Degrees of the Graduate School of Law

In the master's program, students will take courses offered in their own or other majors and conduct research for their master's thesis. As a general rule, students are required to be enrolled for at least two years; however, those with outstanding academic achievements may be allowed to complete the program with one year or more of enrollment.

The Graduate School of Law offers numerous small-group seminar classes in each major and field, available to students throughout their enrollment in the master's program (see the "List of Subjects" for details). By taking these courses, students are expected to develop advanced specialized knowledge and research capabilities in their own fields of expertise, as well as in related and interdisciplinary areas. To complete the master's program, students must acquire the prescribed number of credits or more from these graduate-level courses (32 credits for the Civil and Public Law majors and 30 credits for the Political Science major).

From the time of enrollment in the master's program, students conduct research on their chosen topic under the guidance of their academic advisor, based on the research proposal submitted and reviewed during the admission screening. The results of this research are compiled into a master's thesis. In the Civil Law and Public Law majors, students receive group guidance in joint seminars, which are co-taught by multiple full-time faculty members from related fields. In the Political Science major, individual guidance is provided on a laboratory basis in "Advanced Seminars" led by the academic advisor. In both approaches, students are required to give regular research presentations, working toward the completion of their thesis in stages.

To obtain a master's degree, students must first receive permission from their academic advisor, submit their thesis title registration form in November of the preceding year, and then submit their master's thesis by the designated date in January. Following a thesis review and an oral examination conducted by a committee chair and two vice-chairs, and upon approval by the Graduate School of Law Committee, the student is awarded the degree of Master of Laws (LL.M.).

In the Doctoral Program, in addition to taking offered courses, students will conduct research on their respective topics toward the completion and submission of their doctoral dissertation.

For the preparation of the doctoral dissertation, students choose between two options: the "cumulative method" or the "monograph method." With the cumulative method, students earn eligibility to submit their dissertation by having two papers published during their enrollment recognized for credit as "Guidance for Dissertation 1" and "Guidance for Dissertation 2," respectively, and by having a final research report recognized for credit as "Joint Dissertation Guidance (Guidance for Dissertation 3)." With the monograph method, instead of publishing a series of papers, students compile a single, comprehensive dissertation upon completion of the Ph.D. program.

In addition to the dissertation guidance courses described above, students who earn the prescribed number of credits or more from courses offered in their major (4 credits per academic year, for a total of 12 credits) and who pass the doctoral dissertation review and final examination will be awarded the degree of Doctor of the Science of Law (S.J.D.). Regarding the period of enrollment, students are required to be enrolled for at least five years (including the period of enrollment in the master’s program, provided that the student completed the program after being enrolled for two years or more). However, students with outstanding research achievements may satisfy the requirement by being enrolled for three years or more, including the period of enrollment in the master’s program.