I want to study law in an American university. What specific test scores do I need?

There are three kinds of law degrees in the United States: doctor of law, master of law and doctor of law, which are introduced as follows:

1.J.D.(Juris Doctor), Chinese can be translated into doctor of law, which is equivalent to the master of law enrolled in the national entrance examination in China in recent years.

The academic system of J.D. is three years, and only those with a bachelor's degree can apply. In the United States, there are even masters of mathematics and doctors of psychology who apply for J.D., which shows that this degree has great temptation and good career prospects. For undergraduate graduates from non-English-speaking countries, they also need to take LSAT (Law School Entrance Examination) and TOEFL (English as a Foreign Language Examination) to qualify for admission.

The TOEFL test is well known. The following focuses on LSAT (Law School Entrance Examination). LSAT is called the most difficult English test in the world, and its topics are much more difficult than TOEFL, GRE and GMAT. LSAT is a law school entrance examination set by the Pennsylvania Law School Admission Council for members of 65,438+098 law schools (65,438+083 in the United States and 65,438+05 in Canada) to measure. LSAT is held four times a year, in February and June, 10 and 12 respectively. China candidates only take 12, and the registration point is in Peking University. The LSAT test mainly tests the following abilities of candidates on the basis of English: 1, the ability to read and understand complex articles accurately; 2. The ability to organize relevant information and draw reasonable conclusions; 3. Critical reasoning ability; 4. Analyze and evaluate the reasoning ability of others. Almost all law schools require J.D. applicants to take the LSAT, and their scores are one of the conditions for law schools to evaluate applicants and a very important measure, especially for those who have left school for several years.

For China students who want to study J.D., the advantage is that they don't need to study law at the undergraduate level. That is to say, any qualified China University graduate can generally be admitted to American University Law School as long as he has TOEFL and LSAT scores that meet the requirements of the school and a good undergraduate study record. (However, whether or not to grant scholarships involves many factors such as academic ability, knowledge background and personal comprehensive quality. , and the specific situation varies from person to person, please refer to the clear requirements in the admissions brochures of law schools of various universities. )

J.D. is a vocational degree, and the course focuses on the cultivation of legal practical skills. Therefore, in the United States, employment channels are usually lawyers, corporate legal advisers, prosecutors and government legal personnel. After returning to China, China students are generally engaged in representing foreign-related legal cases and providing legal services for foreign investors.

PS: LSAT is said to be the most difficult English test in China. We can look it up and study it in many ways.

Two. LL.M (Master of Law), translated into Chinese, means Master of Law, and its nature is similar to that of China.

Master of Laws (LL.M) is an academic degree with a duration of one to two years. In the United States, people who are interested in law teaching and research and have obtained a doctorate in law generally apply. The enrollment of this degree is more stringent than that of J.D.: first, the applicant must obtain a bachelor's degree in law through undergraduate legal studies; Second, prove that you have enough ability to engage in legal research and submit major publications and academic works; Third, take the TOEFL test and reach the score required by the school. Students who have completed the Master of Laws degree must submit an academic paper before graduation.

Generally speaking, excellent domestic undergraduate graduates (including LLM graduates admitted through the joint entrance examination) have published some legal papers, and those with higher English level are more likely to get approval to apply for LL.M. In addition, American law schools do not welcome foreign law graduate students to apply for this degree. Their reason is simple: you are already a master of law in your country, why do you want to give up your studies and come to law schools in the United States? This involves a problem of immigration tendency, and applicants will often be refused visas when they arrive at American embassies and consulates. Some law graduate students apply as undergraduates, which is not worth the loss both academically and economically.

Because LL.M degree winners are engaged in in in-depth research on a certain subject abroad, no matter where they are employed, their main jobs are mostly teachers in law departments of universities or researchers in scientific research institutions. It is worth mentioning that it is difficult for foreign LLM applicants to obtain postgraduate scholarships because the number of LLM students enrolled in American law schools is small and the teaching focus is mainly on the JD course.

3. S.J.D. or J.S.D (doctor of law), translated into Chinese, is a doctor of law, which is basically the same as that of China.

If the LLM graduate wants to further study in a special legal field or his career goal is to become a senior teacher in law school, he can apply for further study of S.J.D LLM after completing his master's degree.

The academic system of S.J.D is generally three years. In the first year, I conducted special research and theoretical study under the guidance of my tutor. In the second and third academic years, I conducted legal practice, strengthened my understanding and understanding of the research topics in practice, and finally wrote high-quality academic papers before graduation (many doctoral dissertations are legal works). For China students, students who have a master's degree in law and meet the requirements of English learning (generally TOEFL) and academic ability (that is, the quantity and quality of published papers or academic works) can be admitted to American university law schools. Similarly, it is difficult to apply for a scholarship at the doctor of law stage, but especially outstanding people (those with high TOEFL scores and a large number of academic papers published) can always get rich academic funding.

The United States is a very practical country, so there are few local doctors of law and masters of law who study in S.J.D, and most graduates have taken the bar exam and become practicing lawyers (the average annual salary of American lawyers is $80,000, and the income of the best law professors is much less than this figure). So many S.J.D are foreign experts and scholars.

I'll leave you another website where you can read some knowledge about LLM in detail:

http://www . taisha . org/overseas/USA/zyfx/wk/20070706 17 1445 . html

But you said you want to work abroad, so JD is also worth considering.

It seems that the cost in Britain is higher and the exam is more difficult.

Ps: 1。 Even if you choose an organization, it is very important. Some are American TOP 10, and some are TOP50. The future may be different. I agree with the answer of the last respondent.

2. It is very difficult and realistic for me to get a scholarship abroad on my own strength without relying on my parents.

Therefore, it is very important to inquire about the country and the school by yourself.