Master's in Law and Economics of the Sea – Ocean Governance

Undock the future

Presentation

The Master’s in Law and Economics of the Sea – Ocean Governance is an interdisciplinary, unique and innovative programme dedicated to the study of issues related to the governance of the sea.

Distinguished as the best in the world, according to Eduniversal’s international ranking, in Maritime Management, it will bring together NOVA School of Law and Nova School of Business and Economics in the next academic year 2023/2024, corresponding to the evolution of the NOVA School of Law Master’s degree started in 2015.

In the new configuration, it reinforces its interdisciplinary and international vocation, aware that at sea lie some of the greatest challenges and opportunities on the planet for sustainable development.

This course will be taught entirely in English.

Coordination

SITE_docentes-residentes-ASSUNCAO-CRISTAS

Assunção Cristas

Docentes_Antonieta_Cunha_Sa

Antonieta Cunha e Sá

Scientific Commission

Chair: Assunção Cristas | Board Members: Antonieta Cunha e Sá (school stage) | Lucila de Almeida (non-learning)

Goals

Students should acquire in-depth knowledge in the areas of law most relevant to the field of the sea, always bearing in mind the perspective of ensuring sustainability, as well as in the area of economics related to the ocean – the major areas of development of the sustainable economy of the ocean, financing of the economy and the link between natural resources and the economy of the sea.
They should acquire an integrated, holistic and interdisciplinary vision of ocean-related issues, from a critical, constructive and creative perspective that allows them to identify the main trends, the threats the ocean suffers and the opportunities it holds, and to be able to contribute creatively to finding solutions to threats and to seizing and creating opportunities.
Students are challenged to understand issues at local, but also regional, national and global levels, in a mutually related perspective consisting of diverse levels of reflection and action.

Target Applicant

The master’s degree places value in involving students with very diverse previous academic paths. The following may enter the course:

  • Holders of a bachelor’s degree or legal equivalent;
  • Holders of a foreign higher academic degree conferred following a 1st cycle of studies organized according to the principles of the Bologna Process by a State that adheres to that Process;
  • Holders of a foreign higher academic degree that is recognized as meeting the objectives of the bachelor’s degree by the Faculty’s Scientific Council;
  • Holders of an academic, scientific or professional curriculum vitae that is recognized as attesting to the capacity to carry out this cycle of studies by the Faculty’s Scientific Council.

Hourly regime:

This course is taught in the evening*.

*Some optional curricular units may have timetables that do not coincide with the course timetable.

Certification

Study CycleDegreeA3ES DecisionNumber of YearsPublication of the A3ES decisionDGES registration numberRegulation/Study Programme

Law and Economics of the Sea – Ocean Governance

Master

Accredited

6

31-07-2022

Documents relating to the accreditation process

R/A-Cr 205/2022

Regulation n.º 824/2021

Regulations

Testimonials

Upon obtaining my undergraduate degree in Biology, I wanted to acquire knowledge of ocean governance and marine resources management. That is why I enrolled in the Master’s in Law and Economics of the Sea, which has enabled me to achieve an education in multiple areas, even though I do not have a legal background. Access to the syllabus and professors facilitated my entry into new areas of marine policy knowledge. The Master's degree provides a very comprehensive curriculum, which makes it possible to explore various sectors in the context of ocean governance. The fact that it is taught entirely in English is very positive, facilitating adaptation in discussions on international maritime affairs, opening doors to the job market. Having completed the Master's degree, I intend to continue further studies in these areas
Sara Apresentação
Student
The Master’s in Law and Economics of the Sea - Ocean Governance represents the perfect symbiosis between technology (not only legal and economic, but also biological) and practice in the marine field. Our faculty, with diverse technical and academic backgrounds, and our broad program, which also allows us to design our own master’s by combining our main interests in the field, gives it its own and distinctive multidisciplinarity. The opportunity to participate in this Master’s program has given me a greater and deeper awareness, not only of the challenges that we are all currently facing on a global scale, but more importantly, of the active and central role that the sea and its economy plays. The urgency of current and future solutions to these issues is becoming increasingly clear and the Master’s in Law and Economics of the Sea - Ocean Governance provides us with the necessary knowledge base to determine the path to take. Having completed the curricular phase of the Master’s, I feel that this path has given me some of the tools necessary to be part of the solution
Carolina Vaza
Lawyer at Vieira de Almeida & Associados in the areas of Environment and Ocean

