Legal education: Practical law degrees may give candidates an edge when chasing training contracts

The ability to undertake legal research and identify legal issues sets candidates apart says Jane Hamdy

Practice-based programmes are on the rise (Alamy)

When employers are seeking candidates for highly coveted training contracts, they want to see people who will be able to hit the ground running. This is when it pays to graduate with a law degree finely tuned to the requirements of real life as a practising lawyer.

“Practical law degrees are certainly becoming more relevant, if not more popular,” says Billy Sexton, project manager at AllAboutLaw.co.uk. Sexton highlights the “noticeable change” between learning on an LLB course and learning on the Legal Practice Course (LPC), with the latter’s emphasis on practically applying the law to a complex set of facts in an accurate, accessible format.

Clinching a sought-after training contract with a large firm often means LPC fees are paid for by the firm

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“Unlocking these skills earlier on is vital for students from an employability and financial perspective,” says Sexton, underscoring the point that clinching a sought-after training contract with a large firm often means LPC fees are paid for by the firm, which can mean a saving of £10,000 to £15,000.

Top law schools are certainly keen to meet this demand for law degrees rooted in practice: after all, employability statistics are a key recruitment feature. “Everything we do is practice based,” says Peter Crisp, dean of BPP University School of Law, which is the go-to school for trainees from many leading law firms. “We are preparing them explicitly for this environment.”

All modules within BPP's LLB are “practice focused”’, developing the student's ability to undertake legal research, identify legal issues and put forward appropriate solutions, analyse cases and statutes and construct legal arguments.

Another practice-focused programme comes from the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives (CILEx), which in collaboration with Manchester Law School offers a four-year distance learning LLB in Legal Practice, which includes legal practice electives that fulfil all the academic study required to become a Chartered Legal Executive. As well as putting graduates on track to become a solicitor or barrister, this programme gives students the ability to confidently apply legal theory to practical law: CILEx claims this will make them “more employable than graduates who have studied a traditional law degree”.

Peter Kay, senior careers adviser at the University of Nottingham, points out that it's not just knowledge and skills that are important but also attitudes and behaviours. “In a profession where the client is king, candidates need to have the right mindset and be very personable with great communication skills,” says Kay, who adds that it is often extra-curricular activities that develop the skills that law firms are looking for. “Mooting, pro bono work, death row campaigning and CAB volunteering are all excellent in developing skills in oratory, working with people from diverse backgrounds and dispensing advice under supervision,” he says.