Juris Doctor Degree

Residency Requirements

Residency refers to the number of hours that each student must complete each semester, and also the total number of semesters that each student must complete to graduate from Law School. The Law School’s residency rules, as amended by the faculty in 2004, are set forth below. (For your convenience, Residency worksheets are available for full-time and part-time students.)

• Worksheet for Part-Time Students, (PDF)
• Worksheet for Full-Time Students, (PDF)

Residency: A candidate for the Juris Doctor degree must earn 3 Residency Units, at least 2.5 of which must be earned pursuant the following.

I. While enrolled in the full-time division, a student will earn:

• 0.5 Residency Units for each semester in which the student registered for at least 12 credits and earned credit for at least 10 credits.
• Should a student who has registered for at least 12 credits earn 9 credits in a semester, that student will earn 0.5 Residency Units; provided, however, this provision may be used only once by any student.
• A semester in which less than 9 credits have been earned cannot be counted toward the residency requirement.

II. While enrolled in the part-time division, a student will earn 0.375 Residency Units for each semester in which a student registers for and receives credit for at least 8 credits.

III. Residency Units may be earned as follows for students who are registered in either the part-time or full-time division:

• 0.04 Residency Units for each credit successfully completed in a summer semester in courses taken at the Law School.1
• 0.04 Residency Units for each credit successfully completed in an Intensive Skills Offering during the winter break or over the summer2, provided however, that a student cannot count a total of more than 0.2 Residency Units from this subdivision toward the residency requirement.
• 0.075 Residency Units for the successful completion of at least 2 credits earned in a Hofstra Law School-affiliated study abroad program.

IV. All students must:

• Earn Residency Units for at least 6 fall and/or spring semesters, or
• Earn Residency Units for at least 5 fall and/or spring semesters and earn at least 0.5 Residency Units pursuant to subsection I.

V. A J.D. student must complete all of his or her degree requirements within 84 months of his or her date of matriculation, and an LL.M. student must complete all of his or her degree Requirements within 36 months of his or her date of matriculation.

1 This includes the Intensive Trial Advocacy Program.
2 Intensive Skills offerings are those that are offered in a condensed format and which do not follow the normal schedule, e.g., a one-week deposition training course, and similar offerings.