LL.M. in Taxation

Coursework

Georgetown Law’s extensive tax curriculum offers students the opportunity to choose from more than 50 graduate-level courses dealing with every aspect of tax law. These courses range from foundational subjects such as corporate, partnership, and international tax, to dozens of advanced offerings across a variety of specialized areas.

The practitioners who make tax law and policy – officials in the Treasury Department, Internal Revenue Service, tax-writing committees of Congress, and major law and accounting firms – work within walking distance of the Law Center. Georgetown draws heavily on those assets to provide the most comprehensive tax curriculum available in the United States.

Prior to matriculation into the LL.M. in Taxation program, U.S.-trained and all online students who have not taken a basic federal income taxation course in prior U.S. law school studies must complete Foundations of Federal Income Taxation, a twelve-hour online non-credit course that is free of charge, to meet the federal income taxation prerequisite requirement. The course covers introductory concepts in federal income tax that are fundamental to understand before enrolling in more advanced tax courses. The course opens on June 1st of each year, and is to be completed before the first week of fall semester.

Foreign-trained students in the LL.M. in Taxation on-campus program will enroll in Federal Income Taxation (4 credits) during the fall semester to satisfy the federal income taxation requirement. The course focuses on federal income taxation of individuals and serves as a prerequisite to all upper-level tax electives offered as part of the LL.M. in Taxation.

Other than the basic course on federal income taxation, there are no formal program requirements, other than the completion of 24 credits for U.S.-trained and all online students, and 20 credits for foreign-trained students in the on-campus program. Students are free to design their program to suit their personal academic and career objectives, and receive individualized academic advising and access to robust professional development resources. Students may choose to enroll in a broad selection of courses in a variety of different practice areas, or specialize in one or more areas of tax law.

Students can pursue a Certificate of Specialization in combination with the LL.M. in Taxation program. The Graduate Tax Program offers three tax-related Certificates of Specialization: the Certificate in Employee Benefits Law, Certificate in Estate Planning, and Certificate in International Taxation. The credits needed to fulfill tax-related Certificate of Specialization requirements are a part of, and not in addition to, the LL.M. in Taxation specialization credit requirement.

Refer to the Georgetown Law Curriculum Guide by selecting Taxation LL.M. or Taxation LL.M. (Online) under Courses in a Graduate Program for a complete list of curricular offerings in tax law. To view suggested curriculum pathways and course descriptions for current and previous course offerings, visit the Taxation Curriculum Essay.

Foreign-trained on-campus students who wish to fulfill course requirements for New York Bar eligibility have the ability to do so while pursuing their LL.M. program. However, this requires careful planning and course selection. Students should speak with the LL.M. Program Director for further guidance.

Faculty

The breadth of the Graduate Tax Program’s full-time and adjunct faculty, numbering more than 100 professors total, enables Georgetown Law to offer an exceptionally large and specialized array of tax courses, taught by professors who bring to the classroom their various experiences in the government, the private sector, academia, and the non-profit community.

Our full-time faculty includes teachers and scholars who are regularly consulted by business, the United States government, and international organizations, including the International Monetary Fund, the OECD, and the World Bank. They have expertise in not only technical issues of taxation, but also the intersection of tax law and public finance, international trade, fiscal policy, behavioral economics, and civil rights.

Our adjunct faculty include practitioners at major law and accounting firms, non-profit organizations and think-tanks, as well as top government officials at the Internal Revenue Service, the Department of Treasury, the Department of Justice, and judges at the U.S. Tax Court.

At Georgetown Law, students have the opportunity to be taught not only by world-renowned scholars and top practitioners, but by those who are actually creating tax policy and enforcing and interpreting U.S. tax laws.

Visit the Faculty Directory to view the list of full-time tax professors at Georgetown Law. The full list of Graduate Tax Program full-time and adjunct faculty can be found in the Graduate Tax Program Brochure.

Alternatively, to view the professor profile of a particular course, select a course from the Curriculum Guide and scroll to the Professors section of the course information page.

Campus Life

The Graduate Tax Program hosts events, receptions, panels and guest speakers on tax topics that tax students are encouraged to attend.

While online students may not be on-campus, they are welcome to attend any Georgetown Law events, talks and panels that are offered online, broadcasted virtually, or recorded for later viewing. If visiting Washington, D.C., online students are welcome to visit Georgetown Law and get a glimpse of on-campus life, as online students have the same access to Georgetown buildings and resources as on-campus program students do.

Georgetown Law offers a rich array of student organizations and activities that allow students to find their own path at law school. With over 85+ registered student organizations, available programming and activities span across a broad range of legal disciplines, provide support and activities for ethnic, religious and other identity groups, promote social justice causes and host social gatherings.

Some student organizations focused on or related to taxation include the Antitrust & Competition Law Association, Corporate & Financial Law Organization, Georgetown Corporate Crime and Anti-Corruption Law Student Association, and Tax Law Council. To learn more about how to get more involved in Georgetown Law student life, visit the Activities & Organizations page.

Georgetown Law is home to 20+ centers and institutes, each having their own hub of expertise, from public health and international economics, to human rights and technology. Each center and institute has opportunities and programming to take advantage of, such as symposia and events, career and professional development programs, and networking receptions. Students can engage with professors outside of the classroom, and collaborate with center and institute staff who are leaders in their respective fields.

