Summary

In accordance with the Bologna Declaration, the Law Faculty of the University of Tartu has prepared a new law programme. According to the new programme, the nominal duration of the bachelor’s and master’s degree programmes is five years (instead of the former 6 years) and the model 3+2 is applied. The purpose of the bachelor’s degree programme is to provide students with broad-based knowledge in social sciences, including in the field of law. Knowledge acquired as a result of the L.L.B. programme enables graduates to work in positions requiring the basic knowledge of law. The purpose of the Master’s degree programme is to offer integral academic legal education, basic knowledge necessary for continuing education in the Doctoral programme and professional skills for employment in positions requiring legal qualifications. The Dean of the Law Faculty focuses on the most significant principles underlying the new law curriculum.
Research-based legal education forms an important part of academic higher education. This means that instruction should be based on the research of members of the academic staff. However, research is only possible if it is sufficiently financed. The underfinancing of legal research has led to the situation where the development of jurisprudence in Estonia has become a private matter for the Law Faculty as it is not valued by the state.
In recent years, the role of state commissioned education has significantly dropped and the importance of fee-charging education has grown. However, if an adequate educational loan system is not developed, the further growth of the share of fee-charging education is likely to adversely affect the capacity of students and the overall standards of jurists.