LLB Law

Special Features

• The degree gives you full exemption from Part 1 of the Professional Examinations for the Law Society and Bar Council.
• The Law School’s Research Centres offer a forum for the Brunel Law School community to enhance and promote their work through seminars, workshops and collaborative projects, and to develop and strengthen external links and networks in the legal sphere. This is a qualifying law degree which provides training in the seven foundations of legal knowledge (specified by the Solicitors Regulation Authority and the Bar Standards Board). The degree is one of the requirements needed to practise law.
• There is ongoing support from the University’s award winning 'Professional Development Centre' (PDC) through a series of workshops, mock interviews, CV preparation, and career development support throughout the programme. The PDC also helps students find part-time and voluntary work.
• The School offers students the opportunity to participate in a wide range of extra-curricular and professional development activities.
• The School has excellent links with a wide range of criminal law practitioners, experienced solicitors and barristers. It benefits from a close working relationship with dynamic law firms and the Inns of Court.
• Writing and legal research skills are embedded in the Brunel curriculum, especially the Legal Skills and Method module at Level 1.

Facts and Figures

Brunel Law School

For over 45 years students from throughout the UK and over 100 countries have made Brunel Law School their first choice for its outstanding reputation as a respected London law school.

Brunel law students have amongst the highest graduate employment rates in the country (84 per cent) and we have excellent links within the industry. Our students are encouraged to take advantage of the many opportunities available to enhance their employability.

Brunel University is proud of our award-winning 'Professional Development Centre' (PDC)and Academic Skills acknowledged as amongst the best in the country, and who ensure that students are prepared for a legal career.

Brunel Law School is one of the few UK law schools offering a dedicated skills tutor who runs workshops designed to help students with essay writing, critical thinking, analysis and examination, presentations and time management among other subjects. International students can take advantage of free in-sessional English language classes.

Teaching and Assessment

Teaching

Expert teaching staff

Although Brunel Law School is research driven and was ranked 14th in the UK for REF Intensity in Law in the most recent Research Excellence Framework (REF2014), students are at the heart of everything we do.

Through their research, your lecturers are constantly extending the frontiers of domestic and international legal scholarship and you will be the first to benefit from their work. They address contemporary issues such as prisoner's rights, child-to-parent abuse, EU-refugee migration issues, human rights in anti-terrorism legislation, consumer's rights, international trade and intellectual property and much more.

How will I be taught?

Lectures are formal presentations by staff which last an hour, covering general principles and explaining difficult concepts. Handouts, giving references, further reading and summaries of points covered, are usually provided.

Seminars are smaller groups of 15 students meeting for an hour to discuss particular problems and topics with a tutor. In each subject there is usually a fortnightly seminar for which you are expected to prepare in advance.

Private study is much more important at university than in sixth form or college. Learning to use your time to the best effect is an important part of your university career.

One-to-one supervision will be available for your final year dissertation. In addition, at all levels you will have a tutor who is available to discuss personal and academic problems. If you go on placement, you will also be allocated a work placement tutor who will monitor your progress and provide further support if you need it.

Legal Skills: Brunel Law School offers exceptional opportunities for the development of legal skills. At Level 1 students take the 'Legal Skills and Method' study block, which:

• Introduces them to fundamental legal skills essential for successfully progressing through the programme and succeeding in the legal professions (e.g. legal reasoning and legal argumentation, legal writing as well as research, analysis and interpretation of sources of law).
• Helps them acquire relevant career skills.
• Introduces them to generic skills in term I (e.g. how to write a bibliography, how to use electronic databases for legal research, how to write academically), which they then apply throughout practice in term II. This is achieved in the context of moots, debating, role-playing, case comments etc., using examples from the level I foundation modules (Criminal Law, Public Law, Contract Law).

Learning by participating in extra-curricular activities: Our Union of Brunel Students is one of the best in the country (National Students Survey 2014), offering many activities to keep students engaged. The student law society is very active, organising study visits, career events, student mentoring, debating, sports and other social gatherings. They are also heavily involved in the extra-curricular activities organised by the school such as mooting.

Assessment

Modules are assessed by various combinations of coursework and/or examinations. In the final year you are also required to write a dissertation.

