Commercial Law LLM
Awards: LLM
Study modes: Full-time, Part-time
Funding opportunities
Programme website: Commercial Law
What I particularly enjoyed about the LLM in Commercial Law was that the emphasis was persistently put on learning from each other rather than from the professor who was leading the seminar.
This programme provides an excellent grounding for the future study of commercial law, for those intending to enter legal practice, or for those intending to pursue a career in the commercial sector.
You will benefit from the opportunity to explore a broadly-based range of subjects at an advanced level, and study the law in the fast-paced and varied context of the commercial world.
On this programme, you can benefit from connections to the legal profession and professional networks of the Edinburgh Centre for Commercial Law.
You must complete 180 credits of study – 60 credits are taken in the compulsory dissertation and the remaining 120 credits are taken in taught courses. On these courses, your studies will be led by members of the Law School academic community, most of whom are legally qualified in Scotland, England or other jurisdictions, as well as some experienced legal and industry practitioners.
You are expected to prepare in advance by reading the required materials and by reflecting on the issues to be discussed, and your participation in classes will be assessed. For the dissertation you will have a supervisor from whom you can expect guidance and support, but the purpose of the dissertation is to allow you to independently design and conduct a piece of research and analysis.
Please note that due to unforeseen circumstances or lack of demand for particular courses, we may not be able to run all courses as advertised come the start of the academic year.
This programme's structure and courses have been updated for 2024-25 entry. Please visit the Law School's website for further details:
Find out more about compulsory and optional courses
We link to the latest information available. Please note that this may be for a previous academic year and should be considered indicative.
Award | Title | Duration | Study mode | |
---|---|---|---|---|
LLM | Commercial Law | 1 Year | Full-time | Programme structure 2024/25 |
LLM | Commercial Law | 2 Years | Part-time | Programme structure 2024/25 |
This programme is ideally suited to individuals seeking to begin or develop careers in the fields of commercial law, business or finance. Recent graduates are now working in a variety of legal roles including, following prior or further professional study, litigator and legal counsel in companies such as Deloitte, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Standard Life.
These entry requirements are for the 2025/26 academic year and requirements for future academic years may differ. Entry requirements for the 2026/27 academic year will be published on 1 Oct 2025.
A UK 2:1 honours degree, or its international equivalent, in law.
We may also consider candidates with a degree in a related discipline which includes relevant prior study.
In evaluating your application for postgraduate study, greater emphasis may be placed upon results of prior learning in subjects relevant to the intended degree programme.
Entry to this programme is competitive. Meeting minimum requirements for consideration does not guarantee an offer of study.
Supporting your application
Relevant work experience is not required but may increase your chances of acceptance.
Relevant professional qualifications will be considered.
Preference will be given to those with grades above the minimum requirements due to strong competition for places on this programme.
Students from China
This degree is Band A.
International qualifications
Check whether your international qualifications meet our general entry requirements:
English language requirements
Regardless of your nationality or country of residence, you must demonstrate a level of English language competency which will enable you to succeed in your studies.
English language tests
We accept the following English language qualifications at the grades specified:
- IELTS Academic: total 7.0 with at least 7.0 in writing and 6.5 in all other components. We do not accept IELTS One Skill Retake to meet our English language requirements.
- TOEFL-iBT (including Home Edition): total 100 with at least 25 in writing and 23 in all other components.
- C1 Advanced (CAE) / C2 Proficiency (CPE): total 185 with at least 185 in writing and 176 in all other components.
- Trinity ISE: ISE III with passes in all four components.
- PTE Academic: total 73 with at least 73 in writing and 65 in all other components. We do not accept PTE Academic Online.
- Oxford ELLT: 8 overall with at least 8 in writing and 7 in all other components.
Your English language qualification must be no more than three and a half years old from the start date of the programme you are applying to study, unless you are using IELTS, TOEFL, Trinity ISE or PTE, in which case it must be no more than two years old.
