The LLM Law and Legal Practice is a conversion course that prepares non-law graduates for the Solicitors Qualifying Examination 1 (SQE1), which is the first essential step in your route to qualification.
The programme combines core knowledge and practical application of the law to provide preparation for non-law graduates looking to qualify as Solicitors in England & Wales.
It offers you the opportunity to gain a master’s award, attain legal knowledge and skills, and prepare for life in legal practice.
This is an intense programme delivered over eighteen months, covering the foundations of law, core practice areas and skills required for the SQE1 assessment within a qualification that will be recognised and valued by prospective employers.
You will also have an opportunity to undertake directed independent learning, authentic to the legal profession.
If you are a law graduate looking to prepare for the Solicitors Qualifying Examinations 1&2 (SQE 1&2), please see our LLM Professional Legal Practice course page.
Why Law and Legal Practice at Swansea?
As a postgraduate student at the Hillary Rodham Clinton School of Law, you will be part of a globally recognised law school, with a thriving academic environment, that offers an exceptional student experience.
The Hillary Rodham Clinton School of Law is recognised as a source of expertise, and as having an impact in a diverse range of fields of practice. The School is wholly committed to continuous improvement in learning and teaching, and to putting students at the centre of its activities. You will be supervised by academics and qualified practitioners with a wealth of real-world experience, who are ideally placed to provide ongoing guidance and support.
The Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE)
The introduction of the SQE from September 2021 marked a significant change in the route to qualification as a solicitor in England and Wales.
The SQE, which involves two stages of centrally assessed examinations (SQE1 and SQE2) and a period of qualifying work experience, aims to provide a fair and consistent assessment for all candidates.
The SQE will eventually replace the current routes into practice. If you have already begun or accepted a place on a Graduate Diploma in Law by 1/9/21, there are transitional arrangements for you to qualify via the Graduate Diploma in Law/Legal Practice course route until 2032*.
*Applicants need to have accepted their offer of a place on a GDL by 31/8/21, or for an LLB by 30/9/21 to retain the ability to qualify via the LPC.
The SQE1 assessments do not form part of the programme itself and the cost of undertaking the SQE1 assessments is not included in the programme fee. The course does not aim to prepare students for the SQE2 assessments.
Your Law and Legal Practice Experience
We offer an inclusive, student-focussed learning environment and community, centred around your success.
You will gain excellent oral and written skills, learning to present your ideas in a range of formats. We provide our students with the means to become critically agile, analytical thinkers, adept at legal research and with a strong problem-solving skillset essential to life in legal practice.
The programme will include various forms of assessment, and you will be encouraged to develop team-working and communication skills through seminars and workshops, as well as project management and independent research skills as part of the independent learning module. These skills will ensure that you can compete successfully in the employment market.
You will also have access to guest lectures from prestigious practitioners and academics, and will benefit from our established networks to support your learning.
Law and Legal Practice Employment Opportunities
This programme responds to the needs of employers and focuses not only on preparing you for the SQE1 assessments, but also on ensuring that you have a solid foundational knowledge of the law and core practice areas, essential to qualification.
Students intending to qualify as solicitors need to sit and pass the SQE1 and SQE2 assessment and complete two years of qualifying work experience in order to achieve that aim. However, students who do not wish to qualify will gain transferrable skills on this programme which will assist them in alternative careers. Examples include:
Academic lawyers
Accountancy
Banking
Commerce and business
Corporate governance
Crown Prosecution Service
Finance industry and banking
Government Legal Service
Legal publishing
Ombudsman departments
Regulators
Tax
Modules
We're currently reviewing our curriculum to enhance your learning experience and embed skills that will benefit your future career. This means that some modules may be subject to change.
We consider all applicants on their own merits and welcome applications from students with a wide range of qualifications.
Entry Requirements
Note for international and European applicants:
details of how your qualification compares to the published academic entry requirements can be found on our Country Specific Entry Requirements page.
Our standard entry requirement is a 2:2 undergraduate degree in any discipline, but each applicant will be assessed on an individual basis.
We are happy to consider applicants who have been out of education for a while, who have equivalent professional experience, or similar.
English language requirements - IELTS 6.5, with a minimum 6.0 in each component or an equivalent approved English Language test. Please see further information about our English Language requirements.
For students who fall short of only the English language requirement, we offer a range of pre-sessional training programmes that you may take before starting your degree programme.
We welcome applications from students from around the world and require evidence of previous study that is equivalent to the entry requirements.
