Enrolment

Frequently Asked Questions

A: Additional relevant training may be in the form of summer schools or short courses for which ECTS credits were obtained or can be calculated. Relevant professional experience includes internships requiring legal knowledge. Since it is also possible to combine 30 ECTS credits of additional relevant training and 6 months of relevant professional experience, we encourage you to contact us regarding your plans before starting an internship, summer course or short course intended to meet eligibility requirements.

A: In general, we require proof of English proficiency through one of the following tests: TOEFL ibT: 100 points or above, TOEFL Paper: 600 points or above, IELTS: 7.0 or above, Cambridge CAE: A, Cambridge CPE: C or higher. Exceptionally, our Program Manager, a certified teacher of English as a Second Language, can assess English proficiency through the interview process. Before you schedule a re-take of your English proficiency test, please send an e-mail to llm@unil.ch to arrange an interview with our Program Manager.

A: Our courses are open to professionals, including lawyers and in-house counsel that have been practicing for several years.

A: Yes: most courses in our Program are taught in two to three-day blocks (3 credits), or four to six-day blocks (6 credits), generally on Thursday and Fridays, which makes it possible to reconcile coursework and a professional activity. Few courses are spread over one semester (13-14 weeks) and candidates need not select these courses if this is not compatible with work obligations.  Tests and exams are administered immediately after each course, and students may write the LLM thesis under the remote supervision of one of our instructors.

It is also possible, by an appropriate choice of courses, to concentrate all coursework over a period of 3-4 months. However, in this case, it might prove impossible to work in parallel and may be difficult to gather a sufficient number of credits in one of the five specialisations: the candidate would then obtain the title of “LLM in International Business Law” without specialisation.

Students can also only register for individual courses in our Programme. Credits obtained for these courses will be recognised and can be accumulated towards an LL.M. degree at a later date. A fee of 900 Swiss Francs will be charged for each 3-credit course and the list of individual courses available can be found on our website under “courses open to the public”.

A: Applicants unable to produce English language proficiency test results before the application deadline should submit all other required application documents through our online portal and send test scores separately by e-mail to llm@unil.ch after the deadline.

A: No. As soon as we receive an application, we begin liaising with associations and foundations based on the profile of an applicant. As a result, we have obtained private funding for scholarships and prizes, which are specific to individuals in our current applicant pool. When an applicant withdraws his or her application, any funding obtained for that applicant must be returned to the funding body.

A: Scholarships do not cover living expenses; paid internships have, thus, been negotiated in order to cover part of these expenses. Students living in Switzerland on a student visa are allowed to work 15 hours per week and must have approximately 2000 Swiss Francs per month to cover living expenses. Once a student has been accepted to the LL.M. Programme, he or she is eligible for the internships that we have negotiated and, with guidance from the LL.M. administration, can then negotiate terms of the internship contract with one of the internship providers. Our course offering allows students to work part-time or to concentrate courses over a semester in order to be in Switzerland for less than one year. 

A: International Contracts, International Commercial Litigation, International Commercial Arbitration, Innovation Law

A: The LL.M. is very specialised and its strength lies not only in its specialisation, but also in the diversity of its students, their work experience, and the small class size, which allows for greater career support for each LL.M. student. We have a number of applicants who have chosen the LL.M. because they have language abilities that are sought after in Switzerland and would like to pursue a career in international arbitration, international business transactions, or one of our other specialisations. Many former LL.M. graduates have found positions in large banks, companies and law firms with a focus on international arbitration.

Unlike the LL.M., which can be completed in one year, the Master of Law takes at least 1.5-2 years to complete. At the University of Lausanne, some of the Master of Law courses are in French and almost all courses are spread over an entire semester, making it more difficult to combine this course of study with a professional activity.

First of all, welcome to the LL.M. in International Business Law! We can’t wait to see you. Once admitted you may still have some questions. Below you’ll find information that will help you start our Programme.

A: In order to obtain access to course materials on our platform, you require electronic accesses, which are provided with your campus card only after you have confirmed your registration. If you wait until your arrival in Switzerland to either (1) send the required documents (see the Instructions to confirm your registration enclosed with the certificate of admission to registration) by postal mail within Switzerland or (2) drop, in the secure mailbox at the UNICENTRE, the envelope containing your original diplomas, transcripts and all the other required documents, max 47 cm (see the Instructions to confirm your registration enclosed with the certificate of admission to registration), there may be delays with respect to the issuance of your electronic accesses and campus card. As such, we encourage students to send their documents in advance. If you do not feel comfortable doing so, we encourage you to try to arrive in Switzerland before the orientation events.

A: In addition to the list of housing options on the UNIL website, you can request to be included on the LL.M. students' WhatsApp group to find out about housing opportunities. To be added to the WhatsApp group, simply send the Programme Manager a telephone number which can be shared with the other LL.M. students in the Programme.

A: There are a few websites that address this question: see, for example: STUDY IN SWITZERLAND. To be certain to choose the best option, you can also compare health insurance policies.

A: Yes, in the Internef Building, there is a branch of the Banque Cantonale Vaudoise (BCV) with staff on site.

A: For all documents regarding registration at the University of Lausanne, please contact Ms Cristela Alves.

A: The LL.M. is comprised of 60 ECTS, and students generally complete the Programme in two terms (Winter and Spring or Spring and Winter). The LL.M. Thesis is worth 18 ECTS. This means that LL.M. students must complete 42 ECTS through courses offered in the framework of the LL.M. in International Business Law.

A: Due to work obligations, some students select less than 21 course credits per term; others select much more in order to make time for job opportunities and internship opportunities that may arise during the second term after they have had an opportunity to build a local professional network.

A: To acquire a specialisation (not compulsory), students must obtain 18 ECTS and submit an LL.M. Thesis (18 additional ECTS) in their selected field. The remaining credits (24 ECTS) can be freely chosen (for more information, see here). 

A: During each term, we try to offer some courses remotely in order to accommodate the needs of our students who do not reside in Lausanne. With Covid-19 restrictions, we may be required to offer additional courses remotely and our professors have been told to expect live streaming of their courses to students who, for health reasons, are unable to attend courses in person.

A: While regular courses are offered every year, special courses are offered less frequently, to vary the available options or to keep our LL.M. students up-to-date on important legal issues (for more information, see here). 

A: International Contracts is composed of Common Law Contracts (3 ECTS), Contract Drafting (3 ECTS) and/or International Sales Law (3 ECTS); International and European Trade Law and Market Regulation is composed of International Economic Law and Internal Market Law (to be taken together); and, Foundations International Company and Competition Law is composed of International Company Law and International Competition Law (which may be taken separately).

A: None of our courses are compulsory.

A: LL.M. specific block-courses are generally scheduled on Thursdays and Fridays and some are spread over one to two weeks. This allows our students to work or complete internships on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays without this affecting their attendance in LL.M. courses. Certain courses offered on Mondays, Tuesdays or Wednesdays within the framework of other UNIL Programmes are open to our LL.M. students in order to offer them a wider range of options.

A: We strive to support our students in their search for paid internships and part-time jobs while they are completing their studies in Lausanne. When we share a student's CV with our network of internship providers (some of which are listed here), we are sometimes able to secure an internship for the student before his or her arrival; however, employers generally wait for the student's arrival in Switzerland to interview the student before granting an internship or job opportunity.

A: Should you wish to be included on the LinkedIn mailing lists to which we send job and internship opportunities on a weekly basis, please add us to your LinkedIn and feel free to apply to any job opportunities for which you feel qualified. Should you require a letter of recommendation or an interim transcript to support your application for a part-time job or internship, you may send an e-mail to the Programme Manager.