Employability

84 per cent of our graduates are in employment or further study. While most students choose law with a view to progress into the legal profession, some opt to study it as a first degree as a foundation for careers in the corporate world, government or international relations-related professions. Graduates can take advantage of the professional exemptions available with a Brunel Law Degree, and train to become barristers or solicitors.

The LLB Law programme at Brunel offers a unique module in first year, called ‘Legal Skills and Methods’, which provides the foundation for students to start building their employability and legal skills in preparation for finding employment in law, building CVs, and developing confidence in our students when they enter the workplace.

Regular career events for law students are offered by the University's award-wining 'Professional Development Centre' (PDC) and the School avidly supports the professional development of our students.

Careers

Opportunities for law graduates arise in a wide range of activities. You may take advantage of your professional exemptions and train to become a barrister or solicitor, but your degree could take you into careers other than law, including mediation, consultancy, industry, commerce, public administration, the social services, management and humanitarian aid.

Work Placements

Students opting for the four-year sandwich degree will have the opportunity to carry out professional law placements. This will provide you with highly valued experience which allows you to sample different types of law work before making a long-term career decision.

Most placements are with firms of solicitors, in the courts and the Crown Prosecution Service, and in the legal departments of commercial organisations, government departments and local councils.

The four-year route can also reduce the time required to become a solicitor after graduation, since the Law Society may credit your work experience against the solicitors' two year traineeship requirement.

The sandwich course also gives you valuable contacts for securing traineeships.

At Brunel we provide many opportunities and experiences within your degree programme and beyond – work-based learning, professional support services, volunteering, mentoring, sports, arts, clubs, societies, and much, much more – and we encourage you to make the most of them, so that you can make the most of yourself.

Fees for 2016/17 entry

UK/EU students: £9,000 full-time; £1,000 placement year

International students: £14,100 full-time

Additional course related costs

See our fees and funding page for full details of scholarships available to Brunel applicants

2017/18

The Government has proposed changes to allow tuition fees for UK and EU students to rise by inflation. These changes are currently subject to approval, but if approved, would result in tuition fees of £9,250 per year from 2017/18.

Entry Criteria 2017/18

• GCE A-level ABB (all subjects considered excluding General Studies).
• BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma D*D*D in Business or Public Services.
• BTEC Level 3 Diploma DD in Business or Public Services subject, with an A-Level at grade A.
• BTEC Level 3 Subsidiary Diploma D in Applied Law, Business or Public Services subject, with A-Levels grade AB.
• International Baccalaureate Diploma 31 points.
• Access to Higher Education Diploma Complete and pass Access to Law course with 45 credits at Level 3 Distinction.

5 GCSEs to include Maths at Grade C and English Language at Grade C are also required.

Please check our Admissions pages for more information on other factors we use to assess applicants as well as our full GCSE requirements and accepted equivalencies in place of GCSEs.

Entry criteria are subject to review and change each academic year.

International and EU Entry Requirements

If your country or institution is not listed or if you are not sure whether your institution is eligible, please contact Admissions

This information is for guidance only by Brunel University London and by meeting the academic requirements does not guarantee entry for our courses as applications are assessed on case-by-case basis.

English Language Requirements

• IELTS: 6.5 (min 5.5 in all areas)
• Pearson: 58 (51 in all subscores)
• BrunELT: 65% (min 55% in all areas)

Brunel University London strongly recommends that if you will require a Tier 4 visa, you sit your IELTS test at a test centre that has been approved by UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) as being a provider of a Secure English Language Test (SELT). Not all test centres have this status. The University can accept IELTS (with the required scores) taken at any official test centre or other English Language qualifications we accept as meeting our main award entry requirements.

However, if you wish to undertake a Pre-sessional English course to further improve your English prior to the start of your degree course, you must sit the test at an approved SELT provider. This is because you will only be able to apply for a Tier 4 student visa to undertake a Pre-sessional English course if you hold a SELT from a UKVI approved test centre. Find out more information about it.

Brunel also offers our own BrunELT English Test and accepts a range of other language courses. We also have Pre-sessional English language courses for students who do not meet these requirements, or who wish to improve their English.

Our International Pathways and Language Centre offers a number of foundation and pre-masters courses to provide you with the academic skills required for your chosen course.