phd in legal philosophy

Law and Philosophy

The philosophical underpinnings and implications of law have been a central concern for as long as there has been law. Ultimately, law is a system of rules to regulate society, and the goodness or badness of any rule must be judged by its success in promoting a more just society.

Not surprisingly, then, what justice requires in a given sphere of activity and what set of rules will best achieve it are foundational questions in virtually every area of law—questions answered by scholars exploring the intersection of law and philosophy. In the past century, legal philosophers have made major contributions in areas as diverse as the justification for criminal punishment; the meaning of consent in private contracts; the moral basis of private property rights; distributive justice in tax regimes, the welfare state, eminent domain and allocation of citizenship rights; a rights-based versus welfarist account of the tort system; the state’s right to regulate family relationships; the justness of preventive war; the moral basis of legislation; intergenerational justice in environmental law; biomedical ethics; and the values of free speech and democracy in campaign finance reform.

The opportunities to open up new legal questions to philosophical inquiry, as well as shed new light on old questions, are virtually limitless. In many cases, this work requires thorough grounding in both legal institutions and philosophy—and Stanford’s JD/PhD program in law and philosophy is designed to provide that foundation. Although the program may be most relevant to aspiring academics, anyone hoping to work in policy positions in fields such as biomedical ethics and environmental ethics or even tax may find this joint degree useful.

Course Requirements

As many as 54 quarter units of approved courses may be counted toward both degrees. No more than 31 quarter units of courses that originate outside the law school may count toward the law degree.

The maximum number of law school credits that may be counted toward the PhD in philosophy is the greater of: (i) 12 quarter units; or (ii) the maximum number of units from courses outside the department that PhD candidates in philosophy are permitted to count toward their degree under general departmental guidelines or in the case of a particular student’s individual program.

Stanford Philosophy Department

Note to applicants:  The Knight-Hennessy Scholars program awards full funding to Stanford graduate students from all disciplines, with additional opportunities for leadership training and collaboration across fields. Joint Degree applicants are encouraged to apply to the  Knight – Hennessy Scholars Program.  Please be aware that the Knight-Hennessy Scholars applications are due in early Autumn one year prior to enrollment. View dates and deadlines: knight-hennessy.stanford.edu/dates-and-deadlines .

Ralph Richard Banks

• Jackson Eli Reynolds Professor of Law
• Faculty Director, Stanford Center for Racial Justice

Joshua Cohen

• Marta Sutton Weeks Professor of Ethics in Society
• Professor of Political Science, Philosophy and Law, Emeritus

Richard Thompson Ford

• George E. Osborne Professor of Law

Barbara Fried

• William W. and Gertrude H. Saunders Professor of Law, Emerita

Henry T. Greely

• Deane F. and Kate Edelman Johnson Professor of Law
• Director, Center for Law and the Biosciences
• Professor, by courtesy, Genetics
• Chair, Steering Committee of the Center for Biomedical Ethics
• Director, Stanford Program in Neuroscience and Society

Mark G. Kelman

• James C. Gaither Professor of Law

Deborah L. Rhode

• Ernest W. McFarland Professor of Law
• Director, Center on the Legal Profession

Norman W. Spaulding

• Nelson Bowman Sweitzer and Marie B. Sweitzer Professor of Law

Barton Thompson

• Robert E. Paradise Professor of Natural Resources Law
• Senior Fellow, Woods Institute for the Environment
• Professor, Doerr School of Sustainability

Allen S. Weiner

• Senior Lecturer in Law
• Director, Stanford Program in International and Comparative Law
• Director, Stanford Humanitarian Program
• Director, Stanford Center on International Conflict and Negotiation

Robert Weisberg

• Edwin E. Huddleson, Jr. Professor of Law
• Faculty Co-Director, Stanford Criminal Justice Center

Ph.D. Program

The ph.d. in law degree.

The Ph.D. in Law degree program is designed to prepare J.D. graduates for careers as legal scholars and teachers through a doctoral program aimed at the production of a substantial body of academic research and writing under the close supervision of a three-member faculty dissertation committee. Unlike programs designed for students who wish to learn about law from the disciplinary perspectives of the social sciences or the humanities, the Ph.D. in Law is directed at students who wish to pursue advanced studies in law from the perspective of the law. This program offers emerging scholars an opportunity to contribute to the development of law as an academic field, and it provides an alternate pathway into law teaching alongside existing routes such as fellowships, advanced degrees in cognate fields, legal practice, and clerkships.

Because our entering Ph.D. students will have already completed their J.D. degrees, the anticipated course of study toward the Ph.D. in Law degree is three academic years and two summers in residence. In their first two semesters, Ph.D. students will enroll in courses designed to help them acquire the background and research skills needed to complete a dissertation in their field of interest and to prepare them for qualifying examinations that test the depth and breadth of the literacies and skills they have acquired. During their second year, students will prepare a dissertation prospectus and begin work on a dissertation. The dissertation may take the form of either three law review articles or a book-length manuscript and will make up a portfolio of writing that will be essential for success in the job market. Ph.D. students will also gain experience in the classroom, and receive the full support of Yale Law School’s Law Teaching Program , which has had remarkable success in placing graduates in tenure-track positions at leading law schools.

Ph.D. students receive a full-tuition waiver, a health award for health insurance coverage, and a stipend to cover their year-round living expenses, as well as support for participation in national and international conferences.

Applications for admission to the Ph.D. in Law program are available starting on August 15. The deadline for submission of all materials is December 15. Applicants to the Ph.D. in Law program must complete a J.D. degree at a U.S. law school before they matriculate and begin the Ph.D. program. Any questions about the program may be directed to Gordon Silverstein, Assistant Dean for Graduate Programs, at [email protected] .

Watch Gordon Silverstein, Assistant Dean for Graduate Programs, describe the Ph.D. program at Yale Law School.

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Poppy Harlow ’22 MSL

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A perspective on the intellectual international community of the LL.M. program, and how she developed her research ideas on tax law.

Graduate Student Life

2020 and 2021 Graduate Programs alumni celebrate in the YLS Courtyard with Assistant Dean Gordon Silverstein before their in-person ceremony in May 2022

2022 Graduate Program degree candidates with Dean Heather K. Gerken in April 2022

Yale Law School prepared me for a lifelong career in public interest and social justice work through its academic excellence, hands-on clinical practice, and expansive student-led leadership opportunities.

Graduate Program

Jurisprudence & social policy graduate program, march 8, 2024, march 4, 2024, february 28, 2024, february 7, 2024, december 19, 2023.

Berkeley Law offers a unique interdisciplinary program of graduate study in law and society, leading to the Ph.D. degree in Jurisprudence and Social Policy (JSP) . The JSP Program promotes the study of law and legal institutions through the perspectives of several disciplines, including economics, political science, philosophy, sociology, history, psychology, and criminal justice

The Jurisprudence and Social Policy Ph.D. is ideal for students interested in:

The scholarly study of legal ideas and institutions from the standpoint of one or more of the basic disciplines, such as, history, economics, philosophy, sociology, or political science.

Policy analysis and applied research on law-related issues in such fields as criminal justice, poverty and discrimination, human rights, urban planning, and environmental protection.

Preparation for teaching legal studies in graduate and undergraduate curriculums.

Interdisciplinary preparation for teaching law.

A Note from Associate Dean Dylan Penningroth:

Thanks for visiting our website.  The Jurisprudence and Social Policy (JSP) Program is a unique doctoral program focused on the interdisciplinary study of law. JSP is housed within the School of Law at the University of California, Berkeley, but organized under UC Berkeley’s Graduate Division. Established in 1978, JSP was the first law-focused PhD program in the United States and continues to be the leading program of its kind anywhere.

By integrating the study of law with the humanities and social sciences, JSP seeks a broad context for understanding and developing legal policy. While there are many productive ways to link law to the research tools of the disciplines, we are committed to pursuing plural, interdisciplinary scholarship that includes humanistic and social scientific approaches to the study of law. Our students generally specialize in some portion of this spectrum while learning from teachers and peers with diverse research interests. Students take a mix of interdisciplinary courses offered within JSP, as well as classes in the Law School’s traditional JD curriculum. These and other features of our program have become a model for other doctoral programs in interdisciplinary legal studies, many of which have recruited our alumni for their faculties. 

JSP faculty are leading scholars in their field who hail from a variety of disciplines – including political science, sociology, economics, history, philosophy, and psychology. Beginning with the JSP Orientation Seminar and through a range of course offerings in the humanities and social sciences, we offer students training in both empirical and normative analysis of law. Over the past decade, JSP has grown, adding faculty who offer a range of cutting-edge courses in quantitative and qualitative research methods and research design that are specially oriented to the study of law. Our substantive course offerings also have increased in scope, pushing the boundaries of knowledge across multiple fields.

JSP is closely integrated with the Center for the Study of Law and Society (CSLS), which attracts visiting scholars from all over the world, hosts one of the most dynamic speaker series on campus, and provides an intellectual hub for top-notch research on law and legal institutions. CSLS also offers the Berkeley Empirical Legal Studies (BELS) Graduate Fellowship, which brings together doctoral students studying law and social science from JSP and other programs on the Berkeley campus in a year-long research workshop. Berkeley Law is also home to a vibrant array of other research centers dedicated to issues ranging from law, energy, and the environment to reproductive rights and justice; from law and business to law and social justice; from law, morality, and public affairs to law and technology. 

This is an extraordinary time for scholars and students who have interdisciplinary training in law. The collective challenges confronting us today span diverse legal systems, fields of expertise, cultures, and regions of the world. In this context, the training we provide is not only an advantage for a professional career in academia, public service, or policy advocacy, but also urgently needed kindling for innovative theorizing, creative problem-solving, and breakthrough empirical research.

On this website you can get to know our students and our faculty and learn more about the JSP program by viewing recent course offerings and upcoming conferences. I especially urge you to learn more about our advanced graduate students currently on the academic job market, as well as our alumni. Nothing reflects so well on our program as our graduates, and what they are accomplishing with their training here at Berkeley continues to inspire us. 

If you have any questions about the JSP Program, please feel welcome to contact me, our Graduate Advisor, Sarah Song, or our Graduate Student Advisor, Michael Paz.

Dylan C. Penningroth, Associate Dean Jurisprudence and Social Policy

The University of Chicago The Law School

Law and philosophy.

The Law School offers an extremely broad and deep program of interdisciplinary study in law and philosophy, with attention to both the major historical figures and contemporary problems. Whether you are coming to law study with an undergraduate or graduate degree in philosophy, or simply with an interest in philosophical questions without significant formal background in the field, you will find a wide array of opportunities to pursue those interests and develop your knowledge during your three years at the Law School. The Law School particularly welcomes students with philosophical interests who may be interested in careers in law teaching and legal scholarship; the Law School has long been one of the top producers of new law teachers in the U.S.

The faculty

Three full-time members of the law faculty have significant interests in law and philosophy: Brian Leiter, Martha Nussbaum, and David Strauss.

Brian Leiter is best-known for his philosophical reconstruction and defense of the jurisprudence of American Legal Realism and his exploration of the implications of the naturalistic turn in philosophy for the problems of general jurisprudence. Many of his important papers on these topics are collected in Naturalizing Jurisprudence (Oxford, 2007). He is also a leading Nietzsche scholar, with a particular interest in Nietzsche’s moral philosophy, and is responsible, with his Nietzsche on Morality (Routledge, 2002), for the renewed scholarly interest in the idea that Nietzsche is a philosophical naturalist. His other published papers treat such topics as the objectivity of morality, legal positivism, religious toleration, the epistemology of evidence law, the intersection of moral and empirical psychology, and aspects of the philosophies of Marx and Foucault.. He was editor for seven years of the journal Legal Theory and is now editor, with Mr. Green, of Oxford Studies in the Philosophy of Law .

Martha C. Nussbaum has made seminal contributions to the study of ancient Greek and Roman philosophy (especially Aristotle and the Stoics), central problems in political philosophy (especially developing the Capabilities Approach to human well-being and reassessing and expanding the Rawlsian theory of justice), the defense of cosmopolitanism as a moral, political, and pedagogical ideal, the philosophy of the emotions, and the study of literature as a source of moral knowledge. Her many books include Frontiers of Justice: Disability, Nationality, Species Membership (Harvard, 2006), Hiding from Humanity: Disgust, Shame, and the Law (Princeton, 2004), Upheavals of Thoughts: The Intelligence of Emotions (Cambridge, 2001), Women and Human Development: The Capabilities Approach (Cambridge, 2000), Sex and Social Justice (Oxford, 1999), The Therapy of Desire: Theory and Practice in Greek Ethics (Princeton, 1994), Love’s Knowledge: Essays on Philosophy and Literature (Oxford, 1990), and The Fragility of Goodness: Luck and Ethics in Greek Tragedy and Philosophy (Cambridge, 1986). All of her work has been deeply engaged with major figures in the history of philosophy, including not only the major Greek and Roman philosophers, but also, in the modern era, especially Kant and Mill. She is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences.

