Summary
- Faculty of Education, Law & Social Sciences
- Duration
- Full Time: 3 years
Part Time: 4-6 years
- Fees
- Full Time: £3,290 per year
Part Time: £27 per credit
International Students: £8,950 per year
Overview
This is a practical course, providing opportunities to work on ‘real’ cases with ‘real’ clients. The Legal Advice and Representation Unit is one example of practice based learning. In your final year you will have the opportunity to work in local Citizens Advice Bureaux (CAB) or with other providers of legal services where you can gain essential practical skills advising clients and negotiating on their behalf.
You will also have the opportunity to participate in an internship in the US, gaining work experience in the offices of attorneys, as part of the ‘American Legal Practice’ module. The internship counts as a fully-accredited part of the LLB.
The faculty has active student-led Legal and Mooting Societies. The course also incorporates the government’s employability criteria which aim to provide all students with the fundamental skills required in any profession.
You can exit the programme with a non-honours degree on completion of 300 credits (25 modules), which must include all compulsory modules. All named modules are compulsory.
Modules from this course can be taken as fully-accredited freestanding short courses.
The LLB may be studied through daytime or evening attendance. You may extend your period of study but must complete in six years (part-time) to obtain a qualifying law degree.
Key Facts
This course is unique in offering an American Internship programme where you can spend six to eight weeks working in the offices of an attorney working pro bono. Some students have worked on death row cases during their internship.
The course also offers a pioneering Legal Advice and Representation Unit module, where you can gain practical experience assisting members of the public with their legal problems. Other attractions of the course include:
- An active student-led Legal Society and a respected and very popular Mooting Society, with two in-house replica courtrooms.
- An outstanding team of professional staff with extensive practice experience and a friendly, open door policy giving you all the support you need.
- All compulsory subjects are studied in your first and second year, leaving your third year free for your optional modules.
Course Outline
Course Structure
All of the LLB (Hons) degrees cover the seven foundations of legal knowledge, required to qualify as a solicitor or barrister plus an additional module in Skills and Practice. These core subjects are taught during the first and second year of a full-time degree. All the LLB courses have a common first and second year giving you the flexibility to select your preferred pathway for the third year based on knowledge gained from the foundation subjects.
Pathways
LLB (Hons) Law
The general LLB programme gives you the flexibility to choose from any of the modules available in the various pathways, as well as a Research Dissertation.
The following named pathways enable you to combine the study of the core areas of the LLB degree with more specialist modules.
LLB (Hons) Law with Business Law
Enables you to specialise in subjects relevant to business and business management, including legal controls on company structure and behaviour and corporate social responsibility. Options include Commercial Law, Company Law and Employment Law and Practice.
LLB (Hons) Law with Legal Practice
Builds upon our reputation for providing clinical legal education, options are designed to provide you with an early introduction to legal practice. The course incorporates opportunities to work with real clients with real legal problems in the spheres of employment, welfare, consumer, finance, housing and asylum and immigration. Optional modules include Legal Advice and Representation Unit (practical based work), Employment Law, Evidence Proof and Argument.
LLB (Hons) Law with American Legal Studies
The American Legal Studies minor is an extension of our successful and long-running American Legal module, through which you can spend a six to eight week internship working in the US on criminal cases, some of which may involve the death penalty. Modules include US Constitutional Law, US Supreme Court Decision-Making, American Legal Practice and American Criminal Procedure and Evidence.
LLB (Hons) Law with Criminology
The Criminology minor enables you to take advantage of our expertise in Criminal Justice and Criminology by selecting modules from the faculty’s highly respected Criminal Justice provision. Optional modules include American Criminal Justice, Victimology and Victimisation, Understanding Serious Crime and Models of Justice.
LLB (Hons) Law with Human Rights
The Human Rights minor draws upon our established Master’s degree in human rights and the School of Law’s long experience of death penalty cases in the US and, more recently, in other jurisdictions such as Japan. The course will include rights theory and practice and public international law. Optional modules include Human Rights Law, Public International Law, Rights, Law and the History of Ideas.
Modules
Level 4
- Law of Tort
- Law of Contract
- Criminal Law
- Skills, Processes and Scholarship
Level 5
- Public Law and Civil Rights
- Property Law
- EU Law
- Skills and Practice
Level 6
Optional modules depending on which pathway you take, which include:
- Dissertation
- American Legal Practice
- American criminal Procedure and Evidence
- US Supreme Court Decision Making
- US Constitutional Law
- Commercial Law
- Company Law
- Employment Law and Practice
- Human Rights Law
- Public International Law
- Rights Law and the History of Ideas
- Evidence, Proof and Argument
- Legal Advice and Representation Unit
Please note: optional modules offered may change slightly from year to year, and some options may not run every year. Please check on application.