To learn more about the research initiatives of each center and institute, visit the Georgetown Law Centers & Institutes website.

Experiential Learning

Because of Georgetown’s location in the Nation’s capital, students have numerous (more than 50, to be precise) opportunities for externships at government agencies, international organizations, and professional service firms. These externship opportunities are available during both the fall and spring semesters. Students completing externships do not receive compensation but earn academic credit.

LL.M. in Taxation students in recent years have been awarded externships at the Internal Revenue Service, the Department of Treasury, the U.S. Tax Court, the Senate Finance Committee, the House Ways and Means Committee, the Joint Committee on Taxation, as well as major law firms and the national offices of Big Four Accounting Firms. Successful externships allow students to gain valuable work experience, enhance their credentials, and can pave the way for permanent job offers following graduation.

For more information regarding experiential learning opportunities at Georgetown Law, visit the LL.M. Externships and Practicums pages.

Additionally, Georgetown Law students have numerous opportunities to engage in pro bono and community service during their studies and after graduation to provide assistance to those in need.

Career Resources

The Graduate Tax Program has a full-time professional development staff devoted exclusively to helping students with academic and career planning. They provide individual counseling sessions, weekly newsletters, resume reviews, mock interviews and panels featuring speakers (including many Georgetown alumni) from specialized areas of tax practice.

Employment outcomes for graduates of Georgetown’s Tax LL.M. program are excellent. For the past decade, since Georgetown began collecting employment data of graduating students, at least 90 percent of U.S.-Trained graduates of the Tax LL.M. program had secured employment by graduation (meaning, they had started full-time employment by October of that year). These outstanding figures are due in large part to the strength of Georgetown’s reputation among employers, as well as the commitment of the school’s academic and professional development advisors to the success of Georgetown students.

Early in the spring semester, Georgetown students participate in the Taxation Interview Program (TIP), a job fair co-hosted with New York University. TIP provides LL.M. in Taxation students with the opportunity to interview with employers from national and regional law firms, major accounting firms, corporations and government agencies. The Internal Revenue Service also appears frequently on campus, participating in TIP during the spring semester and at the Government Interview Program during the fall semester. Major law firms and accounting firms host on-campus receptions and post job openings on the Law Center’s computerized jobs database. Georgetown also hosts other on-campus interview programs during both the fall and spring semesters.

A Tax Court clerkship is one of the most useful credentials that a new tax lawyer can acquire. Over the years, numerous students have secured clerkships at the Tax Court, which is located across the street from the Law Center. Many of its judges hold LL.M. in Taxation degrees from Georgetown, and several teach or have taught here as adjunct professors. Students interested in applying for a clerkship should do so early in the summer before they matriculate at the Law Center. Interviews are generally conducted in September, although occasionally opportunities arise at other times during the academic year.

To find more information and resources on professional development, career advancement, recruitment programs, and job search opportunities, visit the Office of Graduate Careers and Practice Areas section of the Career Exploration & Professional Development page.

Related Programs

J.D. candidates from Georgetown or other accredited U.S. law schools can obtain an LL.M. in Taxation degree by completing 12 additional credit hours, through the joint J.D./LL.M. in Taxation.

LL.M. in Taxation candidates are eligible to pair their degree studies with a Certificate of Specialization, particularly the Certificate in Employee Benefits Law, Certificate in Estate Planning, and Certificate in International Tax. If interested in pursuing this combination, students should speak with the LL.M. Program Director for academic advising.

Tax professionals who are not attorneys can take advanced tax courses at Georgetown Law and earn a Master of Studies in Law (M.S.L.) in Taxation. Non-lawyers are also eligible to complete a Certificate in International Taxation alongside the M.S.L. in Taxation. While the M.S.L. in Taxation program will not prepare or qualify non-lawyer tax professionals for the practice of law or to sit for any state bar exam, it does provide experienced tax professionals an opportunity to study tax law at the most advanced levels.

Foreign-trained students have the opportunity to get a head start to their studies at Georgetown Law and experience in Washington, DC by attending the LL.M. Summer Experience. The LL.M. Summer Experience is a 6 week pre-program that allows students to earn up to 4 additional credit hours before the start of their degree studies that can be used towards LL.M. program requirements and New York Bar eligibility. All courses in Session I and Session II are approved by the New York Bar and allow more flexibility in course selection during the fall and spring semesters.

Scholarships, Fellowships and Financial Aid

Georgetown Law awards a small number of partial merit based scholarships to LL.M. degree applicants. Scholarships are awarded on the basis of their LL.M. degree application on a rolling basis. All applicants are considered for merit based scholarships when they apply for a Georgetown LL.M. program.

Various scholarships and fellowships are offered to LL.M. in Taxation applicants who demonstrate a strong interest or potential for excellence within the field of tax law. Awards range from partial to full tuition scholarships. Taxation scholarships and fellowships include Graduate Tax Scholars, Council On State Taxation (COST) Graduate Fellowship in State and Local Taxation, Akin-Gump – Robert Rothman Tax Scholarship, KPMG Tax Scholarship, and Leonard B. Terr Memorial Scholarship.

Applicants who are U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents may apply for financial aid in the form of loans. For more information please visit the Georgetown Law Financial Aid website.