So I have finished Year 11 and i receive my results in a few weeks, i am expecting to get all A*-C's and anything i haven't i will resit them, as i am very dedicated to work and will work until i get the grade that satisfies me. I have applied and been offered a palace at my school's 6th form at which i plan to undertake the following courses:
Law
Business
English Language and Literature
I have made my decision about what job to go into to, which is Law and i am interested Criminal and commercial law, at the moment, i fully expect that when i start learning more about the law i will become interested in other areas. I have created a 5 year plan which is basically 6th form and Uni, although i may do more then 3 years at Uni as i may undertake the BVC degree to become a barrister.
I fully understand the cost of University and have got a number of University's in mind already, i do know that the average cost per year is around £3,500, and i fully expect to spend £7,000+ in 3 years on tuition fees alone. I have been looking at potential ways to fund myself for University, which as the question states a training contract and i have already looked at a number of websites, including Slaughter and May, which fund your University education. What i want to know is:
1) Can you enter a solicitors firm like Slaughter and May as soon as you start University?
2) How fierce is the competition for training contracts?
3) Is it true that you have to know someone in law to guarantee a law job?
I would also be glad to hear from students who have already done this and their experiences.
Answer by Richard C Jebb
Dear Craig,
Before answering your question, I ought to clarify a few more details about the path to becoming a lawyer.
First, you must sit your A-levels and apply to university. When applying to university, you should choose your course carefully. You can study law if you want to, or you can study another subject which interests you. If you choose a non-law degree, this will be no disadvantage to getting a job as a lawyer. You will simply have to do a one-year law conversion course after you finish your degree. This is known as the Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL).
Once you have finished either your law degree or your non-law degree followed by the GDL, you will need to choose whether to be a barrister or a solicitor. A barrister speaks in court and is heavily involved in litigation; a solicitor does not speak in court, but is more likely to be involved in non-contentious commercial work. If you choose to be a barrister, you will have to take the Bar Vocational Course (BVC), which is also known as the Bar Professional Training Course (BPTC). If you choose to be a solicitor, you will need to take a different course, called the Legal Practice Course (LPC). Both the BVC and the LPC are one-year programmes.
If you take the barrister's route, you will need to look for a pupillage after you have completed the BVC. A pupillage is a twelve-month salaried positions in a set of barristers' chambers (that is where barristers work). At the end of the twelve months, you will be fully qualified as a barrister.
If you instead do the LPC, you will require two years of (salaried) training at a solicitors' firm before qualifying.
To summarise, you have two choices to make: between a law degree and a non-law degree; and between becoming a barrister and becoming a solicitor. This gives your four possible routes from leaving school to qualifying as a practising lawyer:
1) Barrister with law degree:
Law degree (3 years) + BVC (1 year) + Pupillage (1 year); 5 years in total
2) Barrister with non-law degree:
Non-law degree (3 or 4 years) + GDL (1 year) + BVC (1 year) + Pupillage (1 year); 6 or 7 years in total
3) Solicitor with law degree:
Law degree (3 years) + LPC (1 year) + Training (2 years); 6 years in total
4) Solicitor with non-law degree:
Non-law degree (3 or 4 years) + GDL (1 year) + LPC (1 year) + Training (2 years); 7 or 8 years in total
Funding your first degree (be it a law degree or a non-law degree) is a matter for you, your family, and the government. If you have money set aside, you can use that to pay the tuition fees (about £3,500 per year, or perhaps more by the time you start) and to pay for accommodation, food, etc. If you do not have money set aside, there is no need to worry. The government makes loans available to everyone and even means-tested grants to some. At this stage, however, hiring firms do not become involved.
A solicitors' firm will only become involved if they award you a training contract. Training contracts are available to those who choose options (3) and (4) from the above list. The firm will pay for those with training contracts to do the GDL (if necessary) and the LPC (in all cases). It will then take its new recruits on for the two-year training period. No firm, as far as I know, will fund your university education in any way.
Now I will turn to your three questions:
1) Applications for training contracts should be made just before or during the final year of your first degree. Therefore, you will need to have been at university for at least two years before securing a training contract.
2) Competition for training contracts is typically very strong. Good candidates are often distinguished by excellent academic results and a wealth of legal work experience, though the latter is by no means necessary. Most firms are willing to consider applications from all candidates who simply meet the minimum academic requirements.
3) It is not at all true that personal contacts are required to get a job. Knowing someone in law is often of no help at all. Firms and chambers will look for strong individual candidates and will accept applications from anyone.
Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments!
Orignal From: Law training contract?
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