The only requirement is your enrollment in the Faculty of Law at the University of Cologne.

In particular, there is no grade point average that you must achieve in order to be admitted.

As far as your English language skills are concerned, you are expected to be able to follow a lecture in English and to enrich it through your active oral participation. It is up to you to decide whether you meet this requirement.

Yes.

As long as you are enrolled at the Faculty of Law, either as a doctoral or Master's student, this is generally possible.

You can start the CUSL-program any time, meaning in the winter or summer semester and in any study semester. However, it is recommended that you do not start CUSL in your first semester, as you should first acquire knowledge of German law, which can then be applied in comparison. See also the recommendation for course selection in the respective course schedule.

Please fill out the registration form, which you can find here. Please note that you only have to register once and do not have to do it again at the beginning of each semester.

Please also note that due to the large number of registrations we receive, we are not able to confirm every registration. As a rule, you will receive an electronically generated confirmation of receipt sent to the e-mail address you have provided. If you do not hear anything to the contrary from us and no technical difficulties have occurred on your side, you can assume that your registration was successful.

Yes, registration is mandatory for participation in the program.

An e-mail to the Chair for US Law at us-recht(at)uni-koeln.de is sufficient.

It would be nice if you let us know by e-mail. Otherwise, there will be no consequences, as registration for CUSL is for administrative purposes only.

Please register for the exams using the registration form, which you can find here.

No. Exam participants of university LL.M. programs also register for the regular CUSL-exams via the registration form, but NOT via KLIPS (Schwerpunktklausuren).

Due to the fact that participation in the CUSL program is done parallel to your studies in German law, possible overlaps between CUSL events and/or examination dates with those of the regular study program cannot be ruled out on our part.

No, unfortunately this is not possible for legal reasons.

No, this is generally not possible.

Yes, you are welcome to request a current standing for the purpose of a scholarship or job application. This request must be sent by email to the Chair. Please note that it may take up to two weeks to process your request, regardless of personal deadlines.

Within the scope of our administrative resources, the results are published on our website. However, please refrain from asking when the examination results will be available. This is usually not the case before the end of the semester break.

Furthermore, for data protection reasons, we are unable to inform you of your results by telephone or email. Please refrain from inquiries in this regard as well.

You can inspect your editing. If necessary, you can submit a written and reasoned remonstration within one month of the result being published on this website.

Certificates of achievement from foreign universities are generally NOT accepted for the CUSL-program. An exception to this is the exchange with Duquesne University in Pittsburgh.

Credits from other German universities are generally not accepted for CUSL. 

The exam can be repeated as often as required until it is passed, provided the course is offered in the semester in question. In the CUSL program, however, you may not re-take an examination for the purpose of trying to improve your grade. This also applies in the event that only single certificates are initially acquired as foreign language qualification certificates and registration for the CUSL program takes place at a later date. Your previous achievements will be recognized in the CUSL-program.

The exclusion of improvement attempts refers to the assessment in the CUSL program itself. The eventual repetition of a CUSL examination, e.g. in a binational degree program, depends on the examination regulations of your degree program or the degree program coordination.

Such an overview is not issued by the Chair. Please contact the respective dean's office/examination office to have your CUSL grades converted into credit points.

Yes, you can set your own pace. Completion in four semesters is merely a recommendation, as we cannot guarantee that all the courses required to obtain the certificate will be offered within a smaller number of semesters.

There is neither a minimum nor a maximum number. However, it is recommended to attend two CUSL courses over the course of four semesters, as the CUSL program is intended to complement the normal study of German law. See also the recommendation for course selection in the respective course schedule.

As you can organize CUSL very flexibly, there are no concerns on our part. For example, you can attend just one CUSL course per semester and extend the program to 8 semesters. More than 450 graduates have already completed the program (as of WS 20/21).

However, general statements are difficult here and much depends on your personal life situation, work ethic and resilience. Critically questioning this is not only a recommendation but also generally expected of you within the realm of your legal studies.

The certificate is awarded on application to those who have provided all necessary proof of performance. 

Students must apply for the issue of the CUSL certificate by email, stating their name, matriculation number and all passed exams with the respective semesters of attendance (for reasons of control). Please allow a processing time of up to 6 weeks for the application of your certificate.

The foreign language qualification certificate is an admission requirement for the state compulsory subject examination (§ 7 I Nr. 3 JAG NRW). For further information on the procedure there, please refer to the information on the websites of the respective judicial examination offices (e.g. for the Cologne Judicial Examination Office at:  https://www.olg-koeln.nrw.de/aufgaben/justizpruefungsamt/003_staatl-pflichtfachpruefung/index.php. Please note: The CUSL certificate itself also counts as proof of foreign language qualification certificate and can be used accordingly. An additional foreign language qualification certificate will not be issued in this case.

