Which of these unis is best for Law?

- Sheffield
- Southhampton
- York
- Exeter
- Liverpool
- Manchester
- Cardiff

I've kind of ruled a lot of unis out because the environments are not ones I would thrive studying in, thus leaving me with this list. To be honest, I have visited most of these places and really didn't like the city (haven't visited Cardiff yet, but have been near there and absolutely loved the area, so I'm really leaning towards Cardiff right now) but I am wondering if that's quite respected/good choice over the others? I also like York but the costs of accom are insane, so sadly that's kind of like a last resort.

Reply 1

bibachu

Universities Forum Helper

Original post by noodlestopshop_

- Sheffield
- Southhampton
- York
- Exeter
- Liverpool
- Manchester
- Cardiff
I've kind of ruled a lot of unis out because the environments are not ones I would thrive studying in, thus leaving me with this list. To be honest, I have visited most of these places and really didn't like the city (haven't visited Cardiff yet, but have been near there and absolutely loved the area, so I'm really leaning towards Cardiff right now) but I am wondering if that's quite respected/good choice over the others? I also like York but the costs of accom are insane, so sadly that's kind of like a last resort.

If we're going purely based off rankings then these are the rankings for law the three most commonly used league tables:

The Complete University Guide:

University of York (12th)
University of Manchester (13th)
Cardiff University (16th)
University of Exeter (20th)
University of Southampton (21st)
University of Sheffield (23rd)
University of Liverpool (27th)

The Times:

University of York (13th - tied with University of Bristol)
University of Exeter (16th)
Cardiff University (20th)
University of Sheffield (24th)
University of Southampton (25th - tied with University of Birmingham and University of Kent)
University of Manchester (28th - tied with Aston University)
University of Liverpool (42nd)

The Guardian:

University of Manchester (14th)
University of York (17th)
University of Southampton (18th)
Cardiff University (31st)
University of Exeter (35th)
University of Sheffield (47th)
University of Liverpool (49th)

As you can see, the rankings vary greatly, so it's important not to get too fixated on them when thinking about university. These are all Russell Group universities, which puts you in a relatively safe position when applying to things like pupillages, training contracts, vacation schemes and internships (assuming your end goal is to become a lawyer of some form). Cardiff seems like a good option, despite what the rankings may lead you to believe. According to the Chambers Student Guide of law firms' preferred universities, Cardiff ranks 19th (it's worth noting that this was made in 2019 so a lot has probably changes since). I would say that in terms of rankings, your best options are probably York, Manchester and Cardiff, with Manchester probably being the most reputable for law out of the three, but York being ranked the highest across all league tables. The only agreement between these rankings is that Liverpool ranks bottom out of the ones you've listed, so if you're looking for a safety choice, that may be it.

If you were wondering about how easy or hard it is to get into these universities, here are the offer rates:

University of Manchester (51.5%)
University of Exeter (63.3%)
Cardiff University (68.2%)
University of Liverpool (69.2%)
University of Southampton (69.2%)
University of Sheffield (74.7%)
University of York (78.7%)

Reply 2

Picnicl

Manchester would likely be most fun and it's also genuinely respected, largely because of its reputation in the sciences rather than Law though. I'd consider Nottingham too. Sheffield University looks lovely but Sheffield itself not so much.