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Should I take a masters?

I’m working to become a barrister and that would take a good 5 years. If I take a masters degree, that would bump it up to 6 years. So I’m wondering if I should do a masters degree as in would that help me to a get a pupilage?
If I get a first class degree, would there be any need to do a masters?
Original post by ronaldo lopes
I’m working to become a barrister and that would take a good 5 years. If I take a masters degree, that would bump it up to 6 years. So I’m wondering if I should do a masters degree as in would that help me to a get a pupilage?
If I get a first class degree, would there be any need to do a masters?


it’s really up to you - does a masters broaden your knowledge and understanding of areas of law you’re interested in? absolutely. will it necessarily affect getting a pupilage? meh. being a law student in uni, we all know that it’s more about networking and who you know. getting a pupilage is super competitive so i’d say it’s good to be all-rounded - having a first in law plus good, relevant work experience is probably just as good as an LLB and a masters on top. what i think is if it’s a career you want and are ready to work for, adding on an extra year isn’t a long time and could definitely benefit you!

hope that helps :smile:
Original post by veampleo
it’s really up to you - does a masters broaden your knowledge and understanding of areas of law you’re interested in? absolutely. will it necessarily affect getting a pupilage? meh. being a law student in uni, we all know that it’s more about networking and who you know. getting a pupilage is super competitive so i’d say it’s good to be all-rounded - having a first in law plus good, relevant work experience is probably just as good as an LLB and a masters on top. what i think is if it’s a career you want and are ready to work for, adding on an extra year isn’t a long time and could definitely benefit you!

hope that helps :smile:


Yes thank you that helps a lot! I’m really stressed that I won’t be able to get a pupillage after my BPTC and that everything I’ve done was a waste of time, however, I’m really persistent and will do what it takes to ensure I get a pupillage. I just wanted to know if it’s necessary to do a masters after my undergraduate law degree, or move straight to doing my BPTC.
Reply 3
Although I am on the other side (having just completed the LPC), I have been told many times that having a masters has no bearing on whether or not you will secure a pupillage/training contract. As was said above, I agree that you should only pursue it if you want to broaden your knowledge and you have a particular interest in a certain area of law from an academic perspective. After all, a masters isn't cheap.

I think if I was you I'd either go straight into the BPTC or gather some more work experience instead :smile:
(edited 2 years ago)
Reply 4
I am a practising barrister, I considered doing a masters but a) couldn't afford it b) didn't want to study anymore and wanted to get cracking. It's by no means a requirement; it won't necessarily help cover up a weaker degree score. As you've pointed out, 5 years is already pretty long!

I'd say do it if you are interested and can afford it (it's unlikley to hurt your application), but it's definitely not necessary in most places. Quite a few juniors will have them, but some of that is correlation rather than causation - people who go to the bar as a rule often enjoy the academic study of the law, and therefore want to pursue it further / have more time at university etc, and it's not a career where a masters makes you look like you don't want to grow up or anything like that.

PS: If you've still got to do a law degree, don't think about masters now. You may study law and decide you hate law generally, or that you just don't want to study it longer.
(edited 2 years ago)
Original post by Blayze
PS: If you've still got to do a law degree, don't think about masters now. You may study law and decide you hate law generally, or that you just don't want to study it longer.

I agree with this. Ultimately academic study is only one part of a pupillage application, and it is very different to practising as a barrister. The reason why a Masters generally doesn't do much to help a pupillage application is because your degree combined with your Bar course result gives a strong insight into your academic ability, and it's difficult for a Masters to improve on that. It is, after all, just another year of academic study on your way to what is a career that requires an extensive range of practical skills, and it's not even necessarily harder than your undergraduate degree in context (I certainly found my Masters to be easier). My advice would be not to do a Masters if your reason is to broadly strengthen your pupillage application. If, however, there is a specific reason why you do want to do one that is personal to you, then by all means go for it. But I agree that it's too early to decide on that. Revisit it during your undergraduate degree and see how you feel about it then.

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