Northumbria University (LPC)
The Legal Cheek View
Located in the heart of Newcastle, Northumbria University houses the largest law school in North East England. Students note that the LPC is “really well organised” – Northumbria has “clearly done it for a while”. Another adds: “The practical focus of the course helps you understand and begin to discover what life will be like as a trainee solicitor rather than being a purely academic course.”
At the same time, the lecturers are “there to help you develop, not just make it onto a training contract”. For the most part, the teachers at Northumbria “are very good”. But “others are not”. Some lecturers are “more interested in their own research”. One student felt that “you were mocked if you gave the wrong answer. Pretty sure they thought they were a red-brick uni”. So the quality of lecturing is a bit of a mixed bag.
On the flip side, many LPCers agree that the tutors are “very switched-on”. They provide lots of much needed guidance on the LPC: “You know what you need to do, and they point you in the right direction”. The “forward-thinking” tutors still make it “a really good course”: “The teachers are former practicing lawyers and bring the course to life”. Indeed, “they made everything easier”.
The Student Law Office seems to be of particular student interest. Described by LPCers as “fab”, it’s a clinic that runs a full legal service to mimic life at a typical law firm. It gives students the chance to work on live cases and represent clients. But it’s not just an extra-curricular pro bono scheme – LPCers can complete the Student Law Office module as an elective. You can expect to cover legal areas such as employment, housing, consumer issues, human rights, prison law, crime and miscarriages of justice, family, business advice and planning.
Beyond this, there is a wide choice of electives on offer at Northumbria, including atypical options such as mental health law, law and the elderly client, child care law and advanced insolvency. There’s also a decent spread of City electives, such as commercial law, commercial leases, corporate finance, intellectual property and sales and acquisitions.
Facilities at Northumbria are pretty grand, too. The campus is “particularly impressive – very modern, bright and shiny”. You’ll be studying the LPC inside a new, £70 million building known for its futuristic design and construction. Complete with a steel mesh frame that curves around the structure, it’s worth a Google search!
Key Info
Part-time fees are paid annually over two years.