On track of 2:2 MA Law (conversion) is this good enough? :(

I'm a current Masters (MA) Law student having converted from my undergraduate degree in social sciences at a Russell Group Uni.

I would just like to hear opinions on my future prospects as I have just received my January marks back with an average of 52.

The pass mark for MA is 50% rather than 40% like the GDL, so I merely just passed and I'm just losing confidence and it is disheartening to see that my hard work has not paid off. I have never missed a lecture or workshop, I try to participate as much as I can and do all the prep tasks and readings, during exam time I managed and organised my time to revise ALL the content and covered all the past papers ... so perhaps it's my method of revision and note-taking...

The results have really knocked me down. Nevertheless, I'm still pushing through but today we received our mocks and I again, received 52 and 58. I know they only mock but this semester I'm finding it increasingly harder than the first semester which makes me nervous for my summer exams in just TWO MONTHS.

I received a 2:1 in my undergraduate degree but at this rate, It looks like I will come out of my MA course with a PASS (2:2). Is this a problem for law firms? I'm still relatively new to the law sector, didn't even hear about probono opportunities until I started my law conversion. I'm not aiming for the magic circle firms, but just worried about my potential for vacation schemes and training contracts and whether my grade is not good enough.

I have tried to build up my CV loads through undertaking probono volunteering, attending networking events and doing short studies to show my enthusiasm.

Please feel free if anyone has any thoughts regarding my situation or any tips.

Reply 1

3Engineer141592

11

Sorry Don’t know the answer to your question, but making a point about doing your undergrad at a Russell Group is pointless, RGs are about research intensity and is entirely non-applicable to UG unis.

What I might be inclined to say that is helpful is that having a law degree from somewhere like Durham, Aberdeen, Exeter etc would be more employable than Cardiff, Liverpool, Herriot Watt etc as the former are ranked higher in league tables

Also if it’s of help, not sure about law but generally nobody cares too much about Masters classification. They do about UG but not PG, but law conversion might be different

(edited 3 years ago)

Reply 2

newlawstudent

OP

2

Original post by 3Engineer141592

Sorry Don’t know the answer to your question, but making a point about doing your undergrad at a Russell Group is pointless, RGs are about research intensity and is entirely non-applicable to UG unis.

What I might be inclined to say that is helpful is that having a law degree from somewhere like Durham, Aberdeen, Exeter etc would be more employable than Cardiff, Liverpool, Herriot Watt etc as the former are ranked higher in league tables

Also if it’s of help, not sure about law but generally nobody cares too much about Masters classification. They do about UG but not PG, but law conversion might be different

Thank you for your reply, I really appreciate your time and thoughts!

I'm currently at the University of Law (Manchester) which is a private university as opposed to the ones on the league table. The reason is, not many universities offer conversion courses. I'm looking to pursue a career within the legal sector hence for my Master's degree but considering my grade for the law conversion is lower than my undergraduate degree I thought it would be detrimental because my undergraduate is irrelevant to law (social sciences).

Nevertheless, thank you for your help!

Reply 3

DimT

12

Don't you have other things to worry about first (like bar exams or whatever else you need to actually become a lawyer)?

Reply 4

Plunker0202

7

Focus on getting the best grades you can. Being able to show improvement could provide some reassurance that you are able, and the initial grades were adjustment, unfamiliarity, etc. Specific advice depends on your circumstances. How are you making notes? How are you preparing for exams (covering all past questions sounds suspicious: there's no way you can do so with sufficient depth for each)? Which books are you reading? and etc.

General things: assuming you type notes, when reducing them (as exam prep) do so by hand, and write out answers to previous / model exam questions by hand. Handwriting imprints information in your brain, somehow, and doing practise Qs forces you to curate information and figure out how things actually apply. You also need some effective memory techniques to remember cases / principles. Again, hand write: find some system that works for you, but in general, you should associate cases with principles. So, maybe you summarise a sub-topic in a flow chart, and you write out 4/5/6 words for a principle and have a case in brackets with a couple of trigger words, or 2, 3 cases--whatever is appropriate.

Also, what kind of feedback have you been getting? What specific things are markers and tutors telling you to improve on, or that are missing?

I would say 2:1s in law come from comprehensiveness and accuracy. Firsts happen when creativity and insight are added to the mix. Make of that what you will.

(edited 3 years ago)

Reply 5

The University of Law Students

Official Rep

16

Original post by newlawstudent

I'm a current Masters (MA) Law student having converted from my undergraduate degree in social sciences at a Russell Group Uni.

I would just like to hear opinions on my future prospects as I have just received my January marks back with an average of 52.

The pass mark for MA is 50% rather than 40% like the GDL, so I merely just passed and I'm just losing confidence and it is disheartening to see that my hard work has not paid off. I have never missed a lecture or workshop, I try to participate as much as I can and do all the prep tasks and readings, during exam time I managed and organised my time to revise ALL the content and covered all the past papers ... so perhaps it's my method of revision and note-taking...

The results have really knocked me down. Nevertheless, I'm still pushing through but today we received our mocks and I again, received 52 and 58. I know they only mock but this semester I'm finding it increasingly harder than the first semester which makes me nervous for my summer exams in just TWO MONTHS.

I received a 2:1 in my undergraduate degree but at this rate, It looks like I will come out of my MA course with a PASS (2:2). Is this a problem for law firms? I'm still relatively new to the law sector, didn't even hear about probono opportunities until I started my law conversion. I'm not aiming for the magic circle firms, but just worried about my potential for vacation schemes and training contracts and whether my grade is not good enough.

I have tried to build up my CV loads through undertaking probono volunteering, attending networking events and doing short studies to show my enthusiasm.

Please feel free if anyone has any thoughts regarding my situation or any tips.

Hello from a fellow Masters in Law student!

Firstly, this year has been difficult, what with the lockdowns, weird rules and having to adapt so don't be hard on yourself.

Secondly, have you finished the course? If not, there is still time to improve things. The biggest thing to realise with a Masters is not just the pass mark, but also how the marks are distributed. In my course, to obtain the higher marks, you need to show clear critical analysis- there is a huge weighting for this. Have a chat with your course leader or personal tutor about the weighting of the scheme for your particular course. It maybe that you are showing that you know all of the required knowledge (which will pass the course) but there are elements of critical analyse that you are missing.

Also check with your uni, do they have a policy regarding the impact of the pandemic on your grades- it may not be as bad as you think if there is, there may be reasonable adjustments that can be made.

You have done the right thing by attending the lessons and keeping up with the studying. You clearly know your stuff or you wouldn't pass- just check how to hit the higher grades. All of the pro-bono work is great too.

You can do this! Two months of 'clever' work will really pay dividends so schedule a 'holiday' at the end of it so you know you have something to look forward to too.

Nic
Student Ambassador at The University of Law

On track of 2:2 MA Law (conversion) is this good enough? :(

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