Outgoing exchange

We currently have student exchange agreements with the law faculties of the following universities:

We may be able to connect you with UVic law students who are currently on an exchange, have previously gone on exchange, or students here on exchange.

Download and complete the application form, attach your unofficial law school transcripts and a CV or resume to the application, and submit it by email to the Front Office by the application deadline.

If you are applying for more than one institution or different terms at the same institution, you must indicate your choices in order of preference on your application. Please do not submit duplicate application materials.

Please note: Upon notification of an offer of placement in the exchange program, each successful applicant will be assessed a non-refundable administration fee of $150. Offers will not be considered accepted until the fee is paid and proof of payment is received.

Selection is done by the international committee. The criteria used in the selection process include (but are not limited to):

• Minimum GPA of 4.5. Cumulative GPA is used but your most recent academic performance may also be taken into account.
• Academic performance relative to other applicants (this factor is given significant weight).
• Your year in program (consideration of whether you will have other opportunities to pursue an exchange).
• Reason(s) for wishing to participate in the exchange (how does the exchange fit with your academic or career goals?)

You will be notified of the results of the selection process as soon as possible so you can begin planning right away.

If you receive an offer of a place in an exchange program, you must notify the Front Office to accept or decline the offer as soon as possible. Once you have accepted a position, you are expected to carry through with the exchange.

After we inform the host institution of our nominees, you must complete the application process for that institution. It is your responsibility to deal directly with the host university during that process. The host institution makes the final decision regarding admission to the exchange program.

After your acceptance by the host institution and if you have CAL-mandated accommodation measures, you must immediately contact your host institution to arrange for your accommodation while attending their university. You should send them your current memo from CAL.

You must ensure that you meet credit requirements (total of 14.5 to 16.5 units per year in the program) so plan your exchange and UVic terms accordingly. Most UVic Law exchanges are 7.5 units. It is your responsibility to ensure that you have at least 7.0 units in the term that completes your year. 

Students must seek approval from the Associate Dean, Academic and Student Relations for their proposed program of courses while on exchange. You must submit course descriptions, course outlines and syllabi that include information on contact hours when seeking approval from the Dean or Dean’s designate to register in courses. You may also be required to provide additional supplementary documentation (e.g. completed assignments, course texts). Students will normally be registered in 7.5 units of LAW352. The Registrar’s Office will evaluate your exchange transcript at the end of your exchange term and is the final authority on credits earned for LAW352. A notarized translation of documents issued in a language other than English may be required.

You may not pair a full-term clinical program (LAW 350A The Law Centre - 7.5 units) with an exchange term in one academic year, but you may do the clinical term in either second or third year and participate in an exchange the other year.

The Associate Dean must review and approve all proposed courses during an exchange. This means keeping in touch with the Dean's office after you arrive at the host university to provide your final course list for the exchange term.

If the exchange term will be the final term of your JD degree, you must have completed all mandatory upper year courses.  If you commenced first year Law in 2012 or later, you must have completed:

• LAW 301 The Administrative Law Process
• LAW 315 Business Associations (not a mandatory course for students who commenced first year Law in 2019 or later)
• LAW 360 Legal Ethics and Professionalism
• LAW 390 Major paper or LAW 388 Advanced Legal Research and Writing

Students in the JD/JID program should consult with the Dean or Dean's designate for permission to participate in exchange given the requirements of our JD/JID program and field courses.

While on exchange, you will be registered in LAW 352 for the number of credit units approved for the courses you will be taking at the host university.

LAW 352 is graded on a P/F basis. You will receive a grade for LAW 352 on your UVic transcript when the exchange term is completed and an official transcript has been received from the host institution.  Individual course grades obtained during the exchange term are not listed on the UVic transcript and do not count towards your GPA. Your LAW 352 credits will count towards evaluation of academic standing and graduation requirements You must apply to the host institution to obtain a transcript of your exchange term grades to use for employment and other purposes.

Host universities are expected to send us an official transcript directly but sometimes this requires your assistance (eg the University of Hong Kong requires that you request the official transcript and ask that it be mailed to the faculty).

We must receive official transcripts of the exchange term grades by May 1 for students seeking to graduate in the spring (June convocation).  

IMPORTANT NOTE: If your exchange term is your final term and it is in the spring you will not convocate in June because your final grades will not be available in time. An official transcript from your host institution is required to assess your eligibility to graduate. If you apply to graduate in June, your application is not transferrable to another convocation and the fee is not refundable. Therefore, you must make another application to graduate and pay the fee again. While our partner institutions do their best to expedite your final transcripts, we must respect their administrative processes in these matters and we do not send them letters or emails requesting that they provide early results for UVic students. 

After an official transcript is received from the host institution and it is determined that you are eligible to graduate, you may request a "letter of degree completion" from the Associate Dean's office. This is usually sufficient for the law societies to enable you to commence articles or the bar admissions courses. It is your responsibility to check with the relevant law society as to their requirements in this regard and if your final grades will not be available in time for you to begin articling or clerking or a bar admission course at your preferred date, to make the necessary adjustments with your Principal and/or law society. Past experience indicates that law societies value international experience and they are willing to permit a later start so long as arrangements are made well in advance.

Please note: Upon notification of an offer of placement in the exchange program, each successful applicant will be assessed a non-refundable administration fee of $150. Offers will not be considered accepted until the fee is paid and proof of payment is received. Please email your electronic receipt to the Academic Coordinator at lawcaa@uvic.ca.

You are responsible for ensuring you have sufficient funds to engage in the exchange. We have no special funds available to subsidize you for this purpose. During your exchange, your tuition and fees are paid to the University of Victoria for a term of coursework at the host university. UVic does not pay tuition and fees to the host university and you may be responsible for some minor administrative fees there.

Resources for your exchange:

• Faculty of Law bursaries – you remain eligible for Faculty of Law bursaries
• Student International Activities Fund (SIAF) – established by the International Office to support full time UVic students participating in international activities, including participation in international exchange programs organized by UVic. There are three competitions for the grant per year: March, July and November. More information and application forms are available on this page.
• The Global Office of Engagement has funding opportunities for exchange students. More information is available on their webpage.
• The Student Awards and Financial Aid website has helpful information regarding student loans.
• See UVic International Office for other relevant information and resources.

You are responsible for:

• All travel arrangements and expenses.
• All housing costs and housing arrangements: some host universities assist with housing information and in some cases on-campus student housing units may be available for rental. See the host university websites for more information.
• Travel and health insurance: adequate health insurance is mandatory during an exchange and you are responsible for ensuring that you have adequate insurance coverage during the period of the exchange; the UVic student health plan does not cover you on exchange terms so you must arrange your own coverage.
• Dropping courses: you must drop any UVic courses in which you are registered for the exchange term period as soon as plans for the exchange are firm.
• Visa / immigration requirements: it is your responsibility to find out what is required and to make the necessary arrangements. Contact the consulate / embassy of your host country for up-to-date information on student visa requirements (see list below). The host institution may also be able to provide information in this regard.
• After your acceptance by the host institution and if you have CAL-mandated accommodation measures, you must immediately contact your host institution to arrange for your accommodation while attending their university. You should send them your current memo from CAL.

Faculty regulations for exchange term (Current as of May 2021).