Whats the course in La Trobe for International Students like......And i was interested in International Law...Could anybody tell me if its worth tryin the double degree in International Law and Internatuonal Relations at Macquarie University...... What is the scope after such a degree..............

Actually standards of LLM course is one sided in Australia. Melbourne Law School (University of Melbourne) offers the only LLM course that could be compared to some top UK and USA law school.

Whats the course in La Trobe for International Students like......And i was interested in International Law...Could anybody tell me if its worth tryin the double degree in International Law and Internatuonal Relations at Macquarie University...... What is the scope after such a degree..............

Hello:

What I just read about Melbourne University as almost the only decent choice for LLMs in Australia really concerns me.

Is it that true?? Hope not.

Actually Im thinking to apply fo University of Sydney or UNSW... I could also consider macquarie but seems not to be a good one.

I'll appreciate if someone can give a feedback on some other universities besides Uni of Melbourne -it is hard to believe that there are not decent LLMs in a City like Sydney.

Thanks

The key point to understand about the LLM for International Students at La Trobe is that students can choose subjects from the LLB program and various LLM programs to make up the degree.. So, for example, an international student could take all units required to complete the degree from in the LLM in Global Business Law. All of these units are taught by visiting professors from the USA and elsewhere; they are not taught by La Trobe staff. For example, the last class taught in the GBL program was USA Corporations Law taught by Professor Stephen Bainbridge from UCLA School of Law. If you want to get in touch with current or past interantational students at La Trobe, just ask me.

I am a German lawyer currently enrolled in the LLM-Program at La Trobe. I had LLM-offers from Law Schools from Australia, the USA and the UK but I eventually decided in favour of the La Trobe LLM because:

- The program offers you a distinctive amount of personal flexibility

- The program provides you with an excellent understanding of the common law system (due to the unique freedom to select core law units such as contracts or equity)

- It enables you to select subjects which are required for admission in Australia

- It allows you to specialise in particular areas of law

- It offers you a broad range of International Business Law units

- The teaching staff and the quality of the units is well above the standard (that is my personal experience after 50% of the program)

- Most of the lecturers are leading in their particular field and have internationally an outstanding reputation

From my perspective it is on the one hand the large amount of flexibility and on the other hand the exceptional quality of the teaching staff at a reasonable price which makes the La Trobe LLM superior to other programs. Finally I have to mention that the staff within the Faculty of Law is really friendly and helpful, no matter what the problem is. If you have any inquiries or question regarding La Trobe please feel free to contact me under ghostbikersback@web.de

I just finished the LLM intl program at La Trobe and I can warmly recommend La Trobe law school. After graduating with a Master in Intl Business from Macquarie in Sydnes, La Trobe caught my attention because of the broad range of Business/Business Law related units in the GBL programm which fit well into my business related background as a transaction lawyer. The units were of a high standard delivered by leading US lectures, e.g. from UCLA which is certainly a leading law school in the US. I was amazed by the flexibility of the program which allowed me to 'fast-track' my degree by taking classes in the GBL summer-school. Basically all units I did were delivered by UCLA law professors, i.e. what I got was a degree at UCLA level in Australia. What elese could one ask for? The classes are small (minimum I experienced was 5 max 30) and allow for plenty of student/lecturer interaction and discussion what I consider crucial for a degree at Master level. I cannot say much about the LLB units but as far as I heard the quality is comparable to the GBl units and my friend were satisifed with their choices. As LLM-lawyer mentioned above the staff is very friendly and helpful. Because of my work as a lawyer in Europe I had to leave Australia earlier than expected and they helped me by accepting assignement submission via e-mail just to mention an example. Personally and study-wise the experience at La Trobe was a thoroughly positive and I am happy to help anyone who is interested in the programm. Contact me anytime. Jan.Apking@gmx.de

Like my fellows mentioned above I have to say the La Trobe LL.M. International program is superb. It is based on the American LL.M model and provides a fantastic alternative for students who have considered going to the U.S. for postgraduate studies. La Trobe offers a huge range of law subjects and eminently respectable guests Professors from U.S.A. held American Law subjects with a limited number of students per course. What makes La Trobe really unique is the possibility of networking. You meet people from all over the world and the small classes provide the possibility to make friends with the lectures. I am still in contact with law professors in Australia and California and lawyers in Bulgaria, Switzerland, Germany and France.
The advantages of La Trobe and Australia are: living cost and uni fess are much cheaper than in U.S., you have the unique chance to get in American and Australian Law at the same time and to dive in the Australian way of life. Melbourne was voted as the most livable city in the world several times in a row! I have also friends who were enrolled in LL.M.programs in Sydney. They did not have that great experience I had at La Trobe!
Any questions about La Trobe or Melbourne? Write to gogy(at)gmx(dot)ch

Actually standards of LLM course is one sided in Australia. Melbourne Law School (University of Melbourne) offers the only LLM course that could be compared to some top UK and USA law school.

"Don't even look at the university rankings because all the above univerities are considered very much equal here in Oz and are highly respected. The standout is however ANU."

With all due respect to ANU, might I suggest that the aforementioned comments have a rather uninformed air about them. ANU is not the most recognised law school in Australia, and it never has been. ANU is ahead of all the others in the Times ranking, possibly because it has a better teaching culture and a more conducive learning environment.

Nevertheless, if prestige and true market value is what you are looking for, I don't think one can look beyond the Sydney and Melbourne Law Schools (them being the University of Sydney's Faculty of Law, and the University of Melbourne's Faculty of Law) as the top 2 in Australia. Five of the seven current High Court judges studied at the Sydney Law School. Of the other two, one studied at Melbourne Law School and the other at the University of Queensland. The Prime Minister, John Howard, attended Sydney Law School. The two hardest law schools to get admitted to in Australia, based on undergraduate entry requirements, are Sydney (99.65/100) and then Melbourne (99.5/100). Sydney and Melbourne are also the two oldest universities in Australia. The Sydney Law School recently celebrated its 150th year (in 2005) - ANU wasn't even established until 1946, and its law school opened in 1960.

In terms of current student achievement, the Sydney Law School recently won the WTO Global Moot, beating LSE Law in the grand final held in Geneva. Debaters from Sydney have topped worlds debating (as a contingent) for the past two or three consecutive tournaments. To be fair, I think Sydney has an edge over the others in this regard.

Hence, with all due respect, might I suggest that ANU is not "the standout", and that one ought to face facts as they truly are. Sydney, Melbourne, UNSW, ANU and Queensland all offer excellent law courses, and should all be considered seriously.