Why study law?
Studying law is stimulating, intellectually demanding – and fun. Sometimes you’ll work in small groups; energetic participation is expected.
You’ll need to be highly motivated and self-disciplined to learn the law properly.
Successful law students acquire aptitudes prized by many potential employers:
- advanced communication skills
- keen problem-solving abilities
- a capacity for independent thinking
- proficiency in print-based and online legal research
Getting into the Legal Profession
It pays to be organised: the law is a profession that recruits years in advance (many employers recruit during the penultimate year of the law degree), which means it’s never too soon for students to plot their path from school to university to a solicitors’ office or barristers’ chambers.
At school and college
Aspiring lawyers should get ahead of the pack by focusing on getting top grades; most university law courses require GCSEs at A and B grades and a minimum of 3 good A-levels (note that some firms and chambers won’t accept an A-level in general studies).
In addition, they should seek out informal work experience opportunities, firstly through their sixth form or college. If school/college doesn’t offer placements, it’s time to ‘network’ - that is, use existing contacts such as family or friends to find employers in the profession who are willing to offer a week or two’s work experience.
At university
Students set on a career in law need to continue getting good grades throughout university, and not make the mistake of thinking that it’s only the end-of-third-year exam performance that counts. First and second-year exam results are taken into account by firms and chambers when considering candidates for work experience, as well as training contracts/pupillages. Most will want to see a steady stream of 2.1s and Firsts.
At university level, many firms have formalised Easter, summer and Christmas vacation placement schemes, and welcome applications from first and second-year law students. At the same time, barristers’ chambers offer paid work experience, known as ‘mini-pupillages’. Applications for training contracts and pupillages should be made from the second year onwards
Is this the right degree for me?
If you can answer yes to the questions below, then you’ll find that studying for a Law degree could be the right move for your career.
- Are you interested in the relationship between law, individuals and society?
- Do you like to examine and present facts in a clear and concise manner?
- Are you interested in key issues affecting society such as criminology, human rights and ethics?
- Are you interested in exploring law-related issues in the 21st Century?
- Do you want to develop research, advocacy and negotiation skills?
- Do you want to increase your employability?
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