In this article, I will continue what I discussed in my last article regarding law school in the UK.However, this time around, I will be focusing on some of the advantages.
Only 2 years
One of the greatest advantages of studying law in the UK is that the law programs are shorter by a year. However, in order to be eligible for a 2-year law program in the UK, you must have completed an undergraduate program in Canada first. When you are applying during the final year of your undergrad, you send in all of the required information (as I stated in my previous article), then you will receive a rejection, conditional offer, or unconditional offer. As you would still need to graduate from your undergrad, you would receive a conditional offer in this case. Once you have completed your undergrad and met the conditions in the offer (ex. Certain cumulative average), you will be able to attend in September of that year.
No Undergraduate Degree is Necessarily Needed
On the other hand, you do not necessarily NEED an undergraduate degree in order to study law in the UK. If you have high enough grades in your final year in high school, you can attend law school right away, but the program will now be 3 years. If you are in your undergrad and you still want to attend the 3-year program versus the 2-year program, they will still ask to see your transcripts from university. So, you will need to still meet their average in post secondary and university. If you finish high school and have no further education, you can simply apply with your high school marks.
In my opinion, and from what some experts have told me, it is highly recommended that you have an undergraduate degree, regardless of the option of attending right after high school. The reason for this is that your chances of being hired are lower compared to someone who does have an undergraduate degree, as well as the transition from high school to law school will be extremely difficult.
Experience Travelling
Another advantage is one that is not academically related – you can travel around Europe. Once you are in a country within Europe, it becomes much more financially accessible than if you just decided to fly to Europe for a few weeks and return to Canada. The difference is major. For example, you can take a train in the morning from London, England to Paris, France and arrive that afternoon for $50. Then, the next day you can head to Belgium in just a few hours and in one weekend, you could be in three different countries.
Cost is Similar to Canadian Law Schools
One thing that I found to be extremely interesting was the cost of law schools in the UK. When I was looking at schools in the U.S., I noticed that it was about $40,000 USD on average per year. Whereas in Canada and the UK it is approximately $20,000 CAD a year. But, if we consider the fact that UK law schools offer a 2-year program, the tuition itself is cheaper. When we consider the cost of living, of course, it will cost more, which makes the price relative to what you would pay if you attended a law school in Canada. So, why not pay the same money and get the chance to experience new cultures?
Can Easily Return to Canada
Following your two or three years of studying law in the UK, you can easily come back to Canada. It is not easy in the sense that your credits will transfer over, but because the steps are quite simple. In order to return to Canada, you must write seven National Committee on Accreditation (NCA) tests. These tests verify that your knowledge of Canadian law is acceptable. After passing those, you may write the bar in whichever district you desire. Luckily, the UK law schools offer a number of courses focusing on Canadian law, so if you wish to return, I recommend choosing those courses.
Overall, there are several advantages of studying law in the UK -so many that I was unable to fit them all into this one article. In my next article, I will continue to discuss them. Later, I will discuss in more detail the process of obtaining a student visa and how to move over there.