Confused 2nd Year Law Student

I've just finished my 2nd year of my 3 year Law degree at Leeds Met...
I work really hard and always turn up to lectures/seminars but this year i've averaged a 2:2 which I'm so disappointed with given that I've worked so hard this year.

I haven't been able to find any work experience and have to keep my job at a supermarket during holidays/term time as I only have enough student finance for my rent and can't really take time off unless I have dates 6 weeks in advance. I applied to 25-30 law firms in my area and heard nothing back. I know its really negative but I don't see the point in applying for a vacation scheme as I don't have amazing grades. As much as I love Leeds Met its not the best uni in the world and an employer is always going to pick someone from a better uni.

Everyones always told me I'd be a really good teacher, really creative, good with children and have lots of patience. I don't know what to do - do my LPC and try and get work as a lawyer or do a PGCE and became a teacher. Don't get me wrong, I do love my degree but don't think i'm clever enough to gain a really good degree i.e a 2:1.

Has anyone else been in this position? Is it possible to get a training contract with a 2:1 degree with no experience OR became a teacher with a law degree, surely they're more likely to employ someone with a primary education degree (this is the age i'd like to teach)

please please help - so confused!!!

Yep, you need to be a realist.
With 2:2 from Leeds met, which is not a particularly respected uni, your chances of getting a TC at a prestigious firm are close to zero.
The problem is that you are actually, according to you, doing your best, work very hard and still manage to get a 2:2 only.Perhaps you should think of other career.

Even if you, hypothetically, get a TC at a Magic circle firm, the fact that you get so bad grades while doing your best, probably means that you are not enjoying law and it`s just not right for you.
I am not saying you are not smart enough to do law, I am saying that probably it isnt right for you.

I'm a little upset that you've stated that a 2:2 is a 'bad grade' when you haven't even started your law degree yet. You have no idea how hard it is.

I couldn't agree more with the above poster. It's not essential to get a 2.1 but it helps if you want to secure a top job, going to a good university also helps. But in your case it's both unfortunate and slightly daunting to know that you have a 2.2. Can I ask, is it towards the top end of a 2.2?

Either way, rather than trying the usual commercial firms, why not try criminal (if you have an interest) or civil firms. You have to accept they probably won't reward you financially as much as a commercial firm, but money isn't everything.

But don't be too down-hearted, most people don't get a TC until the end of LPC, so just be patient. If you really intend on being a lawyer, the high street option is still there.

But you will be fine, just work hard on the LPC. It's not nice when people intend on being lawyers and have to branch out to something else.

Beef up your CV as much as you can, do lots of work experience, vac schemes, anything legal related. Your job you need to keep and don't under-estimate it's value, it shows grit and determination.

So just work hard!!!

What do you mean by this bit in bold above?

Thanks for all your help guys, I have looked at my grades at they are 56, 58 58 and 52 so I'd say it was a mid 2:2. I know i will never get a training contract at a magic circle firm but its just the fact I can't even get work experience at a local firm let alone with a training contract. I will finish my law degree, do my best to get the best grade possible and maybe take a year out after to realise what i want to do and if its law, then get try even more just to get some work experience to boost my employability.

I am sorry to say, but yes, 2:ii in law in a uni like Leeds Met is bad, quite bad.
I may not even have started my law degree yet and I don`t know what is like to study law except for the fact that law students spend a lot of time in the library; yet I think that 2:ii is bad.
Pure statistics - the average for a law student in the UK is 2:i.
However, this is not to say that you should just give up.Work harder and see what you can do.

Is it possible, theoretically, to increase to 2:i after doing amazingly in your last year ?

You can spend the summer making applications for some work experience to various firms, including high street firms. In addition look for other areas of volunteering which will also help to boost your CV.

Your grades aren't so terrible that you can't gain a 2:1 next year, but you're going to have to understand where you need to improve. Generally a 2:2 grade means that you covered the relevant material and many of the issues and you showed evidence of thought and application, but your answers contained some irrelevancy and minor errors...to gain a 2:1 you require a good understanding, critical thought and appreciation of the issues raised by the question, your answer should be well organised and show evidence of wider reading...

You need to speak to your lecturers, take a look at sample exam answers, create structures to your answers before you begin to write (form a plan). Running out of time in an exam is generally not the reason for gaining a 2:2 unless running out of time makes your final answer so poor that it drags your two good answers down.

I found that it made more sense for me to spend 10 minutes writing a plan, putting case names down and so forth before beginning to write - a well structured answer doesn't need to be long and waffling and 30 minutes is generally more than enough time to answer a question even to a 1st standard.