Assessments
Assessment is through a combination of examinations, coursework and oral and written presentations. Emphasis is placed upon the development of a broad range of relevant skills. Assessment methods will vary according to the particular skills being assessed.
After your studies
Further Studies
As a graduate you will obtain a qualification that enables you to progress to the Legal Practice Course (LPC) or the Bar Professional Training Course (BPTC). Please see the Postgraduate section. Details can be found on the postgraduate section of the website. Options for further study at the University include:
- Postgraduate Diploma in Legal Practice (LPC)
- LLM Corporate and Business Law
- LLM International Human Rights
- MPhil or PhD research degrees
Employment Opportunities
A degree in law not only prepares you for a career in law, but equips you with a range of transferable skills that you could take into a number of professions. Many of our graduates go on to become solicitors, barristers (on completion of postgraduate vocational courses) as well as pursuing other law related careers both in private practice or in public sector organisations such as the Crown Prosecution Service, local government, watchdog organisations etc. Others use the skills they have developed to go into areas such as the civil service, journalism, commerce and industry or teaching.
A Career in Law
Legal training starts with the LLB, the qualifying undergraduate course, compulsory if you want to progress into a career as either a solicitor or barrister. It is important for you to understand each of these career options as both involve a long qualification process and are highly competitive.
A solicitor provides clients with legal advice often during times of extreme stress such as arrest, divorce, moving house or bereavement. Alternatively, you may represent clients in corporate or commercial transactions. You may work in a firm with other solicitors or set up your own practice, or you might work in central or local government, an in-house legal department, the Crown Prosecution Service or the magistrates’ courts.
To become a solicitor you must complete both the academic stage of training - a qualifying law degree followed by the Legal Practice Course (LPC) - and the vocational stage, which is a training contract.
More information about becoming a solicitor can be found at The Solicitors Regulation Authority and The Law Society.
Barristers are specialists in advocacy; the act of presenting cases in court under instruction from a solicitor or another designated professional.
Typically, the duties of a barrister may include preparing briefs (cases) for court, presenting arguments in court, examining and cross examining witnesses and preparing legal documents.
Most barristers work on a self-employed basis, from chambers. An increasing number, however, now work in private and public organisations.
Qualification consists of the academic stage (a qualifying law degree), vocational training (the Bar Professional Training Course, BPTC) and a period of pupillage.
Places on the BPTC are extremely competitive and are offered by only a few institutions. For more information visit the Bar Standards Board (BSB). Both solicitors and barristers need to have strong intellectual ability, be committed to the time and resources required to complete the necessary qualifications and have the versatility to cope with both the intricate details of the law and the challenges of dealing with clients. A desire to work with people is essential and a track record of relevant work experience is increasingly important.
How to apply
Entry Requirements
- A minimum of 280 UCAS tariff points at A Level or equivalent, including a minimum of two A2 levels (please note we will only consider grades from a maximum of two AS levels as contributing towards the 280 points). All academic subjects except General Studies, Critical Thinking and Key Skills will be considered.
- Applicants with a BTEC National Diploma qualification at DMM or above will be considered
- A minimum of four GCSEs (grade C or above) or equivalent which must include English Language, or Keys Skills Communication at Level 3 or above.
- Mature applicants with non-standard qualifications or Access to Higher Education course in a related subject are encouraged to apply.
- Entry at an advanced stage of the course with credit for prior learning or experience may be considered on an individual basis (subject to Solicitors Regulation Authority and Bar Standards Board guidelines).
- Advanced Diplomas and Progression Diplomas are acceptable as all or part of the required tariff points.
Application Details
FT UCAS Course Code: M100
Search for this course on UCAS.
To study this course part-time please apply direct to the faculty. You can Apply online or call us for an application form.
For general information about applying to study at Birmingham City University, please refer to the Making your Application section.
International enquirers may contact the International Office for further help and advice.
Fees Notes
If you already have an equivalent level qualification, you may be charged a higher fee for your course. For further information visit the fees area of the Student Info section.
Further Information
The Faculty of Education, Law and Social Sciences
Birmingham City University
City North Campus
Perry Barr
BIRMINGHAM
B42 2SU
Tel: +44 (0)121 331 7300
Fax: +44 (0)121 331 7316
Email: law@bcu.ac.uk