May 27 2008
great resource for those considering a chinese LLM
Donald Clarke recently posted an updated version of an FAQ type of resource about foreigners who want to get an LLM (Master of Law) degree from a Chinese University. It covers everything about which programs to consider and if such a degree will help you get a job in China. You can find it here.
I thought it to be important to those considering continuing education as well as those interested in China. The bottom line: the LLM probably won’t help you to find a job in China all that much.
Either way, its a good resource and will shed a lot of light onto the subject of a Chinese LLM. I reckon that there is probably growing popularity of this subject due to blogs like Boulder2Beijing.
UPDATE: As noted in comment, the document is not easily accessible from China because China Law Prof Blog is hosted on TypePad. I have it posted here now as well.
If you look at the statistics I shared that are in Professor Clarke’s report, as well as the class ahead of mine at BeiDa, I’d say that attending the BeiDa program helps to secure employment. In fact, there are a number of people in my program who had trouble finding employment in the U.S. job market but who had a comparatively easier time in China.
I was recently accepted to LLM program at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. I have in Shenzhen, China for the last 4 years and am aspiring to start my own business in the next couple of years. What do you think about the usefullness of a degree like this for consulting purposes? Will U.S. and European companies find this type of advice useful?
[…] The Value of a China LLM Law Professor Donald Clarke, of Chinese Law Prof Blog fame, has compiled an extremely helpful compilation of views on the pros and cons of Westerners’ securing an advanced law degree, or LLM, from a Chinese law school. The compilation can be found here (h/t to China Esquire). […]
Boulder2Beijing,
Thanks for dropping by. I saw your comments on Prof. Clarke’s PDF, which probably prompted the update and some of the backtracking in position as to the worth of the Chinese LLM. I personally don’t think its “worthless”, but I wanted to try to summarize what I thought the views from the PDF were, which is that it isn’t as helpful as many would believe. Sometimes, I wish I had the opportunity and time to go and pursue a Beida or Tsinghua LLM myself… Have you thought about what you are going to do after getting your LLMs?
Matthew,
I honestly dont know. But I figure if you are consulting, then its a matter of selling your skills. And an LLM can help you say that you have China law skills that many other foreign lawyers do not…
Brad,
This particular PDF hadn’t made CLB at the time, and frankly, its a much better resource than what’s appeared on any of the blogs than I have seen. (which is why I post it) I also note that Clarke is a Professor and has plenty of time to do this sort of thing. Frankly, I don’t, but I want to share things like this with my readers. (many of whom are law students/younger attorneys)
But yes, we do sound similar. I can think of some reasons. (1) there isn’t much time in a day to originate that much new stuff. (2) most China sites, whether CLB or whoever, tend to post on each other’s work. Its not just the law blogs. (3) there isn’t as much to post on in light of the Sichuan quake… and frankly, I’d rather follow that news than spend hours coming up with my next post. Priorities are priorities. (4) American trained lawyers will often have similar concerns. There are others, but at least I can lay these out.
I am considering, however, what sort of differentiation this blog can have from Stan, Dan, and others. I will probably be posting more about U.S. law and how it affects Chinese companies in the future, but this is just a thought.
Tom
Like many of my classmates, I will be working for the Beijing office of a foreign law firm.
Brad, those of us that are in the midst of finals and writing papers will be posting more diverse material once those obligations have been met.
For some reason i can not open that site about pro/cons of LLm. Any other methods of having a look? I think my location in China has something to do with it