Located in Western Canada and dubbed as the country’s center for energy, Alberta promises a lot of opportunities for educational and professional growth.
Just like any other province in the country, legal education is bustling in Alberta, offering great prospects for future lawyers.
In this article, we will talk about the two law schools in Alberta, Canada for those want to study here as a first-year law student or as a PhD or Masteral student.
What are the law schools in Alberta, Canada?
Legal education in Canada can be classified according to the curriculum they offer:
- Juris Doctor (JD): the required undergraduate degree for those who want to become a lawyer and practice law in Canada. Offered only by schools or faculties of law and was previously called Bachelor of Laws (LLB)
- Graduate degrees: the post-JD degrees that lawyers may take for their continuing legal education; includes Masteral and Doctorate degrees
- Bachelor’s degrees: undergraduate degrees on legal studies or the like that are different from the JD program; may be taken before enrolling for a law school’s JD program
While there are only two law schools in Alberta, other schools and universities in the province offer bachelor’s degrees related to legal studies or legal education.
These are the only law schools in Alberta:
- University of Alberta – Faculty of Law
- University of Calgary – Faculty of Law
Both offer the necessary JD program for aspiring lawyers and other graduate degrees for practicing lawyers in the province.
University of Alberta – Faculty of Law
The University of Alberta (also called UAlberta or U of A) is one of the public research universities in Canada, with its Faculty of Law being the oldest law school in Western Canada.
Aside from its Faculty of Law under the College of Social Sciences and Humanities, UAlberta also has other Colleges that offer both undergraduate and graduate degree programs.
UAlberta’s Faculty of Law offers these programs:
- Juris Doctor (JD)
- Master of Laws (LLM)
- Doctor of Philosophy in Law (PhD)
The LLM is a one-year research degree program where students must articulate and defend a thesis for its completion. It is available for JD and LLB degree holders.
LLM graduates of UAlberta or other universities in Canada may apply for its PhD program. The PhD program is a three-year research degree program offered for those who already have a postgraduate degree in law. Like the LLM, PhD students must articulate and defend a thesis.
UAlberta has its own Internationally Trained Lawyer Pathway for foreign graduates of law schools who wish to complete their National Committee on Accreditation (NCA) requirements.
One feature of UAlberta’s legal education is its MBA/JD Combined Degree, in partnership with the university’s Alberta School of Business.
This is a four-year program, composed of two years under the JD program, one under the MBA, and another combining courses from both JD and MBA. At the end of this four-year period, a graduate will have earned two degrees.
This video explains the features of UAlberta’s MBA/JD Combined Degree:
University of Calgary – Faculty of Law
The University of Calgary (otherwise known as UCalgary or U of C) is another public research university in Canada. It supports and offers research-based courses, from its undergraduate courses to its graduate ones.
Founded in 1976, its Faculty of Law offers the JD and other graduate degrees related to legal education. Aside from the main JD program, UCalgary offers two Joint JD Programs:
- JD/MPP (Master of Public Policy): can be completed after three and a half years
- JD/MBA (Master of Business Administration): can be completed after four years
To be eligible for these joint JD programs, interested applicants must apply and be admitted by UCalgary’s Faculty of Law and one of these institutions:
- School of Public Policy (for JD/MPP)
- Haskayne School of Business (from JD/MBA)
UCalgary offers other joint JD programs in partnership with other universities:
- International Energy Lawyers Program: joint JD program with the University of Houston Law Center, which allows graduates to take the Canadian and US bar; can be completed after four years
- Dual JD program (LLB – JD) with Jindal Global University: allows students to study both the Canadian JD and the Indian LLB; can be completed after four years
Aside from the JD and its joint programs, UCalgary also offers the following graduate degrees:
- Master of Laws (LLM) (thesis-based or course-based)
- Doctor of Philosophy in Law (PhD)
- Master of Science (MSc) in Sustainable Energy Development
UCalgary’s LLM – whether thesis-based or course-based – has a specialization in Natural Resources, Energy and Environmental Law (NREEL). Both may also be used for a foreign lawyer’s National Committee of Accreditation requirements to be able to practice law in Canada.
UCalgary also offers other opportunities for current and future students who are interested in pursuing legal education:
- Graduate Certificate in NREEL: students must complete its four courses, and at least one with a research paper. To be admitted, one must have a minimum GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 point system
- Certification in Common Law in French (CCLF): this is in partnership with the University of Ottawa – Faculty of Law, where additional units must be earned during the second and third years in the JD program