Eligibility
Foreign law students who wish to attend UCLA Law under the Foreign Legal Study and Exchange Program (FLSEP) must be advanced law students in master’s or doctoral degree programs. In rare instances, students in their final year of study toward an initial law degree may be considered. Applicants must have obtained at least one full year of credit at their home institution and must be in good academic standing there.
Successful applicants will have superior academic records, an understanding of comparative law (including common law systems), and the necessary English language skills to undertake rigorous legal education offered in English. In the case of non-native speakers of English, applicants will be required to demonstrate their English language competence by means of a minimum TOEFL score of 617 on a traditional hard-copy test on paper, 260 on a computer-based test, or 105 by internet-based means of testing. A partner school will nominate only those students that it believes meet the stated academic standards of UCLA School of Law.
How to Apply
Only those students who have been nominated by one of our partner schools may apply. Nominated students must provide the following supporting documentation in order to receive consideration for admission to UCLA School of Law’s Foreign Legal Study and Exchange Program:
- Application form
- Résumé/Curriculum Vitae
- Official transcripts from each university program attended leading to a degree
- Two letters of recommendation from scholars or professors who know the applicant’s skills and accomplishments
- One nomination letter from the exchange program coordinator or dean of the applicant’s home institution
- TOEFL score
The complete application materials for each student must be received no later than April 15 for students who wish to visit UCLA Law during the fall semester later that year, and no later than September 15 for students who wish to visit UCLA Law during the spring semester of the following year.
Applications and supporting documents should be submitted electronically as high resolution PDF files to Sidney Matthews, at matthews@law.ucla.edu. Hard-copy applications may also be submitted, sent to the attention of Tiffany Parnell at the UCLA Law postal address. Once completed, the file will be forwarded to the corresponding UCLA FLSEP Coordinator. The UCLA FLSEP Coordinator is the designated faculty coordinator and contact person for administrative matters pertaining to the FLSEP for each respective partner school.
The UCLA FLSEP Coordinator will make a recommendation for or against admission of any applicant from the school for which the coordinator is responsible. Such recommendation will be forwarded to the Chair of the International Curriculum and Visiting Scholars Committee at UCLA School of Law, who shall decide whether to admit the applicant in consultation with other committee members and the Director of Graduate Studies. Successful applicants will receive a letter of acceptance to visit UCLA Law. The letter will include additional information about registering for coursework at UCLA Law and related matters.
Admission of foreign students to UCLA Law under the FLSEP is at the sole discretion of UCLA Law, is limited to participation in the exchange program at the law school, and does not constitute admission to UCLA for any degree program or any other purpose.