Academic regulations, course requirements and graduation requirements for LLM students can also be found at Graduate Affairs and in the LLM Handbook which also gives an overview of academic and co-curricular opportunities for LLM and Exchange students.
LLM General Degree Requirements and Policies
General Requirements
Please refer to LLM General Degree Requirements.
Attendance Requirement
Please refer to the Class Attendance and Residence Requirements section.
Requirement of Continuous Registration/Leave of Absence
Every candidate for the LLM degree must be in continuous attendance by successfully completing at least one course each semester (excluding the summer session), unless a leave of absence is granted before the start of the semester by the Dean of Students. Leaves of absence are granted only for adequate reason and only to students who are in good academic standing. Students who have not completed their first term at the School of Law are not eligible for a leave of absence. Such students may request withdrawal only, and will be required to reapply to the School of Law in the event they wish to return. A maintenance of matriculation and services fee is charged for each semester a student is on leave of absence.
A leave of absence does not extend the five-year period allotted for obtaining the LLM degree. Please contact the Office of Student Affairs for detailed information.
Change of Status
In rare cases, LLM students may change their status from full-time to part-time or part-time to full-time. Newly accepted students must petition the Office of Graduate Admissions; continuing students must petition the Office of Graduate Affairs. For part-time students, tuition rates will be assessed on a per credit basis, and students should consult the Office of Financial Services for information on the financial implications of a change.
Change of Program
If you wish to change your program, you must submit a petition via e-mail to the Office of Graduate Affairs to initiate this process. You may only transfer from the program to which you have been admitted into another program with the approval of the Director of the program into which you want to transfer. Following the end of the add/drop period for the Spring semester, requests for a change of program by full-time students will only be considered in exceptional circumstances and with the consent of the Faculty Director and the Vice Dean. Requests for change of program by part-time students who have already completed 12 credits will also only be considered in exceptional circumstances and with the consent of the program Director and Vice Dean.
Grading
Please refer to Grading System & Academic Standards for detailed information
Credit/Fail exception for LLM students
*LLM students are not permitted to elect to take classes on a credit/fail basis.*
Non-Classroom Activities for LLM students (Journals, Moot Courts, Teaching and Research Assistantships)
Credits earned during the relatively short span of the LLM are to focus on classroom work. Graduate students are not eligible to receive academic credit for participation in Journals or moot courts. Students who participate in Journals will receive a notation on their transcripts.
Graduate students are not eligible for teaching assistantships. Faculty members may offer LLM students the opportunity to work as research assistants for monetary compensation or, if the professor deems it appropriate based on the nature of the work, for academic credit. For further details, review the information on serving as a research assistant for faculty.
Academic Progress
Please refer to Graduate Division: Academic Progress for further details. Topics covered include:
- LLM Required Grade Point Average
- LLM Re-Registration and Substitution
- Letters of Concern and Warning
- Dismissal for Academic Reasons
Auditing
With the permission of the instructor and subject to such conditions as the instructor may impose, a student may audit a course.
For any advanced Taxation course with an online component, such as “combined,” “parallel,” or “online-only” courses, students who wish to audit must officially register for the course on an audit basis. Please note: part-time, certificate and Executive LLM in Taxation students who register for any such course on an audit basis will be charged tuition and fees for each course.
Courses that are closed (filled) may not be audited. Auditing courses is considered “unofficial,” and students: 1) do not enroll in those courses, 2) do not take examinations in those courses, and 3) do not write papers for those courses. Audited courses do not appear on the student’s transcript. Please note that graduate students may not audit JD-only courses.
Transfer Credit
At the discretion of the Vice Dean, a candidate for the LLM degree may be allowed to transfer credit for courses taken at another institution if: (1) the courses were taken as graduate courses at a law school accredited by the Section of Legal Education of the American Bar Association or an equivalent non-US school; (2) the courses were taken after the candidate received his or her first degree in law; (3) the courses were completed with a grade point average of 3.0 or better (on a 4.0 scale); and (4) the candidate received no credit for these courses toward any other degree. Grades from courses taken at another institution or other divisions of NYU are not used in computing grade point averages.
University regulations require every candidate to complete 16 credit hours in residence at the NYU School of Law in order to qualify for the LLM degree. In addition, Law School regulations require a student to successfully complete the minimum number of in-field credits required for such student’s degree program.
Subject to the foregoing limitations, transfer credit can be obtained for work done either before or after a student’s initial matriculation at the Law School. If a presently enrolled student plans to take a course at another school for transfer credit, the course must be directly related to the study of law in order for credit to be applied towards the LLM degree. Few courses in other disciplines can meet this standard. The student should consult with the Office of Graduate Affairs about his or her plans before registering for the course.
Tax Law Courses (for Students in Other Specializations)
An LLM student who is not enrolled in the Graduate Tax program may not register for more than a total of eight credits of courses in Taxation. Full-time LLM students may not register for online courses offered as part of the Law School’s Executive LLM in Taxation Program except in exigent circumstances. Part-time students may register for a limited number of credits of online courses; foreign-educated students should be aware that online classes are not considered professional law courses for purposes of qualifying to sit for the New York Bar and that they may cause visa issues.
Graduation Eligibility
Please note that you are not responsible for applying for graduation, but you are responsible for making sure that you fulfill all requirements prior to graduation. Neither the Records Office nor the Office of Graduate Affairs is able to monitor the transcripts or curricular choices of every student. Prior to registration for your final term, it is your responsibility to review these requirements to ensure that you will have satisfied all of them. It is highly advisable to have the requirements in mind as you make your course selections. If you have questions about requirements, please contact the Office of Graduate Affairs.
Certification for Bar Examination
It is the student’s responsibility to complete all work and meet all graduation requirements. Unless an extension is granted by the Vice Dean’s office in consultation with the faculty member, students must complete incomplete work from prior semesters no later than May 1 of their final semester. Students must complete all work from their final semester by the last day of the exam period. All grades must be entered by the University Registrar’s Office before a student can be certified to take the bar examination.
It is the student’s responsibility until the date of the bar examination to update all contact information on Albert (e.g., address, phone number, etc.). We must be able to contact you if questions arise.
A student who, at the time of graduation, is financially obligated to the University for tuition, housing (including summer housing after the final semester), library (fines of $100.00 or more or lost books), or other services, or who is not in compliance with University Health Center immunization requirements, will have a “HOLD” placed on his or her account, will not be cleared for graduation, will not be certified for state bar examinations, will not have official transcripts issued, nor have a diploma issued until all arrears have been paid. It is the student’s responsibility to make sure all accounts are cleared and all Stops/Holds are removed. For specific inquiries on the bar examination, review the information posted online in the Bar Exams section of the Records and Registration website.
LLM Specialization Requirements
Please refer to LLM Specialization Requirements to find a list of the LLM specializations and the specific requirements for each program.
Research and Writing Options
Please refer to LLM Research and Writing Options for more information about:
- Directed Research
- LLM Thesis Option
- Writing Credit
Cross-Registration Opportunities
Please refer to Cross-Registration Opportunities for more information.
Post-LLM Degree Study
Please refer to Post-LLM Degree Study for more information.
Exchange Students
Please refer to Exchange Students for more information.