Northumbria Uni launches fast-track LLB
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Northumbria University has joined forces with Irwin Mitchell to pilot a ground-breaking new scheme which will enable would-be lawyers to qualify in just five years and at a fraction of the cost.
The law school at Northumbria has been approved by the Solicitors Regulation Authority to be the first ever institution to pilot a five-year course the combines with a law degree with both the Legal Practice Course and training contract. Currently, it takes a minimum of six years to qualify as a solicitor.
Irwin Mitchell and Watson Burton have both signed up to be partner law firms on the revolutionary programme, which will see students combine 24-months worth of work placements over their third, fourth and fifth years of study.
Associate dean Kevin Kerrigan said: “It’s the first time ever that the learning of legal rules has been integrated with legal practice. As the university remains the assessor for the work-based learning part of the course, it will make sure that that part will have a formal rigorous framework.”
Kerrigan also said the new course will provide a significant cost saving to students.
The law school will charge students £3,290 per year for the course plus £900 per year extra to cover the LPC modules for the first three years.
“This is a very significant development in legal education and will make qualification as a solicitor a lot more accessible to students,” added Kerrigan.
As part of the course students will work full-time for six months at the university’s student law office, which has been providing free legal advice to the community for more than 20-years and employees around 18 solicitors and barristers.
The programme splits work placements into three sections over the duration of the course. Students will take part in an initial three-month placement in their third year at a partner law firm then six months at the school’s legal advice centre and a final 15-month placement spread across their fourth and fifth year.
But not all students are guaranteed a placement at one of the partner law firms.
In the third year the university selects the most talented students to go for interviews at the partner law firms, where they will be offered placements if successful.
Students who do not get a placement can carry on to complete the four-year existing LLB exempting law degree and will have to find their own training contract once it is completed.
For the purposes of the pilot, Northumbria students who entered year three of the existing LLB Exempting law degree in September 2009 will be given the opportunity to transfer onto the new programme over the next two months for the course to start in June 2010.
Readers' comments (6)
Anonymous | 26-Feb-2010 9:59 am
I have to say that this is an absolutely wonderful idea and incredibly progessive. As an ex Northumbria Law student i only wish that this had come in sooner.
I have always wondered why it is though that Northumbria seems to be te only trailblazing institution and other Universities merely catch up! Go Northumbria, go.
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Anonymous | 28-Feb-2010 12:05 pm
This does seem like a good step forward. I have been thinking for a long time that the legal career should adopt some of the structural dynamics of a career in medicine/ dentistry in many universities.
Medicine and dentistry are both primarily 5 year courses, but most of the academics is in the first 3 years, after which students go of to hospitals to do their clinical training. At the end of which they come out qualified to practice and build up on their experience.
This pilot system could be the way forward. It could be a solution to the ever increasing problem of graduates without training contracts who fear that they may end up not qualifying.
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Anonymous | 1-Mar-2010 12:18 pm
The issue with the glut of graduates is not fear "that they may not end up qualifying", it is a fear of not having a job. Calling someone a "solicitor" at the end of a period of time changes absolutely nothing. I'm sure many "barristers" feel warmed by the fact they can call themselves barristers despite not having a pupillage...not. This also ignores the fact that most graduates earn a good salary during their training contract, so that another 2 years of debt rather than earning doesn't seem to be such a good option for those who would have obtained a TC anyway. Whilst this may have some redeeming features, thank god it is only being implemented by Northumbria and not one of the major legal education providers.
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Anonymous | 1-Mar-2010 2:44 pm
I am currently a 3rd year law student at Northumbria and believe this is a brilliant idea.
With regards to the previous comment 18 months of the training contract programe takes place in one of the sponsor firm's offices and as such employment with the firm is just as likely as any other graduate undertaking a training contract with them.
Also the final 15 months of the programme are paid and is the same as a traing contract in every respect so there is not an extra 2 years of debt as you incorrectly said.
When the costs are worked out it is actually only slightly more expensive (around £500) than undertaking a 3 year LLB then the 1 year LPC then the 2 year training contract.
The main advantage though is that the student will qualify as a solicitor 1 year earlier than they would and can be guaranteed (unless they are hopeless during their work time at the sponsor firm) a job.
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Anonymous | 2-Mar-2010 1:57 pm
I have received further information about this course and I do not see how it improves access to the profession. The placement with the law firm is not guaranteed and all students intending to become solicitors must go through a recruitment process. How is that different from applying for a training contracts? The concern always remains that we are running the risk of creating a two tier system of lawyers, those who qualified in the traditional manner and those who completed this course.
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Anonymous | 7-Jun-2010 10:00 am
This is a brilliant idea to have such a package for the would be law student. I am interested whether such course is available to overseas student especially from Malaysia. I am keen to sign-up.
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