Please note!
This degree programme is currently being planned for the winter semester 2025/2026.
Introduction of the degree programme subject to approval by the Ministry of Science and Culture and publication in the Official Notices of the University of Oldenburg.

The aim of the programme is to provide students with in-depth knowledge of legal contexts and the challenges of sustainability and digitalisation in a European context. The competences imparted enable students to gain a critical understanding of legal contexts and contemporary legal expertise for these current challenges in the international multi-level system.

Modules on topics such as the regulation of digitalisation, the impact of digital aspects on private and public law and the connections between sustainability issues and law enable graduates to recognise and respond to current legal requirements and regulatory processes in private and public law as experts in the field of modern law.

In addition, the content from research is incorporated into the content of the courses. Students are enabled to take part in research workshops/conferences themselves through the communication of research results and academic presentations.

Master's thesis topics are inspired by research topics from the participating specialist areas of the Department of Law and Economics.

As part of the planned Master's degree programme ‘Law in a Sustainable and Digital Europe’, students will gain an in-depth insight into the legal contexts and challenges of sustainability and digitalisation in a European context.

Through modules on the regulation of digitalisation (e.g. media and telecommunications law), on the impact of digital aspects on private and public law (e.g. through the compulsory modules Modern Transformations of International and EU Economic Law, Competition Law and Intellectual Property), on the impact of sustainability issues on the law (e.g. the compulsory elective modules Private Law and Sustainability, Biodiversity and Genetic Resources Law) and on the interfaces between the two areas (e.g. the compulsory elective module Technical Transformation, Markets and Sustainability), students are trained to become experts in the field of modern law who can respond to the current demands on the law and regulatory processes in private and public law.

In addition to traditional classroom teaching, proven digital elements are to be used in teaching, insofar as they serve to convey the subject matter. This includes the use of hybrid forms of teaching (alternating between hybrid and face-to-face teaching in selected modules), as well as student work that is created or completed using new media (project work).

In order to study this course at the University of Oldenburg as a student from outside of Germany, you need an adequate knowledge of German.

German Language Proficiency

• DSH: Deutsche Sprachprüfung für den Hochschulzugang (Level 2) or 
• TestDaF: Test – Deutsch als Fremdsprache (with level 4 in all four areas) or
• Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) Level B2
   

English Language Proficiency see admissions regulations

• Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) Level C1
• if applicants have university entrance qualification or a first university degree in an English-language degree programme obtained in a country with English or German as the official language or
• other successfully completed language certificates for level C1.

The proof of language proficiency must not be older than 5 years at the time of application and must be presented for the enrolment. 

Applicants who need a preparatory German course before commencing their studies must present their knowledge of English with their application.

For other proof possiblities see: Language requirements 

• Ein Bachelorabschluss oder ein gleichwertiger Abschluss aus einem fachlich geeigneten vorherigen Studiengang der Rechtswissenschaften (erstes juristisches Staatsexamen) oder aus einem anderen geeigneten Fachbereich, umfasst mindestens 240 Leistungspunkte.
• Ein fachlich geeignetes vorheriges Studium im Bereich Rechtswissenschaften oder verwandter Studiengänge wird in der Regel anerkannt, wenn es vertiefte Kenntnisse im europäischen Wirtschaftsrecht (insbesondere EU-Binnenmarkt- und Wettbewerbsrecht), im europäischen und internationalen Privatrecht sowie im Völkerrecht im Umfang von mindestens 10 Leistungspunkten und Kenntnisse in der Rechtsvergleichung im Umfang von 5 Leistungspunkten vermittelt hat.
• In Ausnahmefällen kann der Zugang gewährt werden, wenn Bewerber*innen einen Abschluss mit mindestens 180 Leistungspunkten vorweisen und zusätzliche Kompetenzen im Europarecht (insbesondere im Recht der europäischen Institutionen, europäischen Grundfreiheiten, europäischen Wirtschaftsrecht sowie Wettbewerbsrecht) im Umfang von mindestens 60 Leistungspunkten nachweisen können.
• Der Nachweis zusätzlicher Kompetenzen kann erbracht werden durch:
  • einschlägige Berufserfahrung von mindestens 6 Monaten,
  • freiwillige Zusatzleistungen im vorherigen Studium,
  • oder andere Belege, die ausreichende Kompetenzen nachweisen.

This degree course is expected to be admission-restricted, and application is only possible in the winter semester.

Detailed application deadlines for the winter semester:

• Applications with a German university entrance qualification or degree: by 30 September
• Applications from the EU: by 30 September
• Applications from third countries (non-EU): by 30 April

Overview application deadlines Master's programmes 
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International applicants: Please note the different application procedures.

In the current labour market, there is a remarkable demand for graduates who have a deep understanding of technology law and the legal challenges posed by the continuous changes in the technology sector. This specialised Master's programme is designed to prepare students for a career in this specific field and to meet these demands.

Graduates of the planned Master's programme will find a wide range of employment opportunities in both the public and private sectors, as digital technologies are increasingly impacting all facets of the legal system. Lawyers with this expertise, who are familiar with the impact of (new) technological tools and practices on our legal systems, are more in demand than ever. Policy makers who can adequately grasp the complex interplay between jurisdiction and technology within organisations in the digital environment are also proving to be indispensable. Exemplary fields of activity include:

• Lawyer or other positions in the legal industry.
• Policy advisor in national or international organisations, governmental regulatory institutions or companies.
• Consultants who advise organisations and institutions on possible approaches in the digital and technological sector.

Career prospects and opportunities for graduates of the Master's degree programme also extend to the field of compliance, enabling graduates to respond to new requirements from companies and administrative bodies. Sectors such as software licensing and trading in certificates (for example in the context of CO2 or other emission-relevant documents) are emerging as characteristic fields of activity in which graduates of this Master's degree programme can acquire specialist expertise and cover the requirements.

Graduates of the Master's degree programme perform qualified legal work in companies, administrations and organisations of all kinds. Only specially regulated professions that require the state examination in law as a mandatory prerequisite (judges, public prosecutors, etc.) are not open to graduates. Instead, they are qualified for jobs that require transnational expertise due to the internationally oriented content of the programme.

https://www.hanse-law-school.org/de/master/