Law or PPE?

Hi,

I'll be applying to university next year and I originally thought I'd apply for law. However I'm now torn between Law and PPE. Although I've never studied (at school) politics or economics, they are my main personal interests and I think I would greatly enjoy the course. That said, I would like to go into the legal profession and I have had experience studying law (albeit only at GCSE) and do really enjoy that as well; my extra-curriculars and wider reading thus far have been anticipating applying for law as well.

I'm also aware that Oxford is undoubtedly the best place to study PPE and perhaps PPE from a different university, even an excellent one like Durham, would perhaps not hold the same weight as say Law from Durham. Applying for PPE would thus be gambling getting into Oxford whereas with Law I could in theory have an excellent university like LSE or Durham to 'fall back on', being presumptuous of course.

Have you any thoughts/advice?

Thanks

Reply 1

rampallian

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Reply 2

username1108411

I had the same dilemma some time ago (I ultimately opted for law).

It's difficult to say either way but it's worth mentioning that LSE/UCL/Durham/Warwick are all pretty good for PPE. If you are that set on prestige, you could always apply for PPE at Oxford and then Economics at LSE affording you another highly regarded choice.

You don't need a law degree if you want to go into practice. You can do another degree and do the conversion course.

As for extracurriculars, I think Brits often have a distorted perspective (probably in trying to find parallels with the US system). The important thing is to demonstrate both your interest and your ability to study it at a high level. I sufficed with mentioning a court visit, a book, a US law case and a couple of summer schools. I imagine a similar level would suffice for PPE. If you're applying next year, you have more than enough time to build up a more PPE-based list of supercurriculars/reference points for your PS.

Sorry this reply lacks direction. If you need any more specific advice, let me know.

Reply 3

rampallian

Original post by Caitlan

Thanks for that. What made you eventually go for law? For many years now I've been intending to study law, however recently my mindset has sort of changed to 'I can study law later' (ie GDL) whereas I will probably never have another chance to study PPE.

It's a tough one, I'm genuinely torn. I was worried that not having A Level politics or economics may restrict me doing PPE, however the Oxford website says it is not a requirement to have studied them and history and maths (which I'm doing) are recommended. It is ultimately just a question of which one I want to study for three years and that's something I'm struggling to decide on.

Reply 4

username1108411

Original post by rampallian

It's hard to pin down exactly why I picked law. Quite frankly, I don't really know. I went to a secondary school which was not very well versed in Oxbridge admissions. For the first time in years, we had a small group of students that wanted to apply. A friend and I were both torn between law and PPE and both of us were applying for the UNIQ summer school. We decided that said friend would apply for PPE at UNIQ and I would apply for law such that we could acquire as much information as possible on both subjects. I happened to enjoy learning new law/mooting at UNIQ (as well as a similar experience at Cambridge with Sutton Trust) and so just went with my gut feeling. On top of that, law required no previous knowledge meaning I could continue procrastinating through sixth form.

The split between law and non-law at law firms is roughly 50/50 and non-law grads can provide a unique skillset and approach to problems hence doing the GDL will not put you at a disadvantage.

The friend of mine who did PPE at UNIQ went on to apply for PPE without economics and politics at A-Level. He was successful and is currently studying the course at Oxford.

Both degrees are pretty intense but also very rewarding so you're not going to be in too bad a position whichever you pick.

Reply 5

stratagems

Original post by rampallian

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A sibling did PPE at Oxford. He applies to Durham, Warwick, somewhere else, and UEA has a safe option.

PPE itself is such a specific course and not many universities offer that particular tripos, therefore Durham and Warwick are quite well respected.

Durham's grade requirements are A*AA - on par with Cambridge and higher than Oxford's. That's not to say it's better than Oxford, but that academically students at Durham are on par with Oxbridge students. Bristol and Durham are seen as 'Oxbridge rejects' / 'rah universities' with a lot of privately educated students (I say this as someone who went to both state and private schools) and have a reputation (along with Imperial and LSE) amongst stuffy schools like mine as being reputable alternatives to Oxbridge that won't make their 'leavers destination' page look terrible.

You can't really go wrong with them.

That said, have you considered doing PPE and then doing a GDL (law conversion course)?

Best advice I can give - have a look at different universities' law courses. Qualifying LLB law degrees offer the core modules you need to bypass the GDL, but they vary widely in the optional extra courses they offer. Use this to decide with courses you'd then apply for for law and then decide overall which you find more interesting: law or PPE.

Optional units for -

Oxford: https://www.law.ox.ac.uk/admissions/options

Bristol: http://www.bristol.ac.uk/law/study/ugdegrees/ugcourseinfo/ug-options.html

UCL:
http://www.laws.ucl.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/llb-degrees/law/

Cambridge:
http://www.law.cam.ac.uk/admissionscoursesba/subject-papers

Nottingham:
http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/ugstudy/courses/law/llb-law.aspx

For example, I really like Bristol and Oxford's due to the international law, human rights, and gender & race units. I'm interested in these topics in general, as well as sociology, politics, history, and philosophy hence I chose law rather than politics/PPE and then a GDL. Check out the units for the GDL - they're not as interesting as the optional units you get to study and aren't as based on politics/sociology/economics as some of the optional law units are above.

Also, try out summer taster courses for law. I think Sutton Trust, KCL, UCL and possibly other universities do them!

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 6

rampallian

Original post by Caitlan

Thanks for the comments. I've heard, rightly or wrongly, that PPE is sometimes looked down upon in a certain sense in that it's not a 'proper' economics degree nor a 'proper' politics degree; it's a sort of mix between the two which lacks the depth you'd get by studying just one subject. Do you know if this is true/widely considered?

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Reply 7

username1108411

Original post by rampallian

It's not a critique I've heard before. I imagine the same could be said of practically any joint honours degree course.

Ultimately, whilst it may be true that depth is compromised for breadth, the degree does place some focus on interlinking the topics which adds another feature to your intellectual repertoire.

Excluding very fussy postgrad schemes/companies, opting for PPE as opposed to straight econ or politics is unlikely to close many doors. It is a very well respected degree choice. With that said, like I mentioned previously, providing you write a versatile personal statement, there is nothing to stop you applying for PPE at Oxford and Economics elsewhere (or some other combination).