Upper-Year Admission Requirements

If you have successfully completed your first year of study at a Canadian common law school and have written the LSAT, you may apply to transfer to UCalgary Law.

Since upper-year students cannot take first-year courses at UCalgary Law, you must have completed the following mandatory classes in first year: Constitutional Law, Contracts, Crime, Property, and Torts. There are no exceptions to these requirements.

A transfer application will not be considered for admission if you are not studying at a Canadian common law school, or if you have already completed more than one full year at a Canadian common law school.

Submit your online application between February 1 and May 15. Supporting documents are due June 1. 

See below for required supporting documents.

Your application will be assessed using the same criteria as for first-year admissions. 

Instead of a Statement of Purpose and Perspective you will answer a Statement of Reasons for Requesting Transfer as follows:

• All Transfer applicants must answer Question 1. You may also answer Question 2 and/or Question 3 if applicable. Each question must be answered in a maximum of 300 words. 

1. Tell us about your interest in UCalgary Law, including specific academic interests, program offerings, and learning opportunities that resonate with you. Rather than simply listing UCalgary Law's strengths, please use the essay to illustrate your own law-related interests. Explain how studying at UCalgary would benefit your personally and how you would contribute to the UCalgary Law school community. If you were admitted previously to UCalgary Law, you must state your reasons for not accepting an offer at that time. (Required)
2. If you think that your academic record, including your performance in law school to date, and/or LSAT performance does not accurately reflect your academic ability, explain to the Admissions Committee why you believe this. Provide specific examples of your capabilities and experiences that demonstrate your potential for success at UCalgary Law. (Optional)
3. Briefly explain any extenuating circumstances that make a transfer to UCalgary Law from your current school important to you. Were these circumstances reasonably foreseeable when you accepted a seat at your current law school? Explain what steps, if any, you have taken to ensure your academic success and/or personal wellbeing at your current law school and why they have been insufficient. (Optional)

We will also consider your performance in your first year of law school and your stated reasons for wishing to transfer which should be clearly set out in your application.

All transfer applications will be assessed after the application deadline, not on a rolling basis.

Space limitation in the law school are a factor in admitting transfer applicants, which means that in some years few or no transfer applicants will be admitted. Typically, we receive more transfer applications than we can accommodate, and applicants should be prepared for the possibility of receiving regrets despite compelling or extenuating personal circumstances.

If you have completed at least one year of study at a Canadian or US law school, you may apply to study at UCalgary Law for one year or one semester as a Letter of Permission (LOP) student.

Exceptionally, if you are applying for an LOP from a Canadian civil law or Francophone school which does not require the LSAT as part of their admissions process, you may apply to UCalgary Law without writing the LSAT.

Your law school may require you to complete certain courses while you are at UCalgary Law. UCalgary Law cannot guarantee course availability. It is your responsibility to ensure you meet the graduation requirements for your law school. We recommend completing all required courses at your law school prior to applying for an LOP.

Due to space constraints, LOP students may not take any of the following courses:

• Any 400 level law course
• Law 503: Administrative Law
• Law 505: Civil Procedure
• Law 507: Evidence
• Law 510: Ethical Lawyering
• Law 508: Negotiation
• Law 602: Advocacy

Please note that in any given year additional course restrictions may apply.

Submit your online application between the following dates:

• February 1 to May 15 for Fall applications, with supporting documents due June 1. 
• September 1 to October 1 for Winter applications, with supporting documents due October 15. 

See below for required supporting documents.

As an LOP applicant, you must also provide a Letter of Permission from your current law school indicating that you are in good standing and have not been subject to any disciplinary actions, nor have you breached any university regulations regarding student academic or non-academic misconduct. Either you or your law school can send the letter by email to law@ucalgary.ca.

Your application will be assessed based on your performance in law school, though we will also consider the same criteria used for first-year admissions and the reasons you wish to attend UCalgary Law on an LOP. 

Instead of a Statement of Purpose and Perspective you will answer a Statement of Reasons to Attend UCalgary Law as a Letter of Permission (LOP) student as follows:

• All LOP applicants must answer Question 1. You may also answer Question 2 if applicable. Each question has a maximum length of 300 words. 

1. Tell us about your interest in UCalgary Law, including specific academic interests, program offerings, and learning opportunities that resonate with you. Rather than simply listing UCalgary Law's strengths, please use this essay to illustrate your own law-related interests. Explain how studying at UCalgary would benefit you personally and how you would contribute to the UCalgary Law school community. If you were admitted previously to UCalgary Law, you must state your reasons for not accepting an offer at that time. (Required)
2. Briefly explain any extenuating circumstances that make a semester or year studying at UCalgary Law important to you. Were these circumstances reasonably foreseeable when you accepted a seat at your current law school? Explain what steps, if any, you have taken to ensure your success and wellbeing at your current law school and why they have been insufficient. (Optional)

If you are attending an international law school that has signed an official exchange agreement with UCalgary, you may apply to study at UCalgary Law for one year or one semester as an International Exchange student.