Curricular Plan

+ 2023/2024

The teaching phase corresponds to 60 ECTS and consists of 8 mandatory courses (38 ECTS). Students must also complete 22 ECTS in option subjects (4 ECTS in the Social and Behavioural Sciences option and 18 ECTS in the Law or Economics or Management option), as listed here:

1st Year - Taught Component

1st Semester ECTS
Mandatory
Environmental Law 6
International Law of the Sea and International Courts 6
Natural Marine Resources and the Ocean Economy 4
Maritime Law and Civil Liability 4
Ocean Policies 4
Restricted Option (Law)
International Humanitarian Law 6
Data Protection and Management Law* 6
Financial Instruments Law 4
Energy Law 4
2nd SemesterECTS
Mandatory
Financing Sustainable Blue Economy and Integration of Policies and Development6
Economic Models for Sustainable Ocean Economy4
Maritime Security4
Restricted Option (Law)
Methodology of Legal Research6
EU Asylum and Migration Law6
International Commercial Law6
Port’s Law and Shipping Management4
Business, Human Rights and Sustainability4
European Law of the Sea4
Insurance Law (EU Insurance Law)**4
Restricted Option (Social and Behavioural Sciences)
Ocean Governance4
Restricted Option (Management)
Applied Social Entrepreneurship7
Business Model Innovation3.5
Geoeconomics and International Relations3.5
Sustainable International Business3.5
Restricted Option (Economy)
Environmental Policy3.5
Global Energy Markets3.5
ECTS
Optional (Management)
Applied Entrepreneurship 7
Business Model Innovation 3.5
Geoeconomics and International Relations 3.5
Sustainable International Business 3.5
Optional (Economy)
Environmental Policy 3.5
Global Energy Markets 3.5

*Data Protection and Management Law is a course offered by NOVA School of Law’s Jean Monnet Module on European Union Data Protection Law in Portugal (DataporEU)

**EU Insurance Law is a course offered by NOVA School of Law’s Jean Monnet Module on EU Insurance Law: Challenges in the SDG Era, funded by the European Commission (EUInsLSDG).

2nd Year - Non-taught Component

1st semester / 2nd semesterECTS
Mandatory 
Dissertation, internship at national or international institution or project work60


NOVA School of Law participates in THEMIS, a network that encourages the internationalization of master’s students. The THEMIS certificate is granted when students complete a semester of mobility, participate in an international conference, and complete an international internship under the THEMIS Programme.

+ 2022/2023

The teaching phase corresponds to 60 ECTS and is composed of 8 compulsory subjects (38 ECTS). Students must also complete 22 ECTS in optional subjects (4 ECTS in the Social and Behavioural Sciences area and 18 ECTS in the Law area), as listed here:

1st Year - Taught Component

1st semester ECTS
Mandatory 
International Law of the Sea and International Courts 6
Maritime Law and Civil Liability 4
Maritime Security 4
Natural Marine Resources and the Ocean Economy 6
Ocean Policies 4
Optional (LAW)
Energy Law 4
Financial Instruments Law 4
Insurance Law (EU Insurance Law***) 4
International Humanitarian Law 6
2nd semester ECTS
Mandatory 
Economic Models for Sustainable Ocean Economy 4
Financing Sustainable Blue Economy and Integration of Policies and Development 4
Environmental Law 6
Optional (Social Sciences)
The Sea and Maritime Identity** 4
Ocean Governance** 4
Course offered by the NOVA FCSH Jean Monnet Chair in EU Integrated Maritime Policy and Blue Growth (to be confirmed) 6
Optional (Law)
International Commercial Law 6
Data Protection and Management Law* 6
EU Asylum and Migration Law 6
Port’s Law and Shipping Management 4
European Law of the Sea 4
Emerging Technologies: Governance and Regulation 4
Business, Human Rights and Sustainability 4

*Data Protection and Management Law is a course offered by NOVA School of Law’s Jean Monnet Module on European Union Data Protection Law in Portugal (DataporEU)

** In each year, only that curricular unit which students have expressed the most interest in will be taught.

*** EU Insurance Law is a course offered by NOVA School of Law’s Jean Monnet Module on EU Insurance Law: Challenges in the SDG Era, funded by the European Commission (EUInsLSDG).

