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Bucerius Law School Semester Exchange   
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Bucerius Law School Semester Exchange Program
Program Description
Columbia University School of Law has established a semester exchange program with Bucerius Law School ("Bucerius") under which up to two Columbia Law students may spend the fall 3L semester in Hamburg acquiring up to 12 credits toward the J.D. degree. Established in 2000, Bucerius is the first private law school in Germany, with a mission to prepare students for an increasingly international legal environment. The semester exchange with Columbia is an English language program with a curriculum focusing on international and business Law and includes such courses as a survey course on Aspects of German Business Law, Banking Regulations froma Compariative Perspective, and Law of the WTO.  Those students who speak German will be able to select additional law courses from the German language curriculum.
Location
The Bucerius campus is located in the center of Hamburg, in the Old Botanical Garden next to the Hamburg State Courts. The school is small, modern, and well-equipped. Approximately 100 students are admitted per year. (Bucerius Law School facilities, excluding the library cupola, are accessible to individuals with disabilities.)
Dates
The program is available to 3Ls in the fall semester only. At Bucerius, the fall semester is 12 weeks long including a 2-week exam period, and runs from early September to mid-December.
Eligibility & Application Procedure

Each year, two Columbia Law students are selected to study at Bucerius for one semester and an equal number of students from Bucerius will study at Columbia. Applications are available from the Office of International Programs, 6th floor, Warren Hall.  Students are selected based on the following criteria:  

ˇ      Statement of Educational Objectives

ˇ      Columbia Transcript

ˇ      Resume

ˇ      Faculty Recommendation

 

The deadline for applications is early February for the following year and students will be notified in early April whether they have been accepted.  As with any of Columbia's foreign study programs located in Europe, it is recommended that students take a course on European Law prior to participation.  Final acceptance to the program is subject to Bucerius approval; selected students will be asked to submit a Bucerius application by the end of April.

Description of Courses & Credit Hours

Course descriptions and a schedule of classes are available from the Office of International Programs as well as from the Bucerius website.

 

The Bucerius program is divided into two sessions with a one-week exam period following each session:  The first session is from September to October with exams at the end of October; and the second session is November to December, with exams in mid-December. Each session offers about five courses. During the week between the two sessions, exchange students go as a group on a week-long study trip to Berlin.

 

In order to satisfy residency requirements, the American Bar Association prescibes that a minimum of 11 CLS credits be taken at a foreign institution. Most courses at Bucerius are worth 2 credits, so students should take approximately 3 courses per session to total 12 credits. It is important that students confirm the number of credits they will be getting from Columbia Law School at the time of their registration at the foreign school.

 

As with all of the Law School's foreign programs, students earn credit only for those courses which are offered through the faculty of law. 

Requirements for Student Performance & Grading Methods

Exchange students are evaluated by the same standards that are applied to other students, which may include any combination of attendance, classroom participation, oral presentation, papers, and written exams. Each course will end with an examination. Columbia will accept  credit for only those courses passed with a C or above. Acceptance of any grade for any course taken in the program is subject to the determination by Columbia Law School.

 

In addition, students must submit written monthly summaries of their course work which will be reviewed by the CLS faculty sponsor. Reports can be brief (one page in length per course) and can be e-mailed to the Office of International Programs and to the student's faculty advisor at Columbia. Students who fail to comply with this requirement will not receive credit regardless of their grades at Bucerius.

 

Students should be aware that foreign grading systems may differ significantly from those employed in the United States. Unlike at Columbia, students at foreign law schools often fail courses the first time they take the examinations. While this is not common among Columbia students studying abroad, it has happened. Since Columbia gives credit only for those courses passed with a C or above, students studying abroad may wish to take extra courses in order to insure that they will receive the necessary number of credits.

 

Transcripts will be provided by Bucerius to Columbia.  Students' Columbia transcripts will reflect only credit for classes passed.

Degree Requirements
Please note: participation in an exchange program or semester study abroad program does not exempt students from any requirements for the J.D. degree (i.e. pro bono service, writing credits etc).
Tuition
Columbia students continue to pay Columbia tuition, health insurance and health service fees. Other Columbia student fees are waived. Students may waive health insurance and health service fees at Columbia if alternative coverage is obtained.
Cancellation
Bucerius Law School reserves the right to cancel any course for reasons of insufficient student registration. If changes are announced prior to a student's departure from the U.S., and the student is unable to identify satisfactory substitute courses, the student may choose to withdraw from the program. If cancellation occurs after the student has arrived in Germany, substitute courses must be selected and submitted for approval to the Dean of International Programs and Graduate Legal Studies of Columbia Law School.
Parker School
Students participating in a semester study abroad program are eligible to receive up to 7 of the 10 academic points in international, foreign or comparative law required for Parker School recognition. Students should contact the Parker School upon completion of the program to ascertain how many credits will be awarded for their foreign study.
Contact Individuals & Application

Office of International Programs
tel: (212) 854-8170; fax: (212) 854-9742
e-mail: internationalprograms@law.columbia.edu

Mailing Address:
International Programs
Columbia Law School
435 W. 116th St
New York, NY 10027

Columbia Law School's Office of International Programs is located at:
William and June Warren Hall (WJ)
1125 Amsterdam Avenue, 6th Floor.


Bucerius Law School
Hochschule fur Rechtswissenschaft gGmbH JunguisstraBe 6
D-20355 Hamburg, Germany
tel. 040-30-706-0 fax. 040-30-706-105 Fax: 49 40 41 33 67 00
website:
www.law-school.de

 

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