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Students turn away from the law as uni applications drop across the board

25 October 2011 | By Vanessa Wozniak

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The largest fall in university applications in more than 30 years has seen the number of candidates applying to study law drop by a record 5.2 per cent, according to figures released by the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS).

Last year 13,858 people applied to study law at the 26 universities that supplied figures to UCAS, but this year the number fell to 13,139.

The news comes two years after the Law Society issued a warning to students that embarking on a career in law could be a risky strategy given that the number of training contracts in the market did not match up to the number of students (28 July 2009).

Earlier this year The Lawyer reported that enrolments on the LPC had plummeted across the market, with the University of Huddersfield seeing the largest drop at 68 per cent (4 July 2011).

Three years ago students started flocking to the law in their droves, with GDL enrolments rocketing as graduates favoured a career in law rather than banking in the wake of the global financial crisis (27 October 2008).

The UCAS figures show that overall 9 per cent fewer students have applied for a place at university to read all subjects this year. Fifteen institutions reported a decline in applicants with City University in London stating that applications were down by more than 10 per cent.

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Readers' comments (29)

  • Anonymous | 25-Oct-2011 1:56 pm

    This was always going to happen.
    Everyone now knows ILEX is the same as a Cambridge 1st in law and an LPC at Notts law school.

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  • Anonymous | 25-Oct-2011 3:39 pm

    Never fear, the legal market will always attract individuals who choose massive debt (or a grant from the Bank of Mum and Dad) so they can have "Solicitor" instead of "Legal Executive" on their business cards, so all is not lost...

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  • Anonymous | 25-Oct-2011 3:58 pm

    I always enjoy getting the daily updates, and your article today particularly interested me as I am a law student myself. I can absolutely attest to the statement of discouragement from the Law Society. I too was told the industry was oversubscribed and I should consider a different career path. I was determined and went ahead anyway, but is it any wonder the numbers have dropped. I'm certainly not surprised.

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  • P Doody | 25-Oct-2011 4:14 pm

    This is hardly surprising news.
    I'm trying to work out though if the first two comments are said sarcastically.
    Or are they frustrated cries from lawyers who've taken the 'traditional' route and are still paying their student loans.

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  • Anonymous | 25-Oct-2011 5:20 pm

    Is this really a story? According to BBC News, application are down 9% overall (12% not including overseas applications). Therefore, law appears to be bucking the trend.

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  • Kourtney Kardashian | 25-Oct-2011 7:25 pm

    I think this makes sense. Why do law at a top 50 university when you can do a Mickey Mouse subject like English or a language course at a top 10 university and then do the GDL. All HR care about is what university you went to so maybe now students are finally learning. HR don’t care that law is 5-10 times harder than English Lit or some joker subject like that. This is probably good news for College of Law GDL teachers.

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  • Anonymous | 25-Oct-2011 7:29 pm

    Sounds like news of the SRA and OFR has reached them...

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  • Anonymous | 26-Oct-2011 9:08 am

    To parrot my colleagues, I too am not surprised at this trend. It was bound to happen in a profession where "anyone" can essentially wander into it.

    I don't see the benefit to someone doing a law degree. If I were a propective student considering entering into the legal profession today, I would think twice about doing a law degree and instead going the GDL route.

    In the current system someone who does a law degree and comes out with a 2.1 is worse off than someone who does a less intensive degree in let's say English or Classics who comes out with a 1st. On most graduate recruitment websites about 50% of the students that are showcased come from non-law backgrounds and thus snag the training contract from the law student.

    I'm all for the career changers, but how on earth can someone honestly say that they are committed to the practice of law if they haven't completed a full law degree?

    If some of these folks were forced to do a law degree at the outset it would cut down on the amount of "non-law" applicants and thus leave the training contracts for the LAW students.

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  • Anonymous | 26-Oct-2011 9:10 am

    Showing my age, some of us were enticed into law by the Crown Court television series! I have not looked back since. However my heart bleeds for the many talented law graduates who are struggling to find pupillage or training contract. No wonder word is getting out there and discouraging future budding lawyers joining the profession. High Uni fees plus mounting debts and no job at the end of it. Young people shouldn't give up.

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  • Drone | 26-Oct-2011 11:10 am

    Anonymous | 26-Oct-2011 9:10 am:
    "High Uni fees plus mounting debts and no job at the end of it. Young people shouldn't give up."
    I'm afraid the first sentence contradicts the second. Statisticallly, some clearly should give up. Also add to the above disincentives OFR, Tesco Law, vanishing partnership prospects and salaries being driven down by surplus labour.

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