US Law Programs Interest International Students
2023-03-05
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1Each year, thousands of legal professionals from around the world come to the United States for advanced legal training.
2They often choose to attend a Master of Laws program or LL.M.
3The LL.M. program is different from the Juris Doctor or J.D. program.
4A J.D. degree is required for those who want to practice law in the U.S.
5In the LL.M. program, legal professionals learn about the U.S. government, the U.S. legal system, and international legal issues.
6They can specialize in several areas including intellectual property, international business, immigration, human rights, and security.
7A 2020 study from The Center for Postsecondary Research at Indiana University shows that international students make up 79 percent of LL.M. students at American law schools.
8One such student is Aimé Mbarushimana.
9After practicing law for 15 years in Rwanda, Aimé came to American University's Washington College of Law in Washington, D.C. to get advanced training in arbitration, mediation, and alternative dispute resolution.
10These are ways of settling disagreements without legal action.
11He said the training he received at American University helps support the traditional Ubuntu belief system in Rwanda.
12Ubuntu highly values building agreements and communities.
13He told VOA Learning English that using more mediation can help lower the number of court cases in Rwanda and give judges more time to work on them.
14Mimoza Shala is a prosecutor in the Eastern European nation of Kosovo.
15She studies in the LL.M. program at Wake Forest University's School of Law in North Carolina.
16The school has partnered with the U.S. Departments of Justice and State for the last ten years to train legal professionals from Kosovo.
17Shala's job in Kosovo includes working on cases of domestic violence.
18Wake Forest University (WFU) connected her with an American prosecutor who also works on domestic violence cases.
19And she learned how the two legal systems deal with the issues.
20Nishchay Dagar of India worked for two years in trial law in his country before coming to WFU.
21Dagar said he now "feels in love with professional ethics" and wants to bring this training to his future work.
22He also sees the U.S. legal system as more efficient than India's, and he hopes to bring this organization to his work.
23The cost of attending LL.M. programs in the U.S. is usually higher than in other countries.
24However, students who spoke with VOA said the extra cost is worth it, for many reasons.
25Law professors in the U.S. usually give students more individual help than those in their home countries.
26Besides office hours to study and receive advice, sometimes, professors would invite groups of students to their homes for social gatherings.
27They also help students connect with working professionals and legal experts.
28Gabriel Ortiz of Venezuela recently completed his degree, specializing in human rights law, at American University.
29He noted that many professors are also experts in different legal areas.
30They include judges for the Inter-American Court and lawyers at the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights.
31Ortiz also found that law students from Italy, Turkey, Nigeria, and Myanmar also had similar issues in their home countries.
32He said, "What I found interesting was to see how we share similar problems... We are able to know that the realities we are facing are not that different."
33Laura Orjuela from Colombia agrees.
34The American University law student said she has deepened her understanding of gender issues by talking with students from countries such as Iran, Afghanistan, and Myanmar.
35She added that when students compare so many international perspectives about the same issue, it helps increase the number of possible solutions they can use to fix problems.
36"Maybe this thing we did in my country, it never worked... what they did in that country... we'll try it to see if that works," she said.
37Dagar, from India, said he highly values professional experience outside the classroom.
38These include pro bono, or volunteer work and special courts for people under age 18.
39WFU School of Law also has a North Carolina Business Court within the law school building where students can observe real court cases.
40Wen Wei and Li Ruoqi of China are students at Georgetown's law school in Washington, D.C.
41They said that because there are so many law students in China, having an LL.M. degree from one of the top law schools can help students get better jobs in China.
42LL.M. students in the U.S. must possess high levels of understanding of legal English.
43They usually have classes and attend social events with American students.
44As a result, their English skills can greatly improve during their LL.M. studies.
45Sherhernaz Joshi is an Assistant Dean of Graduate and International Programs at George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
46She said many students have said, "I thought I was coming for a degree, but the experience changed me forever."
47I'm Andrew Smith. And I'm Caty Weaver.
