Hi everyone!
It's been a lovely and busy week - I know a lot have attended the Legal Cheek virtual vacation scheme which has been really engaging so far.
I have also been receiving messages on what advice I can offer to those starting the LPC and my experience studying it at ULaw. So I thought it would be useful to understand the difference first and some tips!
LLB
You engage with WHY the law is the way it is, what changes have taken place over the years, what reforms could take place to improve the law
Very academic, based on a mixture of essay-based and problem-solving questions
You study a variety of core and elective modules
Usually taught through several lectures and small group classes/workshops
Assessments are a variety of unseen exams and coursework - you usually can be selective with what you study for your exams as you will have choices on what questions to answer (this may depend on your university)
There are several career paths you can choose to go into after your graduate
You usually fund the degree yourself or through student loan
LPC
Unlike the LLB, the LPC is about procedure - how will you advice a client based on their instructions to you
Skills based - learning how to draft correctly, interview clients, present in court and read client ledgers
Imagine yourself working at a firm and filling out forms for submission or drafting witness statements as examples, its practical and not academic
There are not many substantive lectures - it is independent learning in the sense that you prepare for workshops and share your answers in class based on the client scenario
There are also core modules and you choose your electives - you cannot be selective on what material to study since EVERYTHING can come up so you must be prepared
The usual career path after completing the LPC is becoming a solicitor although the skills learnt over the the course are useful in other disciplines
Law firms can sponsor you during the course of your studies if you have accepted a training contract offer with them
I studied the LPC part-time (over 2 years, Wednesdays only) at The University of Law. I worked full time at The Law Society alongside this. Whilst it was an intense two years, I built good organisation and time management skills. Since ULaw had a mixture of open and closed exams, I needed to adjust to the open book exams as I did not have experience in them before. For this reason, my notes had to be top notch. It's really important to stay organised - this is my top tip - check out my post here.
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