The University of Law
The inside line
The University of Law (ULaw) is one of the UK’s largest law schools with 10 campuses globally. It has strong ties with commercial law firms, including partnerships with Ashurst, CMS and DLA Piper, offering professional training to their incoming trainees.
ULaw is offering a range of Solicitors Qualifying Exam (SQE) preparation courses that cost from £500 to £16,950. The pricier options aim to go above and beyond the exam criteria to prepare students for legal practice, the university says.
Flexibility of learning options
SQE1 and 2 prep courses are available on-campus and online, and can be studied full-time or part-time with day, evening or weekend study options available. A short refresher programme for each exam is also available.
Full-time SQE1 and 2 fees range from £4,000 to £5,650 each, depending on which campus a student chooses to attend, with courses at the university’s regional centres priced lower than those in London.
The online SQE prep courses are priced at £4,000 for SQE1 and £4,100 for SQE2, while the short revision programmes are priced at £500 for SQE1 and £1,000 for SQE2.
ULaw is also offering a range of masters programmes that incorporate SQE prep, and are eligible for postgraduate funding. Its most comprehensive LLM in Legal Practice covers SQE1 and 2 prep and costs between £12,300 and £16,950 depending on campus and mode of study. ULaw has said this course will eventually replace the Legal Practice Course (LPC). Its MA Law course is geared towards non-law graduates and includes SQE1 prep. It costs between £12,850 and £15,750.
In addition to the above, ULaw has created a Postgraduate Diploma in Law (PGDL) conversion course, again for non-law grads, which will replace the Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL) and is priced from £10,100 to £12,550.
Virtual firm, app, scholarships & the ‘O’ shaped lawyer
As part of ULaw’s SQE offering, students will have access to study manuals and a revision app, ULaw SQE, which contains practice questions for SQE1. The app also offers students feedback and suggests ways they can improve their score.
ULaw is offering a “wide range” of scholarships and bursaries for eligible students, as well as a series of introductory offers for those commencing their studies this summer.
SQE students can apply their skills in the context of ULaw’s virtual law firm, ULaw LLP, featuring replicated trainee tasks with tutors acting as their supervisors. Its employability team, headed by John Watkins, is also on hand to help students secure Qualifying Work Experience (QWE) and pro bono opportunities. For those studying the LLM Legal Practice and MA Law courses, ULaw is even offering four weeks guaranteed QWE in its Legal Advice Clinics to help students progress in their legal training. Further, ULaw has embedded the concept of The O Shaped Lawyer (one that’s open, opportunistic, optimistic, original and takes ownership) into its SQE provision.
As well as it’s SQE courses, ULaw also offers Master of Arts in Law (Conversion), as the Postgraduate Diploma in Law (PGDL), and the Legal Practice Course (LPC).
Fees
The above figures are for ULaw’s London campuses. Full-time SQE1 and 2 fees range from £4,000 to £5,650 each, depending on which campus a student chooses to study. The online SQE prep courses are priced at £4,000 for SQE1 and £4,100 for SQE2.