DD wants to do a law degree

[blondebarbie2001]

So my DD is currently in year 12 and is sitting her mocks. She has decided her career path of law and I think her grades will be okay but a personal statement isn't just grades. I was wondering whether anyone knew how to make her personal statement stand out? Whether any volunteering will benefit her and work experience and where are the best places to find work experience? Also whether there are any good books to read to further her knowledge associated to degrees which will make it stand out?

Unfortunately so far she has done no work experience because she is unsure on where to find them. She has been rejected by the majority of her local law firms. She has 6 weeks work experience at her local primary school helping people read and also participated in a programme where she ran a business and competed nationally. Her business came first in their county final and won best company report, presentation and interview. She was responsible for the presentation. She is also doing EPQ but has not started yet. If anyone can give any advice that I could maybe put forward to her on what to do her EPQ on and how to get high would be brilliant?

[Bluntness100]

Thank you!

Good luck to your son. It's nerve wracking for them waiting,,,

[BasiliskStare]

bluntness - start the post ! How utterly brilliant. ) although DS waiting for final result and it may not be so fantastjc ) Many congratulations

[Sevendown]

Citizens advice bureau volunteering is good for would be lawyers- you can even get to represent people in court!

[Bluntness100]

Thank you all and again I'm sorry to barbie for derailing.

Yes, I think it is a huge achievement also, it's not something I have achieved, and I think it's clear my comment was not insulting or intended to be.

She's my child, and I love her and want the best for her, and for her to realise her dreams. Like any parent I want to see her rewarded for her efforts and law is a tough old field, it's hugely competitive, and if you're not particularly confident it can make it an even tougher field, let's be honest.

Hopefully we can take it back to the thread theme, as our kids choosing a legal career isn't an easy road, and barbies thread is helpful to enable parenrs to advise and understand.

I had no real concept of what was involved when my daughter chose to go this route, I didn't know how competitive it was, nor did I know simple basic facts like it takes five or six years just to qualify as a solicitor.😱

[goodbyestranger]

LuMarie it's all relative as you say and therefore not all degrees, A levels and GCSEs are a huge achievement, by definition. As Xenia points out, some students opt for easy degrees at unis with standards on the lower side despite being capable of more. Some underperform in A levels and GCSEs through sheer laziness and lack of application. I think one can safely say a 1st is a genuinely huge achievement however and if you're the proud possessor of a Ist, as you say, perhaps let a poster enjoy the moment for her DD rather than asserting your position in the roll call of who's 1st is best?

[LuMarie]

@goodbyestranger

Any degree grade is a huge achievement, a-levels are a huge achievement, GCSEs are a huge achievement - it's all relative and should be respected.

(Yes I got a first)

No raining on any parade, just pointing out that a comment was inaccurate and a bit insulting. No need for it.

Well done @MeadowHay , huge achievement.

[MeadowHay]

Congrats Bluntness to your daughter. I graduated last summer with a first in Law and my dad cried when I told him on the phone . I battled severe mental ill-health to get there and my graduation ceremony was a very special day. I'm sure you will enjoy your daughter's just as much .

[KERALA1]

Wow congratulations to your daughter bluntness that's such an achievement

[Xenia]

Is it really a huge achievement to make it through university? Surely it's pretty easy if you get bad grades and go to a fairly easy place.

[Bluntness100]

Thank you.

As said, I really wasn't trying to deride other degrees, just saying it was an achievement, as said, she can lack confidence and it's a tough competitive industry so I am pleased for her. ☺️

[goodbyestranger]

LuMarie bottom line is that a 1st is a fantastic achievement, gaussian curves or no. It's a bit mean to rain on someone's parade the day their DD gets a 1st!

Bluntness the 1st will see doors swing open I'm sure and will be a fantastic confidence booster. Well done again!

[LuMarie]

If you note and understand the gaussian distribution curve used to grade students, you will understand that the percentage of students who get a particular grade is not the measure of difficulty/ease, due to number of students who can actually get to the end of a degree in a particular subject. Oversubscribed subjects have skewed results. Incredibly difficult subjects can have results skewed in the other direction, because only a small percentage of minds can handle them.

