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Hey guys i am in year 12 atm and considering law

What makes a strong applicant?? I got an A*,4As and 6Bs at gcse

Doing biology chemistry history and maths at AS
Original post by SuperHuman98
Hey guys i am in year 12 atm and considering law

What makes a strong applicant?? I got an A*,4As and 6Bs at gcse

Doing biology chemistry history and maths at AS


Im really sorry to say this but I think you should only do law if you realllllly want to because it's as hard as ever to become a lawyer and most of those who are getting jobs go to a very good RG uni like Bristol/warwick or LSE of Oxbridge and to go to one of them you more than likely need better GCSEs (6A*s+) unless you go to an underperforming school. Only do law if you really want to do it as the competition is fierce and without going to a top uni the odds are very much against you


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Original post by oli19919
Im really sorry to say this but I think you should only do law if you realllllly want to because it's as hard as ever to become a lawyer and most of those who are getting jobs go to a very good RG uni like Bristol/warwick or LSE of Oxbridge and to go to one of them you more than likely need better GCSEs (6A*s+) unless you go to an underperforming school. Only do law if you really want to do it as the competition is fierce and without going to a top uni the odds are very much against you


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Competition is fierce in many degrees ,and many unis visited my college I asked them about GCSEs mine are fine :/
Original post by oli19919
Im really sorry to say this but I think you should only do law if you realllllly want to because it's as hard as ever to become a lawyer and most of those who are getting jobs go to a very good RG uni like Bristol/warwick or LSE of Oxbridge and to go to one of them you more than likely need better GCSEs (6A*s+) unless you go to an underperforming school. Only do law if you really want to do it as the competition is fierce and without going to a top uni the odds are very much against you


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This is wrong, I have an offer from UCL for law with 2 A*s at GCSE! Just make sure your ASs and PS are v.good, and perform in your LNAT and you should be good to go with UCL and tbe likes
Original post by SuperHuman98
Hey guys i am in year 12 atm and considering law

What makes a strong applicant?? I got an A*,4As and 6Bs at gcse

Doing biology chemistry history and maths at AS


Some unis do look at GCSEs as part of their application but although I can't confirm this I doubt it will matter as much as the rest of your application!! I would suggest aiming to get AAAA or AAAB for as level and keep doing history. Although no law school specifically asks for any subject I do think it would help if you are doing an essay subject for A2, one because some analysis skills of history also apply to law and also because you will be writing a lot of essays at uni so it may be a good idea to practise this through A2 and pick up good techniques, after that just really prove how interested you are in your personal statement. don't just state you did work experience say what you learnt from the experience and how it's made you more interested in studying law, it's also good if you can talk about current issues as it shows you have done some reading into the subject as well
Good luck I'm sure no matter what you choose to do you will end up doing well and happy
Original post by SuperHuman98
Hey guys i am in year 12 atm and considering law

What makes a strong applicant?? I got an A*,4As and 6Bs at gcse

Doing biology chemistry history and maths at AS
Grades mean a lot, but they are only one part of your application and your application is viewed holistically by university admissions teams. In my experience, and others I've known, as long as your GCSEs aren't abysmal (and yours are far from that) unis will put far far more stock into your AS results/A2 predictions. The rumours that some universities will bin your application immediately if you have below a certain amount of A*s at GCSE are also complete rubbish.

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A strong applicant for Law I would say has:

- Good grades. This will mostly be down to your AS results and predictions so you'll need to work hard in the next year. I'm not sure what these would be as I applied for Law after sitting my A2s but if it's any consolation I got aaae at AS and the e didn't weigh me down as my other results were good.

-Sensible subject choices for Law. You have these. STEM subjects are looked upon favourably for their logic and problem solving, as are more rigorous essay writing subjects (History, English Lit, Psychology) etc. I would suggest, as someone else suggested, hanging onto History into A2 though; not just because it's probably the closest to Law out of your choices but because the essay writing practice and argumentative skills it will give you will help a lot when you go to study Law.

- A good PS. While I won't go over all the details of writing a good PS and you don't need to worry about it for a year or so anyway, I would say that one thing that can set your apart on your PS is that you have something interesting to say about Law. So try to do some outside reading unrelated to your A-Levels but related to Law either directly or indirectly. For instance my PS focused heavily on the philosophy of ethics, name-dropping books I'd read, what I thought of them and how they linked back into Law.

- Pertinent extra-curricular activities. These are less relevant than everything above but can be essential just to round you out as a candidate. These will never be a substitute for good grades however. You also don't need any Law work experience. I imagine it would help, but I have been told in the past that it's essential and I was unable to find any but it didn't hurt my application at all. I also say "pertinent" because whatever you put down you need to link into how it informed your decision to study Law and how it will benefit you as someone who would study Law (so apologies if you're captain of the football team!).

-------------------

It's a long road but if you're committed there are a lot of things you can do to set yourself up nicely. You have the benefit of about 10 months to get some reading and stuff done.
Original post by Audrey18
hi. I heard University of Mumbai in India is good. So why do you eagerly want to go to LSE or KCL? Do you plan to apply for UK citizenship after you graduate and work for a few years in UK? tell me. i'm curious to know.


I am a British citizen and have been for the past 18 years bro..
Original post by oli19919
Im really sorry to say this but I think you should only do law if you realllllly want to because it's as hard as ever to become a lawyer and most of those who are getting jobs go to a very good RG uni like Bristol/warwick or LSE of Oxbridge and to go to one of them you more than likely need better GCSEs (6A*s+) unless you go to an underperforming school. Only do law if you really want to do it as the competition is fierce and without going to a top uni the odds are very much against you


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I got an interview from Cambridge with shocking GCSEs, I don't know where you got that idea from. As' are much more important for every university.


