Master of Laws at University of the Witwatersrand

Programme overview

Master of Laws by Dissertation programme gives candidates the opportunity to conduct their own research into a specific area of the law. The Law School receives a large number of applications for research degrees each year and is only able to accommodate a small number of research students. In practice, a very strong academic record and/or a record of appropriate work or research experience is necessary to gain admission to the research degree programme.

Faculty: Commerce, Law and Management | Department: Law | Duration: 1 - 2 years | Study mode: full-time | Location: Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa

Official programme page

Application information

Entry requirements

An LLB degree, a bachelor’s degree with honours, or an appropriate postgraduate diploma. Your application should include a CV, an academic record (transcript) and a short proposal, also known as an expression of interest. The short proposal is a document of 7 – 10 pages that outlines the applicant’s proposed research and the research questions to be investigated. It should include a provisional title as well as a provisional bibliography. Applications are considered on the basis of candidates’ academic record, the strength of their expression of interest and the availability of an appropriate supervisor in the School. Prospective research students are therefore further encouraged to approach potential supervisors in advance of their application, i.e. to find a member of staff in the School of Law who is willing in principle to supervise their proposed research. If you do find a willing p

Tuition is charged per module, so the total depends on the modules you register for each year. Current fees are listed in the official fee schedule.

Postgraduate applications are made online at www.wits.ac.za/applications; the closing date for each programme is listed in its course finder entry. The application fee is R200 (not payable by current Wits students applying online), paid via the Self-Service Portal or by EFT to the Wits University Application Fees account at FNB.

Apply through the official page: https://www.wits.ac.za/applications

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