Online Master of Legal Studies
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The online Master of Legal Studies at Arizona State University is a unique advanced legal degree for non-lawyers. Offered through ASU’s Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law, this 30-credit program enables professionals to gain a foundation in U.S. law in as little as one year and without pursuing a full law degree.
The law touches every career. Accordingly, students that apply to the Master of Legal Studies (M.L.S.) come from a diverse range of professional backgrounds and are looking to move up the ladder in their current career or to pursue new and exciting career options.
The M.L.S. program is a customizable degree with eight possible focus areas (each focus area is four courses in a particular subject):
- Conflict Resolution
- Construction Law
- Corporate and Health Care Compliance
- Criminal Law
- HR and Employment Law
- Intellectual Property Law
- Law and Sustainability
- Sports Law
The program explores the relationship between law and a wide variety of topics that are important to fields such as business, criminal justice, engineering, sports, sustainability, education, banking, intellectual property, entrepreneurship, human resources and many others. International students will find the M.L.S. program to be a valuable resource for gaining a general understanding of U.S. law and how decisions are made within the U.S. legal structure.
Graduates that earn an M.L.S. degree will have a basic understanding of U.S. law, legal structures, and legal reasoning. Additionally, graduates will be able to apply the law to situations that affect their professional and personal lives, including an understanding of when a legal issue is present that requires an attorney to be involved. The skills and expertise developed in the program is unique and will help differentiate graduates from others in their career fields.
The nation’s leading law school
- #1 in Arizona for bar passage - only law school where students placed top 3 on the Arizona bar exam in the last 25 years
- #4 public law school in the West
- #9 public law school in the nation
- #10 career services
- #14 financial aid
- #22 best value
- #27 best law school in the country
Featured Courses
SDO 581 U.S. Law and Legal Analysis (3)
- SDO 515 Contracts* or LAW 530 Fundamentals of Contract Law (4/3)
- SDO 516 Criminal Law (3)* LAW 517 Torts (2/4)*
- SDO 518 Civil Procedure (3/5)* LAW 522 Constitutional Law I (3)*
- SDO 523 Property (2/4)* LAW 602 Civil Procedure II (3/4)
- SDO 604 Criminal Procedure (3)
- SDO 625 Constitutional Law II (3/4)
- SDO 654 Business Organizations (3/4)
- SDO 664 Intellectual Property (2/4)]
*Students may enroll in a maximum of two courses marked with an asterisk.
The remainder of the credits are electives. Elective course selection will be flexible, to accommodate the diversity of intellectual and professional interests the program is intended to serve.
Faculty
With 300 combined years of experience, ASU’s Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law’s faculty members span from across the country and are nationally recognized for their wealth of knowledge. Additionally, the College of Law’s world- class faculty members provide comprehensive legal education around popular focus areas and address legal challenges on a global scale.
Related Careers
Graduates with an ASU Online Master of Legal Studies have career opportunities illustrated in the following list. Career examples include but are not limited to:
Requirements
The Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law offers the master's degree program for students who do not wish to practice law, but believe that education in the law would be beneficial to their advancement in their careers or in other fields.
Students should see the program website for application deadlines.
Admission to the program is competitive.
In order to be admitted to the MLS program, you must have completed a bachelor’s degree from an accredited four-year college or university in the United States or attained a comparable degree from a foreign institution. Graduate school entrance exams (e.g. LSAT, GRE, GMAT) are not required. All MLS applicants are required to complete the MLS application online at law.asu.edu/MLSApply.
U.S. educated applicants can apply through our FastApp process, which streamlines the application process and may allow for an offer of conditional admission to the MLS program while the applicant continues to submit any additional requested documentation.
For the FastApp application to be considered complete, it must include:
- The complete MLS FastApp application form and the following uploaded documents:
- An unofficial transcript from all undergraduate institutions attended
- Resume that does not exceed three typed pages.
If a decision cannot be made from your FastApp, our Admissions team may request additional information from you, including any or all of the following:
- Personal statement
- Writing sample
- Explanations to affirmative answers to any conduct questions
- Two letters of recommendation
- Transcripts from all institutions attended, including the transcript showing a bachelor’s degree was conferred
Applicants with degrees from foreign institutions must submit transcripts to World Education Services and meet the Graduate College and Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law English proficiency requirements.
Get program details
To learn more about this program, fill out the form below and check your email for information on next steps.
