Is it a mistake to do a law degree to know the law?

don't particularly want to be a solicitor- I just don't have the ambition or passion for it, or any other professional career of similar standing.

I want to do a degree more for the qualifications and the subsequent possibilities it would open up in terms of aiming higher than a retail job.

Since it's three years of my life, I thought my decision must be worth three years of studying. I love sociology, but I feel like three years dedicated to it just wouldn't feel productive for me.

I have always wanted to educate myself on law, and feel like it's more "useful" and practical in terms of the knowledge I will take away, even if I don't go into it as a profession.

That being said, I know it's a hard degree and requires a lot of effort. Is it worth taking on, just out of interest/personal development? Being uneducated on the law is an insecurity of mine. Is a degree a silly way to comfort that?

Like I said, I don't really have big career aspirations. Recently though, I really like the idea of teaching college age (I'm in the UK), basically young adults. Would that be a route I could realistically go down if I do law? Let me confuse you even more, I see myself teaching sociology. But realistically I just feel like it's a waste for me doing three years of sociology.

Reply 1

Durham Students

Official Rep

Original post by Wentove

Hi there

I'm a law student so can offer my two pence on this. Law is certainly a difficult subject and IMO, unless you have a deep passion for the subject, it can get more and more difficult to cope with as the difficulty increases. For instance, at Durham you have to write a dissertation, it will have to be law-related and you'll have to spend the whole year researching and writing on this one topic. If you're not deeply interested in it, it will be extremely hard to write it and this can cost you a lot as it counts towards 40% of your final year marks. For me, this passion comes from wanting to be a solicitor so I enjoy studying the subject. If that's not the case for you, it's worth introspecting if you actually care enough about the subject to dedicate loads of time studying and working on it. If yes, go for a law degree. But if it's just a hobby and you only want to know what the laws are, wouldn't it be better to do free online courses on it?

From what you've mentioned, it seems like sociology is your prime passion. I don't think it's a waste of time. Especially if you want to teach sociology, you might need a degree in it to then qualify for the PGCE course. The link also mentions a range of careers you can go into with a sociology degree so you won't be limited to teaching. And you could even go into law with a non-law degree if you do a law conversion course.

If you're not sure about any particular subject, maybe look into Combined Honours? This will give you the flexibility to combine up to 4 social sciences subjects including sociology and many others (not law, unfortunately) and at the end of your three years you'll probably have a better idea of what you want to do. Alternatively, Criminology is worth looking into as it sits at the cross-section of sociology and criminal law.

Placement Years are also a good option for exploring a career whilst you're doing your undergrad. With this option, you can work in a company (doesn't have to be related to your course) between your penultimate and final years and explore a career whilst getting paid. Then you come back to uni for your final year. Some students even get a graduate job offer with their placement company so you won't have to worry about securing one after graduation. There are several placement opportunities in teaching too which I often advertise as an intern within the Placement Team here at Durham. If successful, you could potentially do one of those and decide whether or not a teaching career is for you.

Hope that helps :smile: