The degree is aimed at four principal prospective groups:
1. Recent law graduates who may wish, after the rigors of the JD and before embarking on life-long professional careers, to step back and both deepen their conceptual understanding of their profession whilst, at the same time, acquainting and reacquainting themselves with the riches which Jewish civilization has to offer to both the understanding and practice of law.
2. Recent college graduates considering a master’s degree in Judaic studies, for whom the M.S.L. may be of particular interest, since its focus will be on such a key element in the understanding of Judaism and since the studies will take place with the rigor and intellectual commitment associated with a leading law school in the United States. For those considering a life in the law or undecided about their future trajectory, the Master’s may be an intermediate step before committing to a professional degree – acquainting themselves with the study of law at the highest level, combining it with a deepening of their Jewish learning and, at the same time, obtaining an advanced degree from one of the most prestigious law schools in the US which will constitute an important credential for future pursuits, whether in a doctoral program, a professional JD degree or other pursuits.
3. Lawyers already in practice, maybe even for many years, who wish to ‘go back to school’ and deepen their Jewish learning in a way which relates it to their life-long vocation. The program will weave Jewish learning and legal insight in a manner which simply does not exist elsewhere – neither in the world of Yeshivot (Jewish seminaries) nor in departments of Judaic studies. With a view to this group of prospective students, there will be a selection of advanced legal and Judaic courses to choose from.
4. Former non-law graduates already established in the professions and other walks of life with an interest in deepening the knowledge, understanding and learning of Judaism in a particularly demanding and unique program leading to an advanced degree.