Programme Eligibility

The following persons are eligible to apply for admission into the UWI LLM programme:

• Graduates of the University of the West Indies holding the LLB degree;
• Graduates of the University of the West Indies or of an approved University holding a degree which includes such law subjects as shall satisfy the Board for Graduate Studies and Research;
• Graduates of the University of the West Indies, or of an approved University, who have obtained a professional legal qualification and are eligible for admission to practise in any part of the Commonwealth;
• Persons who having obtained a professional legal qualification, are admitted to practise in any part of the Commonwealth, and who have also been certified as being in practice for a minimum of five years; and
• Graduates of the University of the West Indies or of an approved University, who satisfy the Board for Graduate Studies and Research of their capability to undertake the course of study leading to the award of the UWI LLM or Postgraduate Diploma in Law degrees.

Applicants may, at the discretion of the Board for Graduate Studies and Research, be required to take a qualifying examination consisting of at least two papers of a minimum of two hours each, which shall be of a standard equivalent to that of Part II or Part III of the LL.B. degree examination in order to satisfy the Board of their suitability to undertake the course of degree leading to the UWI LLM.

The language of instruction is English and applicants whose native language is not English may be required to take an English Proficiency Test set on behalf of the Board for Graduate Studies and Research.

The capacity of applicants to the UWI LLM or the Postgraduate Diploma in Law for the designated course of study will be determined by the admitting campus in accordance with the above criteria, through examining their academic and practical experiences.

Letters of reference will also be used to determine suitability.

Students with a third class or pass degree will not normally be admitted to read for the UWI LLM.

Course of Study

To obtain the UWI LLM a student will be required to successfully complete a total of six (6) courses, of six credits each. A full time student will be required to complete the six courses within a single academic year. A part time student will not be permitted to take more than two courses per semester.

The Summer period of the UWI shall be designated as a teaching session for purposes of the UWI LLM degree and Postgraduate Diploma in law.

The UWI LLM allows a student to determine the nature of the degree awarded through his or her course selections. Depending upon the courses completed, a student will be eligible to receive either the general UWI LLM or one of the four specialized sub- categories of the UWI LLM programme:

• the UWI LLM (the general, unspecialised UWI LLM);
• the UWI LLM (LLM & Postgraduate Diploma (Corporate and Commercial Law));
• the UWI LLM (LLM & Postgraduate Diploma (Public Law));
• the UWI LLM (LLM & Postgraduate Diploma (Legislative Drafting));
• the UWI LLM (LLM & Postgraduate Diploma (Intellectual Property Law)).

With the exception of the Legislative Drafting section of the programme, a candidate registered in an UWI LLM programme may select any courses from the list of courses offered from any sub-category of the UWI LLM per semester. However in order to obtain a specialised UWI LLM degree – the Corporate and Commercial Law, the Public Law or the Intellectual Property degrees – the candidate must complete four (4) courses within the course list for that particular specialisation.

Students unable to complete the full UWI LLM programme are eligible to receive a Postgraduate Diploma under each of the above categories, upon successful completion of four courses, of six credits each. A student may also register for the Postgraduate Diploma in Law.

Costs and Resources

UWI LLM in Corporate and Commercial Law, Public Law and Intellectual Property Law

US$10,000

Postgraduate Diploma in Law

US$6,500

UWI LLM or Postgraduate Diploma in Legislative Drafting

Unit price for tuition fee = US$4,404

Unit price for Economic Cost for citizens of Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, Guyana, and non-contributing countries = US22,000

Unit price for Economic Cost for citizens of the OECS and other non-campus territories = US$7,340

Cross-Campus Fees

Unit Price for students doing cross campus courses = US$2,500

In circumstances where it is necessary for a student to pay for an individual course for the UWI LLM, the fee shall be the sum of the composite fee divided by 6.

In circumstances where it is necessary for a student to pay for an individual course for the Postgraduate Diploma, the fee shall be the sum of the composite fee divided by 4.