The UMKC LL.M. program focuses on advancing lawyering skills, including legal analysis, research, writing, interviewing, counseling and negotiating. Through one capstone experience, students have the opportunity to compete in the LL.M. International Commercial Arbitration Moot Court Competition in Washington, D.C.
If you have questions about the General LL.M. Program or the application process, please feel free to email us at umkcllm@umkc.edu
LL.M. students take eight credit hours of compulsory courses and 16 credit hours of elective courses from the J.D. curriculum. Students may specialize in one of eight emphasis areas.
When you enroll, you'll be assigned a faculty advisor. In consultation with the advisor, you will develop a plan of study that meets the requirements for the degree. The advisor must approve enrollment in all courses.
Requirements:
Students in the LL.M. program receive exceptional academic support. International students have access to the Legal English Workshop, a four-week summer program to improve legal vocabulary and introduce key legal terms and concepts, and students who speak English as a second language may qualify for additional time on exams. LL.M. students are invited to participate in UMKC’s orientation program, which teaches students how to prepare for law study in the United States. During the semester, students have access to tutorials to provide additional instruction and advice to prepare for classes and exams. The LL.M program is relatively small so that students receive personal attention.
One of the most distinctive characteristics of the program is the welcoming environment at UMKC and in Kansas City. Faculty, staff and students are extraordinarily helpful to LL.M. students.
Many international students are eligible to take a U.S. bar exam upon completion of the LL.M. program. Graduates are eligible to participate in a specially designed UMKC bar preparation course, which has an over-90% success rate. The pass rate for U.S. bar exams — New York and California — for UMKC graduates from the LL.M. program is around 70%.
UMKC provides a great education at an exceptional price and is often rated a best-value program. Tuition and fees are assessed based on the number of credit hours. Because UMKC receives some financial support from the state of Missouri, a separate out-of-state educational fee applies to those from outside of Missouri. Educational fees and student program/use fees are set by the University of Missouri Board of Curators.
View the most current fee schedule
Successful LL.M. students may transfer to the J.D. program without having to take the LSAT. Courses taken during the LL.M. program are transferable for credit toward the J.D. for students who transfer, reducing the number of credit hours necessary to complete the J.D. program.
In recognition of Arthur Mag’s service to the University of Kansas City and UMKC, the Edward F. Swinney Trust has provided a grant for the establishment of Arthur Mag graduate fellowships to support full-time graduate study at UMKC.
Arthur Mag fellows work closely with distinguished professors in their graduate degree programs. These professors serve as mentors throughout the fellows’ graduate work. One of these fellowships is designated for the School of Law and is provided each year to an outstanding student in the UMKC School of Law’s LL.M. program.
The Arthur Mag Graduate Fellowship in Law includes a stipend of $10,500; remission on non-resident fees, if applicable; and remission of 18 hours of graduate law educational fees, for total possible compensation of nearly $28,000.
Applicants must be U.S. citizens who are planning to pursue the graduate program on a full-time basis. More information, including a “generic” application form that may be copied and used and a faculty recommendation form, may be downloaded from the School of Graduate Studies.
Fellowship awards are provided annually to outstanding students entering as full-time LL.M. degree candidates from a fund endowed by friends of alumnus John B. Gage, a teacher of law, former mayor of Kansas City and eminent lawyer.
The UMKC School of Graduate Studies annually awards up to three minority graduate fellowships of $600 each, applicable to the student’s graduate educational fees. The fellowship is renewable for one additional year provided the student maintains a 3.0 GPA and the law school certifies that the student is in good standing and making normal progress toward the degree.
Those eligible for nomination for these fellowships at the law school include students who are African American, Hispanic, Native American or Asian American and who are degree-seeking LL.M. students admitted or enrolled at UMKC for the ensuing academic year and who are U.S. citizens. Fellows must maintain a minimum enrollment of six credit hours per semester.
