In an ongoing commitment to diversity and accessibility for international students, Syracuse University College of Law welcomed their inaugural cohort of students last fall to its Doctor of Juridical Science (S.J.D.) in Law degree program.
The advanced research doctoral program is for international students who have completed a Master of Laws (LL.M.) in American Law and is designed to be small, enrolling just three to five new students each year.
“The success of our LL.M. degree puts the Syracuse University College of Law in a position to attract high-quality candidates who want to build a foundation in academic coursework and research before moving on to an S.J.D. degree,” said Arlene Kanter, director of the S.J.D. program. “S.J.D. graduates can look forward to advancing their careers in academia, research and the judiciary or pursuing further studies and collaboration with the College of Law.”
The inaugural class includes four international students from Brazil, China, Ethiopia and Palestinian Authority.
“All four candidates came with an impressive background as law teachers or practicing lawyers in their home countries, and all completed their LL.M. at the top of their respective classes at the College of Law,” says Andrew Horsfall, assistant dean of international programs.
- Ricardo Pereira, LL.M. ’18, is a retired federal prosecutor and law professor from Brasilia, Brazil. His dissertation topic is employment discrimination class actions. His ultimate goal is to provide equal opportunities and better distribution of resources for vulnerable people. “Research is amazing — it helps us discover the world,” he said.
- Yohannes Zewale, LL.M. ’19, is from Gondar, Ethiopia, where he is a lecturer at Addis Ababa University College of Law. Zewale is blind, which has fed his passion for safeguarding the rights of the disabled throughout his career. His dissertation will focus on disability-inclusive elections in Ethiopia. “I will research whether Ethiopians with disabilities vote on an equal basis with others and examine whether there are disability-based voting restrictions,” he said.
- Jawad Salman, LL.M. ’18, is a native of Tulkarem, Palestine. He returned home after earning his LL.M. and worked as a law professor. He plans to resume his career as a law professor when he completes the S.J.D. program. “The S.J.D. will allow me to add U.S. tax advice services to my law practice back home for Palestinian taxpayers who are subjected to U.S. taxes,” he said. “I hope to be part of a team that will help the Palestinian Authority develop an advanced tax system based on good standing and cooperation with other Middle Eastern countries.”
- Renci “Mercy” Xie, LL.M. ’20, was four years old she was hit by a bus and lost her right leg below the knee. She has channeled that accident to fight for the rights of the disabled in her native China. She chose Syracuse Law for her LL.M. and S.J.D. to learn more about international disability law. Xie previously worked as a trainee lawyer and legal translator and hopes to become a law professor when she returns to China. “I want to focus on teaching disability law, and I would also like to translate law books into Chinese,” she said.
Read more about their stories here.
Syracuse Law is the 56th law school in the country to offer the S.J.D. in Law degree program.
