Master of Studies in Law (M.S.L.) in Taxation

Coursework

Georgetown Law’s extensive tax curriculum offers non-lawyer students the opportunity to choose from many graduate-level courses within several aspects 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, the Internal Revenue Service, the 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 M.S.L. in Taxation program, students who have not taken a basic federal income taxation course in prior graduate studies must complete Foundations of Federal Income Taxation, a twelve-hour online non-credit course that is free of charge, to help meet the federal income tax prerequisite requirement. The course covers certain foundational concepts in federal income tax law that are considered 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.

Other than the basic course on federal income taxation, there are no formal program requirements for students, other than the completion of 24 credit hours. Students are free to design their program to suit their personal academic and career objectives. 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. Because we believe that M.S.L. in Taxation candidates have the background to succeed in the program just as those admitted to the LL.M. in Taxation program, M.S.L. in Taxation students will take the same final exams as the LL.M. student body and will be evaluated using numerical grades on the same curve as our LL.M. in Taxation students.

Students can pursue a Certificate in International Taxation in combination with the M.S.L. in Taxation program. Credits needed to fulfill Certificate in International Taxation requirements are a part of, and not in addition to, the M.S.L. in Taxation credit requirement.

Refer to the Georgetown Law Curriculum Guide by selecting M.S.L. in Taxation under Courses in a Graduate Program for a current list of curricular offerings for non-lawyer tax professionals in tax law. To view course descriptions for current and previous course offerings, visit the M.S.L. in Taxation Curriculum Essay.

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 professors who teach tax courses 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.

Related Programs

M.S.L. in Taxation candidates are eligible to pair their degree studies with a Certificate in International Taxation. Credits needed to fulfill Certificate in International Taxation requirements are a part of, and not in addition to, the M.S.L. in Taxation credit requirement. If interested in pursuing this combination, students should speak with the M.S.L. in Taxation Program Director for academic advising.

Also offered by the Graduate Tax Program, the LL.M. in Taxation is a master’s degree program designed for U.S.- and foreign-trained attorneys seeking to gain a deeper understanding in tax law, and pursue a tax-related career. LL.M. in Taxation candidates are eligible to pair their degree studies with the following Certificates of Specialization offered by the Graduate Tax Program — Certificate in Employee Benefits Law, Certificate in Estate Planning, and Certificate in International Taxation.

Financial Aid

Georgetown Law awards a small number of partial merit based scholarships for graduate degree applicants. Scholarships are awarded on the basis of their application on a rolling basis. For more information, contact the Office of Graduate Admissions.

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