We are pleased to share the experience report of Yuki Takada, a graduate of our law school,
who participated in the University of Washington School of Law Summer Program.
I had the opportunity to participate in the University of Washington School of Law Summer Institute in Transnational Law and Practice, which was held from September 4 to September 18 of this year.
American law schools have a three-year JD program and a one-year LLM program, which is popular among international students, and this program is positioned as an introduction to the basics of Anglo-American law before the start of the LLM course. The University of Washington School of Law, located in Seattle, Washington, is a top-ranked law school in the United States, attracting legal professionals from all over the world to study abroad. When I participated in this program, it brought together a diverse group of people, including not only legal professionals but also government officials from around the world. Four students from Keio Law School participated.
I have always been internationally oriented and wanted to become a lawyer who could be active on the global stage in the future. For this reason, while at law school, I actively took courses conducted entirely in English and deepened my interactions with international students. Then, when I was thinking about a short-term study abroad program using the time between taking the bar exam and the announcement of the results, I heard about this program from a senior who had participated last year, which piqued my interest. Since I was considering studying at a law school abroad in the future, I thought it was important to learn about American law schools as a preliminary experience, so I decided to participate in this program.
The program is two weeks long, with weekdays packed with classes from morning to evening. Of course, all classes are conducted in English, so it was very tough at first. However, by interacting with my peers from all over the world not only during class but also outside of it every day, my English skills, especially my listening comprehension, improved, and I was gradually able to keep up with the pace of the classes. At first, I was a little intimidated by the authentic Socratic method and couldn't speak up much, but as I got used to the classes, I was able to participate more actively, and I feel that I was able to grow even in the limited time of two weeks.
Regarding the content of the classes, since this program is an introduction to the LLM course and attracts international students from different legal systems all over the world, the classes started with the very basics, such as the differences between civil law (e.g., Japan, France) and common law (e.g., the United States, the United Kingdom). Also, since case law is of utmost importance in common law, we first learned how to read and brief cases. In addition, there were individual class sessions on subjects we had studied before, such as constitutional law and civil law, and I thought the curriculum was designed to allow those proceeding to the LLM course to start their studies very efficiently. Furthermore, something I personally found interesting was a session every morning where we learned specialized legal English using crossword puzzles, which made learning enjoyable. There were also fieldwork opportunities, such as a visit to a local courthouse in Seattle and a tour of a major law firm (K&L Gates), providing a wealth of experiences that one would not typically have with a simple language study abroad program.
On days off, I had a fulfilling time with my school friends, watching a University of Washington American football game and a Seattle Mariners game, among other things. The daily preparation and review for classes were demanding, but everyone maintained a good work-life balance and thoroughly enjoyed their days off.
The experience of actually taking classes at an overseas law school is, of course, invaluable. Beyond that, the network of legal and government professionals from all over the world that I met during this study abroad experience is extremely valuable, and considering that I might have the chance to work with them in some capacity in the future, I feel truly fortunate to have been able to participate in this program. Also, after actually studying abroad, I felt that Keio Law School students are in no way inferior to the excellent international students from all over the world. Participating in the program not only gave me confidence but also helped my vague image of future study abroad opportunities gradually become clearer.
If you aspire to be active on the global stage in the future, or if you haven't had much experience abroad and want to see the world, I highly recommend applying for this program. A wonderful experience surely awaits you.
I would like to express my gratitude to Professor Yamamoto, Professor Macklin, the academic affairs staff, my parents, and my fellow Keio Law School students who studied abroad with me for their cooperation in my participation in this program. Thank you very much.