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LL.M. Admissions

  1. Admissions
  2. Graduate Admissions
  3. LL.M. Admissions

Challenge yourself. Broaden your perspective and your network. Rediscover the law and your future in the legal profession.

Attend an Admissions Event!

Columbia Law School strives to admit individuals to the LL.M. Program who are committed to academic and professional excellence and who, through their prior experience, recommendations, and academic history, demonstrate the qualities and skills necessary for rigorous intellectual engagement. Admission decisions are based not only on your potential but also on your demonstrated motivation and self-discipline. For example, how have you:

  • Forged your values and achieved your prior goals? 
  • Chosen to commit your time, energies, and talents? 
  • Made use of your opportunities? 

Diversity of all kinds deeply enriches the Columbia student body. Our admissions process welcomes applicants of all professional and life experiences.

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LL.M. Class of 2025

312

Total Enrolled

63

Countries of Citizenship Represented

26

Number of Named Columbia Fellowships

5

Average Years of Work Experience

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Engage With a Remarkable Community

Each year, we enroll a diverse class of graduate students whose experience spans all areas of the legal profession—including private practice, academia, the judiciary, public service, human rights advocacy, and NGOs. As an LL.M. student, you will form study groups with these accomplished scholars who are as intellectually curious as you are; participate in clinics, moot courts, journals, and pro bono work alongside driven peers; and build lifelong friendships and connections through student organizations at the Law School and across the greater Columbia University campus.

Apply to the LL.M. Program
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Choose Your Path

Our general LL.M. degree allows you to delve into your current specialization, transition to a new practice area, or explore additional areas of study that interest you in and out of the classroom. Engage one-on-one with faculty doing groundbreaking research or participate in popular experiential courses, such as the Deals and Negotiations workshops or clinics. It is all your choice. 

LL.M. Program and Curriculum
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Find Unparalleled Opportunities

Located in New York City—a world capital of law, culture, media, advocacy, and finance—Columbia Law School is the perfect place to hone your skills. Every day, leading legal practitioners visit the Law School to engage students in challenging discussions. In addition, by studying in a global metropolis, your classroom extends beyond Columbia’s gates and across the five boroughs of New York City. A short subway ride transports you from Columbia’s UN General Assembly-style lecture halls to the actual United Nations, and the same MetroCard swipe connects you to offices of those in Columbia Law’s powerful alumni network.

Community Life
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Meet Your Advisers

Those who review your application will also be your advisers at Columbia. This dual role is a win-win for you: You benefit from our experience as academic counselors and our combined decades of knowledge about the LL.M. experience throughout your LL.M. journey.

Office of Graduate Degree Programs
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"The LL.M. program will help you achieve your goals. The courses I've taken have given me clear insight into the human rights field and allowed me to combine my on-the-ground experience with international legal theories. And interacting with students from all over the world has been transformative for me."

Yohanna A. Hailu LL.M. ’22

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