Requirements

Number and Qualifications of Students

Washburn law students who have completed one year of full-time study, and who are in good standing, are qualified to apply for enrollment in the Washburn Law-Maastricht Study Abroad Program. The Program will be limited to 4 students each academic year.

Selection Process

Interested students must submit an application to the law school's Associate Dean for Academic Affairs (the Academic Dean) by February 1 of the academic year immediately preceding the academic year that the student wishes to be enrolled in the Program. See the How to Apply section. The Academic Dean and the Chairperson of the Law Faculty International Legal Studies Committee will select which students will be permitted to enroll and the Deans' Office will maintain a waiting list.

Academic Advising at Washburn

The Academic Dean will notify a student whether his or her application for enrollment has been accepted. In addition, the Academic Dean will notify the Chairperson of the Law Faculty International Legal Studies Committee and assign each accepted student an academic advisor from the Washburn law faculty. The Academic Dean will provide the student with an Academic Advising Form, which the academic advisor, together with the student, will use to develop a written plan that defines the educational objectives the student seeks to achieve during the semester abroad, and sets out the methods that will be employed in evaluating the student's attainment of these objectives. The student must submit the completed Academic Advising Form to the Academic Dean upon receiving the Academic Dean's written approval of enrollment in the Program. Copies of the completed Academic Advising Forms will be maintained in the Dean's Office.

Academic Advising at Maastricht University

The Coordinator for International Affairs of the Law Department at Maastricht is designated as the Maastricht academic advisor for any Washburn student enrolled in the Washburn Law-Maastricht Study Abroad Program. While the Washburn student is studying at Maastricht, the Coordinator will supervise and monitor the student's study.

Course Selection and Credits

Students may enroll in up to 15 Washburn credit hours at Maastricht University. Credits transfer on a 1:2 basis, meaning that 15 Washburn J.D. credits are the equivalent of 30 European Credit System/ECTS hours at Maastricht. However, the more typical, presumptive course load is 12 Washburn/24 ECTS credits.

During the application process, students will schedule an academic advising meeting with the Academic Dean to evaluate the student's completed Academic Advising Form. Once the student and dean agree upon a course of study, the Academic Dean will approve the proposed course work that is eligible to be transferred back to Washburn Law for credit toward the J.D. degree. As a general rule, the student will select courses that focus on local, international, or comparative law. J.D. students may enroll in either bachelor or masters level courses.

The Maastricht University Faculty of Law academic calendar consists of five periods:

Fall semester: students can take two courses in Period 1 (September through October) and two in Period 2 (November until winter break).
Spring semester: students can take one course in intersession Period 3 (January), two courses in regular Period 4 (February to early April), and two in regular Period 5 (mid-April to mid-June). Spring semester students are not required to attend the winter intersession in Period 3.

Although there are some exceptions, as a default, students are usually expected to take no more than 12 ECTS (6 Washburn) credits in periods 1, 2, 4, or 5, and no more than 6 ECTS (3 Washburn) credits in the Period 3 winter intersession. Accordingly, as noted above, most Washburn students typically transfer back 24 ECTS (12 Washburn) credits. Students who need more credits should discuss options with the Academic Dean during the advising process. The best option for students who need to maximize credits is to attend during one's 2L spring semester and to include the Period 3 January intersession.

Finally, third-year law students enrolling for the spring semester are warned that they will not have their Maastricht grades in time to qualify to take the July Kansas bar exam.

Grading and Student Evaluation

Washburn students will be evaluated and examined by their Maastricht instructors. The Academic Dean will be responsible for providing copies of the student's graded work to the Chairperson of the Law Faculty International Legal Studies Committee and the student's academic advisor at Washburn. The Student Records Administrator in the Washburn Deans' Office, who is in charge of maintaining academic records, will convert the Maastricht grades to credit/no credit, according to the Washburn policy concerning the transfer of grades from other institutions. In order to receive academic credit, the student must receive a course grade equivalent to a "C" or better for course work completed at Maastricht University.

Classroom Attendance

Students who are enrolled in the Program will be expected to attend classes at Maastricht University on a regular basis, in accordance with the attendance requirements at Washburn.

Tuition

Washburn students enrolled in the Washburn Law-Maastricht Study Abroad Program will pay Washburn University School of Law tuition, to Washburn University, for the number of credit hours in which the student is enrolled in the Program.