David A. Strauss has been a leading contributor to constitutional law and theory for more than twenty years, with a particular interest in philosophical problems that arise in interpreting and applying the U.S. Constitution. His many influential articles include “Legitimacy and Obedience” ( Harvard Law Review , 2005), “Common Law, Common Ground, and Jefferson’s Principles” ( Yale Law Journal , 2003), “Constitutions, Written and Unwritten” ( Law and Philosophy , 2001), “What Is Constitutional Theory?” ( California Law Review , 1999), “Principle and Its Perils” ( University of Chicago Law Review , 1997), “Common Law Constitutional Interpretation” ( University of Chicago Law Review , 1996), and “Persuasion, Autonomy, and Freedom of Expression” ( Columbia Law Review , 1991). He is, with Geoffrey Stone and Dennis Hutchinson, editor of the Supreme Court Review . He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences.

Each year the Law School also hosts a “Law and Philosophy Fellow,” a recent Ph.D. in philosophy with legal interests, who is an active participant in the intellectual and curricular offerings related to law and philosophy at the Law School. The first Law and Philosophy Fellow was Scott Anderson (Ph.D., University of Chicago), Assistant Professor of Philosophy at the University of British Columbia. The Law and Philosophy Fellow for 2008-09 is James Staihar (J.D., Harvard University; Ph.D., University of Michigan), who works in philosophy of criminal law, general jurisprudence, and bioethics, among other areas.

Many other members of the law faculty have interests in philosophical aspects of law, including Richard A. Epstein , Lee Anne Fennell , Richard McAdams , Eric Posner , Richard Posner , and David Weisbach .

The curriculum

First Year: All 1L students take “Elements of the Law” in the Autumn Quarter. Unique to legal education at Chicago, “Elements of the Law” examines certain issues that occur in many different areas of the law and considers the relationship between these issues and comparable questions in other fields of thought, such as moral and political philosophy, economics, and political theory. In the Spring Quarter, 1L students may choose an elective; there are usually one or more philosophical offerings available.

Second and Third Year: There are a wide range of electives available to law students with philosophical interests during their second and third years of study.

“Jurisprudence I: The Nature of Law and Adjudication” is offered every year by Mr. Leiter, and, most years, he also offers “Jurisprudence II: Topics in Moral, Political, and Legal Theory.” Together, these courses cover the central issues in legal philosophy, including the relationship between law and morality, the duty to obey the law, and the nature of legal reasoning and judicial decision, as well as cognate topics such as the nature of meaning and interpretation (in law and elsewhere), the objectivity of law, free will and responsibility, liberty and its limits, conceptions of the just society and the good life, liberalism and illiberalism, and critical theories of society and law.

Mr. Green, Mr. Leiter, Ms. Nussbaum, Mr. Strauss, and Mr. Sunstein offer seminars on a regular basis on topics of interest to students of law and philosophy. Recent topics include “Constitutional Theory and Interpretation”; “Constitutionalism and Democracy”; “Education and Moral Psychology”; “Equality as a Political Value”; “Feminist Philosophy”; “Legal Reasoning”; “Legality and the Rule of Law”; “The Letters of Cicero and Seneca”; “Methodology in Jurisprudence”; “Mill”; “Nietzsche and Foucault: Morality, Self, and Society”; “Political Obligation and Civil Disobedience”; “Rawls and His Critics”; “Religion and the State”; and “Toleration: Its Justification and Limits.”

Law & Philosophy Workshop

The Law & Philosophy Workshop exposes students to cutting-edge work in "general jurisprudence," that part of philosophy of law concerned with the central questions about the nature of law, the relationship between law and morality, and the nature of legal reasoning.

Center for Law, Philosophy, and Human Values

The Center for Law, Philosophy, and Human Values sponsors speakers and conferences to support and encourage the reflective, critical and philosophical study of human values, with a particular emphasis on the conceptual, historical, and empirical foundations of the normative systems—moral, political, and legal—in which human being live.

The Department of Philosophy

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JD/Ph.D.Program

The UCLA School of Law and the UCLA Department of Philosophy offer a joint JD/PhD program for exceptionally talented and especially committed students who hope to dedicate their careers to research and teaching in law and philosophy. Admission is extremely competitive, and very few students are admitted. It would be highly unusual for more than one candidate to be admitted in a year, and it is possible for no candidates to be admitted in an admission cycle.

Steps for Admission

• Apply and be admitted to law school ( Law School Admission Information ). In the section of the application asking about interest in Joint Degree Programs, select “J.D./Ph.D. Philosophy.”
• Apply and be admitted to the Philosophy Ph.D. program ( Philosophy Department Graduate Admission Information ). On the “Plans for Graduate Study” page of the application, select “Philosophy PhD – Law JD” as your major.
• Submit with each application an essay of between two and five pages explaining your interest in law and philosophy and in the joint degree program.

Students already admitted to either the JD program or the PhD program who wish to pursue the joint degree may apply by completing the application steps listed above. The funding for students is generous and is aimed to ensure that graduates may choose to enter a full time teaching career in either a law school or a philosophy department without the encumbrance of a large debt.

Requirements

The J.D. normally takes three years and the Ph.D. normally takes six to seven years. Candidates for the joint program must complete all requirements for both degrees. A limited number of philosophy courses will be counted toward the J.D. requirements, and a limited number of law courses will be counted toward the Ph.D.

The standard program could follow one of many paths. In the typical case, the student would be expected to focus solely on philosophy for the first year of the philosophy graduate program and solely on law for the first year of the law program. Thereafter, the student could take courses in both schools during the same academic year. There are, however, various ways in which the program could be structured, depending on the student

For more information about the Law & Philosophy Program please refer to the Law School’s website.

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The PhD in Law program prepares students who have earned a JD from an American Bar Association accredited law school to enter law teaching or other careers that require a scholarly mastery of law. The program is designed to provide a broad foundation in the canonical texts and methods of legal scholarship and to support students in producing original scholarship in the form of a dissertation. The program strongly encourages, but does not require, interdisciplinary approaches to the study of law.

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Admission Requirements

Standardized testing requirements.

GRE is not accepted.

Program-Specific Application Requirements

A writing sample and a research proposal are required by this program. 

English Language Requirement

TOEFL iBT or IELTS Academic is required of most applicants whose native language is not English.

You may be exempt from this requirement if you have received (or will receive) an undergraduate degree from a college or university where English is the primary language of instruction, and if you have studied in residence at that institution for at least three years.

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The Graduate School's academic calendar lists important dates and deadlines related to coursework, registration, financial processes, and milestone events such as graduation.

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Students must register every term in which they are enrolled in the Graduate School. Registration for a given term takes place the semester prior, and so it's important to stay on top of your academic plan. The University Registrar's Office oversees the systems that students use to register. Instructions about how to use those systems and the dates during which registration occurs can be found on their registration website.

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Phd stipend & funding.

PhD students at Yale are normally full-funded for a minimum of five years. During that time, our students receive a twelve-month stipend to cover living expenses and a fellowship that covers the full cost of tuition and student healthcare.

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Program Overview

The Department of Philosophy offers programs covering a wide range of fields in philosophy. The department’s graduate program is primarily a PhD program. In addition to the standard PhD in Philosophy, the department offers a PhD in Classical Philosophy in collaboration with the Department of the Classics, a PhD in Indian Philosophy in collaboration with the Department of South Asian Studies, and a joint JD/PhD program in conjunction with the Harvard Law School. Below you will find a list of the requirements for each program. The department does not admit applicants who wish to study only for the master’s (AM) degree. The AM may be taken as a step toward the PhD after a minimum of two terms in residence.

PhD in Philosophy

Graduate advising.

The department’s arrangement for advising students is structured to correspond to four stages of a student’s progress toward the PhD. These stages include the first year, the second-year paper, reading and research toward a dissertation topic, and work on the dissertation.

• The director of graduate studies is assigned as an advisor to all first-year students and continues to meet with all students at the beginning of each term and sign their study cards throughout their time in the program. Their advising role is particularly important during the coursework stage (generally through the second year), because they have principal responsibility for monitoring the student’s progress toward fulfilling the general requirements for the degree: the preliminary requirement, and the distribution requirement. In addition, each first-year student is assigned an informal faculty advisor.
• At the end of the first year, students should arrange with a member of the faculty to supervise the student’s second-year paper. That faculty member will be the student’s advisor during the second year. If necessary, the director of graduate studies is available to assist a student in finding a suitable faculty member.
• At the beginning of the third year, after the second year paper is completed, a student arranges for a faculty member to be their advisor during the process of exploring areas for a possible dissertation and formulating a topic and a prospectus. This advisor may be the same person as the second-year paper advisor but need not be. Normally, a student will continue with this advisor until the topical examination, but change is possible by arrangement among the parties involved.
• When a prospectus is well along, the student should discuss the formation of a dissertation committee with the advisor, the director of graduate studies, and possible committee members.  Normally, this committee has three members, two of whom must be Harvard faculty as members; however, the committee may consist of only two members at the time of the topical examination.  Committees may have a fourth member, who may be, with permission of the DGS, a faculty member in another Harvard department or at another institution. This committee conducts the topical examination and, after a successful topical, will continue supervising the student’s work on the dissertation. Normally it conducts the dissertation defense when the dissertation is completed.
• During work on the dissertation, change is possible by arrangement with the parties involved and with the approval of the director of graduate studies. At this stage, one member of the committee will be designated as the student’s advisor. The significance of this will vary as the supervision of dissertations is more collective in philosophy, for example, than in many other fields. In some cases, the advisor will be the principal supervisor, in others the role of the committee members will be close to equal and the choice of one advisor is a matter of convenience.

Preliminary Requirement

Candidates must pass at least twelve approved philosophy courses or seminars. The norm is that these course are completed during the first four terms in the department. Courses numbered 301 or above do not count toward this preliminary requirement, save that the two required terms of Philosophy 300, the First Year Colloquium, may be counted as two of the twelve. Independent Studies (Philosophy 305) may also be used to satisfy distribution requirements but not the preliminary requirement with the prior approval of the DGS. For a letter-graded course philosophy course to be considered satisfactory, the candidate’s grade in the course must be B or higher.  The average grade for all letter-graded philosophy courses taken during the candidate’s time in the program must be at least B+.

Courses taken to meet the preliminary requirement must be approved in advance by the department’s director of graduate studies. Students must take and complete Philosophy 300a plus two letter-graded courses or seminars during their first term and Philosophy 300b plus three letter-graded courses or seminars more in their second term, thus completing five letter-graded courses during the first two terms of residence.

These courses, like the rest of the twelve, should be among those designated “For Undergraduates and Graduates” or “Primarily for Graduates” in the course catalogue. At least ten of the courses must be taught by members of the Department of Philosophy (including visiting and emeritus members). This requirement can be modified for students specializing in Classical or Indian Philosophy.

All graduate students must complete two semesters of the Pedagogy seminar, Philosophy 315hf. Normally this is done during a student's third year in the program, when students begin functioning as teaching fellows. Exceptions to taking 315hf in the third year must be approved in advance by the DGS.

Students who have done graduate work elsewhere may petition the DGS to obtain credit for up to three courses, which may be counted toward the preliminary requirement. If they are in philosophy (as would normally be the case), such courses will be regarded as equivalent to those taught by members of the department.

Distribution Requirement

This requirement, intended to ensure a broad background in philosophy, is met by completing eight distribution units of work, normally before the beginning of the fourth year of graduate study. A distribution unit may be fulfilled (i) by completing an approved course or seminar (which may also be counted toward the preliminary requirement), or (ii) by writing a paper under the guidance of a faculty member, with the approval of the director of graduate studies. In the latter case the work does not count toward the preliminary requirement.

The units are to be distributed as follows:

• Contemporary Theoretical Philosophy: Three units in core areas of twentieth- and twenty-first century metaphysics, epistemology, philosophy of science, philosophy of mind, philosophy of language, philosophy of mathematics, and the like.
• Practical Philosophy: Two units in contemporary or historical ethics, political philosophy, aesthetics, and the like.
• History of Philosophy: The distribution requirement in history is intended to assure that students have knowledge of the philosophical tradition out of which contemporary Anglo-American philosophy has grown, as well as an ability to work though texts whose philosophical presuppositions are different enough from those of contemporary Anglo-American philosophy that careful historical and philosophical analysis is required to bring them to light.

Three sorts of courses satisfy the requirement:   A. Courses in ancient Greek, Roman, or medieval philosophy.   B. Courses in early modern European philosophy up to and including Kant.   C. Courses on the foundations of philosophical traditions other than contemporary Anglo-American philosophy. These might include courses on traditional South Asian or East Asian philosophy, 19th century Continental European philosophy, early 20th century work of Heidegger, and so on.   A student must take three history courses to satisfy the requirement; at most one of these may be in practical philosophy. Save in the most exceptional circumstances (and with the approval of the DGS), at least one of these courses must be of category A and at least one must be of category B. Students should verify (with the DGS) in advance of taking a course to satisfy the requirement that the course will in fact satisfy it.

