Hi,

I'm a second-year Luxembourg law student currently studying in Belgium. Our system is composed of a 3-year bachelor cycle and a 2-year master cycle. I'm planning on doing a sixth year in an English-speaking country, and one of my top choices would be the UCLA Law faculty.

I am, however, aware of the fact that top US Law schools have very limited acceptance rates. What's the acceptance rate of this particular Uni? I know this doesn't mean anything at this time, but I placed 4th of my first-year class (which was made up of more than 300 students) - if I obtain similar results for my fifth and last year, would that make a positive difference, or don't they care at all?

Concerning my question, I saw at their website that the acceptance percentage for the first year was about 16% last year, so, as a foreign student, I don't dare to hope.

Moreover, what about financial aid? I've noticed their Dean's tuition scholarship, but this seems very limited, like their Paid Research assistants program. Are there any alternatives?

It would depend on what degree you intend to pursue. If it's a JD, I would say it is extremely competitive to get in. If it's an LLM, it would not be as competitive as the JD. The LLM has generally been offered to cater to non-U.S. law trained attorneys. The acceptance rate you saw at the UCLA Law web site is that of the JD programme. The LLM acceptance rate is a bit higher than that, and is not well-publicized. You can check scholarships from the different American foundations on the web. There are some fields of law that have more funding than others, so you would need to identify the specific field you intend to specialize in.

Good luck on your application.

Thanks. How would one go about finding such a non-university scholarship?

The most cost-effective approach is to google "scholarships and fellowships in the united states" since you're now online. Another approach is to look for a book in a bookshop that lists all scholarships and fellowships in the united states, which you can consult time and again within the privacy of your flat/apartment. A third approach would be to ask the career service director at your university for a list of scholarships and fellowships in the united states.

If you find anything interesting, please let me know and we can compare notes. I'm likewise looking for one. There are so many sources of funding that can be tapped. You should look at those scholarships that are not exclusive to any school but can be awarded regardless of your choice of university. Why don't you also look at the Rotary Foundation? That should be a good start.

Thank you. However, I'll only dive into this when I'm in my last, or maybe penultimate, year of regular studies in Europe.

I've always wondered, since your universities are incredibly expensive, how you can afford it. My tuition fees (at Université catholique de Louvain in Belgium), and even for grad and post-grad studies, are 800 a year (which is still very high compared to other European (minus the UK) universities, where one often only pays 100 a year.

Most European universities are state-supported. In the United States, there are more private universities than state universities. To cope with the high cost of education, most students either take out a loan or work part-time. The fortunate ones get scholarships to finance their education.

No, no. The fortunate ones have rich parents.

In the USA, many very capable students choose to attend less prestigious state schools, because the tuition is less if they qualify for in-state tuition. Or they choose to take out massive amounts of loans.

The chief problem in the USA is a failure of the government to adequately fund higher education. Making more loans available to students only causes universities to raise tuition. For example, the school where I earned my JD has raised its tuition nearly 300% in the last seven years for in-state students.

I tend to agree that government should provide more funding for higher education. Tuition in U.S. universities have become unreasonably high. However, may I submit that there are public universities in some states that can match the prestige and resources of private schools. I'm specifically referring to the University of California System, the University of Virginia, the University of Texas, the University of Michigan, and the State University of New York, among others.

With the exception of SUNY, I agree. Note that the University of Michigan's law school is quite expensive even for in-state students. 20K for in-state students (compared with 22K for out of state students).

I would assume that an average LL.M.-class at UCLA comprises of about 50 students. About 800 apply.