribution as citizens in an increasingly wide range of areas, as well as to their chosen careers.

We strive for a learning environment that encourages students to work individually or as part of a team, so that they can develop their own and others' leadership, teamwork and communication skills, with a special emphasis on the applicability of these in the practice of law.

To these ends, the programme makes intensive use of teaching, learning and assessment approaches such as small-group teaching, in-class presentations (individual and group) and academic writing. A 30 credit dissertation on a topic devised by the student is an integral part of the programme. 

  • apply their knowledge and understanding of the law and their problem-solving abilities in diverse environments.
  • demonstrate specialised knowledge and understanding of Irish, and/or European and/or International Law
  • have the intellectual toolkit required to research and write a major dissertation.
  • integrate source material from a variety of disciplinary areas to reach reasoned decisions about the relative status of competing claims to knowledge.
  • unpack complex legal arguments and to render intelligible to a non-specialist audience, key disciplinary insights.
  • use knowledge of substantive law to critique arguments as to whether and how the law studied is in need of reform.

View All Modules Here

The LLM requires the completion of 90 ECTS. The dissertation is worth 30 ECTS and there is a dissertation seminar in semester 2 for 2 hours per week with the dissertation being completed in Semester 3.

The typical enrolment for a full-time student is 3 modules in Semester 1 and 2. Although all modules are available, students on this programme usually choose from the following modules. 

Part-time students, taking the degree over two years, should note that classes are as for those taking the full time option, but will take less credits per semester as they have 2 years to complete this programme.

For January start Full Time students the Dissertation seminars begin straight away and the dissertation will take place during the summer

LLM Law (B294) Full Time
EU          fee per year - € 11500
nonEU    fee per year - € 22600

LLM Law (B295) Part Time
EU          fee per year - € 5340
nonEU    fee per year - € 11300

***Fees are subject to change

Undergraduates who are eligible for government SUSI funding should note that their fees for graduate study may also be covered under the scheme. To check your eligibility please see the SUSI eligibility indicator tool available at this weblink

Further information about SUSI grants and funding is available at this weblink.

Tuition fee information is available on the UCD Fees website. Please note that UCD offers a number of graduate scholarships for full-time, self-funding international students, holding an offer of a place on a UCD graduate degree programme. For further information please see International Scholarships  (Non-EU Students)  and http://www.ucd.ie/law/study/scholarships/ (EU Students).

Degree Requirements

  • Applicants must hold a Law degree, or an inter-disciplinary degree in which law was a major component. Applicants must have achieved at least an upper second class honours or equivalent.
  • Applicants holding a Graduate Diploma in Law (60 ECTS Credits) may be considered but will normally be admitted only where they can show an exceptionally strong performance in both their undergraduate degree and diploma.
  • Exemption from these requirements may be given to those with significant, relevant, practical experience or those with a graduate qualification at Masters level or higher in a relevant discipline. Such applicants should state clearly in their application why they feel their qualifications/experiences are appropriate for admission to the programme.
  • These are the minimum entry requirements – additional criteria may be requested for some programmes 

English Language Requirements

  • Applicants whose first language is not English must submit satisfactory evidence of competence in written and spoken English, i.e. overall IELTS 6.5 (including a minimum of 6.5 in the reading and writing parts and no part below 6.0) or 90 in the TOEFL iBT (with a minimum of 22 (reading) and 24 (writing) and no part below 20.) The test results must be less than 2 years old.
  • Students meeting the programme’s academic entry requirements but not the  English language requirements, may enter the programme upon  successful completion of UCD’s Pre-Sessional or International Pre-Master’s Pathway programmes. Please see the following link for further information http://www.ucd.ie/alc/programmes/pathways/ 
  • The School encourages all applicants whose first language is not English to attend the pre-sessional English programme offered by the UCD Applied Language Centre, details of which are available at www.ucd.ie/alc.
  •  International applicants should visit the UCD International Office website (www.ucd.ie/international) for information regarding our campus, location of UCD, visa information, registration and orientation.
  •  
  • Application Procedure
  • Applicants should indicate which programme they are applying for. All applicants should note:

  • Official transcripts must be submitted as proof of examination results by all applicants except UCD graduates.
  • The personal statement is an important component of the application. It should contain information demonstrating your capability to undertake the course successfully. You should detail any relevant research and practical experience including any publications and major essays/projects.
  • Applicants must nominate two academic referees (name, position, postal address, e-mail address and telephone number). If an applicant has been in employment for more than two years, one of the referees must be your employer.
  • Please note: If you are offered a place on the LLM programme, accepting that place is a two-part process. You must submit an on-line acceptance and you must also pay a non-refundable deposit (normally €500) within 15 working days of the date of your offer letter.

 

Letter of Recommendation

http://www.ucd.ie/t4cms/letter%20of%20recommendation%20LLM.pdf

The UCD Sutherland School of Law officially opened its new home in UCD in late 2013. The iconic 5,100m2 facility brings all the teaching, research and professional development activity of the Law School together into a single building. It is the first purpose-built university Law School in Ireland.

The following entry routes are available:

LLM General Jan FT (B397)
Duration
1 Years
Attend
Full Time
Deadline
Closed
LLM General FT (B294)
Duration
1 Years
Attend
Full Time
Deadline
Rolling*
LLM General PT (B295)
Duration
2 Years
Attend
Part Time
Deadline
Rolling*

* Courses will remain open until such time as all places have been filled, therefore early application is advised