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Original post by Solrac777
I got an interview from Cambridge with shocking GCSEs, I don't know where you got that idea from. As' are much more important for every university.


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There are obviously exceptions, but it is certainly 'more than likely' that those who go to a cambridge or a durham do have 6A*s or more at gcse. I never said it was impossible for him to get in, just that most have better gcses so he'd have to probably make up for it by getting amazing AS grades or a great LNAT score. Remember that many schools no longer take AS and that there's been a lot of reform so greater emphasis will certainly be placed on gcses in the future, maybe not for him but for future applicants


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Original post by Solrac777
I got an interview from Cambridge with shocking GCSEs, I don't know where you got that idea from. As' are much more important for every university.


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It is also known that cambridge care much less about gcses than Oxford and place greater emphasis on AS. This isn't the case for other unis


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Original post by oli19919
It is also known that cambridge care much less about gcses than Oxford and place greater emphasis on AS. This isn't the case for other unis


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I got an interview at Oxford (only 50% interviewed compared to Cam 80-90%) with just 2 A*s. So whilst GCSEs are important it's not the be all and end all. Things like PS, LNAT and Predictions matter just as much if not more, especially LNAT.


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Original post by oli19919
It is also known that cambridge care much less about gcses than Oxford and place greater emphasis on AS. This isn't the case for other unis


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You do realise I've applied to, and have offers from, other universities?


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Original post by MNIMxSHINee
I got an interview at Oxford (only 50% interviewed compared to Cam 80-90%) with just 2 A*s. So whilst GCSEs are important it's not the be all and end all. Things like PS, LNAT and Predictions matter just as much if not more, especially LNAT.


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Exactly.


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Original post by oli19919
Ok thanks a lot, would you say 7-8A*s is good for oxford? Any tips on applying (in year 11 so have long time but still)


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Absolutely plenty - 5+ is good. That's okay, I wish I had been more Oxbridge driven in Year 11, would have made Year 12 a heck of a lot easier! You'll hear it plenty of times but I seriously recommend doing stuff for your personal statement now, whilst you have the time. I spent Year 12 working two jobs, doing work experience, doing 4 AS Levels, an EPQ, Young Enterprise, extra reading, etc. If I had started doing things in the Year 11 summer I wouldn't have overworked myself so much. To be honest, reading material before writing your PS is my best advice. I read one decent book for mine but only really started getting into proper reading whilst preparing for interviews. I kept finding cases and ideas that would have made my personal statement SO much better and more genuine. I seriously recommend What About Law by Graham Virgo (and others) and of course Letters to a Law Student. I also read Is Eating People Wrong? which was super interesting, but this was a bit more challenging so start with the more accessible things first.

To be honest, it probably sounds like I did more than I did. Once UCAS loomed over me I went into overdrive and did all this at once, but I managed to get in. I just recommend starting early. It wouldn't hurt to start looking into the LNAT, either. It is such a cliché but reading the news will really, really help.

Anyway, good luck and sorry if this is a bit rambled (my mocks start tomorrow!). PM me if you have any specific questions, I'll be more than happy to pay-it-forward; I got loads of help when I was applying for which I am very grateful :-)
Original post by srai243
Got an offer from bristol last week, though still waiting on KCL and UCL. If I got an offer from bristol does that mean my LNATS went okay, or is it not that large of a factor in the decision from bristol as it is for UCL or KCL? Have been waiting for the latter since early November and it does get quite demotivating when everyone around me is already getting offers :biggrin:


I know that feel :biggrin: Just wanted to ask everyone here the same question. I got an offer from Durham last week but still waiting for UCL. I know Durham is an amazing university but can't wait to receive a decision from UCL :smile:
Is Durham as critical of the LNAT as the other London universities?

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Original post by srai243
Got an offer from bristol last week, though still waiting on KCL and UCL. If I got an offer from bristol does that mean my LNATS went okay, or is it not that large of a factor in the decision from bristol as it is for UCL or KCL? Have been waiting for the latter since early November and it does get quite demotivating when everyone around me is already getting offers :biggrin:


What did you get for gcse and as if you don't mind saying? :smile: still waiting on Bristol, KCL and UCL :s-smilie:
Original post by Bobkata
I know that feel :biggrin: Just wanted to ask everyone here the same question. I got an offer from Durham last week but still waiting for UCL. I know Durham is an amazing university but can't wait to receive a decision from UCL :smile:
Is Durham as critical of the LNAT as the other London universities?

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Where else have you heard from? Durham is great!
Original post by kirblaw3
What did you get for gcse and as if you don't mind saying? :smile: still waiting on Bristol, KCL and UCL :s-smilie:

I got 6a*, 3a and a b in IGCSE and I do the IB and am predicted 42 with 777 at hl, so the equivalent of 3a*. I hope you hear back from bristol soon! :smile:
Original post by beccamcki
I've applied to three LNAT unis (Glasgow, Bristol and Durham) and I've got offers for Glasgow and Bristol but I haven't heard back from Durham yet.

congratulations, just wanted to ask what your as and GCSE grades were and predicted grades are because I'm still waiting on a reply from Bristol
Original post by Abhishek Dhawan
Also have offers from Warwick and QMUL + just received Bristol a few days back. What are your other options? Out of those, i would choose warwick simply because of its international reputation and employability. I'm waiting on KCL and LSE so would choose either of those over anything.

congrats, what were your as and gcse grades, if you don't mind me asking? Also, what have you been predicted? i've also applied to brisol and still waiting so really nervous right now

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