Yes, you can apply for a foreign language qualification certificate for each individual course offered as part of the CUSL-program. If you initially only acquire individual certificates as foreign language qualification certificates and then register for the CUSL-program at a later date, your previous achievements in the CUSL-program will be credited. In the CUSL-program, there is no limit to the number of repeated attempts until an examination is passed, but no attempts to improve the grade.

Please also note that successful participation in the entire CUSL program generally counts as proof of foreign language proficiency in accordance with § 7 I Nr. 3 JAG, even if one semester is not taken into account for the free attempt when registering for the first exam due to this proof of proficiency. However, legally binding information on this matter can only be obtained from the responsible judicial examination office by an individual examination of your case. We therefore recommend that you contact the judicial examination office at an early stage when planning your studies.

No. In some (soft-skill) courses, a certificate for obtaining a key skill can be issued upon successful completion of the respective course requirements (e.g. assignments). This course can then no longer be counted as credit for the CUSL-certificate or as proof of foreign language qualification. Whether a CUSL-course is eligible for obtaining a key qualification can be found in the respective course description in KLIPS. For example, when applying for proof of successful participation in the Practice Skills for Lawyers course, you must decide in advance whether you would like to have it credited as a key skill or as an elective subject for the CUSL certificate and, if required, as proof of foreign language proficiency.

Please contact the KLIPS-office. We cannot help you regarding this problem.

In order to participate in courses of the CUSL program, it is mandatory to register for the respective course in KLIPS. If there are exceptions, these will be announced separately for individual courses.

Please contact the Legal Examination Office of the University of Cologne and the Judicial Examination Office in good time. As these are examination services, only these offices can provide you with legally binding information.

You must obtain the CUSL certificate and then submit it to the responsible judicial examination office. However, legally binding information on this can only be obtained from the Judicial Examination Office in question by a case-by-case examination of your circumstances. We therefore recommend that you contact the judicial examination office at an early stage to plan your studies.

No. If a CUSL-certificate is submitted, one semester will not be taken into account in accordance with § 25 II 1 Nr. 4 JAG NRW. In connection with the application or at the latest when registering for the state compulsory subject examination, candidates are requested to provide written assurance that the achievements from the foreign language qualification certificate have not been used or will not be used in the future to prove the requirements of § 7 I Nr. 2 or § 28 III 3 JAG NRW (prohibition of double utilization, § 25 IV JAG NRW).

According to § 25 IV 2 JAG NRW, the hours attributable to the foreign language course may also not be taken into account as part of the required hours of the specialization area.

We cannot guarantee this, as not all mandatory courses are offered every semester, but only every second semester. However, if you still manage to complete all mandatory courses in one semester, you will receive the certificate.

If you return to the University of Cologne as a student enrolled at the Faculty of Law (e.g. as part of an LL.M. program), you will receive credit for credits you have already completed as part of CUSL and be able to complete the CUSL program.

Please contact the ZIB-Jura directly with your examination result. They can issue a certificate accordingly.

Please contact the ZIB-Jura directly with your examination result. An entry can be made accordingly.

As in your undergraduate courses, the letter ranges refer to a group division by surname in order to reduce the group size. If your surname begins with a letter between A and J, please attend the corresponding course. An identical course will then be offered for students whose surname begins with the letters between K and Z.

The course is only two hours long, meaning you do not have to attend both courses.

We kindly ask you to stick to this schedule as far as possible. However, if you have timetable conflicts or other valid reasons, you can also attend the other lecture to which you are not actually assigned to.

No, that is not possible.

Yes, this is possible without any problems.

If you are enrolled at the Faculty of Law at the University of Cologne, you can generally attend the CUSL-program. This means that you have the flexibility to complete the CUSL-program before or after your studies at our partner universities abroad. However, there is no guarantee that you will be able to complete the program in less than four consecutive semesters. You should therefore plan your CUSL-course attendance in accordance with your individual timetable well in advance.

The Chair does not issue a transcript of records converted into credit points. The ZIB Jura or the respective dean's office/examination office will convert your CUSL grades into credit points. If necessary, your examination results can also be entered into KLIPS from there. Please refer to the other questions in the FAQ.

No, unfortunately not. It is not possible to transfer credits during a semester of leave.

Coursework completed abroad will only be recognized in the CUSL-program in justified individual cases. The basic requirements are that you have demonstrably passed an examination, that the course was taught by a lawyer licensed in the USA and that the content of the course corresponds to a course in the CUSL-program. It is also necessary that the course was organized as part of a graduate program (e.g. at a law school). If these basic requirements are initially met, you can submit an informal application (with the relevant supporting documents) by e-mail. This will then be reviewed on a case-by-case basis and you will receive prompt feedback on the decision regarding credit transfer.

For the exchange of students of the Faculty of Law of the University of Cologne with Duquesne University School of Law, Pittsburgh, a special rule applies according to which credit transfer is generally possible. Further details will be announced as part of the exchange program.

No. Students may not receive dual credit for courses offered in both the CUSL program and the Environmental Law Certificate.