Law A'level

[DessertOrchid]

Hi there. Is law A'Level a respected subject? DS is considering it with sociology and psychology. He wants to do law or criminology at uni.

My friend did it and won a case at the Supreme Court last year. So I'd say yes

Check admissions criteria at universities he’s likely to apply to- I know when I was making applications to study law a lot of them regarded law a level as a “second tier” subject, and they may prefer to see one more traditional subject alongside sociology and psychology. But I am ancient so this might have changed….

Artesia has a point. Psychology and Sociology won't be accepted by all unis (alongside Law) for a Law degree.

Check out the specific requirements and choose accordingly.

My friend did sciences (Biology, Chemistry) so pretty traditional.

Others I know have done English/History and French/Maths.

I'd be wary of three new subjects. The glamour can wear off.

I have been looking at lots of unis lately for DS who wants to study social sciences. Where unis mention preferred subjects, sociology and psychology are mentioned. Law, not so much.

Law is lots and lots of rote learning,quite dry and factual. Sociology is more enquiring. But they do complement each other.

Students who do all 3 of these will have absolutely loads of case studies, dates and names to learn. Loads.

I am a lawyer and remember firms discounting a law A Level when recruiting, which was considered second tier, they want solid A levels unfortunately (English, Geography, History etc). Law is boring at the best of times so so subjects that they enjoy. You don’t even need to do law as a degree to become a lawyer, you can do a conversion course after a more interesting degree subject (which I wish I’d known!)

‘so do subjects...’

I think the golden rule for studying law is at least one traditional subject . The other two won't matter so much. This depends on the competitiveness of uni being applied for, though.

I studied law at uni (along time ago admittedly) and the advice then was not to do law A level as it was not regarded with respect. A bit like ‘general studies’ A levels weren’t taken seriously. A law degree on the other hand is regarded with a lot of respect. They would be better off aiming for high grades at A level by chosing subjects they enjoy and are good at. Then they have a better chance of a place on a law degree course at a sought-after uni.

General Studies was an entirely different bolt on A Level which essentially everyone did with no teaching. Very few schools now do it and it is not accepted as an A Level for entry by most universities. That is entirely different from law.

It is held to be true that university law course don't accept law A Level. They may not like it much - and many specify a group of A Level subjects which they prefer one or two A Levels to come form. But there is absolutely no evidence at all that law is an 'outlawed' subject. If they were rejecting students on the grounds of having it, without publishing it in their criteria they'd be on a very sticky wicket indeed. As I am sure lawyers would know!

That said, if OP's DS is academic and wants to target top universities, I'd suggest - just to appease stuck in the mud universities really - a more traditional combination with at least one 'traditional subject' in that mix. For criminology, it won't matter at all.

As others have said studying law at first degree level is often not the best route to becoming a lawyer. Speaking from experience friends who did it at university had to work long hours on boring, dry procedural matters - those of us doing Sociology and other social sciences had a far more interesting time! And its neednt hold you back from becoming a lawyer.

I used to work for a city law firm in recruitment and promotion and our core message to university students was that law degrees dont neessarily make good lawyers. Obviously some great lawyers do emerge from law degrees but I think its a bit weird to know what you want to do as a job at age 18 (or for that matter 17 when you fill in the UCAS form) when you have little experience of the world.

The best candidates we interviewed were usually those who had a 'standard' academic subject for which they had a passion and could speak about ad hoc whether its was politics, history, english literature etc.

And it was easier in their applications for a traineeship with us if they had a noirmal degree and then opted for a law converasion course as they could show that they had made a conscious decision at age 21 to study the law and to become a lawyer.

I think its also really important for your DS to know the difference between law and criminology (other than earnings!). As criminology is a branch of sociology, it makes huge sense to study that one at A Level. Law is not the same at all.

As a senior lawyer I don’t think that’s a great combination of A Levels for someone wanting to do law at university. I’d have a couple of traditional subjects in there to show academic prowess. Essay based subjects are important though since good writing skills are crucial.

But I did a Business Management degree (taking lots of law modules) and a law conversion.

I am a fairly senior lawyer and did do law and sociology A levels and enjoyed them both. I also did 2 'traditional' A-levels in English and history which was recommended to me at the time as law and sociology were rightly or wrongly seen as 'soft' subjects. I have recruited for trainees and junior lawyers recently and most do have a 'traditional' subject at either A-level or degree so perhaps that advice still stands. The key is to ensure good grades to get into a good university as that is often a factor in recruitment. I recruit trainers/junior solicitors and academics are very important- although which degree isn't a factor (law Vs non-law)- some of the best candidates use their knowledge from other areas in their legal work.

Law did used to be seen as a softer A level and not all Unis would accept it. I did it over 25 years ago. For me it was good decision and cemented fact I wanted to study law at degree level. Check entry requirements. Usually you pick mostly traditional subjects to get on a decent law degree course.

When I was at school people were advised not to do law because it was too repetitive if you then studied it at uni. It wasn't considered a "soft" subject though and one of the girls on my course did do law A level.

However, I'd suggest sociology or psychology with law, not both. A more traditional academic subject would probably be a good idea.

Law a level would just be duplicated in your degree (though at a deeper level). The degree assumes zero prior knowledge

So it can be a good way to find you don't find it interesting!

Something with essays would be good! Politics is useful for then doing public law module.

I'm a senior lawyer and have done a fair bit of trainee recruitment. We would far rather see a range of more traditional subjects at A level than law. It certainly wouldn't be seen as advantageous to have studied law at A level and I believe the same goes for universities. Of course it wouldn't count against him either if his other A levels were in more traditional subjects, but the combination you've posted isn't great.

If he's keen to find out whether he'd enjoy studying law, I'd really recommend reading The Rule of Law by Tom Bingham and Learning Legal Rules by Holland and Webb.