What's the deal with LLM law degrees from the UK? Can you use them to take a Bar exam in the US?

No, they will not provide you admission to any U.S. state bar exam.

Their appeal may lie in the opportunity they provided lawyers and non lawyers to gain specialized legal knowledge that augments and complements their existing academic and career experiences.

The LLM European Union Law program, for instance, might prove useful to many in business or public service either in Europe or the US if they trade or treat with EU member states, organizations or businesses. An understanding of free movement of goods and services, free movement of labor within the Community, EU intellectual property Law, and EU Constitutional Law, could be invaluable.

 

Many who do business across other borders would benefit from the International Trade Law program, and what doctor or health administrator could not benefit from immersion in advanced topics of Medical Law?

The LLM is not however, a substitute for a J.D. or LLB.

(The LLM and other master�s degrees are listed in the Master�s degree section of bain4weeks.com)

Lawrie

. . .  please tell me the least expensive [exam based] Masters degree I can get (broken down by cost per credit and necessary credits for degree). Thanks.

The Heriot-Watt University DL MBA is conferred after passing nine 3-hour exams (9 exams if no exemptions or waivers granted). No attendance, midterm paper, thesis, or other rites required. Just turn up for and pass the exams. You get seven years to complete the program, and a nominal two shots at each exam (you may get yet another shot if other circumstances warrant, IIRC).

The cost of the program has risen significantly since I bought a "course" in 1995. I can tell you that the self-study courseware is second to none. Prices today, including exam fees (about $100 a pop) fall into two categories: cost of the electronic mediated courseware, and cost of the paper-based courseware. You can chose one or the other. I know they intend to drop the paper-based option sometime soon.

eMBA courseware $1200x9 + $100x9 = $11,700


Paper-based courseware

$900x9 + $100x9 + $50x9 = $9,450

$50 per course is for shipping. If you buy the courseware in batches of three, the shipping is free.

It is possible to get up to two course exemptions depending upon your existing credentials. That is, rather than 9 exams, you would only have to sit 7 exams to be eligible for conferral of the MBA degree.

The Suite of LLM degrees at University of Northumbria at Newcastle, require the submission of one 4,000 word paper per course, plus an end-of-program 20,000 word thesis. Takes two years though. Cost is rising, in no small part due to the fall of the dollar against the pound. Currently 3,500GBP or about $5,770. This represents a huge percentage rise in dollar terms from a year or two ago. Cost includes all books and access to online law databases and Lexis Nexis. Cost also includes a week-long entirely optional on-campus seminar.

 

Can be paid in four 6-month installments � GBP 925, 925, 925, 725 which is $1570, $1570, $1570, $1230

Lawrie

I'm 44, with no college credit. I work in human services and would like a degree to legitimize myself in a field where most are degreed. I have many prior learning experiences that I feel will convert to credit on prior learning assessment, and plan to take the basic CLEP exams in the next several months. My question is, what is the cheapest, fastest way to get CLEP and prior learning credits applied, so I can afford to pursue this?

QUICKEST AND CHEAPEST WAY TO GATHER COLLEGE CREDIT � AND I WANT IT NOW!

Go do the GRE subject exams. Around $130 a piece for 30 semester hours credit with a pass above the 80th percentile. That�s a bit over $4 per credit hour. Cheaper you will not find lest it be free. Next diet is November 8. Registration is closed, but you may be able to register for a standby.

Following diet is December 13. Registration closes Nov 7. After that, you wait until April 2004. Try the GRE subject exam free practice tests. You can download the PDF files from the home page of BA in 4 Weeks. A link to subject exam online registration also on the home page. If you know your stuff as you suspect you do, you could be half a degree up before Christmas (60 semester hours). Quick enough?

Maybe you would not be able to cut the 80th percentile. Bit of a disappointment, but, no worries, if you passed at least above the 40th percentile, you could still apply that to a COSC degree and receive 18 or 24 semester hours for each exam. My opinion is that it would be hard for the intelligent and curious among us (uh . . . that�s you guys) to fail to score above the 40^th percentile in their chosen GRE subject exam(s).

Even though you would not be enrolled in a college, send the results in. You get one free shot at submitting the results to two colleges of your choice (usually restricted to 2) at the time of the exam, after that, you pay. Since the only colleges in the whole wide world awarding semester hour credit for GRE subject exams are Excelsior, COSC, and Empire State College (not an assessment college), uh . . . send the results to Excelsior and COSC.

When I tried this, COSC created a record and kept the scores though they didn�t know me from a hole in the ground. When I called for my free unofficial evaluation, the academic advisor pulled my records and proceeded to give me a rough estimate of remaining outstanding degree requirements (I�d sent them CLEP and DANTES results too).

 



CLEP GENERAL EXAMS

As noted above, you can try sending in the CLEP results too, although not currently enrolled in any college.

Info on the CLEP general exams, their difficulty, their costs, and a detailed plan of how and where to take them, is given then discussed at great length in the body of the text of BA in 4 Weeks.

PRIOR LEARNING ASSESSMENT (PLA) / PORTFOLIO SUBMISSION

I provide links to detailed instructions and advice from the portfolio service providers, COSC, TESC, and Ohio U., in the online and distance learning resources section under the heading PORTFOLIO ASSESSMENT. There�s no better place to start.

Lawrie