LAW CAREERS SEMINARS
for second-year students
No. 1, 15th November 2011
Jenny Keaveney, Careers Advisory Service
The slides from this presentation are available at
www.kent.ac.uk/careers/slides.htm
SEMINAR 1
CHOICES AND CAREER PATHS
• What are the options open to law graduates?
• Why your second year is the most important
• Outline of career paths in the legal
profession
• Professional training courses and funding
• What to do and when to do it
SEMINAR 2
A TASTE OF THE WORLD OF WORK
• Vacation work - inc. solicitors’ summer
schemes; mini-pupillages
• What past Law graduates from Kent have
gone on to - and how they can help you
• What else can you do with a law degree?
• Postgraduate academic study (a brief look)
SEMINAR 3
MAKING EFFECTIVE APPLICATIONS
• What employers look for in applications –
with particular reference to solicitors’
vacation schemes and mini-pupillages
• How to prepare a CV and covering letter
• How to complete an application form
• What to expect at interview
SEMINAR 1 - MAKING CHOICES
• What are the options open to law graduates?
• Outline of career paths in the legal
profession
• Professional training courses and funding
• Why your second year is the most important
• What to do and when to do it
EMPLOYMENT
(PERMANENT
OR TEMPORARY)
PROFESSIONAL
LEGAL
STUDIES
35%
33%
WORKING
AND
STUDYING
11%
YOUR
CHOICES
FURTHER
ACADEMIC
STUDY
TIME
OUT
4%
OTHERS
6%
6%
SOME CAREER PATHS
IN THE LEGAL PROFESSION
• Solicitor
• Barrister
• Legal executive
• Paralegal
• Licensed conveyancer
For a detailed look at these and other roles in law,
see www.prospects.ac.uk/law_sector.htm
MAKING DECISIONS
Both require:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Solicitor or barrister?
Proven intellectual ability
Excellent communication skills
Analytical skills
Organisational skills
Commercial awareness
Determination and commitment
WHAT DO LAWYERS DO?
•
•
•
•
SOLICITORS
Work directly with clients to
advise them on a wide range
of legal matters
Prepare cases – researching,
drafting etc
Work in firms, business and
public sector organisations
Need good interpersonal and
organisational skills
•
•
•
•
BARRISTERS
Work as independent,
specialist legal advisers and
advocates
Most are self-employed but
work together in sets of
chambers
Others work in solicitors’
firms, business and public
sector organisations
Need strong presentation
and intellectual skills
THE PROS AND CONS …
•
•
•
•
SOLICITORS HAVE:
A more structured career
Greater security
Greater involvement with
clients and colleagues
and need
• Commitment to a firm and
its culture
• Team working skills
• Sociability; adaptability;
willingness to conform
BARRISTERS HAVE:
• Greater independence
• Greater variety
• Prestige
and need
• Greater personal confidence
• A willingness to take risks
• High-level presentational skills
• Flexibility and tolerance of
stress
BECOMING A SOLICITOR OR BARRISTER
(in a nutshell)
LPC or BPTC
LAW DEGREE/GDL
(the Academic Stage)
QUALIFY!
(The Vocational Stage)
TRAINING
CONTRACT
OR
PUPILLAGE
(Practical
Experience)
BECOMING A SOLICITOR OR BARRISTER
Some figures:
Solicitors
13433
Law grads
+
c6000
GDL grads
8098
LPC
PLACES
1793
BPTC
PLACES
Barristers
4874
TRAINING
CONTRACTS
460
PUPILLAGES
THE LPC and BPTC
• The “Vocational Stage” of training
• Skills-focused: preparation for practice
• Coursework, practical assessments and written
exams
• Last for one academic year
• Available throughout England & Wales
• Must have the 7 exemption subjects for entry
• Apply at the beginning of your final year
• Fees range from approx. £7500 to £16000
HOW DO STUDENTS FUND
THEIR LAW COURSES?
Funding Source
LPC
BVC
Self/Parents
38%
40%
Sponsorships
26%
-
Inns' Scholarships
-
28%
Loans
32%
26%
Grants/Bursaries
3%
6%
HOW MUCH COULD YOU EARN?
• Current Law Society minimum salary: £18,590 for
trainees in central London and £16,650 for those in
other parts of England and Wales
• Trainee salaries in City firms c£38-39K (more in US
firms – up to £50K!))
• Newly-qualified salaries typically around £60K (but
some US firms offer £90K+)
• All pupillages are funded to a minimum level of £6K
for 6 months
• Commercial & Chancery sets may offer £25-40K for
12 months - some offer £60K!)
WHAT YOU SHOULD BE DOING NOW
•
•
•
•
•
•
Working hard and aiming for a good degree!
Thinking about your options
Researching different careers and employers
Thinking about what you have to offer
Getting vacation work experience
Noting down deadlines for vac work, training
contract, pupillage and course applications
USEFUL INFORMATION SOURCES
• www.kent.ac.uk/careers/siteslaw.htm
•
•
•
•
Target Law/Target Work Experience Law
The Training Contract & Pupillage Handbook
Prospects Law
Lawyer 2B magazine
SEE YOU NEXT WEEK!
For “A Taste of the World of Work”
Careers Advisory Service
Opening hours: 9am - 5pm
Monday - Friday
The slides from this presentation are available at
www.kent.ac.uk/careers/slides.htm