JD/MA IN LATIN AMERICAN STUDIES

The Center for Latin for Latin American Studies, the Law Center, the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and the School of Foreign Service of Georgetown University offer a four-year joint degree program of international studies leading to the Juris Doctor (JD) and Master of Arts in Latin American Studies (MALAS). This professionally oriented course of study is designed to integrate advanced work in area studies with a professional legal education.

Separately, the JD requires 83 credits over three years and the MALAS requires 36 credits over two years for a total of 119 credits. In the joint degree, students undertake a four-year course of study comprising a minimum of 107 credit hours (77 hours of Law Center courses and 30 hours of MALAS work). Six hours from the Law Center satisfy MALAS degree requirements and 6 hours of MALAS coursework will satisfy JD requirements, meaning joint students will fulfill the equivalent of 83 credits for the JD and 36 credits for the MA. Candidates for this joint degree must satisfy the academic standards of the two programs: maintain a minimum B (3.0/4.0) average; demonstrate advanced foreign language ability through successful completion of a Spanish or Portuguese oral proficiency examination; and successfully complete the written comprehensive examination of the MALAS Program. All coursework must be chosen in close consultation with academic advisors in both programs; courses to be applied to both programs' requirements must be approved by both programs in advance.

The curriculum for the JD/MA Program includes:

• 24 hours of MALAS coursework, ordinarily taken in the first year of the joint program.
• 6 hours of additional MALAS coursework, in the second, third, and/or fourth years or during summer session.
• 29 hours of the traditional first-year domestic law courses, ordinarily taken in the second year of the joint program.
• 29 hours in further domestic law courses including Professional Responsibility. These courses are distributed among the third and fourth years.
• 16 hours in international law courses including: 3 hours in the required course: International Law I: Introduction to International Law and 13 hours in further international law courses; and at least 6 of which should focus on Latin America. These courses are taken in the third and fourth years of the joint program.

Applicants must submit separate applications to both the Law Center and the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, meeting all requirements and paying fees for both. Students are eligible to apply for financial aid from Latin American Studies during the MA year and from the Law Center during the three years in which they are primarily based on that campus. To apply to the Law Center, visit http://www.law.georgetown.edu/admissions/index.html. To apply to the MA in Latin American Studies, visit http://www.georgetown.edu/grad/prospective/admissions/. Questions about the administration of this joint degree should be addressed to Dominique Brown, Assistant Director, JD Academic Services, (brownd2@law.georgetown.edu or 202-662-9853).

For more information about Latin American law classes, please contact Professor Joseph Page (page@law.georgetown.edu or (202) 662-9352).

More information about the joint degrees offered at the Law Center can be found at http://www.georgetown.edu/grad/prospective/admissions/.