The First-Year Colloquium (Philosophy 300a and 300b) may not be used to fulfill any part of the distribution requirement. Philosophy 299hf, the second-year paper, may be used to fulfill a distribution requirement.

Logic Requirement

Candidates for the Ph.D. are expected to have mastered the fundamentals of logic and to have an understanding of the elements of logic’s metatheory. Normally, this requirement is satisfied by successfully completing one of the Department’s 100-level courses in logic: 140 (Introduction to Mathematical Logic), 144 (Logic and Philosophy), or 145 (Modal Logic). It can also be satisfied by taking an appropriate mathematics course (for example, Mathematics 143, 144a, or 145b). The requirement may also be satisfied by an examination set by the DGS in consultation with appropriate Department members or by serving as a TF in a Department logic course.

Second-Year Paper

Students are required at the end of their second year in residence to submit a paper whose length is between 7,500 and 12,000 words including footnotes.

The expectation is not that the second-year paper should constitute a kind of Master’s Thesis; a better model is that of a journal article: i.e., an essay that sets out a focused philosophical problem, articulates its significance, and makes a significant contribution rather than a mere intervention. Given this goal, the second-year paper may under no circumstances be over 12,000 words, and generally will be significantly shorter. Students must annotate the paper with an accurate word count.

By the end of the first year, students need to have a faculty advisor who will supervise the second year paper. Together the advisor and advisee will write a plan of study for the summer and the first term of the second year, and submit it to the DGS. This plan of study will specify a schedule for submitting work and receiving feedback, and will also specify a benchmark to be met before the beginning of the second semester.

A preliminary draft of the second-year paper is to be submitted by the end of the spring vacation of the second semester, and a final draft is due by June 1st. Under extraordinary circumstances and with the written approval of both advisor and the DGS, the final version of the paper may be submitted after June 1st, but no later than August 1st.

Once the second-year paper is submitted to the advisor, the advisor forwards the paper to the DGS, who selects a faculty member to act as the paper’s reader. The author, advisor, and reader meet in a timely manner to discuss the paper, after which the examiner in consultation with the advisor awards the paper a grade. This grade will be recorded as the student’s grade for their two semesters of 299hf.

Normally, a student is not allowed to participate in a dissertation workshop until they have submitted their second-year paper.

The Third Year

In a successful third year, graduate students do two things: they acquire pedagogical skills and confidence as teachers; they make enough progress on isolating a dissertation topic that they are able, at the end of that year or by the end of the first term of the fourth year, to write a prospectus and have a successful topical exam.

Normally, at the end of a student's second year, the student's 2YP advisor and the DGS consult and then assign a pre-prospective advisor to the student. The pre-prospectus advisor need not, and often will not, be someone who specializes in the area in which a student expects to write a dissertation. Rather, the advisor is someone with whom the student is comfortable discussing philosophy and who can advise about directions of research. In many cases the pre-prospectus advisor may be the 2YP advisor, since the student has formed a working relationship with that faculty member.

The student and pre-prospectus advisor should meet before the end of spring exams. The meeting's purpose is to discuss the student's general area(s) of interest for a dissertation and, if the student is ready, to devise a tentative list of articles or books which the student will read and reflect on over the next twelve months.

G3s meet with their pre-prospectus advisor in the first days of the fall term. The aim of this meeting is to give the student a manageable set of concrete tasks to complete toward settling on a prospectus topic. In this meeting, advisor and student should decide on: a collection of at least six articles or book chapters to discuss at meetings; a schedule for meetings during the fall (the norm being a meeting roughly every two weeks); the written work the student commits to doing in advance of each meeting. This work need not be elaborate --it might, for example, be a few pages of critical summary and discussion of the reading for the meeting.

Until a successful defense of a prospectus, students register of that section of Philosophy 333 associated with their pre-prospectus advisor.

The norm is that in the fall term of year 3 students do research in the area in which they expect to write so that they can fashion a fairly specific topic for the prospectus; spring term is then devoted to writing a prospectus. Students normally aim at having a prospectus and a topical before the beginning of classes in the fourth year; the expectation is that students have done a topical by the end of the first term of their fourth year.

Students who have completed their second year paper are required to enroll each term in one of the two dissertation workshops, Philosophy 311, Workshop in Moral and Political Philosophy or Philosophy 312, Workshop in Metaphysics and Epistemology. In an academic year in which a student is actively seeking post Ph.D. employment, they are not required to enroll in a workshop.

This a requirement for the Ph.D.; it is only in unusual personal circumstances that students may fail to enroll in a workshop. Permission not to enroll in a Workshop must be granted by the director of graduate studies. G3s are not required to present more than once a year in a workshop, and it is understood that their presentations may consist of such things as (constrained) literature reviews, overviews of the particular area in a sub-discipline, or drafts or presentations of a prospectus.

Prospectus and Topical Examination

When the prospectus is complete, a candidate must pass an oral topical examination on the prospectus. The examining committee consists of at least two Philosophy Department faculty members. If the topical examination is not passed, it must be taken again and passed by the beginning of the winter recess in the year immediately following. Normally students have a successful topical by the end of their fourth year in the program.

Requirements for a prospectus are set by a student's dissertation committee and may vary with committee membership. That said, in many cases a good default model for a prospectus will simply be a list of clear, straightforward answers to the following five questions: (1) What question(s) do you intend your dissertation to answer? (2) Why do you consider these questions to be important? (3) What is a good summary of what you consider to be the most important contributions to these questions in the literature? (4) Why, in your view, do these contributions leave more work to be done? (5) What is your tentative plan of attack (including a list of sources you anticipate using)? Think of your answers to these questions as building a case for why your dissertation project needs to be done , along with a sketch of how you in particular plan to do it. Finally, limit yourself to about 5000 words.

Although called an examination, a topical (which is approximately ninety minutes in length) is in fact a conference on the dissertation topic, not an occasion on which the candidate is expected to produce a complete outline of arguments and conclusions. The conference is intended to determine the acceptability of the topic on which the candidate wishes to write a dissertation, the candidate’s fitness to undertake such a dissertation, and the candidate’s command of relevant issues in related areas of philosophy. A dissertation on the proposed topic may be submitted only if the topical examination is passed.

Application to take the topical examination must be made to the director of graduate studies at least two weeks in advance. At the same time, the candidate must submit copies of a dissertation prospectus to the director of graduate studies and members of the student’s prospective committee.

Financial Support, Travel and Research Funding, and Teaching

Beyond tuition remission, Ph.D. students receive the following financial support from the Graduate School.

· A stipend for their first two years. During this period, students do not teach.

· Financial support via guaranteed teaching in the third and fourth year . During this period, students are hired as teaching fellows; the normal workload for a teaching fellow is two sections a term.

· A dissertation completion fellowship. This includes a full stipend for one academic year.

In addition, various university fellowships (for example: Term Time and Merit Fellowships, Fellowships at the Safra Center) are available on a competitive basis.

The Department also grants each Philosophy graduate student one academic term of stipend support through Philosophy Department Fellowships and also a total of $5500 in fellowships for professional development. For details see: Funding | Department of Philosophy (harvard.edu)

Dissertation and Dissertation Defense

Once the topical exam is passed, the examining committee (which must consist of at least two faculty members of the Philosophy Department) normally becomes the dissertation advisory committee.  One member of the committee is the dissertation’s primary advisor (aka, the dissertation director).  It is expected that a student will have a committee of at least three members within a few months of the defense; the committee must have three members at the time of the defense.  It is possible, with the approval of the primary advisor and the DGS, to add a faculty member from another institution.  Normally a dissertation committee has no more than four members; larger committees must be approved by primary advisor and the DGS.

The primary advisor has primary responsibility for supervision for the dissertation.  The norm is that the student and the dissertation committee set out in advance how often students will meet with and receive feedback from advisors.  The expectation is that the committee and the student will meet as a body once a term to discuss progress on the dissertation.

At least three months before a final defense of the dissertation can be scheduled, the candidate must submit a draft of the dissertation or at least a substantial part of it to the committee.  Until this is done, a defense of the dissertation cannot be scheduled.  Assuming the committee approves scheduling a defense, the candidate completes a draft and circulates it to the committee. While it is a matter for the committee and the candidate to decide, the expectation is that the complete draft of the dissertation which will be defended will be circulated to the committee at least three weeks before the date of the defense . 

Dissertation defenses are public, and may be attended both by department members and other interested parties.  They are normally two hours in length, and normally begin with a brief summary by the candidate of what the candidate has accomplished in the dissertation, followed by a conversation between the candidate and the committee.  The purpose of this conversation is not so much to test the range and detail of the candidate’s knowledge as to judge the candidate’s skill in presenting and discussing matters considered in the dissertation as well as the candidate’s ability to meet friendly but searching criticism.

PhD in Classical Philosophy

The departments of the Classics and Philosophy collaborate in an interdisciplinary PhD program in Classical Philosophy for students registered in either department. Candidates whose major field is philosophy are expected to take the Proseminar for graduate students in the classics, as well as attend seminars or other courses in classics relevant to their interests. With the approval of the director of graduate studies, students in the Classical Philosophy program may be permitted to count an appropriate course in ancient philosophy toward the distribution requirement in metaphysics and epistemology and one (in addition to the one already required) toward the requirement in history of philosophy.

Language requirements:

Candidates who plan to write a dissertation in Classical Philosophy are expected to have learned at least one of the classical languages (Greek or Latin) before they are admitted. Depending upon the level of fluency they have reached before entering the program, they may be asked to take additional language or reading courses. If they have not previously studied the second language, they will be required to reach the level of one year of college coursework. This can be done either by taking courses or by passing a language examination. In addition, candidates will be expected to have acquired a reading knowledge of German sufficient for reading scholarly literature and to pass a departmental examination on a suitably chosen text. The rules and procedures for the dissertation will, in general, be those established for candidates in philosophy.

PhD in Indian Philosophy

The departments of Philosophy and South Asian Studies collaborate in an interdisciplinary PhD program in Indian Philosophy for students registered in either department. Candidates whose major field is Philosophy are expected to take advanced language courses in South Asian studies and pass AM qualifying examinations. Candidates whose major field is South Asian studies are expected to fulfill the requirements of students in Philosophy, including distribution and logic requirements. With the approval of the director of graduate studies, students in Indian Philosophy may be permitted to count appropriate course in advanced Sanskrit or Tibetan toward the distribution requirement in metaphysics or epistemology and one toward the requirement in history of philosophy.

Language Requirements:

Candidates who plan to write a dissertation in Indian Philosophy are expected to have learned at least one of the relevant classical languages (Sanskrit or Tibetan) before they are admitted to the program. Depending upon the level of fluency they have reached before entering the program, they may be asked to take additional language or reading courses. In addition, candidates will be expected to satisfy the specific language requirements of their home department. The rules and procedures for the dissertation will, in general, be those established for candidates in Philosophy.

For more information please see the PhD in Indian Philosophy section .

JD/PhD in Philosophy and Law

A coordinated JD/PhD in Philosophy and Law is available. Students wishing to obtain the coordinated degrees must be admitted separately to both programs. Students admitted for the coordinated degrees must begin either with the first full year of law school or the first two years of philosophy; after that they may alternate terms as they choose. The program in Law may be completed in five terms. The requirements for philosophy are the same as for regular philosophy graduate students. For more information please see the JD/PhD Coordinated Program section .

The Master of Arts (AM) in Philosophy

The Department does not admit students for degrees other than the PhD. Students who have been admitted for the PhD and who have completed all course requirements for the degree may apply to be awarded an AM in Philosophy.

Harvard PhD students from programs (such as African and African-American Studies) which require PhD students to take courses required for an AM in another program are not required to take the first year colloquium required of Philosophy PhDs. (Students from these programs who wish to the take the colloquium must consult with the DGS.) Students from these programs who have completed 10 philosophy courses which satisfy the course requirements for a PhD and who have satisfied the distribution requirements for the PhD may apply to be awarded an AM in Philosophy.

A student who is pursuing an ad hoc degree administered in part by the Philosophy Department may petition to receive a Master of Arts degree in Philosophy. To receive this degree the student must have taken a total of 10 courses in Philosophy at the level of 100 or higher. At least two of these courses must satisfy the graduate distribution requirement in metaphysics and epistemology, two must satisfy the practical philosophy distribution requirement, two the history distribution requirement, and one must be a logic course. All must be passed with a grade of B or better. Students may receive this degree only when the Department has voted to support their petition.

