Looking to advance your career in compliance? By obtaining your Master of Legal Studies (M.L.S.) degree, you can enhance your opportunities for career growth by furthering your skills and understanding of legal frameworks, industry regulations, risk management, and more.
An M.L.S. equips compliance professionals with the analytical skills to enhance understanding of legal statutes, case law, and more — aiding their ability to make informed decisions and ensure compliance with applicable rules.
So, is an M.L.S. degree right for you? Learn more about the benefits of an M.L.S. for compliance professionals as well as some tips for choosing the right program to suit your needs.
Understanding the Role of a Compliance Professional
Compliance professionals play a central role within many companies and even government agencies. No matter if you currently work as a compliance officer in corporate finance, healthcare, or another industry, there are a number of key job responsibilities you may need to fulfill.
Job Responsibilities of Compliance Professionals
Compliance professionals (such as compliance officers) are responsible for ensuring that businesses and organizations are in total compliance with all related laws and regulations. Some common job duties in this line of work include:
- Assessing operational risks
- Staying up to date on compliance/regulatory changes
- Developing and implementing relevant policy changes within the company
- Conducting regular compliance assessments
Required Skills for Compliance Professionals
Compliance professionals should possess a range of hard and soft skills in order to perform their jobs well. From a technical standpoint, the most important thing is to have a strong understanding of any laws and regulations that may affect their respective businesses or organizations.
In addition, compliance professionals must possess strong analytical skills, impeccable attention to detail, risk management capabilities, and communication skills (both written and verbal).
The Impact of an M.L.S. Degree on a Compliance Career
Having an M.L.S. degree can put compliance professionals in a unique position to enhance their career prospects. This is especially true when you consider that a quality M.L.S. program will include a focus on compliance and regulation issues across a variety of industries.
How a Master of Legal Studies Degree Enhances Compliance Skills
Ultimately, the level of compliance and regulatory instruction you receive in an M.L.S. program will vary from one program to the next. This may also depend on the particular track you choose (if any). However, most M.L.S. programs cover regulatory and compliance-related studies that help hone professional skills in topics like:
- Ethical foundations of risk and compliance
- Communication skills for compliance professionals
- Industry-specific laws and policies
At the University of Miami School of Law, for instance, a required core course throughout the M.L.S. curriculum includes Corporate Compliance and Enterprise Risk Management, focused on:
- Corporate oversight
- Roles of prosecutors and regulators
- Trends of metrics and integrated governance, risk management, and compliance (GRC)
- The modern compliance landscape at large corporate and government entities
Other compliance courses within specialized tracks can build your skills in areas such as:
- Employee benefits and compensation compliance
- Green/sustainable development compliance
- Financial services, investment company, and broker/dealer regulation and compliance
The M.L.S. Advantage: 6 Key Benefits for Compliance Professionals
There are numerous benefits of an M.L.S. program for compliance professionals. While the below is by no means an exhaustive list, it can help you get a better feel for some main advantages of this type of degree as it relates to your career in compliance management.
Enhancing Understanding of Legal Frameworks
An M.L.S. program can enhance your understanding of legal frameworks that are specific to your industry. For example, your core curriculum may include coursework on legal research, writing, and analysis skills. With this improved understanding of the legal frameworks behind regulation and compliance laws, you can better perform your own work in this realm.
Improved Risk Management Abilities
Typically, an M.L.S. program will also include topics related to risk management, risk assessment, and risk mitigation. These are crucial skills to have as a compliance professional, especially for compliance officers who are responsible for using risk management to govern decision-making. With guidance from an M.L.S. program, compliance professionals can be more confident in their overall risk management abilities.
Better Understanding of Ethical Procedures
Additionally, many compliance roles come with the need to understand ethical procedures. A quality M.L.S. program will include coursework in such topics as ethical foundations and ethical decision-making, which can help these professionals better apply ethics and values to their daily work.
Stronger Understanding of Regulation in Your Industry
Regulation is another key component of any M.L.S. program, and learning more about laws and regulations specific to your industry can help you be more knowledgeable and valuable in your career in compliance requirements. Whether you are working in financial services, healthcare, human resources, or any other industry, there are bound to be strict regulations to be aware of.
Development of Critical Thinking and Analytical Skills
Attending an M.L.S. program also challenges students to expand upon their critical thinking and analytical skills, which can prove invaluable on the job. Compliance officers and other compliance professionals often must make quick and informed decisions, so having sharp analytical and critical thinking skills can empower them to act more confidently.
