Pursue one-year LLM at Symbiosis

Symbiosis International University (SIU) is all set to replace its two-year postgraduate (PG) law course with a one-year fulltime LLM course, starting academic year 2013-14.

This announcement comes close on the heels of University Grants Commission (UGC) approving one-year LLM program.

LLM is generally a year long course in international universities such as US and Europe. As a result, now UGC has also approved a one-year LLM course based on certain guidelines.

SIU has scrapped the two-year course and will be offering the one-year law degree through the Symbiosis Law School. As per information, the new course will offer specialisation in six different areas of legal studies.

One of the chief reasons to introduce a one-year law degree is to check migration of Indian law graduates to foreign universities that offer economical and shorter degrees, informed a university source.

SIU has brought all its law-based PG and research programmes under Symbiosis Centre for Advance Law Studies and Research in February. The one-year law course is interdisciplinary in approach, with an orientation for advanced studies and research of law. Students will have options in terms of specialisation, cross specialisation courses that combine innovation, legal acumen and theoretical insights. Areas of specialisation include business and corporate law, constitutional and administrative law, innovation, science and technology law, legal pedagogy and research, criminal and security law and human rights.

The course will have a total 26 credits of which four credits is compulsory component, six – optional courses and 10 for total courses. The total marks for the entire course will be 1,300. The student intake is 60 and admissions are based on national entrance examination and assessment in the form of group exercises, personal interactions and writing samples.