Secondary Field in Philosophy

Much work in philosophy speaks directly to one or more disciplines which have Harvard PhD programs --literature, physics, statistics, science, mathematics, linguistics, and economics, to name a few. A secondary field in Philosophy gives students from other disciplines an opportunity to step back and look at the big picture in their discipline, putting students from discipline X in a position to do "philosophy of X" as part of doing X, thereby helping them both to understand their field more deeply and to open a path to developing it in innovative ways.

Graduate students may apply to the Philosophy Department to do a secondary field after their first term as a graduate student at Harvard. Secondary field students normally begin the secondary field in the second or third semester at Harvard, normally taking one or two courses a semester until they have completed the secondary field requirements.

Applicants should contact the Philosophy DGS before applying to do a secondary field in Philosophy. Applications must include: a brief statement explaining what the applicant hopes to achieve with the secondary field, including a brief summary of the applicant's background in philosophy; a copy of the undergraduate transcript (this can be a copy sent from the student's home department at Harvard) and a brief letter from a Harvard faculty member of the student's home department discussing how a secondary field in philosophy would contribute to the student's work in the home department.

To complete a secondary field in philosophy, a student completes four courses in philosophy at the 100 level or higher with a grade of B+ or better. One course must be in the area of one of the Department's PhD distribution requirements: moral and political philosophy; metaphysics and epistemology; logic; history of philosophy. A second course must be in another of these areas. At least one course must be a graduate seminar. In principle, an independent study with a member of the Department may be used to complete the secondary field. A capstone project is not required. Courses are counted towards satisfying the secondary field requirements only when approved to do so by the Philosophy DGS.

A student completing a secondary field in philosophy is assigned an advisor from the Philosophy Department, normally the DGS.

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Ethics & Legal Studies

Wharton’s phd program in ethics and legal studies is unique: the only doctoral program in the world to focus on ethical and legal norms relevant to individual and organizational decision-making within business..

The Ethics & Legal Studies Doctoral Program at Wharton trains students in the fields of ethics and law in business. Students are encouraged to combine this work with investigation of related fields, including Philosophy, Law, Psychology, Management, Finance, and Marketing. Students take a core set of courses in the area of ethics and law in business, together with courses in an additional disciplinary concentration such as management, philosophy/ethical theory, finance, marketing, or accounting. Our program size and flexibility allow students to tailor their program to their individualized research interests and to pursue joint degrees with other departments across Wharton and Penn. Resources for current Ph.D. students can be found at http://www.wharton.upenn.edu/doctoral-inside/ .

Our world-class faculty take seriously the responsibility of training graduate students for the academic profession. Faculty work closely with students to help them develop their own distinctive academic interests. Our curriculum crosses many disciplinary boundaries. Faculty and student intellectual interests include a range of topics such as:

• Philosophy & Ethics : • philosophical business ethics • normative political philosophy • rights theory • theory of the firm •  philosophy of law • philosophy of punishment & coercion • philosophy of deception and fraud • philosophy of blame and complicity • climate change ethics • effective altruism • integrative social contracts theory • corporate moral agency
• Law & Legal Studies : • law and economics • corporate penal theory • constitutional law • bankruptcy • corporate governance • corporate law • financial regulation • administrative law • empirical legal studies • blockchain and law • antitrust law • environmental law and policy • corporate criminal law • corruption • negotiations.
• Behavioral Ethics : • neuroscience and business ethics • moral psychology • moral beliefs and identity • moral deliberation • perceptions of corporate identity

Our program prepares graduates for tenure-track careers in university teaching and research at leading business schools and law schools. We have an excellent record of tenure-track placements, including Carnegie Mellon University, Notre Dame University, and George Washington University.  Click here to see our placements .

Sample Schedule

Core courses.

In addition to the Wharton Doctoral course requirements, the student’s four-course unit core in the Legal Studies and Business Ethics Department consists of two required doctoral seminars, LGST 9200 Ethics in Business and Economics, and LGST 9210 Foundations of Business Law. The remaining two LGST courses may be selected from a list of LGST courses that the faculty coordinator has approved.

Students without basic law courses will be required to take LGST 1010 in their first semester. Students will take LGST courses, other than Ph.D. seminars, under an independent study number, meet with the instructor periodically outside class, and write a paper. These requirements should be satisfied through courses taught by members of the LGST standing faculty, though exceptions will be made in special circumstances. The requirements may be adjusted for students with law degrees.

Ethics and Law in Business Courses

Students must take four LGST courses, including these two core course seminars:

• Ethics in Business and Economics (LGST 9200)
• Foundations of Business Law (LGST 9210)

Major Disciplinary Cluster

The purpose of the cluster is to ground students in a single academic specialty other than Business Ethics. Clusters include the following:

Students must choose a disciplinary cluster during the first year, in consultation with a faculty advisor. Required courses may not be double-counted. For example, a student choosing Philosophy as the cluster may not use the two required courses in ethical theory as part of the five course cluster requirement.

Get the Details.

Visit the Ethics & Legal Studies website for details on program requirements and courses. Read faculty and student research and bios to see what you can do with an Ethics & Legal Studies PhD.

Ethics & Legal Studies Doctoral Coordinator Brian Berkey Associate Professor of Legal Studies & Business Ethics

Academic & Business Administrator Tamara English Legal Studies and Business Ethics Department Email: [email protected]

JD/PhD Philosophy

• Joint Degree Program

The JD/PhD Program is designed to train the next generation of legal philosophers, who will teach legal and political philosophy in law schools, philosophy departments, departments of government, specialized graduate and undergraduate jurisprudence programs, and legal studies departments.

Institute for Law & Philosophy

About the jd/phd philosophy joint degree.

Students in this program have the opportunity to earn a combined JD/PhD in a condensed time frame while complementing their studies in each field with knowledge and research in the other.

Students can earn both degrees in six years. Penn Carey Law gives credit for up to six approved courses in the Department of Philosophy toward the JD. The Philosophy Department requires that students complete all PhD coursework, which may include several courses from the Law School curriculum.

Program Course Overview

Most often, students spend their first two years in the Department of Philosophy and their third year at the Law School completing the traditional 1L curriculum. The next two years are spent in combined coursework in the two departments, followed by dissertation writing. On occasion, for the exceptional candidate, some other arrangement of coursework may be possible.

Funding is determined at the School level. Philosophy provides a financial aid package, which includes full tuition, the normal graduate stipend (including health insurance, if not otherwise covered) for each year during which the graduate is enrolled with Philosophy. Law financial aid varies and will be awarded after the offer of admission to the joint program. Students admitted to the program receive a letter setting out the financial aid package.

Additional Information

• Department of Philosophy
• Department of Philosophy Graduate Admissions Contact: Ernestine Williams
• Cross-disciplinary Joint Degrees at Penn Carey Law

How to Apply

Students must apply and gain admission separately to each department. Applications to the Department of Philosophy are welcomed contemporaneously with the Law School application and vice versa.

Law and Philosophy J.D. Specialization

This specialization explores the philosophical foundations of law and often attracts students interested in graduate studies or careers in academia.

Students in the interdisciplinary Law and Philosophy Specialization delve deeply into material on the nature of law and legal systems, and on the theoretical underpinnings and justifications of particular doctrinal areas such as constitutional law, criminal law and contract. Students need not have any prior background in philosophy, but a strong interest in the subject is recommended.

Any student in good standing may apply to be admitted into the Specialization. Interested students should fill out a (non-binding) declaration of intent​  the summer after their first year available through the Registrar.

The Specialization is not a separate degree program, but rather a specialization within UCLA School of Law. A student who completes the Specialization with a B or better in each qualifying course and a B+ in the writing requirement, will receive a transcript notation indicating successful completion of the Specialization.

Students enrolled in the specialization have priority enrollment for Core List courses but not for the courses on the qualifying list. The Registrar will provide pre-enrollment information for each semester.

Law & Philosophy Specialization for Philosophy Graduate Students

Subject to approval by the Graduate Advisor in Philosophy, the Faculty Director of the Program, and advance consultation with the law school Registrar, philosophy graduate students in their third year or beyond who have academic interests in law and philosophy will be permitted to take up to four law school courses, including courses in first year subjects. Enrollment in any law school course or seminar will require the consent of the instructor.

Graduate students taking law school courses may be permitted with instructor consent to write a paper in lieu of taking an exam and, in any case, would not be subject to the curve applied to law students. These courses will not, typically, be counted toward Ph.D. course requirements, although students may petition the Graduate Advisor for an exception.

Philosophy students who complete four law school courses (only one of which may be the legal theory workshop) each for a grade of B or higher, and who write a substantial research paper on law and philosophy will receive a notation on their departmental transcripts that they have completed the specialization in law and philosophy.

Graduate students interested in completing the specialization should review the law school’s offerings  and email  [email protected]  with a copy to Doug Myers at [email protected]  about getting permission to enroll.

Specialization Requirements for Law Students and Curriculum

To earn a specialization in Law and Philosophy, students must finish a course work requirement and a written work requirement in their second and third years as detailed below.

Please view the tentative schedule of Law and Philosophy courses that may be offered during the 2023-2024 academic year.

• Students must complete  four qualifying courses  (of at least two semester units each) with a grade of B or better in each course.
• At least two of the courses must come from the Core List. (These lists may be updated by the faculty affiliated with the Program as new courses are added.). Courses on the Core List will be frequently offered. They will usually be taught by members of the faculty who have special expertise in the area of Law and Philosophy, drawing on foundational materials and methodologies of the subject.
• The other two courses may come from the Core List from the Other Qualifying Courses List or students may petition the Faculty Director of the Program to have other relevant courses or independent studies counted toward the specialization.
• Courses from the Core List  need not  be taken before other qualifying courses. Coursework need not be complete before the student tackles the written work requirement.

Legal Philosophy

Philosophy of punishment, legal theory workshop, contemporary philosophy of law: the cutting edge, the philosophy of prisons and punishment, free speech theory, the foundations of legal and moral responsibility, philosophy 166 - philosophy of law .

(strongly recommended)

(This course is not part of the standard Law School curriculum and hence not subject to priority enrollment. Interested students should contact the instructor in the fall to request enrollment and notify the faculty Director. Be aware that the course runs on the quarter system and starts in January term, running for 10 weeks.)

Critical Race Theory

International human rights law, law and dissent, prison law and policy, the supreme court of the united states, ucla colloquium on tax policy and public finance, political theory of the founders, theories of international law, feminist legal theory, the law and political economy of debt, direct democracy, animals and the law, religious legal systems: jewish law, social media and the future of democracy, reproductive rights and justice, freedom of speech: theoretical and comparative perspectives, the 8th amendment punishments clause.

Philosophy M257 - The Ethics and Politics of Communication 

To earn the specialization, students must also complete a substantial research paper (20 to 35 pages) on a topic in law and philosophy with a grade of B+ or better.

To discuss the specialization, students may contact Faculty Director or the Law and Philosophy Program Manager.

For detailed information about the specialization including other courses and methods of fulfilling the specialization, please visit the  Law and Philosophy Specialization page  in MyLaw (login required).

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Coordinated JD/PhD Program

Harvard Law School and the Harvard Kenneth C. Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences

The Coordinated JD/PhD Program is designed for students interested in completing interdisciplinary work at Harvard University and is founded on the belief that students’ legal studies and their arts and sciences graduate studies can be mutually enriched through this pursuit. Students completing the coordinated program receive a JD from Harvard Law School (HLS) and a PhD from the Harvard Kenneth C. Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences  (Harvard Griffin GSAS). It is expected that these students will be strong candidates for teaching posts at law schools and in arts and sciences programs, as well as for other positions in law and academia. Prospective students interested in the coordinated program may reach out to  HLS J.D. Admissions  and the  Harvard Griffin GSAS Office of Admissions  to learn more. Current and admitted students interested in the coordinated program are encouraged to contact  April Pettit , in the Office of Academic Affairs at HLS for questions about the JD program, or  Dan Volchok , Assistant Dean of Student Success at Harvard Griffin GSAS for questions about the PhD programs.

Prospective students must separately apply to and be admitted to both HLS and a Harvard Griffin GSAS PhD program in order to participate in the coordinated JD/PhD program.

• Students enrolled in HLS, but not yet admitted to Harvard Griffin GSAS, must apply to Harvard Griffin GSAS no later than the 2L year, meeting the Harvard Griffin GSAS application deadline for matriculation the following year.
• Students enrolled in Harvard Griffin GSAS, but not yet admitted to HLS, should apply to HLS no later than the G3 year, meeting the HLS application deadline for matriculation the following year.
• Please see below for details about participation in the coordinated program for Harvard Griffin GSAS students who apply and are admitted to HLS after the G3 year.

Once admitted to both schools, students must submit a proposed Plan of Study to the coordinated program no later than October 1 of the academic year following admission to both schools. Students should submit the Plan of Study to April Pettit in the Office of Academic Affairs at HLS.

