Law (two-year intensive) LLB (Hons)

Course Content

• Course Details

  The two year intensive LLB (Hons) provides an alternative to the three year qualification, allowing you to graduate and fast track your career and move onto the next stage. The intensive degree enables you to complete your degree in two years by extending the academic year into the normal vacation periods. You will need a strong academic ability and time management skills in order to be able to cope with the demands of this course.

  The attractions of the two-year intensive LLB include:

  • Accelerating your legal career by entering the job market earlier than your peers
  • The ability to complete the LLB degree in two years, with the associated intensity of study and time management skills, will be attractive to employers
  • Change your career where you have the experience but need the qualification in a quicker time

  Students studying Law with us will benefit from a varied modular scheme, designed to deliver the foundation subjects required by legal professional bodies alongside a wide variety of options. We focus on teaching Law in its political, social and economic context throughout the intensive LLB course. You can also engage in a wide range of additional activities to gain valuable Law work experience, including mooting, client interviewing and court visits. Our Student Law Society and other local community project opportunities provide the chance to further prepare for your legal career.

  With links to organisations like the Northamptonshire Rights and Equality Council and Citizen’s Advice, as well as the local legal profession and visiting law firms, our Law team can provide students with career guidance, experience and valuable contacts. Our well qualified and experienced staff also have published books and journal articles, with some delivering papers at conferences regularly. Several members of our staff are also external examiners or reviewers at other educational institutions. This includes an Assistant Coroner who sits on professional body disciplinary panels, and some who are on committees which examine national and international issues.

  Take a look at the blogs written by staff and students in the Law division. Check out what our Law students have achieved after graduating from the University at our Law case studies page.

  Modules

  Information about the modules on this course can be found on the award map: LLB Two Year Intensive modules

  Module information is quoted for 20/21 entry. Please note that modules run subject to student numbers and staff availability, any changes will be communicated to applicants accordingly.

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• Entry Requirements

  A typical offer would be BBC at A Level or DDM at BTEC. We welcome international applicants and applications from those with a range of non-traditional educational or professional qualifications which meet our Law entry requirements.

  For more information on how to make an application, please visit our How to Apply page.

  If you are an International student and would like information on making an application, please see our How to Apply page.

  English Language Requirements

  All International and EU students applying for a course with us must meet the following minimum English language requirements:

  • IELTS 6.0 (or equivalent) with a minimum of 5.5 in all bands for study at undergraduate level.

  For information regarding English language requirements at the University, please see our IELTS page.

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• Fees and Funding

  2020/21

  Fees quoted relate to study in the Academic Year 20/21 only and may be subject to inflationary increases in future years.

  Home and EU Full Time: £9,250
  International: £13,900

  Additional Costs

  There are no additional costs for this intensive LLB course for students beginning their studies in September 2020. Should this change, applicants and students will be contacted by the university with details of the costs.

  Your reading materials are accessible from our library, however, you may choose to purchase your own copy of the textbooks. New law textbooks cost in the region of £30-40 but you can often buy recent second-hand ones for much less.

  Please note that tuition fees for EU students will remain the same as UK fees for 2020/21. For more information, please visit the Gov UK website.

  19/20 Tuition Fees

  Fees quoted relate to study in the Academic Year 19/20 only and may be subject to inflationary increases in future years.

  Home and EU Full Time: £9,250
  International: £13,500

  For information on the scholarships available to you as an international student, please see our International scholarships page.

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• Postgraduate Opportunities

  Our postgraduate courses are a great way to enhance the skills you have already learnt. Benefit from our 20% alumni discount on postgraduate fees to give yourself a CV that will catch the eye of employers.

  Multinational Corporate Law LLM

  Transnational Rights and Security LLM

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• Qualifying as a Solicitor

  Currently, if you want to be a solicitor in England and Wales, you can take a Qualifying Law Degree (usually three years), followed by the Legal Practice Course (one year), followed by a training contract (on the job training secured through a law firm, two years).

  Taking our Qualifying Law Degree enables you to gain an exemption from the current qualification process.

  From 2021, the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) are implementing changes to the current qualification process by introducing the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE).

  The Faculty of Business and Law continues to monitor these developments closely with a view to advising students about law career routes. We have also reviewed our curriculum to ensure that our legal education provision continues to prepare students effectively for legal practice and or professional careers more widely.

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• Qualifying as a Barrister

  Our LLB course covers the seven foundations of legal knowledge which are required for the academic component of Bar training. On successful completion of the LLB law degree programme (with a 2:2 or above), students can progress to the vocational component of Bar training.

  For more information please visit the BSB website.

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• Information from the SRA

  What is the SQE?

  The SQE is the Solicitors Qualifying Examination which will be introduced on 1 September 2021, subject to final approval from the Legal Services Board. In the future, all those wishing to qualify as a solicitor will need to pass the SQE, as well as holding a degree or equivalent qualification or experience, complete a two-year period of qualifying legal work experience and meet our suitability requirements. SQE1 primarily tests candidates’ functioning legal knowledge, while SQE2 tests practical legal skills.

  Do you need a law degree to sit SQE1 and/or SQE2?

  No. However, to be admitted as a solicitor, you will need a degree (in any subject) or equivalent in addition to passing the SQE. ‘Equivalent’ means a qualification equivalent to a bachelor’s or master’s degree, such as:

  • a level 6 or 7 apprenticeship
  • a level 6 or 7 professional qualification

  If you don’t have an equivalent qualification, we may be able to count experience in the workplace as equivalent.

  How much will the SQE exam cost?

  The estimated cost of the two stages of assessment is between £3,000 – £4,500.

  SQE1 will primarily test the application of legal knowledge. The fees range estimate is £1,100 – £1,650. SQE2 will test practical legal skills. The fee range estimate is £1,900 – £2,850.

  The costs are based on an estimated 35 hours of assessment, including written tests, computer-based assessments and simulations such as mock client interviews. These costs are indicative, as we continue our work with Kaplan to develop and test the assessments.

  For more information, please visit the SRA website.

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• Two Year Intensive

  How does the two-year intensive LLB work?

  The intensive degree allows you to complete your degree in two years by extending the academic year into the normal vacation periods. In year one of the degree, a two-year LLB student will follow a similar course as a three-year degree student, taking 120 credits (six modules) plus one module from level 5 amounting to 20 credits.

  At the end of term three of year one, subject to satisfactory progress, a two-year student will continue on the accelerated pathway, taking 40 credits worth of modules over the summer period. In year two of the intensive degree, you will study modules alongside students from years two and three of the three-year degree (taking 140 credits/seven modules), but, again, will take 40 credits of additional modules in the summer vacation in order to complete your degree at the end of two years.

  You must pass all nine modules to be able to continue onto the second year of the Intensive LLB. If you do not meet this requirement you will be transferred to the traditional LLB route.

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• Student Perks

  At the University of Northampton, everything we do, from funded trips to paid internships, is to give you everything you need to make a difference when you leave.

  If you join this full time degree at Northampton you will receive a laptop when your course begins. The laptops are built to a bespoke custom specification ideal for use in the seminar room, collaborative group work or studying at home.

  Whatever your ambitions, we’re here to help you to achieve them. We’ll support you to identify the skills you’re learning during your course, find your strengths and secure practical experience so that when it comes to applying for jobs or further study you’ll feel confident in standing out from the crowd. We’ve created the Northampton Employment Promise because we are so confident that if you focus on your studies and complete one of our awards you’ll be highly employable by the time you graduate. Putting you in a great position to secure employment or continue your studies.

  To check out the full list of perks visit our Student Perks page.

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• Student Stories

  Francesca’s Story

  Mature student Francesca has been awarded two scholarships, supporting her on the road to becoming a barrister. Francesca is the recipient of the Max Engel Memorial Bursary and the University Law Scholarship. Both awards will support Francesca as she continues her career in Law. Francesca spoke about her experiences on the course and offered some great advice for new students when she chatted to our News team.

  Read Francesca’s story here.

  

  Kerry’s Story

  Kerry, a mature student from Northampton had dreams of becoming a Barrister, and joined the University of Northampton to study the Law LLB intensive programme. Kerry has landed a position with Guernica 37 Chambers Academy, a top legal Chambers’, specialising exclusively in international criminal and human rights law. Kerry has said that the ‘support from the Faculty and other peers was evident from the beginning of my studies.’

  Read more about Kerry’s student experience here.

  

  Becky’s Story

  After completing her Two-Year Intensive LLB Law Degree, Becky Barrick has gone on to work as a Graduate Law Tutor for the University of Northampton. Talking about her time at the University of Northampton, Becky explains how her time at University, has “enormously helped to improve my confidence. I have also developed my public speaking skills through assessments such as presentations, group lead seminars, and practical legal skills assessments (mooting, client interviewing and negotiation)”.

  To find out how Becky went from Student to Graduate Law Tutor, have a look at our Case Studies page.

  

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• FAQs

  What does LLB stand for?

  LLB is an abbreviation of the Latin phrase ‘Legum Baccalaureus. This translates to Bachelor of Laws degree and is a qualifying Law degree which typically takes three years to complete. With our intensive two-year programme though, aspiring law graduates can pursue career opportunities faster than they would be able to on the standard three-year course.

  How will I learn and be assessed?

  Our teaching includes a variety of methods underpinned by active learning. This ranges from lectures, tutorials, workshops, online learning, self-directed or collaborative study, experiential and problem-based learning. You, as the student, are at the heart of what we do. Through your participation, you will engage with your peers and lectures in an interactive setting whereby you can critically engage with the syllabus.

  You can expect to put in 200 hours of work on each module that you study. You will normally have two hours of contact time, which could be online or face to face, per week with your tutor for each module.

  The University of Northampton Law Degree offers you a wide range of assessments to help you develop a diverse set of academic and professional skills. Assessments have been carefully designed to help you build the skills you will need for the future. The skills you will acquire will not only help with preparation for entry to the legal profession but will also be highly desirable to graduate recruiters in a variety of sectors. Our mission is to produce high quality, adaptive and socially responsible law graduates equipped to pursue successful careers in a variety of contexts. The assessment strategy is a combination of formative and summative assignments designed to enable you to learn and develop key academic and employability skills. These are the range of assessments that you can expect across your modules:

  • Client interviews
  • Essays
  • Advocacy
  • Commentaries on current legal issues both in a national and global context
  • A range of presentations individually and in groups
  • Multiple choice questions/exams/time constrained assignments

  Are there any extra-curricular activities?

  As a law student at The University of Northampton you can engage in a wide range of extra-curricular activities including:

  • Mooting, negotiation and client-interviewing competitions
  • Use of purpose-built Moot Room to practice and develop advocacy skills
  • Street Law Projects
  • Opportunities to conduct research projects as student researchers to develop your academic skills which will also be useful for if you are considering other professions.
  • Guest lectures from national and international speakers such as Judges and human rights advocates.
  • A thriving Student Law Society which organises social and professional activities.

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Careers and Employability

By the time you graduate you will have developed a range of skills which will enhance your employability, whether in the legal profession or in another career.

We work closely with the University Centre for Employability and Engagement (UCEE), who will support you with your career planning. You will also have the opportunity to attend the annual Law Careers Fair and University Careers Fair where you can meet with potential future employers.