Eligibility and Application
Students may apply to spend a semester abroad during their fourth, fifth or sixth semesters of law school. Students should make every effort to have completed distribution requirements prior to the semester abroad.

3Ls planning to study abroad during their final semester of law school are advised to verify that their proposed program will ensure return home in time for graduation and bar certification, which is generally on or around June 1.

The application for study abroad for both the semester exchange programs and for independent study abroad should be completed through Symplicity and must be accompanied by a statement of purpose, a current resume or CV, and a letter of recommendation from a Cardozo professor. Applications to study abroad during a fall semester are due by February 15; for a spring semester, applications are due by October 1. Students are notified if they are approved for study abroad approximately one month later.

Please see answers to Frequently Asked Questions about semester abroad programs.

CARDOZO SEMESTER EXCHANGE PROGRAMS:

Amsterdam Law School (Amsterdam, The Netherlands)
Fall or Spring Semester; Courses taught in English

 

Bucerius Law School (Hamburg, Germany)
Program in International and Comparative Business Law
Fall semester; Courses taught in English 

 

Central European University (Budapest, Hungary)
Department of Legal Studies
Fall semester; Courses taught in English

 

Chinese University of Hong Kong (Hong Kong)
Fall or spring semester; Courses taught in English
Programs in Chinese Business Law and International Economic Law

 

ESADE (Barcelona, Spain)
Fall semester; Courses taught in English and Spanish

 

Tel Aviv University (Tel Aviv, Israel)
Spring semester (Fall semester may be an option in 2013)
Courses taught in English and Hebrew

 

University of Oxford (Oxford, England) Programme in Comparative Media Law and Policy
Centre for Socio-Legal Studies
Spring semester

The Programme in Comparative Media Law and Policy (PCMLP) is a research and policy programme that brings together scholars, policymakers and practitioners to study contemporary issues in global media law and policy, with a particular interest in understanding media and governance in transitioning and fragile states.Students in this programme attend seminar series of the Centre for Socio-Legal Studies, engage in supervised research and take advantage of lectures and other resources in Oxford.  This opportunity is excellent for self-motivated students interested in comparative media law and policy, particularly those who have or wish to have a research agenda. 

 

University of Paris X-Nanterre (Paris, France)
Fall or spring semester; Courses taught in French

 

University of Roma Tre (Rome, Italy)
Fall or spring semester; Courses taught in English

 

University of Sydney Law School (Sydney, Australia)
Fall or spring semester; Courses taught in English

Please check this website often and see the Assistant Dean for Graduate and International Programs for the most updated information.

Independent Study Abroad

In some cases, students may receive permission to study abroad at other institutions through an individual study abroad program.  Students must make a compelling case that their educational objectives may be met at the other institution but not at Cardozo. 

Students interested in studying independently may begin research into possible foreign law schools at the Internet Legal Research Group's Guide to Study Abroad and at HeinOnline's Foreign and International Law resource page. Please note that students will not receive permission to enroll in another American law school's study abroad program except for those programs which have been registered as an ABA-approved Semester Abroad Program.

In the past few years, Cardozo students have arranged independent study abroad programs at the following institutions:

  • Fudan University, Shanghai
  • Kyiv-Mohyla University, Ukraine
  • National University of Singapore
  • Tsinghua University, Beijing
  • Universidad de Chile, Santiago

Students interested in pursuing an independent study abroad opportunity must fill out the application for study abroad above and should make an appointment to see the Assistant Dean for Graduate and International Programs to discuss their options.

Transfer of Credit

As a condition to receiving credit for the semester, students:

  • Must submit a hard copy of course titles, credit hours, and descriptions to Amy Sugin for approval in advance. Failure to receive advance approval will jeopardize credit transfer. If you hold an editorial position on a journal, you must arrange for your editor-in-chief to authorize you to complete your responsibilities abroad.  Staff members on a journal must also notify their board of their intent to study abroad. 
  • Must earn a letter grade of C or better to receive transfer credit. No credit will be awarded for courses taken on pass/fail or other non-letter grade basis.  (Please note: Grades do not transfer, and are not included in a student’s grade point average.)
  • Must register for a full-time course load in order to fulfill residency requirements.
  • Must not duplicate course work taken at Cardozo.
  • May not use credits from study abroad to accelerate graduation date.
  • Will fulfill the Category IV distribution requirement but may not be used to satisfy any additional required Cardozo courses for graduation.
  • May not transfer more than 4 credits of law-related graduate coursework from outside a Faculty of Law toward their J.D. degree. All requests to transfer credit from outside a Faculty of Law must be accompanied by the faculty member’s biography.

Finances

All students who study abroad are required to register at and pay full tuition and fees to Cardozo.  Some fees to the host institution may apply.

Students may apply for financial aid to cover tuition charges as well as living expenses and travel costs for an approved semester abroad. For further information about financial aid, students should contact the Office of Student Finance in Room 1024.

Download the Study Abroad Checklist