Legally minded? Start your law career in the UK

If you’re thinking about pursuing a career in law, the UK has everything you need to develop the skills, knowledge and confidence required to succeed anywhere in the world.

The UK is home to the world’s top three law schools, and right across the country you’ll find hundreds of courses waiting to help you sharpen your mind for the unique challenges of a legal career. The level and diversity of legal expertise in the UK ranks among the very best anywhere in the world, and the outstanding teachers you’ll meet use a progressive approach to learning designed to develop creative, independent thinking.

Tailor your studies to your needs

All law programmes in the UK are structured to give you a comprehensive and critical understanding of the principles and practical skills you will need. As well as the essentials of law and analysis, you’ll be able to build your skills in arguing and mooting, with mock courtrooms to help increase the levels of realism. The compact, modular courses on offer allow international students to graduate more quickly than many other countries, whilst developing specialisms in the areas they feel are most relevant to them. So if you have a passion for human rights – or discover one as you progress with your course – you’ll be able to tailor your degree to help you plan your future career.

What will you be learning?

Compulsory modules

Every UK law degree has seven compulsory modules, covering core areas such as Contract Law and Criminal Law. These will provide the essential foundation of legal understanding that you will need whatever you go on to specialise in.

Specialist modules

You will also have the option to add specialisms to your course in the form of individual modules. Spanning legal areas as diverse as human rights, the environment, family law and terrorism, these modules are set by each individual university. Each one is designed to let you tailor your degree exactly to your interests and future career plans.

Legal history

A UK law degree will provide you with a robust understanding of the history of law. From the legal precedents that continue to shape trials today to the critical details that govern contract law, you’ll be able to see law in a truly historic sense, and understand your own place in it. 

Debate and argument

You’ll learn the foundations of argument, helping you develop one of the sharpest perspectives of any degree. Whether you plan on pursuing a career as a barrister or not, the analytical and linguistic skills you will develop are valued highly by employers the world over. 

Social role of law

You’ll also leave with a thorough understanding of the role of law in society, both the ways that laws are created and the ways they support the functioning of the state and citizen freedoms. Law touches everyone’s lives, from the medical implications of tort law to the sociological implications of family law. A UK law degree will open your eyes to the bigger picture, giving you an overview that’s valuable in any career you choose.

Law in the UK 

Our common law system is more than 900 years old, and its model has been adopted by countries all over the world to work as a foundation of civilised society. Just like UK legal thinking, our law graduates have spread far and wide around the globe too.

Students who take law in the UK are always in demand, thanks to our longstanding reputation for academic excellence and judicial rigour. One of the most important advantages that international students get from a law degree in the UK is total immersion in the English language. By studying and living alongside many native English speakers, and receiving tuition in English, you can acquire a precision in your writing and speaking skills, and a personal confidence, that will ensure you standout to employers worldwide.

A UK legal qualification can open doors to all kinds of careers, both inside and outside the legal system. There are lots of career paths into criminology that could see you helping to fight crime, whilst many law students also go into journalism and politics. One in four world leaders has studied in the UK, many of them choosing to study law – one of our most famous law alumni is Malcolm Turnbull, the Prime Minister of Australia. You could one day join them, helping to create the laws that help sustain a just and free society in your home country. 

So if you want to do more with law, there’s no better place to start than studying in the UK.
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