I am planning to do my LLM from USA or UK but I am not sure which field should I go in example taxation, cyber, crime, aviation, immigration etc.
I will appreciate if someone can guide me about job market for international students in USA and UK .
And one more question, should I go to for USA or UK.

The job market in the U.S. simply sucks. It is very hard to get a job. Most of the LL.M Programs are money making schemes for many Law schools in the U.S.

They expect all international students to return back to their country.

Please think twice, before spending your hard earned money!!!
However, if your pop is loaded then just do it !!!!!

Moreover, dont forget about taking bar.

And work permits and visa issues too.

I think even a person clears a New york
or California Bar, it is no guarantee, you will secure a job.

I am offering to work as a para-legal even after having a LL.B from India, LL.M degree from the United States and after having 8 years of experience in a reputed MNC as a Manger-Legal in India, however, I have not received any job offer so far.

It is a very pathetic situation. Regret relinquishing my lucrative job in India to pursue the LL.M in United States.

If you really want to have a "foreign Degree" and go back to your home country, try studing in Australia/Newzealand, where it is much cheaper to get a LL.M degree and may be you may get a job offer too !!!

J.D. is everything in the United States.

The job market for international LLM students in the American law schools depend a lot on which school you are talking about. Here at Harvard, many of my Indian LLM classmates got jobs in good New York firms paying $145K. They were mostly from National Law School in India.

But the general observation is true - the JDs have it much, much easier.

It is only miniscule number of students from Harvard or Columbia, who may get a job, but generally for others it is a real hard time.

I am talking for the normal average students, who have enrolled in various other Universities.
The Majority, belong there right ???

I would agree with the consensus on this board - an LLM is not as important as the JD in the US. Even in the UK - in terms of securing employment - the LLM is only an advantage to those wishing to practice at the Bar. I agree that the LLM does appear to be a money making exercise for many US schools. As a UK student, I did consider applying to US schools but the admissions procedure seems to me to be far too ambiguous - not to say time consuming and expensive. I mean a $75 application fee?!!! It cost me nothing to apply to UCL and its a better school than many in the US.

the really sucky thing about legal US education is how demanding it can be compared to what it's actually worth once you get it.

a full three years of intense additional study after 4 yrs of undergraduate study, followed by some of the most grueling examinations on planet earth - at least if you take the california bar exam which i did - and for what? the vast majority of JDs even don't get jobs in big firms and many start on less than 40K per year.

in my opinion, the amount of work required, and the difficulty of the bar exam, is not justified. i did a full three year JD a few years after a UK LLB and some international experience. I graduated with the JD from a first-tier school, and it still took me two attempts to pass the california bar even though the first time round i studied on average 20 hrs per week for 6 months (starting in january for the july bar). it was the hardest test i've ever taken, and even after finally passing on the second attempt, i couldn't get a job paying over 40K.

The job market sucks for fforeign LLM studnets but its not all taht bad, if you can put in the pain to network. It relaly works for people who netwrork really well. I also wonder who are these JD stduents who are still lingering with 40K..its immpossibel to believe. May be LLMs might nto get a job but not JDs with good salaries. But sorry to tell the truth, its BAD market for foreign LLM students. If u are rich, then study or if u get schol, otherwise not worth to risk.

The job market in the U.S. simply sucks. It is very hard to get a job. Most of the LL.M Programs are money making schemes for many Law schools in the U.S.

Here in NY we are attending many events hosted by many NY and international law firms, like Cleary Gottlieb, Latham and Watkins, Linklaters, Freshfields, Allen & Overy, who have already started interviewing LLMs. Jones Day paid a Belgian colleague of mine a plane ticket to interview in Boston. It is true that any of those events are aimed at finding candidates for the European offices (even because the NY Law firms prefer to hire after seeing your Fall grades), but you can see the firms are moving. In any case, I fully agree with Jose: I also know some Latin Americans and Europeans who had landed jobs here in NY upon completion of their LLMs last Summer. So, if you want to get a job here, you should get moving asap (instead of blaming the market/ Law schools).

thanks god that you can find positives comments, after reading a lot of comments on this discussions board, i was wondering if an LLm is worthwile to land a job as lawyer in usa,

however :


my teacher told me that there is no differences between a JD and a llm when both passed the bar exam.

but a LLm graduate told me that it depends of the economic conditions...

so , if i properly understood, if you have an LLm from top 5 law school, you're sure to find a job and stay in usa ?

am i right or wrong ?


ps: sorry for my english, i didn't learn english yet...just watching tv...it s why my english is weak.

At the present market coditions - I would really think twice before doing LLM in the US. Currently it is almost impossible to find a job in NYC even after Top US Law School LLM. Of course it depends on a country you are from and other factors, but generally I would wait a bit. Maybe after a year or so the economic downturn will be over and it will be much easier.

All

In my humble opinion, it really depends on "who" you are. No one can predict when it's a good market and when it's bad. Sounds like investment in a certain stock.

Just to share my experience. I'm almost 39 yrs old and my plan is to take a LLM in CA next year and then take the CA bar. My ultimate goal is to start my own practice.

I feel sad when I saw "underemployedlawyer" post re his experience of having an underpaid job in US even though he has a LLB in UK, a top-tier JD and also admitted in CA bar. Excellent posts he always has. But other people's experience can't be yours.

I always thought that if you stay focus and have a plan, we may still have a chance to succeed. One year LLM would not be a small investment in terms of time and money [without mentioing i need to support my wife and my baby boy], but i think i will never regret having this kind of experience - living, studying and working away from home, and just in case if we failed, ie can't get a decent job, then may be I can go back to Hong Kong, China, or even Taiwan. And that's it.

I have been doing consulting business for 16 years and i have experienced what we called ups and downs. The truth is you can never have a prediction.

Therefore, as a old man here, just make up your mind, with fall-back options, then you should be standing firm and safe.

regards
maurice