Admission Requirements

Admission Requirements

  • At least a Bachelor’s degree in law or related disciplines such as Business, Finance, Economics, Computer Science or Political Science, from an undergraduate or postgraduate programme with good academic performance.
  • A Master’s degree is recommended but not required.
  • Good GRE result [1].
  • Good English Proficiency Test (TOEFL or IELTS) score [2].
[1] GRE (Graduate Record Examinations) 
  • Except for special approval granted by SMU, all applicants are required to take GRE.
  • GRE is waived for graduates of Singapore Management University (SMU), National University of Singapore (NUS), Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD), Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT) and Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS), and at least attained a bachelor degree from above universities.
  • Applicants can submit the online application without the GRE scores. However, applications without GRE score will not be reviewed. Applicants must email the official GRE report to the programme office (lawphd@smu.edu.sg) before the application deadline. 
  • The test must have been taken within 5 years before the proposed date of application.
  • There is no minimum GRE score requirement. Applications are reviewed holistically with offers made to outstanding candidates.
  • SMU’s GRE institution code is 2861.

More information about the GRE test is available at GRE official website.


[2] English Proficiency Test (TOEFL / IELTS)
  • TOEFL or IELTS test score is required if the medium of instruction during undergraduate education was not English.
  • The test must be taken within 2 years before the date of application.
  • There is no minimum IELTS/TOEFL score requirements. The application is reviewed holistically with offers made to outstanding candidates.
  • SMU’s institution code for TOEFL is 9014.

More information about TOEFL and IELTS is available at the TOEFL or IELTS website respectively.