Hi everyone,

I am an American JD student who will be obtaining my JD at the end of next year and taking the US bar exam next summer. I want to go to France after I take the bar exam to do an M1 and M2 in law. I do not yet know whether I want to practice in the US or in Europe long-term, but do know that I want to work in the international sphere. I'm trying to decide which programs I should apply for in France and have a couple of specific questions.

1. Does anyone know if French universities will accept the DNS from Assas for admission into their M2 programs? I want to be sure that if I do the DNS instead of M1 that I could still get into an M2 program.

2. Alternatively, has anyone done a DNS and then continued to an M2 at Assas? Will employers view a DNS/M2 from Assas in a lesser light than a M1/M2 from Assas?

3. Is it worth considering any programs outside of Paris? I was considering Lyon 3 or Montpellier, but don't know if firms/companies will look down on those programs or if I could still potentially be competitive for jobs after completing an M2 at one of those universities.

4. Does anyone have recommendations on the "ideal" number of programs to apply to? I want to cast my net wide enough to ensure that I get into a program because I know how competitive these programs are but still want to be selective.

5. Assuming I complete my M2 in France, is it worth it to pass the Article 100 exam (I think its called the CAPA) for foreign lawyers so that I could be bar certified in France? I'm unclear how much that would affect potential job opportunities in Europe.

6. Are employers particularly interested in which specialty you chose for your M1/M2 (i.e. business law, private law, corporate law, etc.)? As I mentioned, I am not yet 100% sure what type of law I want to practice but don't know if a more general M1/M2 (say, in private law) would be viewed less favorably than a more specialized M1/M2 (say, in business law).

As you can see, I'm in the very preliminary stages of research for pursuing a Masters in France. I would appreciate answers to the questions above as well as any general advice/feedback about choosing a Masters program/the application process/etc.

Thank you very much in advance!

[Edited by gabbertelly on Apr 17, 2018]