To any law graduates or students

Hey,
Right now I’m in year 13 focusing on my a-levels and waiting for the November mocks to submit my ucas application.

I’m worried if law would be worth it and if it will be worth all the academic stress and I’ve heard a lot of people say that the job market is very saturated.
I know that definitely I want to do a law degree as that is the only degree I feel passionate to do but I just wonder to any graduates out there if you were able to combat the high competitive job market.

Reply 1

chalks

Original post

by Mariya_008

Hey,
Right now I’m in year 13 focusing on my a-levels and waiting for the November mocks to submit my ucas application.
I’m worried if law would be worth it and if it will be worth all the academic stress and I’ve heard a lot of people say that the job market is very saturated.
I know that definitely I want to do a law degree as that is the only degree I feel passionate to do but I just wonder to any graduates out there if you were able to combat the high competitive job market.

You're right that the job market is extremely competitive, particularly at the upper echelons of the profession.

In 2022, around 30,000 students were accepted onto law courses at Uni (link). Generally speaking, there are around 5000-6000 training contracts awarded/registered each year. In addition to those 30,000 law student applicants, you need to add in those who have studied a non-law degree who also go on to apply for TCs. In any given year, there will also be a sizeable cohort applying who were unsuccessful in the previous year.

It's fair to say that there will be a large proportion of those law students who don't apply for TCs: they decide to pursue a different career or they might try for the Bar.

The short point is that the odds are against you, and there's no point in sugar coating that. The competition for TCs at the leading firms is brutal - firms receive thousands of applications for tens of TCs (link). Obviously, there's a huge amount of "double-counting" with those stats as individuals usually apply for multiple TCs.

How do you tackle that competitive market? Be realistic with your aspirations. Smash your academics. Fill your CV with a variety of ECs which demonstrate you have (or may have) the skills needed to be a lawyer. Develop resilience. Have a Plan B.