Pepperdine University Opens Applications for New Online Master of Legal Studies

MALIBU, Calif. – April 27, 2017 – Pepperdine University School of Law is now accepting applications for its new online Master of Legal Studies program. Designed for mid-career professionals, the program provides non-lawyers with a fundamental understanding of the U.S. legal system and equips them with the legal expertise and critical-thinking skills needed to meet complex legal, ethical, and regulatory challenges across industries.

The School of Law’s online Master of Legal Studies program offers a concentration in dispute resolution for students interested in attaining arbitration and mediation skills. The concentration incorporates the curriculum from Pepperdine’s Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution, which is ranked by U.S. News and World Report as the #1 law school for dispute resolution.

The program’s online learning format will allow professionals working in an array of fields — such as health care, government, social work, education, and law enforcement — to receive a superior legal education without the need to relocate.

“We are thrilled to bring Pepperdine’s legacy of personal attention and experiential learning to students across the United States. With the online Master of Legal Studies, our School of Law continues to provide a practical, values-centered legal education that helps ambitious students accomplish their personal and professional goals,” said Paul L. Caron, Dean Designate of the School of Law.
The School of Law’s Master of Legal Studies online courses are designed and taught by on-campus faculty who are published scholars and experts in the legal field. Faculty will teach and test for a deeper understanding of the law and how it develops, aiming to improve students’ work, decisions, and planning of legal matters in their respective careers. Courses will utilize experiential components, mock exercises, and collaborative projects through both synchronous and asynchronous learning. Students will use an advanced online learning platform and technology-enabled services delivered by 2U, Inc. (NASDAQ: TWOU).

The curriculum consists of 32 units and may be completed in as little as 16 months. Students will collaborate with fellow students and professors during two in-person residencies held on Pepperdine’s Malibu, California, campus, which has been ranked one of the most beautiful in the country by The Princeton Review. Upon graduating, students will have the capacity to use legal analysis and critical thinking to solve real-world problems, as well as the ability to recognize and solve ethical issues that may arise in their professional careers.

The first application deadline is Friday, June 9, and the first cohort of students will begin classes August 21, 2017. For more information, visit onlinelaw.pepperdine.edu or contact an admissions counselor at 844-707-9208.