Duration

The UNSW JD is a three year program. Students can choose to accelerate through the program by taking courses in the Summer Semesters and complete the degree in two or two and a half years. Alternatively, students can choose to enrol in fewer courses each Semester and extend the duration of the program, up to a maximum of eight years.

International students must enrol in the minimum number of units of credit per semester to meet their visa requirements.

Program structure

A total of 144 units of credit (UOC) are required for the award of the UNSW JD degree.

• 17 compulsory core law courses - 92 UOC
• 9 elective law courses - 52 UOC
• Total 144 UOC

The introductory course, Foundations of Law, is studied on an intensive basis one week prior to the start of other first year law subjects. This enables students to acquire the basic conceptual tools needed to study the substantive law subjects, such as principles of statutory interpretation and how to read and interpret case law.

A very distinctive feature of the UNSW JD is the depth of study of the law we provide for our students. Students select 9 elective courses and gain a critical and deep understanding of the law in areas which will especially benefit them in their future careers.

3 year program - Standard progression

2 year program - Accelerated progression

Courses

UNSW JD compulsory core courses:

UNSW JD elective courses

The UNSW JD gives students the opportunity to undertake 9 elective courses. In addition to a wide range of JD elective courses, UNSW JD students can choose from a selection of Master of Laws (LLM) courses giving our JD students the added advantage of studying alongside LLM students in their elective courses.