Global Law Scholars Program
The Global Law Scholars program is designed for students preparing for an international or transnational practice in which they will regularly encounter problems that involve more than one legal system. The aim is to combine language skills and cultural familiarity with rigorous and directed legal training to cultivate critical skills needed to practice in the global legal environment of the 21st century.
The GLS program is small and selective, admitting only about 15-20 students each year. Applications are made at the same time as (but separately from) applications for admission to the J.D. program. Applicants must demonstrate proficiency in a second language as well as English. GLS participants pursue a specialized curriculum of seven courses to satisfy program requirements. Two of these courses have been created for, and are restricted to, GLS students: a first-year seminar designed to introduce participants to different career pathways through faculty and visitor presentations, and a second-year seminar focused on specialized skills sets (such as international legal research, comparative legal analysis, and international negotiations). As part of the latter, GLS students work on a major research, writing, and advocacy project on an international legal topic of their own choosing.
GLS students are also encouraged to take advantage of the many opportunities Georgetown Law offers for broadening and deepening their knowledge and perspectives. These opportunities include summer internships abroad after their first year and externships during their second year, as well as enrollment in the London-based Center for Transnational Legal Studies or participation in the Semester Abroad program. The GLS Program is directed by Prof. David P. Stewart.
Of the 17 GLS participants who graduated in 2012, 12 were either magna or cum laude (top 10 and 33% respectively). Twelve served on the boards of one of Georgetown's Law Journals (five on the Journal of International Law, three on the Immigration Law Journal, two on the Journal of Law and Public Policy and two on the Georgetown Law Journal). Five were members of Barristers' Council. Two earned joint degrees (one MSFS and one MPH), and several earned special recognition awards (including the Dean's Certificate for "special and outstanding service to the Law Center Community" and the ABA/BNA award for excellence in health care law.)
