LL.M. Program Key Points

The program functions on a semester system, with both Spring Term (April) and Fall Term (September) enrollment permitted.

LL.M. in Global Legal Practice (a professional school master's degree)

English (All courses will be taught in English.)

1 year (part-time 1.5 or 2 years)

The standard term for the program is 1 year, but for those of you who wish a lighter study load, we will accept a "part-time" course for completion in 1.5 or 2 years. Depending upon your employment hours, it may be possible for you to take classes on 6th periods (starting from 6:10PM) and Saturdays. After the announcement of admission results, we will make available a registration counseling opportunity for prospective students considering a 1.5 or 2 year course, so please make a request to us then.

At least 30 course credits required for completion.

At least 4 credits in either category

(1) Global Business and Law, or

(2) Global Security and Law.

At least 4 credits in the Practical Training category (e.g. moot court, negotiation and arbitration seminars, internships, drafting and other practical training courses).

A master's thesis is not required for degree completion. If you wish to complete a thesis-length research and writing project, you can register for the courses "Research Paper I/II". After admission to the program, kindly consult with the professor of your choice for research paper supervision.

For students who have not completed a law school (i.e. J.D.) program nor gained equivalent legal knowledge as evidenced by membership in a bar, graduate-level legal education, or significant work experience in a legal function, an additional 6 course credits (i.e. at least 36 course credits in total) will be required for degree completion. At least 4 additional credits will be required in the category Japanese Law and Asian Law in Global Practical Perspective, and at least 2 additional credits in the Practical Training category (e.g. moot court, negotiation and arbitration, internships, drafting and other practical training courses).

Keio LL.M. program offers the opportunity for students to earn a certificate demonstrating specialization in

Each certificate will require satisfactory completion of at least 10 credits in the relevant field, as well as 2-credit research paper. For the certificates in Business Law and International Dispute Resolution, at least one related 2-credit practical training class must be included. As the course requirements set forth a minimum only, and a certificate is intended to evidence a significant degree of focus and specialization, a student may apply for a certificate in only a single area of specialization.

The maximum number of credits of J.D. courses that might be applied to the LL.M. would be 4 credits per semester and 8 credits in total. This will only be possible for LL.M. students whose requests are approved at the discretion of the relevant committees and then the responsible instructor for the course. In principle requests are limited to J.D. elective courses. There will be no additional fee for taking such J.D. courses. Similar to the LL.M. courses, most J.D. courses are taught using the Socratic method, often involving discussion, so students must read, write, speak and understand technical terms in Japanese. Please note that you will not be able to register for undergraduate level courses, including the Faculty of Law.

You may study Japanese via courses offered at the Keio University Center for Japanese Studies. The details of registration and placement will be provided after admission to the LL.M. program. Please note that these Japanese language courses do not provide credits toward your LL.M. degree, and some additional fee is charged.

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For those of you who wish to pursue a portion of your studies overseas, you may be able to study abroad at one of the partner schools of Keio Law School. After the admission results are released, please consult with us regarding the timing (term) / country / university of your choice. The LL.M. program will recognize up to 15 credits obtained at an overseas partner university which can be approved as having equivalent course content to one of the LL.M. courses. However, since there is a limit to the number of exchange students under our agreements with partner schools, and there may be conflicts with the academic calendar at some partner schools, there will be cases where we will not be able to accommodate your request. Also, with the academic calendar difference and the credit transfer system, there may be cases where a student who goes on an exchange term is not able to finish the LL.M. program in 1 year.

For our J.D. program, KLS has existing exchange arrangements with, among other universities: Cornell, Georgetown, UCLA, University of Washington (USA), The University of British Columbia (Canada), Sciences Po (Paris), Yonsei (South Korea), Tsinghua (China), and Singapore Management University. We expect to have exchange arrangements available with a number of these as well for the LL.M. program.

For interested students, we offer "Internship" as a (2-credit) LL.M. course. Internships in principle, take place during spring or summer vacation period for approximately 2-3 weeks, and are at Japanese and international law firms, corporate legal departments, and international institutions. Internships offered within Japan are focused primarily on providing opportunities for international students; and internships outside Japan are primarily available for Japanese students who wish to work at United Nations-affiliated and other international institutions and focusing upon legal assistance. We also hope to send interns to some Asia offices of Japanese law firms. If there is a surplus of applicants, we will select among candidates for available opportunities. Further details will be provided after admission.