No one is better or worse a person that anyone else for a degree or not, there is a natural ability and luck of birth (i.e. not into hideous poverty or war that can't be escaped) that takes any person through the education system, in addition to a lot of work.

However the comparison is "sounds hard" and "is hard"!

Good luck to all students of all grades, it's a hugh achievement to make it through university.

[MooseBeTimeForSpring]

I got a 2:1 in Law from a former Poly as a “mature student” (I was 23 when
I graduated). I couldn’t get a training contract locally but whilst I was doing my A Levels I had also done RSA Word Processing.
I got a job as a Legal Secretary then became a Paralegal. I did the LPC part time (two evenings a week and the odd weekend). The firm then offered me a training contract.

[Bluntness100]

Sorry iPad playing up, here are the stats according to thr Higher Education Statistics Agency, U.K. law is the hardest to achieve a first in,

www.studyinternational.com/news/uk-law-hardest-subject-get-first-class-degree-study/

Barbie thanks, she's going through assessment centres now for training contracts and has a paralegal job at a top twenty where they offer them internal training contracts, so fingers crossed, she can lack confidence so that's why I'm pleased for her.

[Bluntness100]

Actually that's not accurate, but my 5-8 was also not accurate as I'd used wiki. It's closer to 14 percent.

However I certainly wasn't attempting to deride other degrees. I was simply making a point about law.

Here are the league tables ,

[blondebarbie2001]

No need to apologise bluntness! Congrats to your DD and I wish her the best of luck in whatever she chooses to do next :)

[LuMarie]

Congrats to your dd bluntness

...but lowest percentage of 1st and so many fewer than say, maths?

Ahem, no.

Gaussian bell curve normal distribution leads grading. If it's 30% for a subject, then tiny number of students actually made it to the end. We've had 40% in maths and physics year, but that was a total of 4 students, out of the four hundred who began in first year, the one hundred who were there at the end to graduate and the ten who were sitting for an undergraduate masters rather than bachelors, so much harder. All 4 have PhDs now and are academics/professors or very successful bankers.

When there are many students, such as with law which is over subscribed, the percentage is not a comparable indicator due to the number of students.

Tricky I know, but that's maths!

I know you are happy, but be careful not to be rude about other disciplines!

A maths student could do a law degree. It doesn't work the other way around.

[Xenia]

Bluntness, that's really good news. Well done to her.

[Bluntness100]

Thank you. I'm really pleased for her, and messaging everyone I know, It's been a long hard slog for her. I even contemplated starting a thread saying " my daughter got a friggen first". But thought better of it.☺️🤣

Sorry to hijack barbie 💐

[goodbyestranger]

Many congrats on the 1st Bluntness DD!

[Bluntness100]

Training contracts are for solicitors. You do the lpc and two years practice basically then qualify,

Well mine got a first today!!!

I'm so, so, chuffed for her..apparantly it's one of the hardest degrees to get a first in, only 5-8 % of graduates achieve it. Compared to approx 30% in maths for example,😍😍😍

[blondebarbie2001]

Do you think, with the competitiveness of training contracts after law, if DD manages to get one, to take the route of a solicitor apprenticeship

[BubblesBuddy]

It’s ok MeadowHay. I cannot tell you how many people have suggested DD must have had a better chance because we had connections! No we didn’t.

One of the huge advantages of training in London is the networking opportunities. These are not to be underestimated and you become a member of an Inn when you want a scholarship. Doing a degree there is also valuable.

I do think blonde that your DD really should not choose Law at a university that is close to home. After all, that leaves little choice. I think a number of us have told you which universities give a better chance of a career in Law. If she would like a High Street solicitor, then she needs to find out which ones actually offer traineeships. Plenty don’t. Lots of universities are opaque about what their Law grads go on to do. Employment figures are not the same as training contracts or pupillage. I would try and get DD to be brave and try for the best. Perhaps add Warwick and Bristol if Durham feels too far.

[daisypond]

If she can manage getting to LSE, then I'd look at University College London (UCL) and King's College London, both very good universities.

[blondebarbie2001]

DD is booking open days now. She has booked into Kent, Oxford and LSE. Anymore that she should book that would have some of the lowest living prices if she was to move there or any that are can be easily traveled from Maidstone?