Should I go to Law School as an International student?

Many people are wondering if they should go to law school abroad as international students. However, there are also many who are not sure if going to law school aboard is the right decision for them. In this article, we would discuss the pros and cons of going to law school as an international student.

Foreign language studies may come to mind first when considering oversea study alternatives, traveling overseas to study other subjects, on the other hand, has a lot to offer. When studying abroad, there is a subject less well-known but as attractive. Law.

In legal education, there are numerous alternatives ranging from undergraduate semesters overseas to master’s degree programs.

Whether you want to go to the school of law and become a lawyer or have an interest in law generally, studying law in another country offers a chance to learn about another nation’s law system directly.

It can also give a significant supplement to programs in political science, foreign affairs, history, and pre-law by provoking a new viewpoint on your own country’s laws.

A semester or even a year spent abroad can be very advantageous for anyone concerned with courses like human rights, diplomacy, environmental protection, social justice, public policy, healthcare, criminal justice, and comparative and international law.

However, it is vital to act with caution while moving abroad to study law, considering the level of professionalism involved in this field of study.

In this article, I highlight the advantages of studying law abroad, the challenges most international law students face, how much it will cost to go to a law school abroad, and I will talk about the top schools that offer law.

What are the Advantages of Studying Law Abroad?

The advantages of studying law abroad are limitless and are pertinent to your chosen country, not disregarding your local institutions, studying law abroad will provide benefits like

Finishing a degree abroad, especially in a country where a company you’re interested in has an outpost or complete work, will give you an edge in interviews.

Even if you do not intend to work overseas after graduation, spending a little time abroad throughout your studies demonstrates a commitment to improving your legal knowledge that not every candidate will possess.

Studying abroad won’t just give you an edge but will also affect how your colleagues see you when you return to your home. They will see you as one with a foreign inclination and capable of bringing new and creative ideas.

Acquisition of Expertise in Legal Affairs Pertinent to a Country.

While studying law overseas will provide you with a more thorough grasp of the law, it will also allow you to focus on a specific home legal system. If you want to work as a lawyer in a country or for an organization based in that region of the world — understanding their legal practices will give you a significant advantage.

From a logistical standpoint, studying law in the nation where you wish to practice is also crucial. Depending on the country you choose, several prerequisites and certifications are required to become a lawyer. Studying abroad can assist you in better understanding such expectations and putting them into action.

Availability of Various Scholarship Funding Opportunities

There is no need to mark studying law abroad off your bucket list just yet if you’re worried about cost, there are a lot of scholarships available for law students who want to broaden their horizons by studying abroad.

A great place to start is at “Law School Scholarships Around the World,” according to QS Law Studies. This extensive list contains financing for students studying law at all stages, from undergraduate to postgraduate, across the world.

These scholarship opportunities also extend to your local university, and could still lead to other financing opportunities, all of which are geared toward helping students as you profit from international law study.

You will Benefit More than Learning.

While your key motivation for studying law abroad may be to improve your academic credentials, you can also expect to grow as a person. The benefits of studying overseas are numerous and will last a lifetime. From socializing with new immersing yourself in a new culture, the benefits of studying abroad are numerous and will last a lifetime.

Transferable skills

Studying law abroad is a sure way to learn and acquire many relevant skills like communication, where you are allowed to learn a different language and improve your fluency.

Studying abroad regardless of the career is not always easy at first because the first few months you are there is a period you have to adapt to a new culture and lifestyle in general, and your ability to do this is an adaptability skill that most employers consider during an interview.

Better Job Prospects

Law degrees abroad are exceedingly expensive, owing to their value, whether from the Ivies or a highly rated, internationally recognized university. They are expensive, to be sure, but in today’s competitive employment market, they can serve as the perfect trump card.

I’m sorry to tell you, but any rational person could identify the difference between a law degree from Yale, Harvard, or NYU and one from a 4th-tier law school in the United States. These universities have a global reach and graduating from any of them almost guarantees you a job as a lawyer, even after paying the astronomical fees they charge.

The bottom line is that studying law abroad will influence your success in a great way, through the unbeatable skills you have acquired over time.

The Challenges Most International Law Students Face.

International law students also face many challenges, and issues making it disadvantageous to study law abroad. I will highlight a few of these challenges below:

Lack of Country-Specific Expertise

Despite the many advantages of pursuing a law degree overseas, foreign law degrees focus on the legal system of your host nation rather than the intricacies of legal systems in your country.

That means an internationally trained lawyer who desires to return to their home country will lack the unique talents needed to easily integrate into law procedure there unless they are prepared to work harder to acquire the skills they lack; else, they will have their downsides. In any event, the shift to practice will be difficult.

High Cost of Tuition

As a foreign student wishing to study law in another country, one stumbling hurdle will be the excessive tuition costs levied by law schools abroad — the cost of obtaining a law degree in most foreign law schools is enormous!

Although there are a few nations in much of Europe where tuition is genuinely free, there are none in the United States. therefore anyone wanting to study in these locations could obtain a law degree for a little or no cost; however, if you intend to leave Europe for the West, you may be in for a tuition shock.

The tuition fee is as high as $200k, a degree you may not use. Regardless of how you look at it, it’s a steep price to pay for an incredible law education experience. Given this, it’s understandable if someone wanted to keep the money.

Language Barrier

The language barrier is the most significant issue when traveling overseas. It can be isolating to live in a nation where no one speaks your tongue.

Communication obstacles are an unavoidable part of living abroad and attempting to understand foreigners’ lifestyles. As a result, some students studying abroad experience loneliness and homesickness. You have the option of allowing it to stress you out or viewing it as a learning opportunity.

The Top Law Schools Abroad

If you want to study law abroad as an international student, especially if you want a top-tier institution, there are a couple of things to consider and the top on the list is the extremely high tuition fee, except you can land a scholarship.

Let us review some of these top-tier schools based on the world university ranking 2022. In the table below, the following schools are ranked based on selected criteria, which include: bar passage rate, quality, placement success, selectivity, and ranking by lawyers.

Table representing word university ranking (Law studies) 2022.

Conclusion

While there are numerous benefits to studying law abroad, either professionally or personally, selecting the correct place, course, and degree is an important component of coming out on top. There are many various degree alternatives for ambitious law students, as well as non-degree law courses, ranging from LLBs and LLMs to MBAs and PhDs. LawStudies.com can assist you in understanding your alternatives and making the best decision possible.