Please note: Harvard Griffin GSAS students who apply to and are admitted to HLS after the G3 year at Harvard Griffin GSAS must then separately apply to the coordinated program. The application to the coordinated program should include (1) a statement detailing the way in which the student plans to integrate his or her legal studies with his or her graduate studies including how work done at HLS will inform the dissertation work and vice versa; and (2) a letter of support from the primary Harvard Griffin GSAS advisor; and (3) the Plan of Study.

The JD/PhD committee will review the applications to determine admission to the coordinated program.

Students will be registered in only one School during any given semester/term. Pursuant to ABA rules, students must  complete all requirements for the JD degree within seven years of the date they first enroll in HLS ; they may graduate from HLS before completing the PhD. Students must have satisfactorily completed at least 16 half courses in their Harvard Griffin GSAS department to receive the PhD. Students in the coordinated program will have two primary faculty advisors, one at HLS and one at Harvard Griffin GSAS, who will jointly advise students.

Students will be expected to complete the first-year program, three upper-level fall or spring semesters, and two winter terms at HLS, for a total of five fall and spring semesters and three winter terms. In lieu of the sixth HLS semester generally required of JD students, students in the coordinated program may take a semester at Harvard Griffin GSAS, completing courses or dissertation work pre-approved by HLS, and equivalent to at least 10 HLS credits. This Harvard Griffin GSAS semester may be taken only after a student has matriculated at HLS and completed their entire first year of study there. Students and their faculty advisors will determine the most appropriate sequencing for each student’s course of study, keeping in mind the HLS course, credit, and residency requirements for this program.

Course and Credit Requirements

First-year program.

The first year at HLS consists of (1) Civil Procedure, Constitutional Law, Contracts, Criminal Law, Legislation and Regulation, Property, and Torts; (2) First-year Legal Research and Writing; (3) January Experiential Term; and (4) a spring upper-level elective at HLS of a minimum of 2 and a maximum of 4 classroom credits.

Upper-Level Years

Credit and residency requirements.

Students must earn no fewer than 52 credits beyond the first year, including 36 HLS classroom credits. Classroom credits include those connected to courses, seminars and reading groups, but not writing or clinical credits. The 36 required classroom credits also include the required minimum of two credits to satisfy the Professional Responsibility Requirement and credits from the required winter terms (provided that the course chosen offers classroom credits). Of the remaining 16 required HLS credits, a maximum of ten are earned through courses or tutorials taken in Harvard Griffin GSAS and/or for dissertation writing (see below). Note that students must have their advisor’s approval before engaging in a semester of Harvard Griffin GSAS dissertation writing that is expected to count toward the HLS credit requirements . The remaining six required HLS credits may be earned in classroom, writing or clinical courses.

While at HLS, students must be enrolled in a minimum of ten total credits each semester in HLS or Harvard Griffin GSAS, with no fewer than eight of these being HLS classroom credits toward the requirement of 36 HLS classroom credits.

Winter Term Requirement

Students also must enroll in the HLS winter term two times during their upper-level years in the program. Each of the winter terms must follow a fall term enrollment or precede a spring term enrollment at HLS. Students may register for a course of two or three credits. JD/PhD students will be permitted to spend one of the winter terms in the HLS Winter Writing Program, provided they are engaged in written work for HLS credit according to the rules of that program.

Written Work Requirement

JD/PhD students must complete the JD Written Work Requirement. Students are permitted to satisfy the requirement with a portion of their dissertation, provided this work meets HLS standards for written work. However, any portion of the dissertation counted toward the JD Written Work Requirement cannot also be used as part of the 10 HLS-equivalent credits earned during a student’s Harvard Griffin GSAS semester. Further information about the J.D. Written Work Requirement and the Winter Term Writing Program is available from the HLS Registrar’s Office .

Pro Bono Requirement

JD/PhD students must complete the  HLS Pro Bono Requirement  of 50 hours of public service.

Residency Requirement

A minimum of two years of full-time study in residence is required for all PhD programs in the Harvard Griffin GSAS. During the period of registration at HLS, coordinated JD/PhD students will have “study-at-another-Harvard-school” status in Harvard Griffin GSAS.

Structure of Academic Work

Students will ordinarily be enrolled for at least four years (8 terms) in Harvard Griffin GSAS. They must complete at least 16 half courses to receive their PhD. Students may cross-register for a limited number of Harvard Griffin GSAS courses during their upper-level terms at HLS. Depending on the Harvard Griffin GSAS department, these courses may count toward the PhD. However, JD/PhD students may count a maximum of 10 credits from Harvard Griffin GSAS coursework or dissertation writing toward the JD. Therefore, students planning to spend a semester enrolled at Harvard Griffin GSAS taking courses or writing the dissertation for which they will earn 10 HLS credits may not also count cross-registered Harvard Griffin GSAS courses toward the JD.

General Examinations

In most departments, once having completed the required coursework, students must pass a general examination or other preliminary or qualifying examinations before undertaking independent research on a dissertation. Normally, when the nature of the field and previous preparation permit, students should pass these examinations by the end of the second year of full-time academic residence.

PhD Dissertation

The student’s dissertation prospectus must be approved by the department. A student who wishes to present as a dissertation a published article, series of articles, book or other document, or a manuscript that has been accepted for publication, must have the approval of the department concerned. In no case, however, may a dissertation be presented that has already been submitted toward another degree, either at Harvard or elsewhere. The Dissertation Acceptance Certificate must be signed by at least three readers approved by the student’s department, two of whom must be members of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS). FAS emeriti (including research professors) and faculty members from other schools at Harvard who hold appointments on GSAS degree committees are authorized to sign the Dissertation Acceptance Certificates as FAS members. GSAS strongly recommends that the chair of the dissertation committee be a member of FAS. The third reader may be a member of the HLS faculty.

Requirement of Satisfactory Status

Continuous registration, a satisfactory grade record, and evidence that satisfactory progress is being made toward the degree are required of all candidates for graduate degrees offered by FAS. All students in Harvard Griffin GSAS must be making satisfactory progress in order to be eligible for any type of financial aid and teaching. The following five provisions are the general definition of satisfactory progress during registration in Harvard Griffin GSAS:

• During the first two years of graduate study any student who has completed expected requirements is considered to be making satisfactory progress.
• In each of the first two years, a student must have achieved the minimum grade-point average required by the faculty, a B average. (see Harvard Griffin GSAS Policies: Grade and Examination Requirements ).
• By the end of the third year, a student must have passed general examinations or the departmental equivalent.
• By the end of the fourth year, a student must have obtained approval of a dissertation prospectus or its departmental equivalent.
• By the end of the fifth year and each subsequent year during which a student is allowed to register, they must have produced at least one acceptable chapter of the dissertation.

For more information about satisfactory progress, please see Harvard Griffin GSAS Policies .

Other Requirements

Ordinarily, programs will have a language requirement and an expectation of teaching. Students should consult with their Harvard Griffin GSAS departments for more information about these requirements.

There are a number of possible academic schedules for students pursuing both degrees. Three sequences are outlined below, but students may propose alternative sequences. In considering their courses of study, students should be aware that their financial aid packages might be affected at the school in which they defer enrollment.

Year 1: HLS Year 2: Harvard Griffin GSAS Year 3: Harvard Griffin GSAS Year 4: HLS Year 5: 1st term, HLS Year 5: 2nd term, Harvard Griffin GSAS (earning the equivalent of 10 HLS credits in dissertation work) Following year(s): Harvard Griffin GSAS until completion of dissertation

Year 1: Harvard Griffin GSAS Year 2: Harvard Griffin GSAS Year 3: HLS Year 4: Harvard Griffin GSAS Year 5: HLS Year 6: 1st term, HLS Year 6: 2nd term, Harvard Griffin GSAS (earning the equivalent of 10 HLS credits in dissertation work) Following year(s): Harvard Griffin GSAS until completion of dissertation

Year 1: HLS Year 2: HLS Year 3: Harvard Griffin GSAS Year 4: Harvard Griffin GSAS Year 5: 1st term, HLS Year 5: 2nd term, Harvard Griffin GSAS (earning the equivalent of 10 HLS credits in dissertation work) Following year(s): Harvard Griffin GSAS until completion of dissertation

Updated Plans of Study

By October 1 each year, current JD/PhD students should submit an updated Plan of Study to April Pettit, in the HLS Office of Academic Affairs.

Other Academic Information

Faculty advising.

Students in the program will have primary faculty advisors at both HLS and at Harvard Griffin GSAS. If possible, HLS faculty advisors should be selected before the completion of the 2L year. The HLS faculty advisor must sign off on any dissertation writing a student expects to use for JD credit. In some Harvard Griffin GSAS departments, the director of graduate studies serves as the faculty advisor during the first two years of study. Faculty advisors will supervise students’ academic work, advise students on their courses of study and on specific classes appropriate for their PhD work, and approve the courses of study for their students on an annual basis. If appropriate, the HLS advisor will be the third reader on the student’s dissertation committee, with at least two readers required to be members of FAS.

Leaving the JD/PhD Program

If a student fails to make adequate progress toward the PhD, the student’s faculty advisors will be permitted to withdraw the student from the program. In such cases, in order to receive the JD degree, a student will still need to meet the graduation and credit requirements for the JD degree.

Tuition and Financial Aid

Harvard law school.

Students must pay five semesters of full tuition. Students will be eligible for HLS financial aid for all semesters during which they pay tuition to HLS. For more information on Financial Aid, visit the Student Financial Services Financial Aid webpage .

Harvard Kenneth C. Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences

The minimum financial requirement for the PhD is at least four terms of full tuition followed by two years of reduced tuition and a facilities fee unless the degree is completed in less than four years. The financial aid awarded upon admission to the PhD program is available during those terms in which the student is enrolled in Harvard Griffin GSAS. Students should refer to their notice of financial support provided by their department upon admission to Harvard Griffin GSAS. Students should consult with their GSAS departments for more information.

Administrative Information

The HLS Registrar’s Office, the FAS Registrar’s Office, the GSAS Assistant Dean of Student Success, the HLS Associate Director of Academic Affairs, and the appropriate financial aid officers, will coordinate on students’ registration status and updated plans of study.

Housing and Student Life

GSAS and HLS will work together to ensure that the student services offered by both Schools are available to JD/PhD students during all their years in the Coordinated Program, including career and counseling offices, financial aid offices, student centers, and alumni offices. Students in the coordinated program will have email accounts at both schools throughout the program. Disability services and visa requirements will be coordinated on a case-by-case basis by the HLS Dean of Students and Registrar and by the Harvard Griffin GSAS Assistant Dean for Student Success. Students may apply for housing through either School for the years in which they are enrolled for at least one semester/term at both Schools. In all other years, students must apply for housing to the School in which they are enrolled.

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Doctor of Philosophy in Law

The PhD is a research-intensive degree that prepares graduates for opportunities in law teaching, legal research, policy development, public and governmental service, and the practice of law. 

Learn more about the degree requirements.

Tuition, Fees & Funding

Tuition fees and scholarship & bursary information to help you plan your finances.

Program Eligibility

Minimum education, credentials and English language requirements.

How to Apply

Application deadlines and everything you need to know to apply.

Frequently Asked Questions

Review some of our commonly asked questions.

Still have questions? Our graduate admissions team is here to help.

Here's What Our Students Have To Say

“I chose Allard Law because it’s one of the best law schools in Canada and UBC is consistently recognized as a world-class research intensive university. I had a rich experience during my Masters’ program here at Allard, so I was really happy and excited to progress my studies at the Ph.D. level. I’m confident that the PhD program will go a long way in helping me develop expertise in my chosen field of corporate governance and anti-corruption law and I look forward to more rewarding experiences during my time here.  

Georgetown Law

J.d./m.a./ph.d. in philosophy.

Juris Doctor/Master of Arts or Doctorate in Philosophy

J.D./Philosophy students must satisfactorily complete the graduation requirements for both the J.D. degree and the M.A. or Ph.D. in Philosophy degree. Separate diplomas will be awarded, and upon satisfactory completion of the program, a Joint Degree Certificate will be awarded as well.

Curriculum Outline

J.D./Philosophy students are required to take the first year of law school and the first year of Philosophy coursework as intact blocks. The first year at the Law Center may be taken either immediately prior to or immediately after completing one year of Philosophy coursework, but no earlier or later.

J.D./M.A. in Philosophy

J.D./M.A. in Philosophy degree candidates must complete 100 academic credits (76 credits of Law Center courses and 24 credits (or 18 credits and a thesis) of Philosophy coursework). Nine credits of Philosophy coursework will count towards the J.D. degree requirements, and 6 credits of J.D. coursework will count towards the M.A. in Philosophy degree requirements. The program also requires J.D./M.A. in Philosophy students to:

• pass a comprehensive examination in Philosophy;
• a course in professional responsibility;
• the upperclass writing requirement;
• 6 credits of experiential coursework;
• For students matriculating in Fall 2022 or later:  a course that teaches students to think critically about the law’s claim to neutrality and the law’s differential effects on subordinated groups, including those identified by race, gender, indigeneity, and class; and
• maintain a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.00/4.00 in the Philosophy program and the required minimum cumulative grade point average for the J.D. program (see the Juris Doctor Program chapter of Georgetown Law Student Handbook of Academic Policies ).