2nd Year - Research Component

1st semester / 2nd semesterECTS
Mandatory 
Dissertation, internship at national or international institution or project work.60
Objectives and Structure of the Curricular Units
here

Tuition Fees

 

In master’s degrees and doctorates, the tuition fee for part-time students corresponds to 65% of the tuition fee owed by full-time students.

*Tuition fees as deliberated by the General Council on 14 December 2022

**Applicable only if the course is not terminated inside the established deadline

The reading of this information does not dispense with consulting the notice of fees and the table of emoluments in force in the respective academic year.


The fees are annual and are due in full upon enrolment in the course. Payment in instalments is allowed at the students’ convenience.

In the case of withdrawal, there is no refund of fees already paid. There is also the payment of the outstanding instalments of the tuition fee for the academic year to which the enrolment refers.
Only the situation of non-completion of the previous course by September, in cases of admission conditioned upon its completion, gives rise to the return of the amounts paid for the tuition fee. In these cases, the candidate must prove the situation by a declaration of the home institution until the end of September. Amounts other than tuition fees (fees, school insurance and administrative costs) are not refunded.

Payments must be made through the ATM or Paypal* using the references available in the reserved area. Failure to pay the fees within the indicated deadlines implies the application of a surcharge on the amount to be paid and/or the suspension of enrolment, as well as the invalidity of all acts carried out in the academic year to which the non-payment refers.

*Paypal payments have automatic validation; Multibanco payments will be validated up to 48 hours after being made.


Financial Discount

Students who choose to pay the annual tuition fees in a one-off payment receive a 5% discount on the amount to be paid.


Payment in Instalments


Annual Tuition Fee
The Annual Term Fee can be paid in 10 instalments.

  • 10 instalments: 1st instalment of 20% of the total amount paid upon enrolment and the remaining amount in 9 instalments paid between the 1st and 10th of the months of September through May.

Non-Taught Phase Tuition Fee
The Tuition Fee for the out-of-school phase can be paid in 10 instalments.

  • 10 instalments: 1st instalment of 20% of the total amount paid upon enrolment and the remaining amount in 9 instalments paid between the 1st and 10th of the months of September through May.

Additional Non-Sessional Semester Tuition Fee
The Tuition Fee for the out-of-school phase can be paid in 4 instalments.

  • 4 instalments: 25% of the total amount paid upon enrolment, remaining instalments:
      • 1st semester: between the 1st and 10th (October, November, January);
      • 2nd semester: between the 1st and 10th (March, April, May).

The Dissertation Deadline Extension Fee is payable in full at the time of application.


Merit Awards

The number of awards is established annually by the Board of NOVA School of Law. Merit Prizes are awarded to:

  • Applicants whose final classification for entry in a 2nd cycle of studies of the NOVA School of Law, according to assessment and seriation by the respective jury, is equal to or higher than 17 (on a 0/20 scale) and that they are enrolled and attending the same course, a cash prize will be awarded in an amount corresponding to 50% of the value of the tuition fee they will pay, corresponding to the taught phase of the Master’s degree.
  • Applicants whose final classification for entry in a 2nd cycle of studies of the NOVA School of Law, according to assessment and seriation by the respective jury, is equal to or higher than 16 and lower than 17 (on a 0/20 scale) and that they are enrolled and attending the same course, a cash prize will be awarded in an amount corresponding to 30% of the tuition fee they will pay, corresponding to the teaching phase of the Master’s degree.

In the non-taught phase, three academic merit awards are given (by master’s degree or area of specialization, in the case of the Master’s Degree in Law). These awards presuppose the completion of the teaching phase within the regulatory timeframe.

  • The best student of the taught component of each study cycle or specialization area of a study cycle, resident in Portugal, who continues and attends the non-taught phase benefits from an award in cash corresponding to 100% of the tuition fee for the non-taught phase of the Master’s degree;
  • The second-best student of the taught component of each study cycle or specialization area of a study cycle who continues and attends the non-taught phase, resident in Portugal, benefits from an award in cash corresponding to 60% of the tuition fee, corresponding to the non-taught phase of the Master’s degree;
  • The third-best student of the taught component of each study cycle or specialization area of a study cycle who continues and attends the non-taught phase of the Master’s degree, resident in Portugal, benefits from an award in cash corresponding to 40% of the tuition fee, corresponding to the non-taught phase of the Master’s degree.


