Hello, I am currently a bachelor at law in the Netherlands and am scheduled to graduate this schoolyear. However, my goal has always been to work in the US, hence why I am majoring in International Law. My question is what is the best way to go about this?
Obviously the best way would be to get a JD in the US and pass the bar (although I am still not completely sure if that is necessary for someone who wants to practice international Law in the US, any help here would be nice as well!) but I cannot really afford that. Because of this, I was looking into doing a LLM.
But what would be better, to only do a LLM in the US? Or first do a LLm in Europe and then a LLm in the US? Or only do a LLM in Europe and then just move to the US and try my chances and finding a job there?

Btw, I already have an American passport, so acquiring a visa will not be an issue.

Any help would be much appreciated!

I would think that an LLM from a ranked school like NYU, Columbia, Georgetown etc. would be your best bet: a school like this would give you a solid foundation for international law, and give you some exposure to how it is practiced in the US.

Maybe you should contact some international law firms in the US - research their partners/staff lawyers/etc. This would give you a sense of 1) whether you need to pass the bar to practice and 2) whether these firms actually value LLM degrees when they hire.

It seems that you've already answered your question with the fact that you want to work in the US. I guess unless you get into Oxford or Cambridge, or unless you have additional funding to take an LLM in both US and Europe, you might want to consider just taking one. And looking at your future plans, it seems to me that the better option would be to get into a great US law school. I believe Harvard and Columbia are arguably strongest when it comes to corporate practice. NYU, Columbia, Harvard and Georgetown seem to be strong on international law and human rights, Yale on academia, and NYU on tax.

I am unsure whether you wanted to be in a law firm setting (or private sector in general) or public sector as international law is quite broad to cover both. But I would advise that you work first in Europe after you graduate and make your professional experience as strong and as solid as possible. Make sure to focus your practice in the field that you would want to pursue (envision yourself working in the US as you said you wanted). It's double purpose: you gain experience and you earn at the same time. Good law schools in the US would hire an applicant who is strong in both academic and professional pursuits. And US employers are more keen on hiring US LLMs who have very strong professional experience prior to their LLM year. So an absence or lack of professional experience to begin with would mean less chances of getting employment. I've heard of several valedictorians and bar topnotchers in their countries who didn't find work after the LLM because they went straight to the LLM program after the LLB or JD back home. And then if you can, perhaps try to get into good internships when you are already doing your LLM.

Regarding the NY bar, some LLMs (if they don't need the LLM as a pre-qualification) tend to take the NY bar even before they take their LLM. I am not familiar with NY bar rules for applicants coming from the Netherlands. But if this is something which is available to you, this is also another option to consider. Hope that helps. Happy New Year!

Thank you very much for both your posts.

I have proceeded to ask the same question to a career services department a ta university I was an exchange student at. Hopefully they will be able to give me some help. I will also send some e-mails to law firms/IGOs, Hopefully that will help as well.

I have looked into working in Europe first, the only drawback to that is that (at least in the Netherlands) you need a LLM and three years of experience before you can even call yourself a lawyer.
Also, there are some personal reasons that I want to go to the USA ASAP, since I have some family living there, and my girlfriend is there as well.
So building a legal career in Europe first would probably still take at least another 5 years, which is too long in my opinion. Stil, yhank you very much for the tip.

If you are dead set on heading to the US ASAP, I would suggest that you take the J.D. program. Taking the LL.M. in the US, straight from your Bachelor's degree without any professional experience would make it really hard on your part to get a job at a good law firm. Having a US LL.M. even with extensive professional experience from Europe or elsewhere is already hard enough. But of course there are always exceptions and you might be one of them. Best of luck.