Subject to the provisions of General Academic
Regulation 00.0 and General Regulations for Master’s
degrees 40.1 and 41.0, the following Special
Reg-ulations shall apply to the LLM degree
programme.
1.1 The normal minimum entrance requirement shall be a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree of this University with at least a second-class second division, or a comparable or equivalent qualification from any other recognized University or equivalent institution.
1.2 The admission of applicants with qualifications other than a Bachelor of Laws degree of this University as specified in Special Regulation 4.1.1 shall be subject to the approval of the Department.
2.1 Duration
The normal duration for the LLM degree programme shall be as follows:
a) A minimum of 3 to a maximum of 6 semesters on a full-time basis.
b) A minimum of 6 to a maximum of 12 semesters on a part-time basis.
2.2 Programme Options
The LLM degree programme shall be offered by one of the following modes:
a) LLM by Coursework and Research Essay; and
b) LLM by Coursework and Dissertation.
3.1 Students registered for this option shall be required to complete 24 credits from courses approved by the Departmental Board and 12 credits for a satisfactory Research Essay. The degree shall be awarded upon completion of a minimum of 36 credits from these two components.
3.2 Full-time students registered for this option shall take a minimum of 12 credits of coursework per semester over a period of 2 semesters.
3.3 Part-time students registered for this option shall take 6 credits of coursework per semester over a period of 4 semesters.
3.4 Each student shall take at least 18 out of the total of 24 credits for the coursework from a list of approved LLM courses. Where necessary this may include a course or courses on advanced legal theory.
3.5 With the approval of the Department Board, and subject to the applicable programme or subject regulations, each student may take up to 6 credits or equivalent in courses offered in subject areas other than law at the University of Botswana. Where appropriate this may include a course or courses on Social Research methods.
3.6 Subject to changes approved from time to time, the list of LLM courses shall be as follows:
LAW 601 Advanced Legal Theory and Jurisprudence
LAW 602 Advanced Company Law
LAW 603 Advanced Labour Law
LAW 604 Advanced Social Security Law
LAW 605 Advanced Property Law
LAW 606 Comparative Constitutional Law
LAW 607 Law and Public Administration
LAW 608 International Criminal Law
LAW 609 International Human Rights Law
LAW 610 World Trade Law and Developing Countries
LAW 611 Regional Integration Law in Africa
LAW 612 International Finance and Investment Law and Developing Countries
LAW 613 International Environmental Law
LAW 614 Law and the Environment in Southern Africa
LAW 615 Alternative Dispute Resolution
LAW 702 LLM Dissertation
3.7 Assessment of Coursework
3.7.1 Evaluation of students’ performance in the LLM coursework shall normally be based on continuous assessment and a formal examination at or before the end of the semester.
3.7.2 Continuous Assessment
Continuous assessment shall normally be based on at least one of the pieces of work indicated in Academic General Regulation 0.81. The ratio of Continuous Assessment to the formal examination shall be 1:1
3.7.3 Formal Examination
The duration, format and mode of the formal examination for each approved LLM course shall be as approved by the Departmental Board.
3.8 Research Essay
3.8.1 The Research Essay shall be identified as LAW 701 and shall contribute 12 credits to the total number of 36 credits for the award of the LLM under this option.
3.8.2 Except as otherwise herein provided, General Regulations for Master’s’ Degrees (41.10) shall apply to the Research Essay component of this LLM op-tion.
3.8.3 Research Area
Students registered for this option shall normally be required to indicate proposed research areas for approval by the Departmental Board upon completion of a minimum 12 credits from the coursework.
3.8.4 Research Essay Supervisor
The Department shall normally nominate a supervisor for each student before the completion of the coursework. The supervisor shall normally be a member of the Department of Law with some expertise in the area in which the student has registered to conduct research.
3.8.5 Departmental Advisory Committee
The Department may also nominate two pe sons who together with the Research Essay supervisor shall form a Departmental Advisory Committee. The additional advisory committee members may Be from another Department of the University or from an approved external institution.
3.8.6 The role of the Research Essay supervisor and the advisory committee shall be to monitor and guide all aspects of the student’s research work and the production of the Dissertation. The additional advisory committee members shall also be eligible for appointment as Internal Examiners, but the Research Essay supervisor shall not be eligible for appointment as an Internal Examiner.
3.8.7 Notice of Submission
A student shall normally give six weeks’ notice to the Head of Department of the date of submission of the Research Essay together with its final title.
4.1 Students registered for this option shall complete a minimum of 12 credits from courses approved by the Departmental Board for the LLM programme and 24 credits for a Dissertation approved by Examiners. The degree shall be awarded upon completion of a minimum of 36 credits from these two components
4.2 Full-time students registered for this option shall normally complete 12 credits for the coursework in the first semester.
4.3 Part-time students registered for this option shall normally take 6 credits of coursework per semester over a period of 2 semesters.
4.4 Each student shall take at least 9 out of the total of 12 credits for the coursework from the list of approved LLM courses referred to in Special Regulation 4.3.6. Where necessary this may include a course or courses on advanced legal theory.
4.5 With the approval of the Department Board, and subject to the applicable subject or programme regulations, each student registered for this option may take up 3 credits or equivalent from courses in subject areas other than law offered at the University of Botswana. Where appropriate this may include a course or courses in Social Research methods.
4.6 Assessment of Coursework
The coursework for this option shall be assessed in the same manner and subject to the General and Special Regulations applicable to the LLM by Coursework and Research Essay option.
4.7 Progression and other Recommendations
General Regulation for Master’s Degrees (41.8), shall apply to progression from semester to semester and to other related recommendations.
4.8 Dissertation
4.8.1 The Dissertation shall be identified as course LAW702 and shall contribute 24 credits to the minimum total number of 36 credits for the award of the LLM by coursework and Dissertation
4.8.3 Research Area
Students shall be registered for this option subject to consultation with and approval by the Department of the general area of research on which the Dissertation shall focus
4.8.4 Dissertation Supervisor
The Departmental Board shall normally nominate a Dissertation supervisor for each student registered for this option before the end of the first semester. The supervisor shall normally be a member of the Department of Law with some expertise in the area in which the student has registered to conduct research.
4.8.5 Departmental Advisory Committee
The Departmental Board may also nominate two persons who together with the Dissertation supervisor shall form a Departmental Advisory Committee. The additional advisory committee members may be from another Department of the University or from an approved external institution.
4.8.6 The role of the Dissertation supervisor and the advisory committee shall be to monitor and guide all aspects of the student’s research work and the production of the Dissertation. The additional advisory committee members shall also be eligible for appointment as Internal Examiners, but the Dissertation supervisor shall not be appointed as Internal Examiner.
4.8.7 Notice of Submission
A student shall normally give six weeks’ notice to the Head of Department of the date of submission of the Dissertation together with its final title.
Subject to the approval of the Departmental Board, students registered in other graduate programmes of the University shall be entitled to take any LLM course that is indicated in the course description, which is not exclusively designed for graduate law students.
Subject to changes approved from time to time to the list of LLM courses, students registered for the LLM options shall not be entitled to take the following courses offered to students registered in other graduate programmes:
LAW 651 Legal Issues in Counselling
LAW 652 Ethics and Law in Health Care