Scholarships for Access to Study Cycles at NOVA University Lisbon

The Scholarships for Access to Study Cycles are available to students of the three study cycles, being students of Universidade Nova de Lisboa, nationals or stateless persons, foreigners with tax residence in Portugal or with refugee status, who are in a situation of financial need and who do not benefit from the scholarships awarded by the Directorate-General for Higher Education, or whose value proves to be insufficient.

Full scholarship details here.


José Neves Foundation Grant

This course is eligible for the José Neves Foundation ISA scholarship programme. Find out more information here.


Fees and Emoluments

    • Application fee: €51.00
    • Administrative cost per enrolment/registration (annual): €35.00
    • School insurance (annual): €3.00
    • Certificate of registration: €6.00
    • Grade improvement exam: €15.00/registration
    • Certificate of registration of the degree of Master: €50.00
  • Total Tuition Fee – National and International Student: 4900.00€
  • Annual fee for the taught component – National and International Student: 3900.00€
  • Total Semester Tuition Fee for Non-curricular phase: 1000.00€
  • Tuition Fee for Additional Non-Curricular semester – National and International Student: 500.00€

Reading of this information does not exempt consultation of the full documentation regarding fees, emoluments and taxes for the academic year in question.

Tuition fees are annual and due in full upon enrolment in the course. Payment in instalments is allowed for students’ mere convenience.

In the case of withdrawal from the course, the amounts already paid are not refundable. The remaining tuition fee payments due for the academic year to which the application relates must also be paid.

Refund of the tuition fee is only possible where the previous course has not been completed by September, and is conditioned by its completion. In this case, the applicant must give proof of the situation through a declaration from the home institution, before the end of September. Amounts other than tuition fees (fees, school insurance and administrative costs) are not refundable.

Payments must be made via ATM or through PayPal using the references available in the reserved area. Failure to pay tuition fees within the time limits indicated results in an increase in the amount to be settled and/or the suspension of enrolment and registration, as well as the invalidity of all curricular acts practised in the academic year in which the non-compliance is not respected.

Students who choose to pay tuition fees in a one-off initial payment at the time of registration receive a 5% discount on the amount to be paid.

Financial Discounts

Students who choose to pay tuition fees in a one-off initial payment at the time of registration receive a 5% discount on the amount to be paid.

Payment by instalments

Annual tuition fees for the taught component
The annual tuition fees for the taught component can be paid in 4 or 10 instalments

  • 4 instalments: 25% of the amount paid at the time of registration and the remaining between the 1st and 10th of the months of September, January, May.
  • 10 instalments: 1st instalment of 20% of the total amount paid at the time of registration and the remaining amount in 9 instalments paid between the 1st and the 10th of the months of September to May.

Tuition fees of the non-curricular phase
Tuition fees for the non-curricular phase can be paid in 4 instalments.

  • 4 instalments: 25% of the amount paid at the time of registration and the remaining between the 1st and the 10th of the months of November, January, May

Tuition fee for an additional non-curricular semester
Tuition fees for the non-curricular phase can be paid in 4 instalments.

  • 4 instalments: 25% of the amount paid at the time of registration and the remaining between the 1st and the 10th of the months of October, November, January for the 1st semester and March, April, May for the 2nd semester

Tuition fees for the non-curricular phase
Fees are paid in full at the time of registration.

Merit Awards

Merit Awards are awarded to:

  • Candidates whose final average admission to a 2nd study cycle at NOVA School of Law, according to assessment and ranking by the appropriate jury, is equal to or higher than 17 points (on a scale of 0/20) and who enrol and attend the same course, benefit from an award in cash corresponding to 50% of the tuition fee for the taught component of the Master’s degree.
  • Candidates whose final average admission to a 2nd study cycle at NOVA School of Law, according to assessment and ranking by the appropriate jury, is equal to or higher than 16 points (on a scale of 0/20) and who enrol and attend the same course, benefit from an award in cash corresponding to 30% of the tuition fee for the taught component of the Master’s degree.

In the non-taught phase, three prizes for academic merit are awarded (by master’s degree or area of specialization, in the case of the Master’s Degree in Law). These awards assume the completion of the taught component within the stipulated time.

