University of Pittsburgh School of Law

The University of Pittsburgh's Master of Laws (LLM) Program for Foreign Law Graduates provides lawyers who have completed their law degree outside the United States with an opportunity to study the common law legal tradition and the U.S. legal system in the United States. Students pursue their goals with the help of a close-knit community of intelligent and energetic scholars who are at the forefront of domestic and international legal research and scholarship.

The University of Pittsburgh offers a general LLM degree that gives students the freedom and flexibility to choose their courses from the Law School's full curriculum. All courses are taken with the general JD student population, other than a required Introduction to American Law in the fall and the LLM colloquium in the spring. Students can focus their coursework on a particular field, or they can take a generalized approach and incorporate multiple subject areas. Either way, our dedicated CILE staff is here to help develop an appropriate course of study tailored to each LLM student's needs. (A summary of the course requirements for the LLM degree can be found here.)

At Pitt Law, you will join a diverse group of foreign-trained lawyers and law graduates, tightly integrated into the life of the law school as a whole but with a variety of activities specially designed for our LLM students. These include the opportunity to participate in our LLM commercial arbitration team, which in March 2016 took first place in the LLM International Commercial Arbitration Moot in Washington, DC.

Since 1895, the University of Pittsburgh School of Law has been preparing students to become excellent attorneys and leaders in the legal profession and society. Known and respected globally for our scholarship, we offer quality academics, a world-class faculty, endless opportunities for hands-on learning, and exceptional career preparation and placement. Our curriculum is strong on fundamentals and embraces innovation, focusing on issues ranging from commercialization of new technologies to conflict resolution to cyber security. Learn more about all that Pitt Law has to offer here.

Our faculty members are among the country's most distinguished legal scholars. But they are also passionate teachers who enjoy the personal give and take of the classroom. Pitt Law professors have defined bioethics, illuminated discrimination, and clarified intellectual property disputes. They advise the founders of new democracies and provide perspec­tive on civil liberties in the United States. Pitt Law has led the move to free worldwide online sharing of legal and judicial scholarship with JURIST, publishing international news and primary source documents. The school also sponsors legal symposia for industries from health care to natural gas and brings experts to campus for formal lectures and informal debate. Learn more about our faculty here.

Applicants are admitted to the LLM program based on their ability to thrive in a US law school environment, as evidenced by their academic record and professional accomplishments. The program accepts applications from lawyers with a law degree from a non-U.S. law school who can demonstrate a proficiency in English, as measured by minimum scores of 90 on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) (internet based version), or a minimum score of 6.5 on the International English Language Testing System (IELTS).

We accept applications to our LLM program both directly and through LSAC. You can download our application here. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis. We will continue to accept applications until the class has been filled. We suggest that you submit your application by March 31 of the year in which you would like to begin your studies for better consideration.  (CILE Executive Director Richard Thorpe talks about two elements of the application, your personal statement and your letters of recommendation, on the CILE YouTube channel.)

Learn more about the Pitt Law LLM by watching our webinar here.

Our LLM tuition for the 2018-19 academic year is $39,000 for the full two semester program.  Total estimated expenses, including fees, books, housing and food, are $58,180 for the year.  Tuition for each coming year is set in mid-summer, and can be found at this link.  Pittsburgh is regularly ranked as one of the most affordable cities in the US, offering a relatively low cost of living with all the amenities of a large, historic metropolis.

There is limited financial aid funding available for LLM applicants. Financial aid is awarded based on a combination of demonstrated financial need and extraordinary academic merit.

Pittsburgh is renowned for its transformation from the center of the steel industry into a thriving hub for innovation, with multiple start ups spun off from the University of Pittsburgh and neighboring Carnegie Mellon University.  Our University of Pittsburgh Medical Center is a driving force in developing new techniques and biotechnology endeavors, and the wealth of software and robotics talent drew Google to open offices here and Uber to test their automated driver-less cars on the streets of our home neighborhood of Oakland.

We arrange for a variety of events and activities, both academic and social, for our LLM students.  At the start of the academic year, we cap off our orientation program with a visit to Frank Lloyd Wright's historic Fallingwater house, the Ohiopyle park and lunch on the banks of a river in the beautiful Laurel Highlands of Western Pennsylvania.  We hold a reception at the law school to welcome our new students to the Pitt Law community, and have other social events over the course of the year, including the opportunity to join a Pitt faculty or staff member for an authentic Thanksgiving holiday meal.  A highlight of each year is our three day class trip to Washington DC, where we visit Congress, the White House, and a session of the Supreme Court.  Learn more about our LL.M. events, and other events sponsored by our Center for International Legal Education, by following us on Facebook here -- you can also follow us on Twitter and Instagram.