1Each year, thousands of legal professionals from around the world come to the United States for advanced legal training. They often choose to attend a Master of Laws program or LL.M. 2The LL.M. program is different from the Juris Doctor or J.D. program. A J.D. degree is required for those who want to practice law in the U.S. 3In the LL.M. program, legal professionals learn about the U.S. government, the U.S. legal system, and international legal issues. They can specialize in several areas including intellectual property, international business, immigration, human rights, and security. 4LL.M. influence around the world 5A 2020 study from The Center for Postsecondary Research at Indiana University shows that international students make up 79 percent of LL.M. students at American law schools. 6One such student is Aimé Mbarushimana. 7After practicing law for 15 years in Rwanda, Aimé came to American University's Washington College of Law in Washington, D.C. to get advanced training in arbitration, mediation, and alternative dispute resolution. These are ways of settling disagreements without legal action. 8He said the training he received at American University helps support the traditional Ubuntu belief system in Rwanda. Ubuntu highly values building agreements and communities. He told VOA Learning English that using more mediation can help lower the number of court cases in Rwanda and give judges more time to work on them. 9Mimoza Shala is a prosecutor in the Eastern European nation of Kosovo. She studies in the LL.M. program at Wake Forest University's School of Law in North Carolina. The school has partnered with the U.S. Departments of Justice and State for the last ten years to train legal professionals from Kosovo. 10Shala's job in Kosovo includes working on cases of domestic violence. Wake Forest University (WFU) connected her with an American prosecutor who also works on domestic violence cases. And she learned how the two legal systems deal with the issues. 11Nishchay Dagar of India worked for two years in trial law in his country before coming to WFU. Dagar said he now "feels in love with professional ethics" and wants to bring this training to his future work. He also sees the U.S. legal system as more efficient than India's, and he hopes to bring this organization to his work. 12Expensive but worth it 13The cost of attending LL.M. programs in the U.S. is usually higher than in other countries. However, students who spoke with VOA said the extra cost is worth it, for many reasons. 14Law professors in the U.S. usually give students more individual help than those in their home countries. Besides office hours to study and receive advice, sometimes, professors would invite groups of students to their homes for social gatherings. They also help students connect with working professionals and legal experts. 15Gabriel Ortiz of Venezuela recently completed his degree, specializing in human rights law, at American University. He noted that many professors are also experts in different legal areas. They include judges for the Inter-American Court and lawyers at the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights. 16Ortiz also found that law students from Italy, Turkey, Nigeria, and Myanmar also had similar issues in their home countries. He said, "What I found interesting was to see how we share similar problems... We are able to know that the realities we are facing are not that different." 17Laura Orjuela from Colombia agrees. The American University law student said she has deepened her understanding of gender issues by talking with students from countries such as Iran, Afghanistan, and Myanmar. She added that when students compare so many international perspectives about the same issue, it helps increase the number of possible solutions they can use to fix problems. 18"Maybe this thing we did in my country, it never worked... what they did in that country... we'll try it to see if that works," she said. 19Dagar, from India, said he highly values professional experience outside the classroom. These include pro bono, or volunteer work and special courts for people under age 18. WFU School of Law also has a North Carolina Business Court within the law school building where students can observe real court cases. 20Wen Wei and Li Ruoqi of China are students at Georgetown's law school in Washington, D.C. They said that because there are so many law students in China, having an LL.M. degree from one of the top law schools can help students get better jobs in China. 21LL.M. students in the U.S. must possess high levels of understanding of legal English. They usually have classes and attend social events with American students. As a result, their English skills can greatly improve during their LL.M. studies. 22Sherhernaz Joshi is an Assistant Dean of Graduate and International Programs at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. She said many students have said, "I thought I was coming for a degree, but the experience changed me forever." 23I'm Andrew Smith. And I'm Caty Weaver. 24_______________________________________________________________ 25Words in This Story 26advanced - adj. characterized by high levels of training or experience needed and/or high levels of complexity 27intellectual property - n. original creative works such as books, films, works of art, and music, and whose creators have ownership of them 28arbitration - n. the hearing and ruling of a dispute or disagreement between parties by a person or persons chosen or agreed to by them 29mediation - n. a way of resolving a disagreement by using a third party who helps those involved reach an agreement. 30alternative - n. another choice or way to do something 31resolution - n. an end or settlement of a disagreement 32prosecutor - n. a government official who brings criminal charges against and/or tries to prove that someone is guilty in a trial. 33domestic violence - n. violence that occurs within a family 34ethics -n. the study of what is right or wrong in a moral sense 35reality -n. the true situation 36perspective -n. a way of seeing or judging something or some situation 37_______________________________________________________________ 38We want to hear from you. 39We have a new comment system. 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