Academic Objectives
The Pepperdine-Augsburg Exchange Program is intended to for students who are interested in possibly working (a) in Europe, (b) for a company with extensive dealings in Europe, or (c) for a law firm with clients with extensive dealings in Europe – or (d) for students who are interested in expanding their perspectives on the law and legal analysis by approaching it from a different, international, perspective.
The Pepperdine-Augsburg Summer Program offers students a unique opportunity to study the basic framework of European law, European Union law, and international law relevant to the increasingly global economy. In particular, the courses in the Summer Program cover the fields of international private law vs. public law, business law, economic law, company law, and contract law – all with an emphasis on examining the issues that arise in those subject areas from the perspective of German, European, and international law (from a civil law approach in particular). The German, European and international perspective is further enforced by the international make-up of the Summer Program faculty. Most of the professors who teach in the Program are either German or European, with a handful of visiting professors from all around the world. Moreover, most of the students in the classroom will be either German or European (Italian, French), with a good number of visiting students from all around the world (Turkey, the Republic of Georgia, Brasil, China, etc.). The legal and cultural diversity that is inherent in the program inevitably leads to a comparative law approach to the issues discussed in the classroom, providing students with an excellent forum to develop their cultural sensitivities in expressing their views, an important skill for one interested in practicing law in an international setting.
In addition, the Summer Program participants are welcome to attend the series of "Talks of Practitioners." The talks are held by distinguished lawyers of international law firms, legal advisers of international firms and other experts who focus on selected problems of international business law.
Students who are fluent in German can apply for special permission to study at the University of Augsburg during the fall or spring semester, and/or to pursue an LLM from the University of Augsburg, thereby furthering their employment opportunities in Germany, Europe, and in the United States.
Students who are interested in participating in the Pepperdine-Augsburg Exchange Program should see Prof. Wendel for more information and to develop a statement of their individual academic objectives for the program. Pepperdine is limited in the number of students it can send to Augsburg each year. Permission should not be presumed. Applications will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis and will depend on a number of variables.
View the ABA mandatory list of disclosures for all programs that involve study at a foreign institution as they apply to the Augsburg program.
