I applied for the LLM in Finance and Law at the Duisenburg School of Finance. I received an offer the other day with 50% tuition waiver .

I have received other offers from Uni of Glasgow, SOAS in the UK and Tilburg University (Europe). all these have been LLM in International Commercial Law. I am still very much undecided

I am particularly interested in Finance and Law, so Duisenburg is appealing. I was wondering if anyone ( particularly alumni or student) at Duisenburg could give me some info about the program and school. Also i cant find much on its reputation online , so insight on that would greatly be appreciated.

Hi, I have also received an offer from DSF with 50% scholarship. Did you get any information about the course. What are you planning to do?

So far i have been in contact with one alumni of DSF and she gave me info about the program. According to her the program places more emphasis on quantitative aspects of things and is not your typical LLM. She said in all she found it very beneficial just challenging.

Personally I have not decided, but currently i am leaning towards DSF.
I am only worried about the fact that it is a new institution( not much of a track record) and very little info about their reputation.

I have also received similar responses from the alumni..
Whom did you contact?
I am also inclined towards DSF.
BTW, which country do you belong to???

I spoke to a few alumni listed on the DSF website and one I contacted on linkedin.

My concern is that as a non EU student, it is a major financial commitment even with the waiver. I am trying to weigh that up against the reputation of the program and what i will get out of it.

Oh and i am from Botswana. I studied in the USA and then in Cape Town, South Africa.

Where are you from? and what are your reasons for choosing DSF?

Hi sorry for late reply. I have also had a word with few alumni as well as current students. The college as of now does not have great reputation but I'm sure that it will do so in near future. All most all the students from the last year LLM batch got a decent job either in the Netherlands or their home country.

I'm from India and have pursued my LLB from India itself. Well, my reasons for choosing DSF is that it comes across as an industry-oriented course and has major financial institutions as its sponsors.

What is your final decision?? Are you joining DSF?

Hi. I am currently a student at DSF. I can answer some of your questions.
DSF is a relatively new school but it has a good reputation and good industry contacts in The Netherlands. It's also becoming more known worldwide as more international students attend the school. The school and classes are small, but that doesn't affect the quality of the school and the courses.
DSF is a finance school so the LLM program has mostly finance and econometrics courses. The law courses won't teach you basic legal principles and have a strong focus on law in finance and economics contexts. So the program is not your typical LLM.
I joined DSF because I wanted to learn a different field and get more understanding of the finance side of legal transactions I'd worked on while practising as a lawyer. The course has really been challenging for me because I don't have a quantitative background but I've enjoyed it and learnt a lot. So I found it beneficial. It all depends on what you want to learn and get out of your LLM.
DSF has a lot of industry contacts which students can use to secure internships and jobs. A few people have already secured jobs in Amsterdam and Germany post-masters so the opportunities are there and DSF is recognised as a credible institution.
I hope this helps!

thank you

I have a limited background in economics but have spend the past 3 years as a practicing attorney. I am a bit worried about getting back into doing quantitative work. Any suggestions on coping with that? how did you manage?

Also what are the job/internship prospects for LLM candidates from Southern Africa or just African in General ? I am just trying to keep my options open/

I struggled with the quantitative work too but I got through it by working harder on it. It's not too hard to pass the quantitative course if you put the work in.
There are lots of job/internship prospects for all candidates, regardless of background or what country you're from and regardless of field. I found that a lot of legal positions prefer Dutch speakers and/or Dutch qualified candidates but there are opportunities available. But you shouldn't limit yourself to roles in law firms. A lot of financial institutions and other companies look for legal advisers and compliance officers. I'd advise applying early though to make sure you have a better chance of securing a job/internship.

Hi zanelembewe,

Sorry for this post after long time. By now, you would have finished your program in DSF. So, would please elaborate a little on your experiences as well as your present prospects after the program.

Also, anybody from the current year batch can tell us more about the porgrame and its reputation in Europe's job market, that would useful for the prospective students like me.

Thanks in advance.
-LegalIndia