Degrees taught and assessed in English
We also accept an undergraduate or postgraduate degree that has been taught and assessed in English in a majority English speaking country, as defined by UK Visas and Immigration:
We also accept a degree that has been taught and assessed in English from a university on our list of approved universities in non-majority English speaking countries (non-MESC).
If you are not a national of a majority English speaking country, then your degree must be no more than five years old at the beginning of your programme of study.
Find out more about our language requirements:
Deposit
To secure your place on the programme, you will need to pay this deposit within 28 days of receiving your offer of admission (either unconditional or conditional).
- £1,500 (this contributes towards your tuition fees)
Find out more about tuition fee deposits:
Tuition fees
Award | Title | Duration | Study mode | |
---|---|---|---|---|
LLM | Commercial Law | 1 Year | Full-time | Tuition fees |
LLM | Commercial Law | 2 Years | Part-time | Tuition fees |
Funding for postgraduate study is different to undergraduate study, and many students need to combine funding sources to pay for their studies.
Most students use a combination of the following funding to pay their tuition fees and living costs:
borrowing money
taking out a loan
family support
personal savings
income from work
employer sponsorship
- scholarships
Explore sources of funding for postgraduate study
UK government postgraduate loans
If you live in the UK, you may be able to apply for a postgraduate loan from one of the UK’s governments.
The type and amount of financial support you are eligible for will depend on:
- your programme
- the duration of your studies
- your tuition fee status
Programmes studied on a part-time intermittent basis are not eligible.
Other funding opportunities
Search for scholarships and funding opportunities:
- Edinburgh Law School Postgraduate Office
- Phone: +44 (0)131 650 2386
- Contact: futurestudents@ed.ac.uk
- Edinburgh Law School Postgraduate Office
- Old College
- South Bridge
- Central Campus
- Edinburgh
- EH8 9YL
- Programme: Commercial Law
- School: Law
- College: Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences
Applying
Select your programme and preferred start date to begin your application.
LLM Commercial Law - 1 Year (Full-time)
LLM Commercial Law - 2 Years (Part-time)
Due to high demand, this programme operates a gathered field approach to admissions, with two application deadlines as noted below.
Each application round has a decision deadline, also listed below, but note that we may make offers to the strongest candidates on an ongoing basis, in advance of the published decision deadline.
We strongly recommend that you apply as early as possible, especially if you intend to apply for funding. Applications may close earlier than published deadlines if there is exceptionally high demand. If you are considering applying for our pre-sessional English Language programme, please make sure you apply in Round 1.
Please note that for an application to be reviewed, it must be a complete application by the application deadline with all supporting documentation uploaded, including references and transcripts. If you already have evidence that you meet the English language entry requirements e.g. via an approved English language test, please upload this evidence at the time of your application. If you have not already met your English language requirements, please upload that evidence as soon as you have it.
Selection deadlines
Round | Application deadline | Places awarded |
---|---|---|
1 | 13 January 2025 | 17 April 2025 |
2 | 29 May 2025 | 30 June 2025 |
Deadlines for UK/Scotland fee status
After Round 2, if there are still places available, applications will remain open only to applicants who are eligible for the UK/Scotland fee rate, including the EU/EEA Pre-settled Scotland fee status. Applications will remain open no later than 30 June 2025 and may close earlier than this if the programme becomes full, so we strongly recommend you apply as soon as possible.
If you apply with another fee status after 29 May 2025, your application will be rejected.
(Revised 17 October 2024 to add application deadlines and selection process information)
You must submit one reference with your application.
Find out more about the general application process for postgraduate programmes:
Further information
- Edinburgh Law School Postgraduate Office
- Phone: +44 (0)131 650 2386
- Contact: futurestudents@ed.ac.uk
- Edinburgh Law School Postgraduate Office
- Old College
- South Bridge
- Central Campus
- Edinburgh
- EH8 9YL
- Programme: Commercial Law
- School: Law
- College: Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences