Since the winter semester 1987/88, the Faculty of Law offers a postgraduate course in German law for students who have already acquired a foreign legal degree. The program has successfully completed the quality assurance process for Master's programs and has been accredited since December 2008. Since the summer semester 2009, the degree program has therefore been offered as a master's program in law for lawyers graduated abroad. The aim of this international postgraduate degree program is to familiarize students who have already successfully completed their law studies abroad with German law and to enable them to deepen their knowledge in specialist areas. The Faculty of Law awards the degree of "Master of Laws" (LL.M.) after passing the Master's examination.

Purpose of the programme

The Master's degree in this programme is an additional qualification to the law degree already achieved in the home country. “Home country” or “country of origin” means the country in which the first law degree was obtained. The Cologne Master's degree programme intends to provide an overview of the German legal system and imparts a specialisation and particular expertise in addition to the knowledge gained in the home country. According to § 3 of the doctoral regulations of the Faculty of Law of the University of Cologne of 26 October 2010, it is a regular prerequisite for admission to doctoral studies at the Cologne Faculty for lawyers who have not graduated in Germany.

The career opportunities given by the Master's programme depend on the student's country of origin. Primarily, the programme prepares students for qualified cross-border work in their home country. In the past, particularly high-achieving graduates have qualified for positions in international business law firms based in Germany or other EU countries or as clerks in the German civil service. Others have gone on to complete a doctorate in law. The experience since the programme was founded in 1987 has also shown that the Master's programme can significantly facilitate the preparation for lawyers with a legal degree obtained in an EU state other than Germany for the qualifying examination to become a European lawyer within the meaning of §§ 16 ff. EuRAG. Passing this examination is required for practising as a lawyer in Germany without a German state law examination.