Environmental Law

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The LLM in Environmental Law provides a unique specialisation in one of the most rapidly developing areas of law. Environmental law is one of the most challenging fields that has grown very rapidly over the past four decades and is now one of the key areas of both domestic and international law. At SOAS, we understand the environment in a broad sense which includes not only environmental issues strictly speaking but also all the links that they have with other areas such as natural resources, human rights, economic development trade or intellectual property rights.

The SOAS degree offers a distinct mix of courses that covers all the main areas of environmental law in their international and national dimensions. The international and global nature of many environmental issues makes the international law component a key part of the LLM in Environmental Law. We offer all the general topics that make up the core of international environmental law. Additionally, we focus specifically on the North-South dimension of international environmental issues given the key role this plays in most international environmental negotiations.

The LLM in Environmental Law specifically seeks to put international environmental law in its national context and examines the broad legal frameworks negotiated at the international level in the context of their implementation in selected countries of the South. It thus provides a much more grounded context to the study of environmental law.

Further, we also study the legal regimes of individual countries of the South to provide much more specific analysis of the discipline at the level of its implementation in specific contexts. The LLM in Environmental Law gives specific emphasis to different regions of the South, including South Asia, China and sub-Saharan Africa.

Students are required to take four taught courses, one of which will be assessed by a 15,000 word dissertation. Three courses must be chosen from the list below. The fourth option may be chosen from the SOAS LLM course list. There is also an optional pre-sessional course.

Three courses must be chosen from the following SOAS LLM course list: * Climate change law and policy - 15PLAC154 (1 Unit) - Full Year
* Development, environment and the law in the South - 15PLAC158 (1 Unit) - Full Year - Not Running 2012/2013
* Economic approaches to law - 15PLAH030 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1
* Foundations of Comparative Law - 15PLAH031 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1
* Intellectual property rights and development - 15PLAC113 (1 Unit) - Full Year
* International environmental law - 15PLAC118 (1 Unit) - Full Year
* Law and natural resources - 15PLAC126 (1 Unit) - Full Year
* Water Law and Governance in Asia - 15PLAC171 (1 Unit) - Full Year

Optional Pre-sessional Course * Preliminary law, legal reasoning and legal methods - 15PLAC162 (0 Unit) - Term 1

Applicants should have a first or good second class honours bachelors degree from a UK university, or equivalent, in a subject appropriate to that of the programme to be followed. As an approximate comparison, an equivalent BA from a US university would have a Grade Point Average of either 3.3 or 3.5 depending on the awarding university. If an applicant does not have a bachelors degree in an appropriate field s/he may be required to complete a qualifying year or a one year diploma before entering the masters programme. Relevant work experience may also be taken into consideration. Individual courses may have specific entry requirements, so you are advised to consult the postgraduate prospectus for further information.English language requirementsIn order to ensure that SOAS students have a sufficient standard of English to study effectively, we require overseas students to submit evidence, during the application process, of their current level of proficiency.Score for Unconditional Entry * IELTS: Overall 7+ with at least 7 in all sub scores * TOEFL: iBT105+ with at least 25 in all sub scores * Pearson Test of English - Academic: Score of 75 or above with at least 70 in all sub scores English Language Requirements IELTS band: 7 TOEFL iBT® test: 105 IMPORTANT NOTE: Since April 2014 the ETS tests (including TOEFL and TOEIC) are no longer accepted for Tier 4 visa applications to the United Kingdom. The university might still accept these tests to admit you to the university, but if you require a Tier 4 visa to enter the UK and begin your degree programme, these tests will not be sufficient to obtain your Visa. The IELTS test is most widely accepted by universities and is also accepted for Tier 4 visas to the UK- learn more.

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Scholarships and Bursaries

There are some scholarships and bursaries available for postgraduate students. These are very competitive and early application is advised.

* The Ahmad Mustafa Abu-Hakima Bursary (programme must include studying the history of the modern Arab world)
* AKS Postgraduate Bursary (in Korean Studies)
* Bernard Buckman Scholarship (MA Chinese Studies, for UK/EU fee paying students)
* The Canon Collins Scholarships at SOAS. There are two scholarships available available in 2013-14 for study at SOAS. These scholarships are for Masters study in any subject field. Open a national of and resident in one of the following countries:
Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia, Zimbabwe. The application process normally opens in December and closes in February, for study commencing in September the following year. Please go to the Canon Collins website and click "Apply for A Scholarship" and then "Canon Collins Scholarship for Masters Study in the UK" for further information on how to apply.
* Commonwealth Shared Scholarship (for students from African Commonwealth countries)
* D.G.Hall Scholarship (Taught Masters programmes at SOAS, for applicants holding a Burma/Myanmar passport)
* Felix Scholarships (for Indian students)
* Ferguson Scholarships (for African nationals from an African Country)
* HSBC SOAS Scholarships (MA Sinology & MA Chinese Literature, for UK/EU fee paying students)
* Kamran Djam Scholarships (MA Iranian Studies)
* Professor Stuart Wilson Scholarship (MA South East Asian Studies)
* Standard Chartered Scholarships (for a range of full-time Taught Masters programmes. The programmes relate to Asia, Africa, and the Middle East/NorthAfrica)
* Tibawi Trust Awards (for Palestinian students currently enrolled in a programme at SOAS)
* SOAS Master's Scholarships - Faculty of Arts & Humanities - (for any full-time taught masters programme in the Faculty of Arts & Humanities)
* SOAS Master's Scholarships - Faculty of Language & Cultures (for the full-time MA Gender Studies, MA Postcolonial Studies, MA Linguistics, MA Applied Linguistics & Language Pedagogy, MA Language, Documentation and Description, MA Translation Theory and Practice (Asian and African Languages)
* SOAS Master's Scholarships- Faculty of Law and Social Sciences (for any full-time master's programmes in the Department of Development Studies, Economics, Law, Politics & International Studies and Financial & Management Studies)
* Tallow Chandlers and M. W Beer scholarship (MA) (MA Anthropology of Food, for UK/EU fee paying students)
* William Ross Murray Scholarship (LLM, for students from a developing country)