Outgoing

The Faculty of Law offers a wide range of opportunities for its students to study at other universities in Switzerland or abroad for one or two semesters. Students can participate in these exchange/mobility programs either for individual classes or for entire semesters.

Students must pre-clear the recognition of academic credits earned at other schools with the Dean’s Office.

For further information, see the “Download” link in the menu below, especially regarding the Course Information Sheet and information on the transfer of grades.

Please note: The Master of Law program allows students to take up to 35 ECTS as elective credits that can be earned at another Swiss law school or at a law faculty abroad. The policies are detailed in Art. 9 of the Study Regulations of June 21, 2007, including the amendments until May 22, 2014.

For further information about mobility/exchange programs within Switzerland visit the following page: Mobility/Exchange Programs in Switzerland Outgoing.

To determine whether classes attended at another law school can be recognized towards a University of Bern law degree, students must pre-clear their classes, by sending an email to Ms. Babette Schweizer with the following details: course title, content description, lecturer name, ECTS credits, total hours required in the classroom per course, and degree level. The information provided must be from the official course description at the respective host law school.

The Swiss European Mobility Exchange Program SEMP (formerly Erasmus) enables students to spend one or two semesters at a European partner university. The SEMP exchange program offers students the opportunity to improve foreign language skills, to make new contacts, and to discover a new environment. The Faculty of Law generally offers more than 100 student placements per year in various European countries. In addition, the SEMP program supports students with a stipend of approximately 1900 Swiss francs per semester during the exchange. The stipends granted for studies in Bern also apply for stays abroad.

For further information, contact:

Ms. Monika Scherler
University of Bern
Faculty of Law
Dean's Office, Room no. D034 (ground floor)
Schanzeneckstrasse 1
Postfach
CH-3001 Bern

Walk-In Hours: Monday and Thursday afternoons from 2:00 - 4:00 p.m., no appointment necessary

The Faculty of Law's Partnership Agreements

Students in the University of Bern Master in Law program may also apply to be nominated for an exchange semester at Cornell Law School in Ithaca, New York (U.S.A.), the University of Illinois College of Law in Champaign, Illinois (U.S.A.), St. Louis University School of Law in St. Louis, Missouri (U.S.A.), the University of British Columbia Peter A. Allard School of Law in Vancouver (Canada).

Application Deadline

The application deadline for mobility/exchange programs is February 1st for the following academic year (see also: Admission Requirements). The February 1st deadline applies for both fall semester and spring semester exchanges.

How to apply for mobility/exchange programs in:

  • Swiss European Mobility Universities: First, fill out the online application, following the link UniBE International and print out the application form. Second, fill out the SEMP application form (see: Downloads), and send it to Ms. Monika Scherler with all enclosures, along with the UniBE International Office application form.
  • For law schools in the U.S.A., Canada, or India: Download the specific application form (see: Downloads) and submit it with the requested documents.
  • The registration is generally the 1st of February for the following academic year (see: Registration Requirements).

Exchange opportunities are not limited to the ones mentioned above. Some university-wide programs are also open to law students and are listed on the UniBE International Office site. Please note that law students wishing to study abroad must study at a university which has a law faculty. If you would like to participate in one of these other programs, please contact the responsible person at the UniBE International Office.

To determine whether classes attended at another law school can be recognized towards a University of Bern law degree, students must pre-clear their classes, by sending an email to Ms. Pia Sgier with the following details: course title, content description, lecturer name, ECTS credits, total hours per class required in the classroom, and degree level. The information provided must be from the official course description at the respective host university.