Institute for European Studies (Vrije University of Brussels)

Overview
With over 10,000 students in eight different faculties, ranging from Law over Medicine to Engineering, The Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) is a centre of academia in Brussels and Belgium. And although many see Europe’s capital as an administrative and busy centre, the university’s campus is a true green oasis that is on walking distance from the European institutions and merely a few metro-stops away from the historic yet thriving Brussels centre. Since its inception in 1970, its beneficial location has allowed it to study, scientifically develop and foster a vision of European unity that is being reflected in a number of high-level study programmes such as its renowned Programme on International Legal Cooperation (PILC). The PILC, founded more than 35 years ago under the auspices of the Law Faculty, focuses on European and international legal issues through first-rate interactive seminars, and is taught by staff from universities in Belgium and abroad, and from the legal services of the European Union. There are now over 1,000 PILC graduates working for major international law firms and other organisations and in academia, and the PILC benefits from a worldwide reputation of excellence.

Institute for European Studies
Since 2001, the programme has been the basis of the Institute for European Studies (IES), a newly created research institute supported by the Flemish Government that focuses on European Union studies within a broader international context. The IES, which was named a Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence by the European Commission in 2002, now co-supervises the programme and gives it further impetus. The IES conducts research, offers further MA programmes in European Studies, guides PhD projects and organizes many events such as lecture series and summer schools (eg on the European Decision-Making Process) to support the programme.

Programme on International Legal Co-operation
The Programme on International Legal Co-operation introduces students to the methodology, institutions and doctrines of different legal systems, by analysing the manner in which these systems approach and resolve concrete problems. Emphasis is placed on the European integration phenomenon. The PILC is designed to stimulate a comparative dialogue, giving valuable insight into the operation of the various legal systems governing the specific areas discussed in a series of compulsory seminars. At the end of the academic year, successful students are awarded the title of Master in International and Comparative Law (LLM). The programme emphasises the need for continuing contact between the world’s major legal systems, and its Brussels location means students are brought face to face with both the theory and practice of the work of the principal institutions of the European Communities and other international organisations. Brussels and the Institute for European Studies have all the necessary research tools, institutions, and scientific and professional organisations for this programme. The course is taught by highly skilled practitioners from international bodies and law firms, and renowned academics from VUB and other Belgian universities. The PILC consists of two four-month semesters over an academic year (from the end of September to June). A maximum of 40 students take the course, and all are expected to attend classes regularly as the programme involves a lot of interactivity and seminar teaching. Students are expected to present a paper in one of the fields covered by the programme at the end of the academic year. The course involves some compulsory study visits, for example to the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg and to various European and international organisations in Brussels. The programme is regularly scrutinized by the Flemish educational authorities and was ranked excellent by its international review panel that compared all English-taught postmaster programmes in Flanders.

The full programme and the list of teaching staff is available on the website: www.ies.be/pilc/

More than 30 years of excellence in the heart of Europe.

LLM programmes on offer
Programme on International Legal Co-operation

Entry requirements
Candidates are selected on the basis of their academic record, English skills, motivation, and reference letters.

Length of programmes
Nine months (one academic year)

Number of places
40

Language of instruction
English

Fees
€2,500 (includes materials and study trips)

Starting dates
Last week of September

Application procedure
Application forms are available at www.ies.be/pilc/

Application deadlines
15 February 2010.

Contact
Institute for European Studies
Vrije Universiteit Brussel
Programme on International Legal Co-operation
Pleinlaan 2
B-1050 Brussels
Belgium

Tel: +32 (0)2/629 2631
Fax: +32 (0)2/629 2289
E-mail: secrpilc@vub.ac.be
Web: www.ies.be/pilc/