JD/MBA question Forum

[TheLawStudent]

Hey guys I had a quick question regarding how JD/MBA's (specifically those from Canada) look on a resume for hiring. I am currently completing the JD/MBA program at the University of Toronto (Canadian school) and if I had the opportunity I would not mind coming down and working in New York for a few years. I know there is a lot of speculation here because of the grades needed to break into NYC biglaw from a Canadian school but my question is whether New York employers will really care about the MBA. I know in Canada having a JD/MBA significantly increases your chances of being hired into Corporate work, but I also suspect that is mostly likely limited to Canada.

Anyways, if anyone could provide some feedback regarding this, I would greatly appreciated it. I am sure the most important thing for a Canadian is (Grades -> Court Clerkship-> Law review) but I was just wondering whether the JD/MBA would be seen as a positive thing or virtually ignored. Thanks!

[Cobretti]

Many top firms give one year class credit for a MBA, so presumably they view it positively.

[CanadianWolf]

Usually seen as a positive. Many large law firms give bonuses or advanced standing to those newly admitted attorneys who are hired.

P.S. It would be interesting to compare the courses offered in UToronto's MBA versus a typical US MBA program. Any emphasis on international business ?

[Hornet2011]

Curious if it is possible for you to work in the USA without doing a dual US/CA law program or a US LLM program first. Unless U of Toronto has some special arrangement I am quite sure you would need to do that first. Unless of course you only want to do Canadian law but in the USA?

[TheLawStudent]

Curious if it is possible for you to work in the USA without doing a dual US/CA law program or a US LLM program first. Unless U of Toronto has some special arrangement I am quite sure you would need to do that first. Unless of course you only want to do Canadian law but in the USA?

Canadian Law grads are eligible to write the bar in New York and Massachusetts right out of law school, as well as California (provided they pass the bar in one of the two other jurisdictions). Generally a handful of New York firms do OCI's at UofT, Osgood, and Mcgill (Paull Weiss, Sullivan and Cromwell, Skadden arps, Davies are the ones I think of off the top of my head). Last year, for example, 10 graduates from UofT went to work in New York (out of a class of ~200 students). Generally, these applicants need to be in the top 10-15% of their class academically to even be considered for a New York position. In the past many Canadian grads were encouraged to get LLM's at top U.S schools before working in New York. However, this was before court clerk ships were a thing (at least in Canada). Nowadays, a court clerkship at a Canadian court is more common. Once again, these are reserved for students who show exceptional academic ability.

[CanadianWolf]

Toronto grads are recruited by several large new york city law firms. Bar membership in the US is state-by-state with a handful (maybe four) states making bar admission easy for graduates of foreign law schools. To the best of my recollection, New York & Massachusetts are two these jurisdictions. Sorry, but I do not have specifics.
As you probably know, there are a few joint degree programs for US & Canadian law degrees which require two years study in each country. From memory, Wayne State, Michigan State & Univ. of Colorado are three current US programs still offering joint US & Canadian law degrees.. NYU dropped their joint degree program with Toronto or maybe it was Osgood Hall (if I recall correctly) within the past few years.

P.S. Check out lawstudents.ca for more specific & more current information.

[TheLawStudent]

Usually seen as a positive. Many large law firms give bonuses or advanced standing to those newly admitted attorneys who are hired.

P.S. It would be interesting to compare the courses offered in UToronto's MBA versus a typical US MBA program. Any emphasis on international business ?

I do not know what the stats are for U.S schools but generally for the UofT MBA approximately half of the class are international students. However, I do not think there is a huge emphasis on international business since most grads come with the intent on staying in Canada. It is also important to note that compared to our American counterparts many of our university programs (and especially business) are seen as much more juvenile. Accordingly, I highly doubt our MBA's are going to have the same international clout as many American programs.

[TheLawStudent]

Thanks for the replies everyone! Its nice to know that my MBA will have a positive effect on my application!

[CanadianWolf]

The top US MBA programs strongly prefer two to five years post-undergraduate school work experience. Those with approximately 10 years or more experience working as managers often enter Executive MBA Programs which permit students to continue working full-time for the entire academic experience.