J.D./Ph.D. in Philosophy

J.D./Ph.D. in Philosophy degree candidates must complete 112 academic credits (76 credits of Law Center courses and 36 credits of Philosophy coursework). Nine credits of Philosophy coursework will count towards the J.D. degree requirements, and 9 credits of J.D. coursework will count towards the Ph.D. in Philosophy degree requirements.

The program also requires J.D./Ph.D. students to:

• successfully complete three comprehensive examinations in Philosophy;
• successfully complete a dissertation;
• maintain a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.00/4.00 in the Philosophy program and the required minimum cumulative grade point average for the J.D. program (see the Juris Doctor Program chapter of the Georgetown Law Student Handbook of Academic Policies ).

Contact Info

Office of academic affairs.

[email protected]

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

The Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) at UNSW Law & Justice can accelerate your career, whether you’re planning to move into advanced research, academia, practice or policy development.

Our research degree will equip you with skills and knowledge to help you thrive across a broad range of organisations, including academia, the legal profession, government, NGOs or inter-governmental agencies.

As part of this postgraduate research degree, you will study research methods and complete a research thesis that makes a substantial and original contribution to knowledge in your chosen area of law, criminology or related discipline. You’ll enjoy a collegiate and dynamic research culture at UNSW Law & Justice, an internationally renowned faculty.

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• Entry requirements
• Program structure

Applicants for this doctoral program must have either completed a recognised Masters degree (including a substantial research component) with a minimum distinction average (75 per cent), or a recognised four-year Bachelor's degree with Honours Class II, Division (I) that included a substantial research component, or the equivalent. 

You must also submit a research proposal to be considered for this program. Admission to the PhD program is subject to appropriate supervision being available.

The PhD requires a minimum of three and a maximum of four years full-time study and submission of a research thesis, usually not exceeding 100,000 words. You'll be supervised by experts in your chosen area, who will help you develop insights and critical legal research skills in a supportive and stimulating environment. 

Compulsory coursework includes research ethics, research methods and data management. Ongoing enrolment in the doctoral program requires confirmation of candidature at between nine to 12 months full-time equivalent. 

Confirmed candidates will then have annual progress reviews to help track their research project's achievements and milestones.

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Indigenous PhD scholarships in law

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Canadian Immigration Updates

Applicants to Master’s and Doctoral degrees are not affected by the recently announced cap on study permits. Review more details

Go to programs search

The PhD in Law is designed to provide advanced training for outstanding graduate students who have already obtained a Master of Laws (LLM) degree or its equivalent. The PhD is a research-intensive degree that prepares graduates for opportunities in law teaching, legal research, policy development, public and governmental service, and the practice of law.

The degree requirements include course work, comprehensive exams, a dissertation proposal and defence, a dissertation, and an oral dissertation exam. Working closely with a supervising faculty member, a student in the PhD program is expected to produce a book-length piece of original legal scholarship and of publishable quality.

The PhD provides an opportunity for focused study in a chosen field of law. It does not, of itself, qualify a holder for entry to the legal profession in British Columbia or any other certification for legal practice.

For specific program requirements, please refer to the departmental program website

I pursued my graduate studies at UBC to integrate my passions for law, learning, and teaching into a research project that could be of real benefit to legal scholarship and Canadians.

Jason Leslie

Quick Facts

Program Enquiries

Admission information & requirements, 1) check eligibility, minimum academic requirements.

The Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies establishes the minimum admission requirements common to all applicants, usually a minimum overall average in the B+ range (76% at UBC). The graduate program that you are applying to may have additional requirements. Please review the specific requirements for applicants with credentials from institutions in:

• Canada or the United States
• International countries other than the United States

Each program may set higher academic minimum requirements. Please review the program website carefully to understand the program requirements. Meeting the minimum requirements does not guarantee admission as it is a competitive process.

English Language Test

Applicants from a university outside Canada in which English is not the primary language of instruction must provide results of an English language proficiency examination as part of their application. Tests must have been taken within the last 24 months at the time of submission of your application.

Minimum requirements for the two most common English language proficiency tests to apply to this program are listed below:

TOEFL: Test of English as a Foreign Language - internet-based

Overall score requirement : 100

IELTS: International English Language Testing System

Overall score requirement : 7.0

Other Test Scores

Some programs require additional test scores such as the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or the Graduate Management Test (GMAT). The requirements for this program are:

The GRE is not required.

Prior degree, course and other requirements

Prior degree requirements.

Completion of either an LLB or JD and a Masters degree.

Document Requirements

Additionally to the required documents please submit: C.V. or resume Dissertation Proposal: PhD degrees in the Allard School of Law at UBC are dissertation-based degrees involving original research. Dissertation (PhD) proposals form an important part of the admissions process and help to guide the assignment of supervisors and supervisory committees. A proposal should outline a research project that could reasonably lead to a dissertation that makes an original scholarly contribution in the chosen field of legal study. The PhD dissertation proposal is approximately 10 pages (2,500 words), excluding bibliography. Clarity of expression is important. Please upload your thesis proposal under "Writing Sample". List of possible thesis supervisors: All applicants must submit a list indicating your first and second choice for a thesis supervisor, this list should be uploaded to your application form. There is no need to secure a thesis supervisor nor is it is necessary to contact potential thesis supervisors prior to submission of an application as many faculty members prefer that applications are referred by the Graduate Committee for their review.

2) Meet Deadlines

3) prepare application, transcripts.

All applicants have to submit transcripts from all past post-secondary study. Document submission requirements depend on whether your institution of study is within Canada or outside of Canada.

Letters of Reference

A minimum of three references are required for application to graduate programs at UBC. References should be requested from individuals who are prepared to provide a report on your academic ability and qualifications.

Statement of Interest

Many programs require a statement of interest , sometimes called a "statement of intent", "description of research interests" or something similar.

Supervision

Students in research-based programs usually require a faculty member to function as their thesis supervisor. Please follow the instructions provided by each program whether applicants should contact faculty members.

Instructions regarding thesis supervisor contact for Doctor of Philosophy in Law (PhD)

Citizenship verification.

Permanent Residents of Canada must provide a clear photocopy of both sides of the Permanent Resident card.

4) Apply Online

All applicants must complete an online application form and pay the application fee to be considered for admission to UBC.

Research Information

Research facilities.

Allard Hall, the home of the Peter A. Allard School of Law, was opened in 2011. The latest technology connects the Faculty with campuses, courthouses and offices around the world, and a new, state-of-the-art UBC Law Library serves as a vital academic hub for students and the legal community. Natural light, contemporary classroom designs, expanded student service spaces, a student forum space at the centre of the building, and new research spaces are all part of the new facility. The Law Library has a research collection of approximately 225,000 volumes.

Tuition & Financial Support

Financial support.

Applicants to UBC have access to a variety of funding options, including merit-based (i.e. based on your academic performance) and need-based (i.e. based on your financial situation) opportunities.

Program Funding Packages

From September 2024 all full-time students in UBC-Vancouver PhD programs will be provided with a funding package of at least $24,000 for each of the first four years of their PhD. The funding package may consist of any combination of internal or external awards, teaching-related work, research assistantships, and graduate academic assistantships. Please note that many graduate programs provide funding packages that are substantially greater than $24,000 per year. Please check with your prospective graduate program for specific details of the funding provided to its PhD students.

Average Funding

• 1 student received Teaching Assistantships valued at $1,054.
• 2 students received Research Assistantships. Average RA funding based on 2 students was $6,313.
• 10 students received Academic Assistantships. Average AA funding based on 10 students was $4,505.
• 20 students received internal awards. Average internal award funding based on 20 students was $20,705.
• 8 students received external awards. Average external award funding based on 8 students was $20,750.

Scholarships & awards (merit-based funding)

All applicants are encouraged to review the awards listing to identify potential opportunities to fund their graduate education. The database lists merit-based scholarships and awards and allows for filtering by various criteria, such as domestic vs. international or degree level.

Graduate Research Assistantships (GRA)

Many professors are able to provide Research Assistantships (GRA) from their research grants to support full-time graduate students studying under their supervision. The duties constitute part of the student's graduate degree requirements. A Graduate Research Assistantship is considered a form of fellowship for a period of graduate study and is therefore not covered by a collective agreement. Stipends vary widely, and are dependent on the field of study and the type of research grant from which the assistantship is being funded.

Graduate Teaching Assistantships (GTA)

Graduate programs may have Teaching Assistantships available for registered full-time graduate students. Full teaching assistantships involve 12 hours work per week in preparation, lecturing, or laboratory instruction although many graduate programs offer partial TA appointments at less than 12 hours per week. Teaching assistantship rates are set by collective bargaining between the University and the Teaching Assistants' Union .

Graduate Academic Assistantships (GAA)

Academic Assistantships are employment opportunities to perform work that is relevant to the university or to an individual faculty member, but not to support the student’s graduate research and thesis. Wages are considered regular earnings and when paid monthly, include vacation pay.

Financial aid (need-based funding)

Canadian and US applicants may qualify for governmental loans to finance their studies. Please review eligibility and types of loans .

All students may be able to access private sector or bank loans.

Foreign government scholarships

Many foreign governments provide support to their citizens in pursuing education abroad. International applicants should check the various governmental resources in their home country, such as the Department of Education, for available scholarships.

Working while studying

The possibility to pursue work to supplement income may depend on the demands the program has on students. It should be carefully weighed if work leads to prolonged program durations or whether work placements can be meaningfully embedded into a program.

International students enrolled as full-time students with a valid study permit can work on campus for unlimited hours and work off-campus for no more than 20 hours a week.

A good starting point to explore student jobs is the UBC Work Learn program or a Co-Op placement .

Tax credits and RRSP withdrawals

Students with taxable income in Canada may be able to claim federal or provincial tax credits.

Canadian residents with RRSP accounts may be able to use the Lifelong Learning Plan (LLP) which allows students to withdraw amounts from their registered retirement savings plan (RRSPs) to finance full-time training or education for themselves or their partner.

Please review Filing taxes in Canada on the student services website for more information.

Cost Estimator

Applicants have access to the cost estimator to develop a financial plan that takes into account various income sources and expenses.

Career Outcomes

24 students graduated between 2005 and 2013: 1 is in a non-salaried situation; for 1 we have no data (based on research conducted between Feb-May 2016). For the remaining 22 graduates:

Sample Employers in Higher Education

Sample employers outside higher education, sample job titles outside higher education, phd career outcome survey, alumni on success.

Craig Bateman

Job Title Copy editor, legal researcher, and writing consultant

Employer Self employed

Robert Russo

Job Title Lecturer

Employer Peter A. Allard School of Law, University of British Columbia

Enrolment, Duration & Other Stats

These statistics show data for the Doctor of Philosophy in Law (PhD). Data are separated for each degree program combination. You may view data for other degree options in the respective program profile.

ENROLMENT DATA

Completion rates & times.

• Research Supervisors

This list shows faculty members with full supervisory privileges who are affiliated with this program. It is not a comprehensive list of all potential supervisors as faculty from other programs or faculty members without full supervisory privileges can request approvals to supervise graduate students in this program.

