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Law LLB 2019 Mature Student

Hi,

I will be applying to study for the LLB in 2019, as a mature student.

I do not have the best A Levels, however, I did complete the Legal Method Certificate in Higher Education whilst working full-time and obtained a distinction, thus I am hoping that my not so favourable A Level results will be overlooked.

I have worked in the entertainment industry, mainly focusing on music and for the last couple of years I have been working in FinTech. I have finally realised that I definitely want to become a solicitor and obviously need to go to get a undergraduate degree to do so.

My question is, given my unorthodox circumstances, which universities do you think I will stand the most chance of being made an offer by?

I need to stay in London and am currently considering the following:

- King's College London
- LSE
- Queen Mary, University of London
- UCL
- SOAS
- Goldsmiths (new Law course)

Obviously, the first 4 are all Russell Group universities, which I believe would probably look better on my CV later down the line. The course at Goldsmiths does appeal, of course, it encompasses the traditional methods of assessment, but also uses the more practical aspects of the law e.g. mooting, presenting, drafting etc. to assess its student.

If any one has any opinion/experience of what my best options are likely to be, I would really appreciate your input, as there are only a few days left until I'll submit my application.

Many thanks in advance!
(edited 5 years ago)
Reply 1
Original post by illegallybrunette
Hi,

I will be applying to study for the LLB in 2019, as a mature student.

I do not have the best A Levels, however, I did complete the Legal Method Certificate in Higher Education whilst working full-time and obtained a distinction, thus I am hoping that my not so favourable A Level results will be overlooked.

I have worked in the entertainment industry, mainly focusing on music and for the last couple of years I have been working in FinTech. I have finally realised that I definitely want to become a solicitor and obviously need to go to get a undergraduate degree to do so.

My question is, given my unorthodox circumstances, which universities do you think I will stand the most chance of being made an offer by?

I need to stay in London and am currently considering the following:

- King's College London
- LSE
- Queen Mary, University of London
- UCL
- SOAS
- Goldsmiths (new Law course)

Obviously, the first 4 are all Russell Group universities, which I believe would probably look better on my CV later down the line. The course at Goldsmiths does appeal, of course, it encompasses the traditional methods of assessment, but also uses the more practical aspects of the law e.g. mooting, presenting, drafting etc. to assess its student.

If any one has any opinion/experience of what my best options are likely to be, I would really appreciate your input, as there are only a few days left until I'll submit my application.

Many thanks in advance!


Hey, good news.. you've stumbled across someone who can help! :smile:

Ok. When you say you are going to apply in 2019 - Have you already applied? The deadline for normal applicants is 15th January 2019. If you haven't applied, you are probably straight out of luck this year with any type of decent University.

Secondly, and this is linked to the first question so I apologise if this is now irrelevant. Have you contacted the Universities you wish to apply to? All of the decent Universities will want to see evidence of recent academic study. They generally class 'recent' as 3 years. If you have not completed any academic study in this time, you need to contact them and ask about your circumstances.

You state you have studied the Legal Method Certificate in Higher Education. You must forgive my ignorance here, I have not heard of it and am working off of google in this respect. Have you contacted the Universities to see if this is an accepted form of entry? A quick google highlighted that the University of Birkbeck would consider an application with a mark over 50%. Equivalently, they require 15 Access to HE Distinctions. As someone who completed the latter, that is incredibly low. A UCAS Equivalent for 15D/30M is 'BBC' at A-Level. Conversely, looking at LSE's application page, this qualification is not mentioned for consideration to be given.

Have you completed the LNAT? The deadline again is the 19th of January. This is required for UCL/LSE/KCL

Assuming that you have not applied, and you have not spoken with the Universities you wish to apply to, and you have not completed your LNAT, I will infer the following:

- You likely arent getting in to a 'good' University this cycle.

You will know, having stated you want to be a solicitor, the market is incredibly competitive. Getting a great degree from a targeted University is 'step 1' in the journey, and a long one it is. If my assumptions above are correct, i'd advise the following:

- Contact the Universities you are interested and ask them about your qualification. They will advise you regarding entry. If they say it is not suitable, then..

- Start studying an Access to HE Course ASAP. They can be completed in under a year. If you study via Distance you can start any time, brick courses probably sit from September. Almost every University accepts the Access to HE as a method of entry. It's your meal ticket into a great University.

- Start researching the LNAT and start practising. KCL are known to take "on the average", UCL above the average, LSE are unknown as this is their first year with it. Judging how they like to compete with Oxbridge, i'd say they would want well above the average. Ensure that if you are applying to a LNAT Uni, you take the test in the cycle for which you are applying (so if its next year, before 19th January 2020)

- Work hard, get great grades, right a killer personal statement, smash your LNAT, receive offers from top Uni's!


If you would like any other help or assistance, drop me a reply here or a personal message. I will do my best to help.


(Source, current mature Law student at LSE)
Reply 2
You're gonna need atleast A*AA for UCL LSE and King's. LSE law is the MOST competitive course in LSE with an incredibly low offer rate, if you're a levels aren't on par then it's almost guaranteed you won't get an offer. Law in general is a very competitive course, if your a levels don't reach the requirement there's no point in applying.
Original post by HiroPai
You're gonna need atleast A*AA for UCL LSE and King's. LSE law is the MOST competitive course in LSE with an incredibly low offer rate, if you're a levels aren't on par then it's almost guaranteed you won't get an offer. Law in general is a very competitive course, if your a levels don't reach the requirement there's no point in applying.

Thanks for your reply.

Even though I have a distinction Cert HE which is level 4, as opposed to A Levels being level 3?

Thanks!
Reply 4
Original post by illegallybrunette
Thanks for your reply.

Even though I have a distinction Cert HE which is level 4, as opposed to A Levels being level 3?

Thanks!


You need to clarify with UG admissions whether they will want to see your A-Levels.

As you know (as I have mentioned), I am at LSE Law without any A-Levels, and not even a single A at GCSE's. The above posted may not necessarily understand the different admissions process for mature students.
Reply 5
I also applied for LLBs for 2019 entry (LSE, King's, SOAS, UCL, King's) but my situation is a little bit different.

I just finished an undergraduate degree in social sciences (with a focus in law) at a very selective university in France and did an exchange year at Oxbridge but decided I wanted to study and practice law in England. I don't have A levels or GCSEs since I wasn't educated in the UK system but I finished my degree at a 2:1 equivalent (the French grading system is a bit different and then my modules at Oxbridge were graded at 2:1, 1st, and high 2:1) but I have no idea what my chances of admission are. I've already taken the LNAT and now I'm just waiting for results but does someone know of anyone who's in a similar situation (already completed a BA)?

Are they going to require my high school grades if I've already done an undergrad degree? Also would my profile even be up for consideration or are they likely to accept more "traditional" candidates?
i've applied for senior status LLB (as already have a degree) and that is over 2 years rather than 3. They all just wanted to see proof of my degree.

from the requirements that the normal 3 year LLB had, i''d not have got in (as my A levels are from before A* was a thing so AAB was pretty good back in the day but less good now). None of them mentioned they'd accept a degree so i avoided applying for them.
Hi,

Most of the universities which you want to apply to, will accept a distinction award of the Certificate HE in Legal Studies offered by Birkbeck. I know that the programme has been restructured- you should check it out http://www.bbk.ac.uk/study/2019/certificates/programmes/UEHLEGST/

Good Luck!

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