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Law and Legal Practice, LLM

For Non-Law Graduates Preparing for the Solicitors Qualifying Examination 1

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Course Overview

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.

Please consult the Solicitors Regulation Authority for full details on routes to becoming a solicitor.

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

The programme will deliver 240 credits over an eighteen month period with the emphasis on taught modules in order to cover the knowledge and skills base required for the SQE1 qualifying examinations.

There will be an element of Directed Independent Learning (30 credits), which is authentic to the legal profession, focusing on undertaking practical legal research and preparing related reports directed to clients and to partners within legal practice. The Directed Independent Learning will be introduced over the summer between the first and second academic years (TB3).

All modules on the programme will be compulsory, and year 1 modules will not need to be passed in order to progress to year 2 of the course. There will be re-sit opportunities for all modules.

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