• Affolder, Natasha (International Environmental Law, Biodiversity Law, Law and Sustainability)
• Ahmad, Hassan (transnational tort law; interaction of domestic jurisdiction and liability principles with international law; business and human rights law; Law and political economy)
• Aloni, Erez (Law and legal practice; Law; Contracts; family law; law and sexuality)
• Arbel, Efrat (Law and legal practice; Law; Constitutional law; Gender and Law; Legal and Critical Theory; Prison Law and Policy; Refugee Law; Tort Law)
• Bakan, Joel Conrad (Constitutional Law, Legal Theory, Socio-Legal Studies)
• Benedet, Janine (Law and legal practice; Penal Law; Labor Standards and Laws; Human Rights and Liberties, Collective Rights; prostitution and pornography; sexual abuse of girls; sexual harassment in employment and education; sexual violence against women)
• Beswick, Samuel Peter (Private law; Common law; Comparative law; Torts, private obligations and product liability law; Legal theory, jurisprudence and legal interpretation; Law; Law and time; Limitations; Remedies; Tort Law; Restitution and unjust enrichment; Public authority liability)
• Bhandar, Brenna (Law and legal practice; property law)
• Biukovic, Ljiljana (Adaptation of international legal norms by national governments, the impact of regionalism on multilateral trade negotiations and the development of European Union Law,European union Law, International Trade Law, International Dispute Resolution, E-commerce, Comparative Law )
• Cheng, Jie (Comparative Constitutional Law; Chinese Law and Governance; Hong Kong and Macau Basic Laws; Land Property Law; Information Law)
• Christie, Gordon (Legal Theory, and trans-cultural tort law, Aboriginal law, Indigenous legal orders, Indigenous legal theory, Legal Theory and trans-cultural tort law)
• Clifford, Robert (Aboriginal and Indigenous law)
• Cui, Wei (Law and legal practice; Taxation; Law; Social Organization and Political Systems; Chinese administrative law; Chinese legislative system; law and development; Law and political economy; tax and development; tax policy)
• Cunliffe, Emma (Women and the law, evidence, experts, courts and media, open justice, pathology and law, criminal law, SIDS, child homicide )
• Dauvergne, Catherine (Immigration, Immigration Law, Refugee Law, Legal Theory, Globalization)
• Duff, David (Tax Law Tax Policy Environmental Taxation Charities, Tax law and policy, environmental taxation, comparative and international taxation, and distributive justice)
• Etxabe, Julen (Law and society; Literature and critical theory; History and philosophy of law and justice; Law and humanities; Legal Theory and Jurisprudence; Human Rights; Political Theory; Law and literature; Cultural Studies)
• Flynn, Alexandra (Law and society; Municipal Law; Local Governance; property law; Administrative Law; Experiential legal education; Socio-Legal Studies; Law & Cities)
• Ford, Cristie (Law and legal practice; Law; Regulation; Social, Economical and Political Impacts of Innovations; Laws, Standards and Regulation Impacts; Administrative Law; Ideological, Political, Economical and Social Environments of Social Transformations; Financial innovation and fintech; financial regulation; Legal innovation and law tech; regulation & governance theory; securities regulation; the legal profession)
• Goldbach, Toby Susan (Law and legal practice; Political Culture, Society and Ideology; Procedural Law; Jurisprudence; Comparative Law; Dispute Resolution; Judicial Politics; law and development)
• Goold, Benjamin (Law and legal practice; Law; Border Studies; Criminal Justice; Human Rights; migration; Privacy; security)
• Gordon, Sara (Law and legal practice; Intersection of psychology and mental health with the criminal justice system; Criminal law and criminal justice; Health law and policy; Legal methodology and interdisciplinary approaches)
• Grant, Isabel (Criminal Law, Constitutional Law, Psychiatry and Law)
• Harris, Douglas (Property law (except intellectual property law); Canadian history; property law; condominium law; legal history)
• Hastie, Bethany (Labour & Employment Law, Human Rights, Socio-Legal Studies, Access to Justice)

Doctoral Citations

Related programs, same specialization.

• Juris Doctor (JD)
• LLM - Master of Laws (Common Law) (LLMCL)
• LLM - Master of Laws (LLM)
• LLM in Taxation (LLMT)

Further Information

Specialization, ubc calendar, program website, faculty overview, academic unit, program identifier, classification, social media channels, supervisor search.

Departments/Programs may update graduate degree program details through the Faculty & Staff portal. To update contact details for application inquiries, please use this form .

Terri-Lynn Williams-Davidson, KC

I am Indigenous to this Province. I live in Haida Gwaii and on the territory of the Semiahmoo Nation. UBC is ideal for the location, and because it facilitates ongoing connections with my nation and homeland of Haida Gwaii.

Oludolapo Makinde

Haley Hrymak

Many of the academics I admire and look up to are at UBC. UBC is the ideal place for my work given my focus on BC, my supervisors’ skillsets, and my connection to the legal community and anti-violence sector across BC. I am also very thankful for the funding UBC has offered me to complete my...

Melanie McPhail

Growing up in the Vancouver area, I was thrilled at the opportunity of continuing my graduate studies close to home after spending over a decade in Ontario. Additionally, studying at UBC provides me with the opportunity to work with Dr. Cristie Ford, a leading scholar in regulatory governance.

Curious about life in Vancouver?

Find out how Vancouver enhances your graduate student experience—from the beautiful mountains and city landscapes, to the arts and culture scene, we have it all. Study-life balance at its best!

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Politics, Philosophy, and Law

Graduate study in politics, philosophy & law at uc berkeley.

Recent Dissertations

This site will help you explore the many ways you can study politics, philosophy and law at UC Berkeley, whether through a variety of joint J.D./Ph.D. degrees, or self-standing Ph.D. or J.D./LL.M./JSD programs. Our internationally renowned faculty and our graduate students come from a number of Berkeley departments and professional schools, with a shared interest in the multi-disciplinary study of law and legal institutions. These interests are anchored by Berkeley Law’s Kadish Center for Morality, Law, and Public Affairs and its weekly Workshop in Law, Philosophy and Political Theory , which brings scholars to Berkeley from around the world to discuss cutting-edge scholarship. Recent and upcoming visitors to the Workshop include Rick Brooks, Susan James, Samuel Moyn, Josh Ober, Cristina Rodriguez, TM Scanlon, Quentin Skinner, and Anna Stilz. Complete archives can be found here .

Ph.D. study: The departments of Philosophy , Political Science , Rhetoric , and the Law School’s distinctive Ph.D. program in Jurisprudence and Social Policy all provide specialization in legal philosophy and political theory. By following the links above, you can read about the faculties of each program (many of whom are cross-appointed in other programs), the specific character and entrance requirements of each doctoral program, and examples of relevant courses and recent dissertations. Keep in mind as well that Berkeley is virtually unique in the depth of its interdisciplinary connections, and that students in any one program take coursework, engage in reading and dissertation groups, and participate in colloquia and workshops across departmental and school borders. The Townsend Center for the Humanities provides another hub connecting students and faculty working broadly on normative topics, including human rights. The Law & Contemporary Theory group is one of the Townsend Center’s most active, meeting multiple times per semester.

Many graduate students at Berkeley interested in law, philosophy and politics combine a Ph.D. with a J.D. or MPP. While such combinations can be put together informally, the Jurisprudence & Social Policy Program offers a joint J.D./Ph.D. degree, with coordinated admissions, possible J.D. fee remission, and reduced time in law school classes. (About one third of JSP students take a J.D. at Berkeley Law; another third either have a law degree already or pursue one elsewhere.)

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Everything You Need To Know Before Doing A PhD In Law

So, you’ve mastered the art of legalese, conquered the casebooks, and now the allure of a PhD in Law beckons.

Moreover, Before you dive headfirst into the world of legal academia, let’s unravel the mysteries and demystify the process of pursuing a Doctor of Philosophy in Law. Buckle up, future legal scholars – here’s the lowdown.

What Is A PhD In Law?

Alright, curious minds, buckle up because we’re about to demystify the enigma that is a PhD in Law. No, it’s not just a degree; it’s a journey into the legal unknown, a quest for knowledge that goes beyond the courtroom drama you see on TV.

The PhD Rundown: Beyond Your Average Degree

Let’s start at the beginning. A PhD in Law is not your run-of-the-mill degree where you memorize statutes and call it a day. 

It’s the pinnacle of legal academia, the Jedi Master level of legal education .

Moreover, Picture it as your golden ticket to dive deep into uncharted legal waters and emerge as the authority on a topic of your choosing.

A Love Story with Time: The Commitment Factor

Considering a PhD in Law? Prepare to embrace commitment like never before. This isn’t a sprint; it’s a marathon. Think three to five years of scholarly devotion. 

You and your research are about to embark on a long, passionate journey.

Moreover, like a legal romance novel without the cheesy dialogue.

Passion, Not Just Law: What’s Your Legal Crush?

Before you start this epic adventure, you need to identify your legal passion. Environmental law, human rights, or maybe the arcane world of space law – pick your legal crush.

Moreover, Your PhD is essentially your love letter to that field of law.

Supervisors: Your Academic Sidekicks

Now, imagine you’re a superhero (because, let’s face it, you practically are). Every superhero needs a sidekick, right? Enter your supervisor, the Gandalf to your Frodo, the Batman to your Robin. 

They guide, mentor, and occasionally drop knowledge bombs that reshape your entire academic universe.

Blueprint for Brilliance: The Research Proposal

Every masterpiece starts with a plan, and your PhD is no exception. Enter the research proposal – your roadmap to academic greatness.

Moreover, Nail this, and you’re on the highway to unraveling the mysteries of legal academia.

Show Me the Money: Funding Your Legal Odyssey

Let’s address the elephant in the room: funding. A PhD might be your intellectual calling, but your landlord still expects rent. Explore scholarships, grants, and funding options. Your brainpower needs some financial muscle.

Balancing Act: Life Beyond the Law Library

Contrary to popular belief, a PhD isn’t a one-way ticket to a dusty library dungeon. Attend conferences, network with fellow legal minds, and, yes, indulge in the occasional Netflix binge. It’s all about maintaining sanity in the midst of legal chaos.

D-Day Drama: The Thesis Defense

Fast forward a few years – it’s D-Day, the thesis defense. Imagine it as the legal Olympics, where you defend your intellectual gold medal. Nail this, and you’re officially a Doctor of Philosophy in Law.

How To Get A Ph.D. In Law?

So, you’ve got the legal bug, the burning desire to delve into the intricacies of the law beyond what your LLB or JD provided . A Ph.D. in Law is calling your name, and you’re ready for the challenge. Let’s break down the roadmap to turning those legal dreams into reality.

Finding Your Passion

Before you plunge into the Ph.D. abyss, ask yourself, “What legal puzzle keeps me up at night?” Identify your legal passion; it’s the compass that’ll guide you through the academic labyrinth. Whether it’s environmental law, criminal justice, or the wild world of international law, find your legal muse.

Crafting Your Research Proposal

Picture your Ph.D. journey as a grand adventure, and the research proposal is your treasure map. It’s not just a formality; it’s your chance to articulate your research vision. Be clear, concise, and convincing – your academic destiny hangs in the balance.

Choosing Your Supervisor Wisely

Meet your academic Yoda – your supervisor. This isn’t just a partnership; it’s a mentorship. Choose someone who not only knows the legal ropes but also aligns with your research interests. They’ll be your guiding star through the academic galaxy.

Funding Your Legal Crusade

Let’s be real; pursuing a Ph.D. isn’t a cheap date. Explore scholarship options, grants, and funding opportunities.

Moreover, your brilliance deserves financial backing, so don’t shy away from funding Fandango.

Crafting Your Magnum Opus

Your thesis is the pièce de résistance of your Ph.D. Think of it as a legal manuscript that’ll make waves in academia. Dive deep, conduct rigorous research.

Moreover, present your findings with flair. It’s your chance to contribute something significant to the legal conversation.

Balancing Act of PhD in law

As you immerse yourself in the legal wilderness of writing, remember to balance work and life. Yes, the library is your second home, but don’t forget to attend conferences, network, and occasionally indulge in some self-care.

Moreover, A burnt-out Ph.D. candidate is nobody’s idea of success.

Defending Your Intellectual Fortitude

The day has arrived – your thesis defense. It’s your chance to showcase the intellectual muscle you’ve been flexing for years. Be confident, articulate, and ready to tackle questions.

Moreover, This is the final showdown before you emerge as a legal Jedi.

How Long Does It Take To Get A PhD In Law?

Alright, future legal scholars, you’ve decided to take the plunge into the world of a Ph.D. in Law. But let’s address the elephant in the courtroom – just how long is this academic escapade going to take? 

Buckle up; we’re about to navigate the twists and turns of the Ph.D. timeline .

The Legal Marathon: Setting Realistic Expectations

First things first – a Ph.D. in Law is no sprint. It’s a marathon, a scholarly expedition into the depths of legal academia. 

While the specific timeline can vary, the average duration is typically three to five years. 

Moreover, It’s not just a degree ; it’s a commitment to becoming the Jedi Master of your legal niche.

The Proposal Prelude: Year One

Year one kicks off with the grand proposal dance. This is where you pitch your tent in the academic campground. You’ll be refining your research question, crafting that all-important proposal, and finding your academic bearings.

Moreover, It’s the year of laying the groundwork for the epic journey ahead.

Supervisory Bonding: Years One and Two

Enter the academic Yoda – your supervisor. The early years are all about forging that mentorship, refining your research design, and diving into the sea of legal literature.

Moreover, This phase is where you build the foundation for your thesis and develop the crucial academic muscle required for the journey.

Funding Fandango: Concurrent with Years One and Two

Ah, the funding quest – it’s like searching for the golden key to the academic kingdom. While not everyone embarks on this quest simultaneously, securing funding often happens alongside the initial years of research.

Moreover, Scholarships, grants, and financial backing become your academic sidekicks.

The Write-Up Wilderness: Years Two to Four of PhD in law

Welcome to the write-up wilderness, where the real magic (and sometimes madness) happens. Years two to four are all about immersing yourself in the legal labyrinth, conducting research, and crafting that magnum opus of a thesis.