Learning Applicable Compliance Skills to Your Current Career
What is one of the best things about being enrolled in an M.L.S. program? What you learn about compliance in class are things you can apply at your current job the very next day. This means you are not only gaining the foundational knowledge you need to enhance your career in compliance; you're also able to apply these theories and concepts to real-world situations.
M.L.S. and Career Growth in Compliance by Industry
An M.L.S. degree can help advance your career and grow your skill set across numerous industries. And if you pursue an M.L.S. with the University of Miami School of Law, you will get to choose from a general track or a more specialized track in industries like healthcare, human resources, technology, finance, real estate, or technology.
Healthcare Compliance
Regulations and compliance are especially essential in the healthcare field, where there are strict laws (such as HIPAA) surrounding how sensitive patient data is stored and secured. Of course, HIPAA is not the only law of which compliance professionals need to be aware in their work. From information privacy law to healthcare information privacy and beyond, compliance professionals will benefit from understanding the ins and outs of the healthcare industry.
Human Resource Compliance
Compliance professionals in human resources must stay informed on all compliance issues related to employment contracts, wage protections, and other legal components of the industry. In pursuing an M.L.S. program track in human resource compliance, you can learn more about important topics such as managing information privacy in the workplace, compensation compliance, employment law, and much more.
Investment Banking Compliance
If you find yourself working in finance, then you can also benefit from exploring an M.L.S. degree program focused specifically on investment banking compliance issues. This may include coursework on ethical foundations of risk and compliance, advanced communication skills for compliance professionals, information privacy law, and broker/dealer regulation and compliance. With a better grasp of these crucial topics, compliance professionals can perform their jobs with added confidence and capability.
Cybersecurity and Data Privacy Compliance
Working in technology or cybersecurity comes with its own set of challenges for compliance professionals. These days, it is essential to remain cognizant and abreast of the vast range of cybersecurity regulations and privacy laws. With an M.L.S. education, compliance professionals can explore the legal aspects of cybersecurity through coursework on information privacy law, global data privacy, digital commerce regulation, and ethical foundations of risk compliance.
Construction Compliance
For compliance officers and others working in the real estate industry, construction work also comes with some critical compliance laws and regulations that must be adhered to at all times. This includes specific laws related to sustainable development compliance, housing law regulations, investment and finance law, and construction contract administration. A comprehensive M.L.S. degree program will cover all these topics and more so compliance professionals can enhance their understanding of these issues and apply this knowledge to their everyday work.
How M.L.S. Knowledge Contributes to Effective Compliance Work
No matter which of these industries you may find yourself in, the reality is that completing an M.L.S. program can help you better perform your job. As part of your M.L.S. studies, you will gain a better understanding of the exact compliance issues and regulatory laws affecting your industry. From there, you can apply what you have learned in class to make confident decisions in your own career and perform more effective compliance work.
Factors to Consider When Choosing an M.L.S. Program
Are you in the process of seeking out the right M.L.S. degree program? Although there are plenty to choose from, there are also many factors to take into consideration when deciding which program is right for your needs.
Consider, too, the format of the program. Is it offered exclusively on campus, online - maybe a combination of both? If you are already working in compliance, you want to find a program flexible enough that you can pursue your degree while still tending to your career obligations and other life responsibilities.
You should take some time to research the program faculty as well. Preferably, the program you select will have experienced faculty who have actually worked as experts in the field. This way, you can rest assured they have a true understanding of your industry’s nuances and what it takes to succeed as a compliance professional there.
Advance Your Compliance Career Today with an M.L.S. Online Degree
From healthcare and financial services to real estate, human resources, and technology, numerous industries need knowledgeable, skilled compliance professionals to keep them in good standing. If you are looking to build upon your compliance and regulatory knowledge with a flexible M.L.S. program, the University of Miami School of Law is here to help. In fact, our M.L.S. curriculum is designed with your choice of a general or a more specialized track to suit your goals within a particular field. Meanwhile, this program is available entirely online, so you can work and study at your own pace.
Interested in learning more about our M.L.S. program? Get in touch today to request more information or get started by applying to our Master of Legal Studies program at your convenience.
Sources
https://admissions.law.miami.edu/academics/mls/
https://admissions.law.miami.edu/apply/mls/form/
https://admissions.law.miami.edu/academics/mls/curriculum/