Hi friends–
As many of you undoubtedly know, we work at growing our ELLM cohort through all the forms of social media that we feel we can utilize effectively. In the near future, we will likely expand our presence on Google Plus, and look at ways in which we can utilize Twitter more effectively, before turning our attention to expanding our initiatives into other areas. One forum that I particularly enjoy are our informational webinars, which we offer each month. It is an effective and, I think, interesting way of explaining some of the key features of our program, while affording participants the opportunity to ask questions. At our last webinar, in late September, our participants included legal practitioners from France, Venezuela, Eduador, and Nigeria, in addition to the U.S. Pretty good global reach! We also prepare a variety of marketing materials for distribution; you can view our updated flyer here: exec llm one pager 2012.
I thought I would take the opportunity in this blog to touch upon some of the questions we get most often, via our webinars, email and phone calls. One of the most common is about conditional or preliminary admission. Insofar as the question as to do with whether we offer preliminary opinions on a candidate’s likelihood of success in applying to the ELLM, the answer is no. Boston University requires a formal application process– you can learn more about the ELLM application process here– and I also believe we might be doing a candidate a disservice through conveying an opinion on their credentials without benefit of seeing the totality of their application. Letters of recommedation, for example, offer us a great deal of interesting and actionable information about a candidate; that would not be the case with just an email attaching a cv and possibly a transcript. We do post many of our degree candidate’s profiles, as well as considerable information on our website related to credentials, so potential applicants should have a fairly good picture of what the “typical” ELLM candidate looks like. We do offer conditional or provisional admission related to TOEFL scores, as we explain on our website, for candidates who score near (but below) our required minimums but otherwise meet the standards for admission. If you feel the ELLM program is a good fit for you, I would always encourage you to apply!
Another frequently-asked question has to do with job experience, namely: do we only admit applicants with considerable work experience, or will we consider applicants who have recently completed their legal studies? On average, our candidates have 14 years of work experience; some have less and some have considerably more. Our minimum is typically 3 years’ of full time employment, but we will consider applicants with less should they otherwise meet our standards for admission. Again, we take the totality of an applicant’s record into account, so a “weakness” in one area can conceivably be offset by a “strength” in another. Excellent academic credentials, an interesting background that adds diversity to our ELLM cohort, a compelling fit for the program–these and other attributes are important components of our admissions decisions and can makeup for a short work history. We consider each applicant on a case-by-case basis and after a thorough review of his or her complete file.
Related to that: we are frequently asked if we will consider non-lawyers for the program. As we discuss on our website, we do admit a selective group of non-lawyers into the program. Typically, they possess a master’s degree, strong academic credentials, considerable work experience in a law-related field (e.g., contracts, risk management, etc.), and can make a compelling argument as to why the ELLM is a good fit for them. Those candidates so admitted have proven each time that they are capable to performing in the program at a very high level, and they contribute richly to the program through the diversity of their backgrounds and their work experience.
A final question I wanted to highlight today is whether we offer scholarships. The ELLM program does not offer any type of financial aid, meaning no scholarships or bursaries are offered to applicants,and we do not envision that this will change in the near future. Successful candidates are able to secure any type of Federal or private loans that they are eligible for, and BU does offer a deferred tuition plan for which our degree candidates (who are considered part-time students) are eligible. In addition, some of our candidates secure assistance through private foundations and governmental agencies. Many, perhaps most, of our candidates obtain at least partial reimbursement from their employers, while others are self-pays. For those paying for the ELLM themselves, the flexible nature of the program–which allows you to complete the program over 4 years, if you wish–provides the opportunity to spread the cost of the program over a longer period of time than a typical 9-month residential LL.M. program.
As always, please contact us if we we can be of any assistance in providing you with additional information on the program, or by answering any of your questions. If you are interested in learning more about the ELLM program, please consider joining us at one of our upcoming webinars, please email us at execllm@bu.edu. Our next two scheduled webinars are on Wednesday, October 24th at 1pm (EST), and Thursday, November 15th at 1pm (EST). We hope to see you there!
