UNIVERSITY OF COLOGNE

Summer School in German law for Polish lawyers with the University of Gdansk

The German Law School is a classic summer school designed to give Polish lawyers at all stages of their careers an insight into the German legal system. The cooperation with the University of Gdansk has existed since 1999 and has proven its worth! Every year, the University of Cologne welcomes about ten Polish students who want to look beyond their own legal system. A cultural programme accompanies the law school and offers the participants an insight into German (and especially Cologne) culture in order to promote exchange with German students. . The possibility for the best graduate to receive a scholarship for LLM studies in Germany is particularly worth mentioning.

How the Law School is conducted

Participants first take part in a preparatory course at the University of Gdansk. This course consists of 48 hours and deals with German legal terminology and preliminary with the Summer School’s content. The preparatory course is held in German.

In the summer of each year, the participants come to Cologne for a fortnight, financed by the Marga and Kurt Möllgaard Foundation. They are taught civil, criminal and public law by professors, post-doctoral researchers and doctoral students from the University of Cologne. The curriculum provides an introduction to all areas of law that are also part of the basic curriculum for German law students. The courses take place all day during the week on the premises of the Institute of Eastern European and Comparative Law. In addition, a cultural social programme is offered.

In autumn of the respective year, the participants complete the course with a final exam. The best participant receives a partial scholarship to study in the LLM programme for lawyers graduating abroad at the University of Cologne.  Information on the study programme is available here.

Application and requirements to enter

Our programme is aimed at students of law and administration at all Polish universities, young professionals, trainee lawyers and other interested practitioners, as well as doctoral students and translators. Good knowledge of the German language is a prerequisite. The application process takes place via the University of Gdansk.

Organisation and contact

The summer school is organised jointly by a staff member of the Institute of Eastern European and Comparative Law and a staff member of the University of Gdansk. The Polish side is responsible for organising the preparatory course and the applications, while the German side is responsible for running the summer school in Cologne, financing the project and supervising the respective scholarship holders. Please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions!