The Single-Cycle Master's Degree in Law is a five-year academic program designed to provide students, also with a view to their postgraduate specialization, with a thorough understanding of the institutional and organizational aspects of judicial systems. It also aims to equip students with the necessary tools to continuously update and expand their knowledge and skills in the legal field.

From the very first year, students develop a solid grounding in both national and international law, enabling them to become fully aware of their role as European legal professionals. Drawing on an understanding of the historical development of legal norms, graduates acquire the ability to fully comprehend and apply the mechanisms of legal reasoning and argumentation. These skills can be employed across a wide range of professional settings, including the legal professions, managerial positions within public administrations and European institutions, as well as roles in private enterprises and other organizations.

Professional Profile: Graduate in Law (Single-Cycle Master's Degree)
Role and Functions in the Workplace

The Single-Cycle Master's Degree in Law is primarily designed as the academic pathway leading to highly significant legal professions, such as Lawyer, Judge, and Notary Public, subject to the completion of the required traineeship and the successful passing of the relevant national competitive examinations, qualifying examinations, and/or admission procedures. In pursuit of these career goals, graduates may also access postgraduate training programs offered by universities.

Graduates in Law may also pursue careers and hold positions across a wide range of social, economic, cultural, and political sectors, including public institutions, public administrations (including administrative support services for judicial offices), private companies, trade unions, and areas such as information technology law, comparative law, international law, and European Union law, as well as within international organizations.

Competencies

Graduates possess the analytical, evaluative, and decision-making skills required of legal professionals across all areas of law at the national, European, and international levels. These competencies are applicable in both public and private organizations, including positions involving managerial responsibilities and a high degree of professional accountability.

Career Opportunities

Graduates of the Single-Cycle Master's Degree in Law may pursue careers in the legal professions and the judiciary, as well as positions of significant responsibility in social, economic, cultural, and political sectors, including institutions, public administrations, private enterprises, trade unions, the fields of information technology law, comparative law, European Union law, international law, and international organizations.

Professional Profile: Lawyer
Role and Functions in the Workplace

Lawyers represent and protect the interests of their clients, whether individuals, businesses, or organizations, in legal matters and at all levels of civil, criminal, and administrative proceedings. They draft contracts and legal documents, provide legal advice and consultancy services, offer legal assistance, and may act as arbitrators in out-of-court dispute resolution procedures.

Competencies

Lawyers must possess a thorough knowledge of legal sources and interpretative frameworks, including legislation, regulations, procedures, and case law. They must be able to identify, classify, and analyze specific legal issues and maintain their expertise through continuous professional and academic development.

Lawyers must also be able to draft legal opinions and documents in Italian and communicate effectively with clients, colleagues, judges, and other stakeholders. They are expected to possess adequate digital and managerial skills, apply principles of economics and accounting in legal practice, and demonstrate proficiency in the legal terminology of one or more foreign languages, particularly English and French.

Career Opportunities

The legal profession may be practiced either independently or as an employee. Law graduates typically begin their careers through a legal traineeship within a law firm, allowing them to apply and develop the knowledge acquired during their university studies. Alternatively, they may attend a postgraduate School of Specialization for Legal Professions.

During the traineeship, aspiring lawyers refine their legal expertise, gain experience with judicial institutions, and learn how to organize and manage professional legal practice.

Following completion of the traineeship, attendance of the mandatory training course for access to the legal profession (introduced by Ministerial Decree No. 17/2018), and successful completion of the State Examination qualifying for legal practice, lawyers may work independently or as employees of law firms, banks, insurance companies, private enterprises, public administrations, or other organizations.

Lawyers may further enhance their qualifications through specialization schools, second-level master's programs, and advanced professional training courses.

Professional Profile: Notary Public
Role and Functions in the Workplace

Notaries draft and authenticate legal acts between living parties, such as property transactions, mortgage agreements, and donations, as well as testamentary acts, including wills. Acting as public officials, they confer public authenticity upon such documents, register and record them in public registers, preserve them, certify their validity, and issue copies, extracts, and certifications.

Notaries ascertain the intentions of the parties involved and translate them into legally valid language, ensuring the legality of the instruments drafted. They advise clients on the most appropriate legal instruments for achieving their objectives, verify the legality of transactions and documents, conduct legal examinations (including land registry and mortgage checks), and provide specialist advice in areas such as taxation, civil law, and property law.

Competencies

Notaries must possess extensive knowledge of legislation, regulations, legal procedures, and case law. They must be capable of accurately identifying and qualifying legal situations while maintaining continuous professional development.

They must also be proficient in drafting legal opinions and documents in Italian, communicating effectively with clients and colleagues, assessing clients' needs, and determining the most appropriate legal services.

In addition, notaries require strong organizational and digital skills, together with a comprehensive command of legal terminology in one or more foreign languages.

Career Opportunities

Graduates seeking a career in notarial practice typically complete a traineeship within a notarial office or, alternatively, attend a School of Specialization for Legal Professions.

During this training period, they further develop their legal expertise while gaining practical experience in the organization and management of notarial activities.

Upon successfully passing the national notarial competition, candidates are assigned a location and must establish their professional office within three months.

Professional Profile: Judge (Magistrate)
Role and Functions in the Workplace

Judges administer criminal, civil, and administrative justice once the legal requirements for proceedings have been satisfied.

Their duties include scheduling and conducting hearings, examining and studying case files, appointing expert witnesses, gathering and evaluating evidence, hearing parties and their legal representatives, conducting investigations where required, delivering judgments, and drafting the reasoning supporting those decisions.

Judges also oversee correctional institutions, order alternative precautionary measures to detention where appropriate, assess issues concerning the constitutionality and application of laws, supervise administrative personnel, and monitor the management of public resources and expenditure.

Competencies

Judges must possess comprehensive knowledge of legislation, regulations, procedural rules, and case law. They require strong analytical and legal reasoning skills, supported by ongoing scholarly and professional development.

They must be capable of drafting well-reasoned judicial decisions in Italian and interacting effectively with legal professionals, litigants, judicial police officers, and court personnel.

Judges must also understand and apply investigative methodologies and possess a strong command of legal terminology in one or more foreign languages.

Career Opportunities

Under the judicial recruitment reforms introduced in 2022, law graduates wishing to enter the judiciary must pass a national competitive examination administered by the Ministry of Justice and complete a compulsory six-month training course at the Italian School for the Judiciary.

Judges may serve, in some cases following additional competitive examinations, within ordinary and specialized judicial bodies, including:

Supreme Court of Cassation
Courts of Appeal
Ordinary Courts
Courts of Assizes
Courts of Assizes of Appeal
Juvenile Courts
Supervisory Courts
Court of Auditors
State Advocate General's Office
Regional Administrative Courts
Council of State

Experienced judges from higher courts may also be appointed or elected to constitutional bodies, institutions of constitutional significance, or independent authorities.

Professional Profile: Legal Advisor in Companies or Public Institutions
Role and Functions in the Workplace

A Corporate Legal Advisor is responsible for managing and coordinating a company's legal department and overseeing all legal aspects of business operations. This includes ensuring compliance with applicable laws and regulations, drafting national and international contracts and legal documents, providing legal advice, preparing administrative documentation, managing relationships with external entities, supervising legal matters affecting the organization, supporting administrative departments, recovering debts when necessary, and participating in institutional committees and advisory bodies.

Corporate legal advisors are also responsible for preventing litigation and, where disputes arise, coordinating and managing legal proceedings on behalf of the organization.

A Legal Advisor in Public Institutions performs similar functions within public bodies or governmental organizations. Responsibilities include ensuring legal compliance, drafting legal and administrative acts, providing legal advice, maintaining relations with external authorities such as courts and the State Attorney's Office, supporting administrative functions, and participating in institutional committees and advisory boards.

These professionals are likewise responsible for preventing and managing litigation under their area of responsibility.

Competencies

Corporate legal advisors must possess expert knowledge of legislation, regulations, procedures, and case law, together with strong analytical and legal reasoning abilities.

They must be able to:

Draft legal opinions and legal instruments;
Support business administration and management activities;
Understand administrative procedures;
Manage documentation and archives;
Apply principles of economics and accounting;
Manage personnel and human resources;
Work effectively with professionals from different sectors;
Understand organizational dynamics;
Support commercial and service-related activities;
Communicate effectively with colleagues, clients, and stakeholders;
Use digital technologies relevant to their professional role;
Demonstrate proficiency in legal terminology in one or more foreign languages.

Legal advisors in public institutions must also possess knowledge of:

Public administration procedures;
Organizational management;
Archive and records management;
Public-sector accounting principles;
Personnel management;
Security policies and procedures;
Human behavior and group dynamics;
Social trends, migration issues, and multicultural contexts.

They must likewise possess advanced digital skills and a full command of legal terminology in one or more foreign languages.

Career Opportunities

Corporate legal advisors may work as employees or consultants for industrial, manufacturing, and service companies, banks, insurance companies, and professional firms, including legal, notarial, accounting, engineering, and architectural practices.

Career progression typically begins with junior legal advisory positions and may culminate in roles such as Head of Legal Affairs or Head of Litigation.

Within public institutions, legal advisors may pursue careers at national, European, and international levels.

At the national level, following successful completion of public competitive examinations, they may hold senior positions in:

Municipalities, Provinces, and Regional Governments;
Public agencies and authorities;
Healthcare authorities;
Chambers of Commerce;
Universities;
Public enterprises;
Government ministries and parliamentary institutions;
Revenue and Tax Agencies;
Labour Inspectorates;
Judicial administration offices, including court and public prosecutor registries.

At the European level, following successful participation in competitions organized by the European Personnel Selection Office (EPSO), graduates may hold positions of responsibility within EU institutions and bodies, including:

European Commission
European Parliament
Council of the European Union
Court of Justice of the European Union
European Court of Auditors
European Committee of the Regions
European Ombudsman
European Data Protection Supervisor

At the international level, they may pursue diplomatic careers and positions within governmental and non-governmental international organizations.

Further professional development may be achieved through postgraduate specialization schools, second-level master's degrees, and advanced professional training programmes.

The Single-Cycle Master's Degree in Law aims to educate graduates who:

have acquired a solid grounding in the fundamental elements of legal culture at the national, European, and international levels, through teaching methods that combine theoretical study with practical, case-based, and clinical approaches. This enables students to understand, assess, and apply the principles and institutions of positive law in order to identify and resolve legal issues, including complex matters affecting contemporary individuals and society;

have developed an adequate level of historical knowledge, allowing them to independently assess and contextualize modern legal institutions within their historical evolution, with particular attention to the legal challenges arising from innovation;

possess the ability to draft and prepare, including through the use of digital and technological tools, legal documents, decisions, and other legal texts (particularly legislative, contractual, and procedural documents) that are clear, relevant, effective for their intended purpose, and adequately reasoned;

have developed, through acquired interpretative, analytical, and legal reasoning skills, a sound and effective methodology for addressing issues concerning the interpretation and application of positive law, including from a multidisciplinary perspective. These skills include legal classification, fact analysis in relation to legal rules, comprehension, representation, evaluation, and critical awareness;

possess a rigorous analytical approach, together with the knowledge, tools, and foundational competencies required for the continuous development and updating of their professional skills and legal expertise.

Study Programme Structure

The first year and part of the second year focus on the study of foundational subjects in the areas of:

Legal history, including Roman Law Institutions, Legal and Judicial History, and Foundations of European Law;
Public law, including Constitutional Law and Ecclesiastical Law;
Private law, through the study of Institutions of Private Law;
Legal philosophy, including Philosophy of Law, Legal Informatics, and the Theory and Technique of Legal Interpretation.

The first-year curriculum is complemented by the study of a foreign language and the development of transferable skills related to the art of classical public speaking and advocacy.

During the following three years, students focus on the core subjects of legal education, including:

Criminal Law
Commercial Law
Political Economy
International Law
European Union Law
Comparative Public and Private Law
Administrative Law
Tax Law
Labour Law
Civil Procedure
Criminal Procedure

This phase of the programme is further enhanced through advanced study of Civil Law, Contemporary Legal History, and an elective course chosen by the student. Students also develop practical skills in legal drafting and the use of digital tools within judicial and procedural contexts.

During the fifth and final year, students further develop their abilities in the interpretation of case law and judicial decisions, as well as transferable skills related to teamwork and collaboration. In preparation for their final dissertation, students complete their academic training by selecting one of three specialized study tracks:

Private Law
Criminal Law
Public Law

Each specialization provides advanced study within the selected macro-area of law and enables students to align their academic pathway with their intended professional career objectives.

The degree programme also includes two additional elective courses and is enriched by opportunities to participate in seminars, conferences, workshops, and other academic and professional development initiatives offered by the programme.

Admission Requirements

Applicants to the Single-Cycle Master's Degree in Law must hold a secondary school diploma or an equivalent qualification obtained abroad and recognized as suitable for admission.

The specific knowledge and competencies required for admission, together with the procedures for assessing applicants' initial preparation (including, where applicable, an entry assessment test), are defined in the Degree Programme Regulations. These regulations also specify any Additional Educational Requirements (OFA, Obblighi Formativi Aggiuntivi) assigned to students whose initial preparation is deemed inadequate. Such requirements must normally be fulfilled during the first year of study.

How to Apply

To enroll in the Single-Cycle Master's Degree in Law, students must possess a secondary school diploma or an equivalent foreign qualification recognized as suitable for admission.

Each year, the Degree Programme Board determines the maximum number of international students who may be admitted to the programme, in accordance with current regulations.

Admission to the Law degree programme requires students to take a mandatory orientation and assessment test, which is not selective in nature. The purpose of the test is to evaluate whether a student's academic background is adequate and consistent with the knowledge and skills necessary for successful completion of the programme.

The test must be taken before enrolment or, in any event, by the deadline established by the Degree Programme Board.

To pass the test, students must achieve a score equal to or higher than the minimum threshold established annually by the Degree Programme Board.

Applicants who obtain a score below the required threshold may still enrol in the programme and attend classes. However, they will be assigned Additional Educational Requirements (OFA) designed to address any identified gaps in their preparation. The same requirements are also assigned to students who enrol without taking the assessment test.

Detailed information regarding the format and schedule of the admission test, as well as the procedures for completing the OFA requirements, is published annually on the dedicated pages of the University's website.

Entry Guidance and Orientation

The Degree Programme in Law participates in the University's entry guidance and orientation activities, which are organized both at the academic area level and at the institutional level. These initiatives are presented on the dedicated section of the University's website, which also provides access to guidance activities specific to each academic area.

Orientation activities are coordinated by a working group composed of the Rector's Delegate for Student Guidance, the Departmental Guidance Delegates, and staff from a dedicated organizational unit (Student Guidance Office – U.O.C. Orientamento).

The planning and delivery of orientation services managed by the Student Guidance Office are certified according to the UNI EN ISO 9001:2015 quality standard, ensuring a high level of service quality and continuous improvement.

Information on regular activities, news, and updated guidance initiatives is available on the dedicated Orientation webpage.

Ongoing Academic Guidance and Tutoring

Tutoring initiatives are organized at the University level in accordance with the annual tutoring plan, which is prepared each year by the University's Tutoring Committee and approved by the Academic Senate.

The Tutoring Service supports students throughout their academic journey by providing ongoing guidance aimed at:

promoting regular progression through the degree programme;
supporting academic success and student engagement;
identifying and addressing difficulties that may affect academic performance;
helping reduce student withdrawal and non-completion rates.

The administrative management of the student tutoring service is certified according to the UNI EN ISO 9001:2015 quality standard and is delivered through a dedicated organizational unit within the University's student support and right-to-study services.

Further information is available through the University's Tutoring Service webpages.

Characteristics of the Final Examination

The final examination consists of the presentation of an individual written dissertation on a theoretical or applied legal topic.

The examination is conducted in a public session before a committee of academic staff, which awards the final degree classification on a scale of 110 points (out of 110).

The final degree mark is calculated by converting the grades obtained in the various curricular activities, originally expressed on a 30-point scale, into a weighted average based on the number of ECTS credits earned for each course.

Preparation of the final dissertation is carried out by the student under the supervision of a faculty advisor (thesis supervisor) and is worth 17 ECTS credits.

Final Examination Procedures

The final examination consists of submitting and defending an individual written dissertation on a theoretical or practical topic, which may also be related to internship or placement activities.

The examination takes place in a public session before a committee of faculty members, which determines the candidate's overall final grade on a 110-point scale.

The calculation of the final degree classification is based on the weighted average of the grades obtained in the various courses and educational activities, taking into account the corresponding ECTS credits.

The activities associated with the preparation of the Master's dissertation are undertaken under the guidance of a faculty supervisor and account for 17 ECTS credits.

A portion of these 17 ECTS credits may be earned through a period of study abroad, in accordance with the procedures established for international mobility programmes. In such cases:

9 ECTS credits are awarded for a study period abroad of at least three months;
Students may earn one additional ECTS credit for each further three-month period spent abroad;
A maximum of 12 ECTS credits may be recognized for a study period abroad of up to twelve months.
Graduation

Upon successful completion of all programme requirements, including the defence of the final dissertation, students are awarded the Single-Cycle Master's Degree in Law (Laurea Magistrale a ciclo unico in Giurisprudenza), which qualifies graduates for access to postgraduate legal training and, subject to the relevant professional requirements and examinations, to the traditional legal professions and other careers requiring advanced legal expertise.