The course will be delivered via a combination of lectures and large group sessions where you will be introduced to new legal topics and practice areas, and seminars and workshops where you will learn to apply the law in the context of authentic factual scenarios and critically consider the law through research of primary and secondary source material.
Assessments have been designed to assist you in developing your written and oral communication skills, your ability to research and critically consider the law and its development, and your practical application of the law in context.
You will sit a variety of assessments across the programme that have been designed to test knowledge, application and skills in authentic ways. You will have some individual choice in relation to topics. Examples include:
There are opportunities for Welsh speakers to study some elements of this
postgraduate course through the medium of Welsh but there is not yet enough
provision to reach 40 credits in each year. The Programme Director can outline
to you what is available in Welsh.
Academi Hywel Teifi is here to support
you throughout your time at Swansea University. We can offer you:
Access to the Arwain mobile app for the latest information about Welsh-medium courses and modules available to download free on the App Store and Google Play.
An interview through the medium of Welsh when applying for a place.
Personal correspondence in Welsh, English or bilingually.
The option to create and submit your coursework or sit exams through the medium of Welsh (even if you have chosen to study in English), and your work will be assessed in Welsh.
A Welsh-speaking Personal Tutor.
One-to-one support to improve your academic Welsh language skills.
An opportunity to gain an additional free qualification that serves as evidence of your Welsh language ability for future employers.
Tuition fees for years of study after your first year are subject to an increase of 3%.
You can find further information of your fee costs on our tuition fees page.
You may be eligible for funding to help support your study.
To find out about scholarships, bursaries and other funding opportunities that are available please visit the University's scholarships and bursaries page.
Current students: You can find further information of your fee costs on our tuition fees page.
You may be eligible for funding to help support your study.
If you're a UK or EU student starting a master’s degree at Swansea University, you may be eligible to apply for Government funding to help towards the cost of your studies.
To find out more, please visit our postgraduate loans page.
To find out about scholarships, bursaries and other funding opportunities that are available please visit the University's
scholarships and bursaries
page.
Academi Hywel Teifi at Swansea University and the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol offer a number of generous scholarships and bursaries for students who wish to study through the medium of Welsh or bilingually.
For further information about the opportunities available to you, visit the Academi Hywel Teifi Scholarships and Bursaries page.
Access to your own digital device/the appropriate IT kit will be essential during your time studying at Swansea University. Access to wifi in your accommodation will also be essential to allow you to fully engage with your programme. See our dedicated webpages for further guidance on suitable devices to purchase, and for a full guide on getting your device set up.
You may face additional costs while at university, including (but not limited to):
Travel to and from campus
Printing, photocopying, binding, stationery and equipment costs (e.g. USB sticks)
As well as subject specific support by college teaching staff and your
personal tutor, the Centre for Academic
Success provides courses, workshops and one-to-one support in areas
such as:
Academic writing
Maths and statistics
Critical thinking
Time management
Digital skills
Presentation skills
Note taking
Revision, memory and exam techniques
English language skills (if English is not your first language).
In addition, if you have a Specific Learning Difficulty (SpLD), disability,
mental health or medical condition, the Centre for Academic Success have
Specialist Tutors to support your learning, working alongside the Disability Office and Wellbeing Service to support all your needs and
requirements whilst studying at Swansea University.
We recommend that you submit your application to our courses as early as you can in advance of our application
deadlines. Courses will close earlier than the application deadlines listed if all available places are filled. You can
find further information on our Application Deadlines webpage.
The University will seek to deliver each course in accordance with the
descriptions set out in the relevant course web pages at the time of
application. However, there may be situations in which it is desirable
or necessary for the University to make changes in course provision,
either before or after enrolment.
The information below is for students starting their courses in 2016 or
later.
The University will not normally make very substantial changes to courses
(for example, a change to the course title, significant restructuring,
substantial change in course content, or the introduction of a progression
hurdle) which would impact on students who have already begun their course.
In exceptional circumstances, it may be necessary for the University to make
such a change after acceptance of a place by an offer-holder. This will not
happen less than 5 months before enrolment. The offer-holder will be
notified of the change and will have the opportunity to withdraw their
application and apply elsewhere.
Other changes could be made to course content, study location, delivery and
teaching provision because of developments in the relevant subject,
enhancements in teaching or assessment practice, requirements of external
accreditation processes, changes in staffing, resource constraints or
changes in the availability of facilities. Such changes will take account of
the reasonable expectations of prospective and current students.