Exchange applicants are not required to write the LSAT; however, you may be required to complete the TOEFL and demonstrate appropriate competency in written and spoken English.

Submit your application through the Study Abroad Office. The Study Abroad Office will also collect your supporting documents and forward your completed application to the Faculty of Law for assessment.

Required supporting documents include two reference letters from law school instructors, transcripts from every post-secondary institution you have previously attended, and a Statement of Interest that indicates the reasons you wish to attend UCalgary Law on an exchange.

Please refer to the Study Abroad Office website for application deadlines, and how to submit your application and supporting documents.

Due to space constraints, International Exchange students may not take any of the following courses:

• Any 400 level law course
• Law 503: Administrative Law
• Law 505: Civil Procedure
• Law 507: Evidence
• Law 510: Ethical Lawyering
• Law 508: Negotiation
• Law 602: Advocacy

Please note that in any given year additional course restrictions may apply.

If you have successfully completed your first two years as an LLB student at JGLS and have secured a recommendation to this program from the Assistant Dean (Office of International Collaborations, JGLS) you may apply to the JGLS/UCalgary Law LLB-JD program.

To access the online application, and eID is required. You must create an eID before starting your application. For help with creating an eID please contact the UCalgary IT Support Centre. 

Supporting documents are due by February 15 but we strongly encourage you to submit all supplementary documents as soon as possible to facilitate the Student Visa process. 

Select Juris Doctor-JGLS from the drop-down menu entitled Program of Choice. Submit your online application between December 1 and December 31. Please see the FAQs within the application to find answers to common JGLS applicant questions. 

Your application will be assessed using the same criteria as for first-year admission. Instead of answering the general Statement of Purpose and Perspective you will answer a Statement of Purpose and Perspective specifically for JGLS as follows:

• Please answer the essay question below in a maximum of 900 words:

Tell us about your interest in the UCalgary Law/JGLS JD-LLB program. How will this program broaden your perspective on the world and what future legal opportunities do you see it providing? Tell us about any specific UCalgary Law program offerings and learning opportunities that resonate with you. Please use this essay to also illustrate your own law-related interests. Explain how studying at UCalgary would benefit you personally and how you would contribute to the UCalgary Law school community.

We will also consider your performance in your first two years at JGLS and require two references from JGLS Law Instructors. 

This application procedure is for law students currently attending the University of Houston Law Center, who have received approval from UH to apply for the IELP.

If you are not currently a law student at the University of Houston, please refer to the admission procedure for first-year JD applicants.

• The online application for the IELP is accessible by invitation only, between May 15 and June 1, with supporting documents due August 1.
   
• We will send you an invitation by email when the application opens, which will include a link to the online application form. You must use the emailed link to access the online application; the IELP applicant category cannot be accessed through the regular online application.
   
• To access the online application, you must create an eID. For help with creating an eID or with recovering a previous eID, please contact the IT Support Centre.
   
• After signing into the online application with your eID, you will see that an application has already been started for you. Please click "edit" next to this application to complete the application; you must not start a new application, or you will not be able to access the IELP application category to complete your application.

See below for required supporting documents.

You must provide your LSAC account number (e.g. L12345678) in your online application. We will use your LSAC account number to get your LSAT report directly from LSAC.

Unofficial Transcripts must be uploaded by you to your My UCalgary Student Centre as one pdf document for each institution and must include the following:

• The institution name
• Your name
• Date printed/downloaded (cannot have a print date older than September 1, 2023)
• Credential received and date conferred (if degree completed)
  • Some international schools may indicate degree conferrals on a separate document; if this is the case, please scan the two documents together in one file before uploading
• Your JD unofficial transcript must show the grades completed in the most recent term
• Transfer credits received

We will not accept as an unofficial transcript:

• Grade summary
• Screen shot or downloaded copy of your Student Centre
• List of courses

If your institution does not provide a digital unofficial transcript with the above listed requirements, you will have to have them mail you an official transcript to your home address which you can then upload.

The Admissions team is unable to upload transcripts for you. Please do not send official transcripts to us unless you are requested to do so. Only applicants who are offered a seat or are waitlisted will be required to provide Official transcripts.

• Unofficial Transcripts FAQs
• Official Transcripts FAQs

Sign in to My UCalgary Student Centre to upload your documents

You must provide the names and contact information for two referees when submitting your online application. Both referees must be law school instructors for all upper-year applications.

We will send your referees an email with a unique link to access and upload their reference form within two weeks after you submit your application. Your referees must submit their reference form by 11:59 pm MT on the supporting documents deadline indicated for your applicant category.