  • The best student of the taught component of each study cycle or specialization area of a study cycle who continues and attends the non-taught phase benefits from an award in cash corresponding to 100% of the tuition fee for the non-taught phase of the Master’s degree;
  • The second-best student of the taught component of each study cycle or specialization area of a study cycle who continues and attends the non-taught phase, benefits from an award in cash corresponding to 60% of the tuition fee, corresponding to the non-taught phase of the Master’s degree;
  • The third-best student of the taught component of each study cycle or specialization area of a study cycle who continues and attends the non-taught phase of the Master’s degree benefits from an award in cash corresponding to 40% of the tuition fee, corresponding to the non-taught phase of the Master’s degree.

Emoluments/Charges and Taxes Fees

  • Application fee: 51.00€
  • Administrative costs per registration/enrolment (each year): 35.00€
  • Institution insurance (each year): 3.00€
  • Registration Certificate: 6.00 €
  • Improvement grade exam: 15.00 €/enrolement
  • Conclusion Certificate: 50€

Applications

2023/2024

Length 4 Semesters

120 ECTS

Taught in English

Places: 30 places

The candidates are admitted as Postgraduate students. All students successfully admitted to the taught component are guaranteed the right to proceed to the non-curricular phase of the Master’s programme.

Applications from students who prove they will be able to complete their bachelor’s degree (licenciatura) by September will be accepted.


1st Phase of Applications:

  • Submission of applications: From 1 to 28 February 2023
  • Announcement of placements: 21 March 2023
  • Complaint about placements: From 22 March to 4 April 2023
  • Enrolment: From 5 to 17 April 2023
  • Registration for Curricular Units: From 18 to 28 July 2023

2nd Phase of Applications:

  • Submission of applications: From 24 April to 5 May 2023
  • Announcement of placements: 26 May 2023
  • Complaint about placements: From 29 May to 9 June 2023
  • Enrolment: From 12 to 23 June 2023
  • Registration for Curricular Units: From 18 to 28 July 2023

3rd Phase of Applications:

(remaining places)

  • Submission of applications: From 3 to 7 July 2023
  • Announcement of placements: 21 July 2023
  • Complaint about placements: From 24 July to 4 August 2023
  • Enrolment and Registration for Curricular Units: From 7 to 11 August 2023

Requirements

Holders of a bachelor’s degree (licenciatura) or legal equivalent.

Selection Criteria

Applicants will be selected according to the following parameters:

  • Final grade of the degree which the applicant is applying with (50%);
  • Relevance and suitability of previous background to the master’s degree course with regard to the pluridisciplinary nature of the course (50%); the jury assigns each applicant a grade of 0 to 20, based on analysis of the letter of motivation and curriculum vitae. If necessary, the members of the jury may decide to conduct an interview with all or some of the applicants. Due consideration is given to: (i) a degree in Law, Economics, Management, Public Policies, Marine Sciences, Political Sciences, Military Sciences, Social Sciences; (ii) for post-Bologna graduates, a degree corresponding to at least 240 ECTS;
  • Applicants with a rating lower than 9.5 will automatically be excluded.

Submission of Applications (Online):

