Why this programme?

European Law School

The European Law School (ELS) bachelor's programme combines courses in European law with courses on comparative law and deals with the legal systems of some of the major EU Member States. The ELS programme is taught completely in English by expert staff members. The programme will give you a thorough understanding of EU law and national legal systems as well as contemporary skills and excellent legal English skills.

You will primarily be taught in small groups using the Problem-Based-Learning method and you will be trained in many different skills, such as writing briefs and academic papers, presenting and pleading cases. There is a lot of emphasis on developing contemporary skills such as mediation, negotiation and leadership.

The Maastricht University law School has a strong reputation in international moot court competitions (in several languages), which demonstrates the effectiveness of this way of teaching.

Problem-Based Learning

The European Law School bachelor’s programme uses the Problem-Based Learning (PBL) educational method. By focusing on a central question or problem in each meeting, PBL sharpens your ability to solve problems and think critically. You and your fellow students look for solutions independently and systematically under the expert guidance of a staff member. This helps you develop self-discipline, argumentation techniques and communication skills. PBL has been used since the university was founded and it is regularly evaluated and refined.

You’ll like this if you...

are fascinated by the national and international worlds of law and legislation
are internationally oriented and would like to be involved in international legal services
are critical: you don’t simply accept what you're told, but have a mind of your own

Legal skills

In addition to the skills that you gain in the tutorials, a great deal of attention is paid to developing specific legal skills like working with reference books, academic literature and legal texts such as statutes and case law. You'll work on real-life legal cases. You'll also learn advanced legal writing skills, which you can put into practice when you write your bachelor’s thesis.

Bachelor European Law School

International experience

From day one of the programme, you’ll be challenged with differing viewpoints and experiences as you interact with staff and students from all over the world. Your worldview will be enhanced by this interaction. The students in the European Law School programme represent close to 60 different nationalities, and 41% of the academic staff at the Faculty of Law come from abroad. Such diversity creates an international atmosphere that is strengthened by the international orientation of the programme.

You'll focus on European law, European legal systems and comparative law, which are taught by leading international experts. Staff members are generally linked to one of the Faculty’s research institutes. In this way the faculty implements state of the art research results into the teaching programmes. You'll also study legal English. Moreover, you can do part of your studies or an internship at a university abroad.

Study abroad

You can choose to study at another university, in the Netherlands or abroad. The grades and credits you obtain as part of the exchange can be used towards your European Law School degree.

Moot court competitions

In the European Law School bachelor’s programme, you'll have moot court training. A moot court is a simulated court session, for which teams of students prepare written pleadings and present their arguments in oral proceedings before a mock court. This allows you to learn how to argue and plead as a prosecutor or defence lawyer. You can also participate in national and international moot court competitions.

Maastricht University has built a considerable reputation on the international moot court circuit by winning first place in the European Law Moot Court Competition multiple times. Our law students also compete in various other moot court competitions in the Netherlands and abroad, such as:

René Cassin Moot Court Competition
World Trade Organization Moot Court Competition
Philip Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition

In these competitions, Maastricht University regularly outperforms universities such as Harvard University, New York University and Paris-Sorbonne.

European Law Moot Court Competition 2015

Video: European Law Moot Court Competition

Access to professional qualifications

After you’ve obtained a law degree, you can be admitted into a post-graduate training programme for robed professions such as lawyer, judge or public prosecutor, provided that you’ve obtained the necessary qualifications ('civil effect'). Maastricht University’s Faculty of Law awards civil effect to students who have taken several specific courses during their bachelor’s and master’s.

If you’d like to become a lawyer in another country, you may need to obtain Dutch civil effect to be admitted into a post-graduate training programme. In other countries, however, a law degree alone is enough.

At the Faculty of Law, we have several international experts who offer individual guidance on the development of your future career.