Moreover, It’s where you refine your legal arguments and contribute your unique perspective to the academic conversation.

Thesis Tango: Years Four and Five of PhD in law

As you waltz into years four and five, it’s showtime – the thesis defense is looming on the horizon. This is the crescendo of your academic symphony.

Moreover, Nail the defense, and you emerge as a Doctor of Philosophy in Law, ready to wield your legal prowess in the wider world.

Life Beyond Law School: The Aftermath of PhD in law

Congratulations, Doctor! The journey might be over, but the adventure is just beginning. Whether you choose academia, policymaking, or even intergalactic legal consultancy (who knows?).

Moreover, the world of law is now your oyster.

What Can You Do With A PhD In Law?

So, you’ve conquered the academic summit, and now you’re armed with a shiny new PhD in Law. But wait, what’s next? Fear not, intrepid legal scholar, because the world is your jurisdiction.

Let’s explore the myriad paths that open up when you wield the mighty title of Doctor of Philosophy in Law.

Academic Odyssey: Shaping the Legal Minds of Tomorrow

One of the classic moves post-PhD is diving into academia. Picture yourself as the wise sage of the law school , molding eager minds and imparting your wisdom.

Moreover, You become the beacon of legal enlightenment, guiding the next generation of lawyers and thinkers.

Policy Architect: Building Legal Bridges Beyond Academia

Ever dreamed of influencing policy and shaping the legal landscape beyond the ivory tower? With a PhD in Law, you’re equipped to dive into the world of policy-making.

Moreover, Become the architect of legal frameworks, advising governments and organizations on navigating the complex waters of law and justice.

Legal Luminary in Practice: Consulting and Expert Testimony

Step into the limelight as a legal expert sought after by law firms , corporations, or even governments. Your expertise becomes a valuable commodity.

Moreover, From consulting on intricate legal matters to providing expert testimony in courtrooms.

Moreover, your PhD is your ticket to becoming a legal luminary in the practical realm.

International Law Trailblazer: Navigating Global Legal Waters From Your PhD in law

With a PhD in Law, you’re not confined by borders. Dive into the dynamic world of international law. Whether it’s shaping global policies, working with international organizations, or advocating for human rights on a global scale.

Moreover, your expertise can have a far-reaching impact.

Research Maestro: Contributing to Legal Scholarship

Fuel your passion for research by continuing to make waves in legal scholarship. Your PhD isn’t just a culmination; it’s a launchpad for further exploration.

Moreover, Contribute articles, publish books, and be the driving force behind advancements in legal knowledge.

Corporate Counsel with a Twist: Navigating Legal Complexities From Your PhD in law

Corporations are always in need of legal wizards to navigate the ever-evolving legal landscape. Your PhD sets you apart.

Moreover, bringing a depth of understanding and critical thinking that can be invaluable in corporate legal departments.

Legal Entrepreneur: Carving Your Own Niche From Your PhD in law

Feel the entrepreneurial spirit bubbling within? Your PhD can be the foundation for launching your own legal consultancy or business.

Whether it’s providing specialized legal services or developing innovative legal solutions, the entrepreneurial path is yours to carve.

Interdisciplinary Explorer: Bridging Law with Other Fields From Your PhD in law

The beauty of a PhD is its interdisciplinary potential. Blend law with other fields like technology, business, or even environmental science.

Moreover, Become a trailblazer at the intersection of law and diverse domains, solving complex problems that span multiple disciplines.

Beyond Earth: Legal Consultancy for Space Ventures

Okay, this one might be a bit out there, but in the era of space exploration, who’s to say your legal expertise can’t extend beyond Earth?

Moreover, Imagine being the go-to legal consultant for interstellar ventures – because why not dream big?

Final Thoughts 

Congratulations, Doctor of Philosophy in Law !

Moreover, wait, is it the end or merely the prologue? The legal world is your oyster now. Whether you choose academia, policymaking, or intergalactic diplomacy – the journey has molded you into a legal maestro.

So, future legal scholars, armed with this roadmap, venture forth into the world of legal academia. Your PhD adventure awaits, filled with twists, turns, and the occasional ‘Eureka!’ moment. May your legal curiosity know no bounds!

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Nilanjana is a lawyer with a flair for writing. She has a certification in American Laws from Penn Law (Pennsylvania University). Along with this, she has been known to write legal articles that allow the audience to know about American laws and regulations at ease.

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As a PhD student in the Harvard philosophy program, you’ll have the opportunity to develop your ideas, knowledge, and abilities. You'll work with other doctoral students, our faculty, and visiting scholars, all in a stimulating and supportive environment. The program has strengths across a broad range of topics and areas, so you'll be able to pursue your interests wherever they may lead, especially in moral and political philosophy, aesthetics, epistemology, philosophy of logic, philosophy of language, the history of analytic philosophy, ancient philosophy, Immanuel Kant, and Ludwig Wittgenstein. In addition, students can pursue joint degrees with classics, Harvard Law School, and in Indian philosophy.

Incoming cohorts consist of five to eight students per year. You will have substantial access to our renowned faculty and all the resources that Harvard makes available. This relatively small size also gives students a sense of intellectual community.

The curriculum is structured to help you make your way towards a dissertation: graduate-level coursework, a second-year research paper, a prospectus to help you identify a dissertation topic, and then the dissertation itself. Past dissertations in the department have addressed a broad range of topics: Aristotle, Kant, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau; contemporary moral and political philosophy; metaphysics; epistemology; and logic.

In addition to your research, you will also have the opportunity to develop your teaching skills in many different settings across the University.

You can find graduates of the PhD program in many universities. Some of our students have gone on to faculty positions at Yale University, Princeton University, Brown University, and Stanford University. Other graduates have gone on to diverse careers in, among others, the arts, the law, secondary education, and technology.

In addition to the standard PhD in philosophy, the department offers a PhD in classical philosophy in collaboration with the Department of the Classics and a coordinated JD/PhD program in conjunction with Harvard Law School.

Additional information on the graduate program is available from the Department of Philosophy and requirements for the degree are detailed in Policies .

Areas of Study

Philosophy | Classical Philosophy | Indian Philosophy 

For information please consult the Department webpage on the  graduate program overview .

Admissions Requirements

Please review admissions requirements and other information before applying. You can find degree program specific admissions requirements below and access additional guidance on applying from the Department of Philosophy .

Academic Background

Applicants to the program in Philosophy are required to have a solid undergraduate background in philosophy, indicating that they have a good grounding in the history of philosophy, as well as familiarity with contemporary work in ethics, epistemology and metaphysics, and logic.

Standardized Tests

GRE General: Optional

Writing Sample

A writing sample is required as part of the application and should be between 12 to 30 pages long. The sample must address a substantial philosophical problem, whether it is an evaluation or presentation of an argument, or a serious attempt to interpret a difficult text. The upload of the writing sample should be formatted for 8.5-inch x 11-inch paper, 1-inch margins, with double-spaced text in a common 12-point font, such as Times New Roman.

Applicants seeking admission to the coordinated JD/PhD program must apply to and be separately admitted to Harvard Law School and the Department of Philosophy.

Theses & Dissertations

Theses & Dissertations for Philosophy

See list of Philosophy faculty

APPLICATION DEADLINE

Questions about the program.

Philosophy - Social, Political, Ethical and Legal (PhD, MA)

Program overview.

The Department of Philosophy’s graduate program in social, political, ethical and legal philosophy (SPEL) supports inquiry into the broad array of value theory. Our faculty draw upon a variety of traditions and approaches to address historical, practical and abstract philosophical questions prompted by our evaluative lives. We regard this particular combination of focus and breadth as a considerable strength. On the one hand, there is a common orientation of interest that fosters intellectual community and exchange. On the other, our pluralism enables us to guide advanced work on the diversity of topics in value theory. Moreover, it discourages parochialism and facilitates an appreciation of the way in which apparently distinct issues intersect and address each other. We regard these as fruitful conditions for improving the state of philosophical understanding.

We encourage prospective students to look into our faculty’s research , but also to review the work and interests of current and former graduate students .

Degrees Offered

• PhD in Philosophy
• MA in Philosophy

Internships, Research Opportunities and More

The department is host to a vibrant community. The SPEL colloquium standardly meets four times per semester to engage a visiting speaker about their recent scholarship. The SPEL Graduate Student Organization organizes an annual graduate student philosophy conference . Other conferences or workshops are often on the calendar (we were the host to the Nietzsche in the Northeast conference.) SPEL also normally collaborates with the Program in Philosophy, Politics, and Law when they bring scholars of interest to campus. This is all in addition to faculty/graduate student reading group meetings, weekend mock conference sessions, and other informal activities. And, of course, each student receives individualized attention from the faculty regarding their teaching and scholarship.

After You Graduate

In addition to supporting our students’ scholarly endeavors, SPEL takes active measures to prepare students for the profession. This includes regular professional and teaching workshops, support (in conjunction with the Binghamton University Graduate Student Organization) for appropriate conference travel, and opportunities to engage directly with guest speakers about the profession. Moreover, many of our graduates leave for the job market with a publication or more in hand. Our recent placements include tenured or tenure-track positions at Smith College, California State University at Stanislaus, Antioch College, Southern Illinois University, and Nepal Open University, and term positions at West Point, Michigan State and Penn State, among others.

Admission Requirements

• General graduate admission requirements
• Program-specific admission requirements

Funding/Scholarships

There are many funding and scholarship opportunities at Binghamton. We encourage prospective students to review available program-specific scholarships and awards , and visit the program's website for additional information. PhD students who are registered and/or certified full-time will receive a scholarship that covers the cost of broad-based fees (this does not include international student fees). Note: Master's students are generally self-funded, although funding opportunities occasionally arise.

Accelerated/4+1 Degrees

You may also be interested in our accelerated/4+1 degree programs which allow students to complete their bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in just 5 years!

Request More Info!

Learn how Binghamton's Philosophy - Social, Political, Ethical and Legal program can help you meet your education and career goals.

Anja Karnein

Associate professor, graduate director of philosophy.

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PhD in Philosophy of Law or Theory of Law

Job Information

Offer description.

The Department of Law of the Faculty of Law, Economics and Finance of the University of Luxembourg is looking for a PhD candidate to conduct research in Philosophy of Law or Theory of Law.

Your Role...

The doctoral researcher will be working under the supervision of Professor Johan van der Walt. The doctoral researcher's main task will be to prepare a doctoral thesis in the field of philosophy of law and more specifically the theory of liberal democratic law. The thesis work will be undertaken at the University of Luxembourg but can also be jointly-supervised with another university. The suggested theme of the PhD concerns the challenge that liberal democratic law-making faces in a time of populist and/or climate politics. The candidate is, however, welcome to suggest any other topic within the field of legal theory. The doctoral candidate will contribute to the teaching of classes ranging from one to three hours per week, of small group teachings and tutorials.

Qualifications...

We are looking for a candidate with demonstrated interest in legal theory and philosophy of law. In particular, the following requirements apply:

• A Master's Degree in legal theory or constitutional law
• Have the linguistic skills to evolve in a multilingual environment: fluency in either English or French, good understanding of the second language and possibly a third language, German in particular, will be considered an advantage
• Excellent communication and writing skills

About us...

The University of Luxembourg is an international research university with a distinctly multilingual and interdisciplinary character. The University was founded in 2003 and counts more than 6,700 students and more than 2,000 employees from around the world. The University's faculties and interdisciplinary centres focus on research in the areas of Computer Science and ICT Security, Materials Science, European and International Law, Finance and Financial Innovation, Education, Contemporary and Digital History. In addition, the University focuses on cross-disciplinary research in the areas of Data Modelling and Simulation as well as Health and System Biomedicine. Times Higher Education ranks the University of Luxembourg #3 worldwide for its "international outlook," #20 in the Young University Ranking 2021 and among the top 250 universities worldwide.

The Faculty of Law, Economics and Finance offers three Bachelor programmes, four Master programmes of Management and Economics and six Masters of Laws (LL.M.), as well as several continuing education courses. It also includes the Doctoral School in Law and the Doctoral School in Economics and Finance. Around 2,500 students from 90 different nationalities are enrolled at the Faculty. Academic staff from 18 different nationalities teach at the Faculty, supported by practitioners from the field, visiting scholars and guest professors. Rooted in Luxembourg but with a European and international outlook , the Faculty counts three departments:

• Department of Law
• Department of Economics and Management (DEM)
• Department of Finance

Teaching and research benefit from the proximity of the European institutions, Luxembourg's world-class financial centre ranked second in the world in investment fund asset domicile, and its vibrant business community. Institutional and private sector partnerships, sponsored Chairs, and a growing network of international partner universities make the FDEF a vibrant academic hub within the University at the heart of Europe .

• Find out more about the FDEF
• Find out more about the University
• Addresses, maps & routes to the various sites of the University

Requirements

Additional information, work location(s), where to apply.