Law at Bristol or Modern Languages at Oxford (followed by SQE1&2)?

[rheafern]

Hi, hypothetical dilemma! DD is in Year 12 and wants to study Law. But she knows it's very competitive and it might make more sense to apply for Modern Languages (something she also loves) and then do SQE1&2. But then how would a degree in Law from another good university be and look like? I'm not from this country and I'm not sure about what it really means to have an Oxford degree in your CV. Any views? Thanks very much!

Furls? Area of work …. (It’s late!)

[quote TizerorFizz]@Juja
DD is a barrister. Lots of her contemporaries wanted to do Human Rights. Not one was successful in getting into that furls of work. It’s actually quite niche. So DD should widen her interests when the time comes. She needs to be strategic. Nearly every barrister will have more to offer than a degree.[/quote]
@TizerorFizzGood advice and I agree - my father was a barrister too... but DD is still at the stage where passion is the driver. Simply getting a tenancy is a mega achievement... your DD has clearly done really well..

Yes for those firms that sponsor trainee solicitors the system is remaining the same, even though SQE rules could allow differences - eg they could do the exams after the training (under the new system particularly SQE2 ) but the firms, quite rightly, want people to have done all exams before they start the work of their training contract. I presume the same rules as now apply to those firms that say if you fail any exam then you lose your training contract. SQE1 exam is 100% multiple choice which I think is a mistake (in the first exam ever 52% passed) and the SQE exams are set and marked by Kaplan not the institution such as University/College of Law or BPP where you took the post grad course.

@Juja
As parents we knew nothing about how you become a barrister when DD said wanted to be one. It is a career full of deadlines! Definitely not for the disorganised. Scholarships, courses, exams, applications for mini pupillages, pupilage gateway etc - it’s like a merry-go-round on steroids!! DD was wise enough to know where her best chances lay. However it can be tough so some flexibility is good. People skills are useful for family and it’s better than crime regarding earnings.

Tbf Juja these days getting a pupillage at a good London set is on the mega side of the spectrum.

No need to worry about the stages - by the time she's been at Oxford for a couple of years she'll have picked up everything she needs to do for the Bar.

My main piece of advice would be to get involved with the high level mooting that they do at Oxford - although she may well find that most picked for teams are reading law.

By high level I mean the competitions sponsored by big name firms etc.

Those interviewing for pupillage will be far, far, far more interested in her intellect than any volunteering she's done.

The more scholarships the better too!

Yes. As I said we knew nothing. DD did everything herself. But it helps to be organised snd motivated.

@goodbyestranger thanks for the tips about moots at Oxford. A really good idea. My father used to judge them in the Temple for bar students. BTW the volunteering isn't to help her with joining the bar that is because refugees are a concern of hers.
Pupillages now also very different as the top sets pay well so competition is even fiercer - as you say a great achievement to get a pupillage.
@TizerorFizz great to hear how your DD is so organised and motivated - clearly stood her in good stead in entering this fiercely competitive profession. Fortunately DD falls in that category too. DS is another matter...

Getting pupillage is a very different thing these days from when your father would have been in the market for it Juja. It's almost unrecognisably different.

Yes I appreciate that and thank goodness it needed a major overhaul - he did a lot of work to change things chairing the Scholarships Committee for his Inn and improving accessibility and funding sources. We were brought up on the need to widen access to the Bar. Now it has changed yet again - I've looked today - looks much more professional but of course still fantastically competitive.

I can't remember what DD3 got in terms of Pupillage Award from her set - around £50k? She also got all her BPTC fees paid for by scholarships from her Inn plus another from her provider. I don't recall the numbers, just being extremely relieved that the finance was there. But these scholarships serve a dual purpose if you look at the CVs of younger barristers in the strong sets: they are vindication of the applicant's talent, as assessed by the Inn. They're really important. People can self fund of course, but their CVs will look very thin compared to those with the scholarships.

Crossed post.

They haven't gone nearly far enough Juja. The cost of the BPTC is absurd.

DD got a major scholarship from her Inn too. Pupillage awards are advertised differently. Some include second six earnings and some don’t. Top awards are now around £70,000. Criminal around £15,000 at the lowest. Lots sit in the middle. DD’s was advertised as £25,000 but in reality it was £50,000 with earnings. The pupilage award isn’t taxed so that’s a big bonus to cushion the gap between earning money and getting it into your bank account!

@goodbyestranger and @TizerorFizz thanks for the intel on puplillages- really helpful

I think you’re really overthinking the impact of a first degree choice on a career in law. A firm will look at grades and whether a candidate went to a reputable university. That’s it. They’ll also want to see loads of relevant extra curricular activities but really won’t care about the subject matter of the degree. 17/18 is extremely young to be planning a career in city law. It isn’t something you can get a real insight into until you actually do some proper work experience. So little of it is about knowledge of black letter law. The soft skills are equally as important. Let your DD choose what interests her the most and what will motivate her to do well at university. A career in law can be extremely dull (I’m a city lawyer). When a law degree is not a strict requirement, it is much better to enjoy your university years than to be so focussed on a career that might not be right in the end anyway. I did a non-law degree and have never struggled to keep up with law degree lawyers.

@HackneyMum1
There are some degrees which are not good prep for law conversion. Choice of degree can matter. I won’t list any particular degrees but some are less good than others in the competitive world of law. The op was talking about MFL, which is fine.

Good points above. I did however love my LLB and also love my law career which is not dull. So everyone differs but we all agree obtaining high exam results is very helpful for careers in law.