About the Program
In today’s world, where there is a growing need to adopt legal approaches to cope with local as well as global issues, resolving legal controversies require a multi-dimensional perspective based on a conception of different legal disciplines; hence, the lawyer profile who is able to add to the development of society, economy, politics and the legal profession has been changing. With this respect, Koç University Institute of Social Sciences targets to contribute to the molding of this new lawyer profile, with an understanding based on reliable academic research, as well as practicing experience. We also offer non-thesis programs as well as thesis programs. The program with thesis is composed of 3 core courses followed by 4 elective courses and is concluded with a thesis. The non-thesis program is composed of 10 courses and a final paper.
ABOUT LLM PROGRAMS
Fundamental characteristics of the Koç University LL.M. Programs of Public Law and Private Law, which have been established in conformity with the legislation of higher education, are as follows:
- Worldwide reputed professors (and lecturers), who are distinguished as to their publications, research, and practice of legal profession.
- LLM programs in Public or Private Law are offered in English, in a modular format with a duration of 1 year (Non-Thesis option) or 2 years (Thesis option) in our main campus in Istanbul.
- Up-to-date courses structured on well-established and absorbed legal knowledge.
- Research and learning of different legal disciplines based on multi-dimensional perspectives.
- An atmosphere stimulating academic and vocational progress, whereby legal issues comprising comparative and international aspects are thoroughly examined.
- An integrated program with workshops, seminars and other activities parallel to the curriculum.
- Various options devoted to candidates with high competence of scientific research and to those who would like to differentiate from others in the legal profession.
- Regular and effective academic consultancy.
- Advanced research opportunities with regard to academic publications and instructions in particular, provided by Suna Kıraç Library.
- Privilege of being the part of a qualified group of graduate students, elected through adopting effective scaling and evaluation criteria.
- Academic collaboration with the leading law schools abroad.
WHO SHOULD APPLY?
- Applicants must have an undergraduate degree in law.
- Students must attend the program on campus. We do not offer distant learning.
APPLICATION DEADLINE
Early Application Deadline: March 31, 2023
Regular Application Deadline: June 23, 2023
To ensure that our international applicants receive the best assistance possible, we kindly invite you to direct your queries to our dedicated email address at study@ku.edu.tr.
For Turkish applicants, please feel free to reach out to our Law School Executive Director, Esra Ozcan, at esraozcan@ku.edu.tr. She will be more than happy to answer any questions you may have about our LLM programs and the application process.
We strive to provide a seamless and stress-free application experience for all our prospective students. Therefore, we encourage you to reach out to us for any information or guidance you may need. We look forward to hearing from you soon!
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I think most of the students in my class lived off the campus because we were all master students, and I think most of the students on campus are bachelor degree students, but you can get in touch with a lot of people anyway. Of course, there were a lot of Turkish-speaking students, it's their typical master degree for Law. But it's so good because they used to live in Istanbul, so when you meet them, you can stick together and enjoy the city and experience the city like a local, which you would never have the chance of when you are not living there.
Also, we had many international students coming from other countries such as Afghanistan and Pakistan. It was great to join a community where people were talking about Law with their perspectives from different regions, not only Europe or the US. It was a remarkable experience to discuss and compare different law systems.
LLM Graduate
The most important advantage of graduating from Koc University Law School is the question, inquire and criticism-based law education system rather than the memorization-based one. In addition to this, the curriculum of the Law School including the courses in the comparative and international areas of law, besides Turkish law oriented courses provides the privilege to its graduates. Within this scope, as a result of all the knowledge that I gained in my law education, I had the possibility to specialize in any areas of law.
After graduating from Koc University Law School, I had registered to Private Law LL.M. program with thesis to deepen my knowledge. Currently I continue the LL.M. program which provides numerous courses in the comparative and interdisciplinary areas of law.
Private Law LLM Graduate
I have been working on subjects of legal value for 35 years of my career; however, it was Koç University Law School which has helped me understand the essence and soul of the Law and the concept of Justice, which I believe to be the foundation of everything. For that, I give my thanks to the Koç University Law Faculty, Dean Prof. Dr. Bertil Emrah Oder, all my professors, faculty members and young lawyers I have been working together with.
I would recommend the LLM Programme of Koç University Law School to anyone who wants to improve themselves, regardless of their age and level. The LLM Programme has made me realize, again, in the autumn of my life, that learning is a pleasure and inspired my academic studies, made me contemplate on the Rule of Law, which is an institution necessary for the well-being of my country.
I would never imagine that reading the US Constitution or keeping up with modern Turkish Constitutional Court or Court of Administration judgement would be this exciting.
Public Law LLM Graduate
Dean of Law School
Prof. Dr. Bertil Emrah Oder
“With a genuine focus on global studies of law, outstanding research track of eminent faculty members and full impact in professional practice, our LLM programs trigger a new approach of advanced legal studies not only for Türkiye, but also for studying in Türkiye. Koç University LLM courses in public and private law have a wide range of curriculum including most demanding and less-discussed comparative and international topics of different legal disciplines. Taking into account legal developments at regional, local and international level, we offer both deepening in well-established legal disciplines and micro studies of law. Our varied LLM curricula is bilingual (English-Turkish). It intertwines local and global scholarship and expertise of law. Koç University LLM programs are dedicated to effective lecturing, real sense of legal research, global seminars, workshops, intensive consulting as well as co-curricular activities offering different types of career opportunities in legal leadership. With our competitive scholarships we aim at fostering high quality academic candidates and establishing a research hub of legal studies through academic LLM. Prospective students may also pursue a professional LLM track with a practical focus.”
Faculty, Private Law
Prof. Dr. Zeynep Derya Tarman
“Our LLM program in private law aims to provide students with a broad advanced education in international and European Law. The program is composed of 3 core courses followed by 4 elective courses and is concluded with a thesis. The non-thesis program is composed of 10 courses and a final paper. Our program design provides the students with a systematic learning process. This is made up of three distinct parts, beginning with the core and common modules which will provide the students with a solid foundation in international and European contract law, intellectual property/competition law and dispute resolution mechanisms. The aim is to broaden the strict horizons of national law and to equip students with those elements of the different legal systems which are at the core of the elaboration and application of uniform law, the approximation of laws within the European Union and the development of International Law. After completion of three core courses, the students can choose from a range of our elective modules to suit their specific learning and career objectives, and this essentially makes up the second part of the program. Some courses, which will be offered in English, will be organized around block seminars by specialized professors from our partner universities abroad and professionals of repute. The courses offered in the private law track touch on everything from contracts, transactions, dispute resolution mechanisms and taxation to competition, securities, and intellectual property. Given the importance of these areas to national and international business the program provides a chance to delve into the detail, but also appreciate the context of a specialist field from an international and comparative perspective. The goal of our LLM program in private law is to deepen a lawyer’s awareness about the links between the different fields of law and their transnational aspects..``
Going to Koç University for my LLM is easily the best decision of my life. The reason for that is the college itself, and Istanbul as the city. Turkey is an unconventional decision for people who are practicing under the common law and educated in the UK system, yet the experience and exposure I received in Koç easily trumps anything I could have had in London or the US. You go for the wonderful faculty and global perspective provided by the Law School in Koç, and you stay for the wonderful life you have in Istanbul as the city that combines East and West. As a Muslim, you'll fit in. As a progressive, you'll fit in. As someone who enjoys good food and amazing people, you'll fit in. As to professional development and future, most of my CV has been built on everything I did after this LLM. It empowered me to explore areas of law I did not consider, and excel in them. Koç University and Istanbul will give you the experience of a lifetime. You should not miss that.
Syed Akbar Hussain