Home Academics Miami Law Post Graduate LLM and SJD Programs Top 10 Reasons International Students Study at Miami Law

Top 10 Reasons International Students Study at Miami Law

1) Miami's Strategic Location

Miami is the gateway between the United States, Latin America, Europe, and Asia. Many American, European and Asian companies have their Latin American regional headquarters here. Moreover, Miami is home to one of the world's largest privately owned and operated free trade zones, has the third largest U.S. airport for international passengers and is the cruise capital of the world.

Miami also has the second-largest number of foreign banks in the United States, a large representation of foreign consulates, 25 international trade offices, 40 binational chambers of commerce and many non-governmental organizations with headquarters or offices here. Take a virtual tour icon to read more about living in Miami for law school.

2) 60 Years of Experience Focusing on Foreign-Trained Law Students

Horacio Gutierrez“While the study of core U.S. law subjects like contracts, torts, civil procedure and constitutional law provided me the building blocks of my U.S. legal career, the focus on international law subjects made my experience at Miami Law feel like a natural progression in a process that had started earlier in a different legal system.”
Horacio Gutierrez, J.D. ‘98 
Universidad Católica Andrés Bello, Derecho (Law) '88
Head of Global Affairs and Chief Legal Officer, Spotify 
New York, NY

Since the 1950s, Miami Law has offered LL.M. programs for foreign-trained lawyers making it one of the most established LL.M. programs in the U.S. This gives students access to the real expertise and knowledge of staff. LL.M. programs at Miami Law have always been small and selective to provide a superior experience for both students and faculty. The LL.M. Programs are tailor-made to each student's academic and professional needs. Each LL.M. student creates a course of study that matches his or her career goals.

3) Number of Students Who Prepare to Take U.S. Bar Exam and/or Stay to Do the J.D. (or S.J.D.)

If a foreign-trained law student or lawyer's long-term goal is to teach law or pursue a judicial career in their home countries, Miami Law offers an S.J.D. Program. If a graduate's goal is to practice law in Florida or the U.S, he or she should consider doing a joint LL.M. to J.D transfer program at University of Miami School of Law. Each year a group of University of Miami LL.M. graduates sit for the New York Bar Exam. Unlike other LL.M. programs, the number of foreign lawyers who stay on to do their J.D. is very high for a few reasons:

- They have other LL.M. students who move on with them from the LL.M. to do the J.D. and this creates a supportive group of classmates.
- LL.M./J.D. students work with academic advisors who meet with them and advise them on everything from transferring to the J.D., to choosing the necessary courses to be able to take their desired U.S. Bar Exam.
- International students are comfortable here - being foreign is an advantage with job opportunities in the area.

Yazmyne Eterovic4) Career Development for International Students

The Career Development Office (CDO) is staffed with nine professional counselors (all of whom are former practicing attorneys). This includes an experienced career advisor exclusively dedicated to foreign-trained law students (pictured advisor Yazmyne Eterovic). The law school also provides career guides specifically for foreign-trained attorneys. 

5) Strength of Faculty & International Law Courses

The University of Miami School of Law offers extensive courses in each of the major areas of international and foreign law including courses in Spanish. These courses are intended for law students who are trying to improve their knowledge of technical Spanish.The University of Miami School of Law has one of the largest faculties who teach or do scholarly research in the area of international and foreign law of any American law school. 

6) A Nationally and Internationally Ranked Institution

The law school enjoys being part of The University of Miami, a top-ranked university with many highly regarded and ranked graduate programs, and Miami Law students have access to exceptional faculty and campus resources. In fact, Miami Law's LL.M. programs are widely regarded as the nation's best. A few listings include:

7) Diverse Student Body - International Students Fit In

The flavor of Miami is well reflected in the school and foreign students have an easy time belonging and being part of the campus and larger community. In a typical year, Miami Law’s international graduate law programs includes about 40 students from 20 or more different countries around the globe, and the law school has graduated over 23,000 alumni who are living and working in more than 90 countries around the world. In 2018 PreLaw Magazine ranked Miami Law as a top three law school for Hispanic students. In addition, the School of Law was cited by Hispanic Business Magazine as a place that promotes and encourages a diverse community where Hispanic students can thrive. In 2014 Hispanic Business Magazine ranked the University of Miami School of Law a top three law school in the United States for Hispanic students based upon its strong international business curriculum with a particular focus on Latin America.

8) Experienced Staff Who Understands International Students

Miami Law faculty and staff can relate to international students from the inside out. This is because a number of people who first came to the U.S. as International Students now work at Miami Law.  This includes Caroline Bradley, Associate Dean for International and Graduate Programs; Carmen Perez-Llorca, Director of International Graduate Law Programs; Paula Arias, Director of International Moot Court Program; Sandra Friedrich, Director of the White & Case International Arbitration LL.M. Program; and Yazmyne Vasquez Eterovic, Associate Director of Career Development and Career Advisor for International LL.M. Students.

9) Research Assistantship Opportunities

Some of LL.M students are selected to serve as research assistants to international Faculty during the academic year.

10) Law Library

The University of Miami School of Law is home to one of the largest legal research libraries in the Southeast United States with an impressive international law collection. The foreign and comparative collection has extensive English, European Union and Latin American materials, including what is generally regarded as the best collection of materials on the Caribbean anywhere. The library has a specific Foreign/International Law Librarian - available to assist students with research.

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