  • Completion of the application form (online)
  • Payment of the application fee using the ATM or Paypal reference provided (51.00€)*
  • Online submission of the following documents:
      • Motivation letter
      • Curriculum vitae (European model)
      • Copy of the course(s) certificate(s)
      • Copy of the tax number identification card
      • Copy of the Identification Card
      • If you are an International Student, declaration, under oath, that the applicant does not have Portuguese nationality, nor is covered by any of the exceptions of no. 2 of Article 2 of Regulation no. 687/2020, of 20th August, which under the terms of Decree-Law no. 36/2014, of 10th March, excludes him/her from the International Student status – Declaration of Honour | International Student
      • For applicants presenting an identification document with a nationality other than Portuguese or EU, declaration, under oath, that the applicant has Portuguese nationality or is covered by one of the exceptions of Article 2, no. 2 of Regulation no. 687/2020, of 20th August, which under the terms of Decree-Law no. 36/2014, of 10th March, excludes him/her from the International Student status – Declaration of Honour 
      • Declaration under oath on the status of finalist (in case the previous academic degree is not finished by the application date) – Declaration of honour for applications conditional on completion of degree
  • Applicants conditioned upon the conclusion of the bachelor’s degree must submit an interim academic transcript showing the subjects already completed and their final grades discriminated and a declaration under oath stating the course, school, expected average and the the conclusion date. In addition, a statement from the institution of higher education where they are attending the degree should be submitted, proving their academic situation
  • Candidates with foreign qualifications must send academic transcripts showing the final grade average or a declaration with the final average of the degree. Diplomas not in Portuguese, English, French or Spanish must be accompanied by a translation certified by the competent authorities.
  • Applicants who do not report the final grade average, expected or completed will be graded with a minimum score of 10 on the 0-20 scale.
  • Applicants may submit, at the time of application, the request for accreditation of academic qualifications and professional experience obtained before enrolment in the study cycle. The crediting processes take into account the level of the credits corresponding to the previous education and training, in no case being allowed the creditation, for the continuation of studies in a study cycle, of education and training carried out in the context of a study cycle of a lower qualification level. For the purpose of accreditation, the candidate must fill in a specific form and attach all the relevant documentation. When the crediting request occurs during the application, the crediting is not a sufficient condition for admission in the study cycle and it only produces effects after the admission and only in that same study cycle
*Paypal payments are validated automatically; Multibanco payments will be validated up to 48 hours after the payment All documents must be presented in Portuguese, English, French or Spanish, and endorsed by the competent authority of the State where the document originates Applications omitting the documents requested or where the application fee has not been paid will be rejected. Applications available through the NOVA School of Law applications portal.

Readmissions

Readmission is the act by which a student, after interruption of studies in an institution/course of higher education, enrols in the same institution and enrols in the same course or in a course which has replaced it.

SCHOOL YEAR 2023/2024

Requirements:

Students who can apply for readmission to any cycle of studies:

  • Must have already been enrolled and enrolled at the NOVA School of Law, in the same course or in a course in which they are already registered, without having completed it
  • Must not have been enrolled in that course in the previous academic year to the one in which they intend to be readmitted to
  • Those students whose registration has lapsed due to the requirements in force may apply for readmission once two school semesters have elapsed since the date of the regulations

The Faculty reserves the right to refuse readmission to applications from students whose curricular record indicates serious difficulties in adapting to the study plan in force and to the type of teaching provided at the NOVA School of Law. Requests from students who are in debt to the Faculty for tuition fees or any other amounts will be rejected, subject to the provisions of Law Nº. 75/2019, of September 2.


Deadlines for submission of applications | School Year 2023/24:


1st Semester

Submission of the application

From 3 to 14 July 2023

Enrolment and Registration for Curricular Units

From 28 August to 8 September 2023

2nd Semester

Submission of the application

From 8 to 19 January 2024

Enrolment and Registration for Curricular Units

From 29 January to 2 February 2024


Instructions for submitting the application (online):

The application is submitted online through the website of NOVA School of Law by filling in a form and uploading the necessary documents, namely:

  • Online submission of a simple photocopy of the citizen card or passport (international applicants)
  • Payment of the application fee through the Multibanco/PayPal references that will appear during the application process 70.00€ (non-refundable)

The student must print proof of the online application, essential for any subsequent steps.


Fees and Emoluments

 

Fee

70,00€

Administrative cost per enrolment/registration (annual)

35,00€

School insurance

  3,00€

Registration certificate

  6,00€

Note: to these amounts must be added the annual fees applicable to the study cycle relevant to the academic year 2022/23 (see the relevant notice).

Tuition fees are fixed annually by the General Council of the NOVA University Lisbon.

The reading of this information does not exempt consultation of the relevant legislation and regulations, the public notice of fees, and the table of fees in force of the respective school year.

Applications that are not accompanied by all the documents or whose fee has not been paid will automatically be rejected.


Regulations Applicable: Decree-Law Nº. 36/2014, of March 10th, altered by Decree-Law Nº. 62/2018, of August 6th, and Regulation Nº. 436/2020, of April 28th, of the NOVA School of Law.

Applications through the NOVA School of Law applications portal.

Clear all your doubts

We are at your disposal to answer any questions you may have about studying at NOVA
School of Law.

Please do not hesitate to contact us by email: admissions@novalaw.unl.pt

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