Law

You will study the core principles of European and international law in depth, and go beyond this to understand the role of law in a globalizing world, and the challenges that it raises to our traditional ideas of sovereignty and democracy. Optional courses allow for specialization, and whether your interests are in human rights, economic law, constitutional principles, security and terrorism, equality and justice, or cross-border phenomena such as global warming and the internet, the friendly and diverse department of Transnational Legal Studies will help you achieve a Master of Law degree (LLM) which takes you further in your career.

Issues the programme deals with

Some examples of issues the Master's programme deals with are: 

• Can international and European law help address the challenges of our time, such as climate change, migration, new technologies,  and conflicts between cultures?
• How are ideas of risk and security used in international law? Do states use these ideas to promote peace, or justify aggression?
• Is the EU effective and democratic? Can it provide security and freedom to its citizens? Does it undermine the sovereignty of its Member States?

How are economic interests and human rights balanced in European and international law? Does free trade help states develop, or encourage exploitation? 

Skills on graduation 

You will have an in-depth knowledge and understanding of the core elements of EU and international law; you will have specialist knowledge of a number of fields of EU and international law, such as international and EU trade law, EU integration, climate change law, human rights, the law of war, or EU discrimination law. You will be able to conduct research, and present your results orally and in writing. You will be able to construct and criticise legal arguments based on cases and situations. You will therefore be able to advise clients, help make new regulation, or do academic research within your fields.

For more information, please consult our study guide.

Curriculum details

Refugees from the Syrian Civil War who have escaped warfare are subsequently forced to navigate urgent and complex legal issues. A Filipino mother seeking reunification with her family in Europe faces similar obstacles. Both are confronted with the inter-relationships between humanitarian and human rights law, and the interactions between international and domestic legal systems.

Due to the complex interrelation between different jurisdictions and fields of law, international migration and refugee law must be analyzed from a multitude of angles and disciplines. This specialization studies international migration from the perspective of international and European law, and focuses on how they function in domestic legal orders.

The interplay between international, European and domestic law is a specific focus of this specialization and enables you to understand and analyze the complexity of the key issues of contemporary International Migration and Refugee Law.

During the master program you will also have plenty opportunity to work on your skillset. Clearly you will train your academic skills in all courses offered during the master. You can enhance your writing skills in the compulsory course Refugee and Family Migration Law (in which you write a paper) and in the courses Irregular Migration, Philosophy of international law and migration and the Migration Law Clinic. You can use these writing skills while writing your master thesis. Oral skills will be practiced during the moot courts and working groups of the compulsory course Migration and Legal Remedies. The Migration Law Clinic offers students the chance to define and work on their own learning goals, such as cooperation skills or communication skills and reflect on the development of those skills during the course. Master students are encouraged to enhance their skills by taking part in extracurricular activities, such as Know Your Rights (becoming a buddy of a refugee/asylum seeker), writing blogs, taking part in moot court competitions or presenting work experiences to their fellow students. 

Are you interested in a close and rigourous scrutiny of legal instruments involved in migration and refugee law and their relation with fundamental human rights law? Then the Master’s in International Migration and Refugee Law is the programme for you.

Research

For fifteen years now, the Amsterdam Centre of Migration and Refugee Law of VU Amsterdam has been one of the most prominent programmes in the field. It aims at tracking the multiplicity of complex developments in migration law that take place at the global, European and national levels. Research topics include asylum and refugee law, and family reunion law. This extends to research into the human costs of border control, the intersection between the family and migration law, the role of the judiciary, the meaning of time for residence entitlements, the relation between (irregular) migration and the welfare state, the EU principle of mutual trust and the role of time in migration law. Methods are varied, focusing on legal doctrinal, sociological, philosophical questions as well as more practice-oriented matters.

The excellent quality of the programme is reflected in the scholars’ numerous publications and in two VICI grants from NWO (the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research) in 2010 (Van Walsum) and 2013 (Spijkerboer), two NWO VENI grants in 2010 (Brouwer) and in 2018 (Slingenberg), a NWO Research Talent grant in 2012 (Battjes and Stronks) and in 2019 (Spijkerboer and Dez), an NWO Comenius grant in 2019 (Reneman) and an ERC Consolidator Grant in 2017 (De Hart). Members have conducted research for the European Commission, the European Parliament, UNHCR, WODC and Vluchtelingenwerk.

The research group is very visible in the public debate, and its scholars are active in advisory committees to the government and non-governmental organizations and publish frequently on Verblijfblog.nl, where topical migration law issues are explained for a broader public.

Career prospects

On completing this Master’s programma, you can start working or do more research. Our graduates, work for international (non-governmental) organizations involved in migration, e.g. UNHCR, the European Commission and  EASO and national and local NGO’s. Moreover, they are employed as immigration lawyers, clerks at national courts and employees for national immigration services and ministries as well as PhD students at universitities.

As international and national law on migration are profoundly intertwined, solid knowledge of international migration and refugee law is also most valuable for national institutions and organizations dealing with migration law, such as migration law firms, the judiciary, national and local governments or NGOs.

Technology creates situations that were the stuff of fantasy when most of our laws were created. Robots, biotech, autonomous vehicles and weapons, and the endless amassing and crunching of data - what does it mean to be a human being? And how do we relate to each other and to the natural world? These are questions we are forced to ask ourselves again in the face of technological progress. Law shapes and reflects the answers that we find.

Alongside core courses in international technology law, and big data, human rights and security, you will choose from subjects including: international weapons law, biotech and law, robots and artificial intelligence, and blockchain and disruptive tech.

You will be part of a friendly, accessible and international group of teachers and students interested in exploring the frontiers of regulation and technology, and you will graduate as a specialist with in-demand knowledge and skills.

Skills on graduation and future ahead 

You will have an overview of the major fields where law and technology interact and be familiar with the core legislation and legal principles; you will have in-depth knowledge of the law concerning data and privacy, as well as a number of other fields, such as e-commerce, bioethics, cybersecurity, robot and algorithm law, blockchain law, and regulation of tech giants. You will be able to do research and present oral and written arguments in these fields, and you will be aware of how technology law is created and shaped, and the issues it will face in the coming years. You will therefore be able to advise clients, make legal arguments, or conduct research, within the field of technology law. Your knowledge will be primarily of the law applying in the Member States of the EU, but you will also be aware of global trends, and differences and similarities with the US.

As an ITL graduate, you will use, develop or research the regulation of emerging technologies. Typically, you will work in law firms, international organizations such as the UN, EU or international technology regulators, governments, or NGOs.

There are relatively few lawyers with a solid understanding and knowledge of the law concerning emerging technologies, so graduates will be part of a specialized and in-demand group.

The career opportunities are as fascinating as they are wide-ranging. After graduating, you will be prepared for a career in:

• Law firms – both large commercial firms and smaller specialised ones, including technology, IP and human rights firms.
• Industry, banking or commerce – as a legal advisor dealing with privacy, cybersecurity, data, blockchain, liability or other issues
• Government regulators – as a specialist helping regulate the tech industry
• University research or NGOs – contributing to further understanding and debate and technology and law

For more information, please consult our study guide.

Curriculum details

Registration in Studielink

When you are applying via Studielink, please choose the general master in law. Later on in the admissions process, you will be able to choose a specialization.