GDIPL GRADUATE DIPLOMA IN LEGAL STUDIES
GDIPL GRADUATE DIPLOMA IN LEGAL STUDIES
This intensive, one-year course is designed to enable non-law graduates to convert to a legal career path and study for the required Qualifying Law Degree (QLD) to complete the academic stage of legal training.
Following successful completion of this diploma, you will be eligible to progress to the legal professional exams: either the Legal Practice Course for solicitors or the Bar Professional Training Course for barristers.
About
UEA Law School is housed in historic Earlham Hall. You will join a welcoming and collegiate community of legal scholars and students. You will be taught by dedicated lecturers with expertise in a range of legal fields and will be part of a vibrant student body with an active law society.
Each year we welcome an average of 20 postgraduate students onto the GDL from a wide variety of geographical and personal backgrounds, and it is the vibrant and dynamic community they create that completes the student experience.
We place significant emphasis on giving you access to law firms and barristers, and on building your confidence, maximising your employability and developing adaptable transferable skills. You will have many opportunities to build your skills and professional CV through extra-curricular activities and the Law School’s unique employability programme
We believe practical and careers experience is extremely valuable and we’ve developed a programme of opportunities tailored specifically to the needs of our postgraduate students, including placement opportunities. You can also attend careers panels, commercial awareness workshops, mock job interviews, and many other events organised by the UEA Law School and the Careers Service. And you could ‘marshal’, spending a day on the bench with a judge during a trial. You could benefit from the alumni-mentoring scheme, where UEA Law School graduates offer career mentoring to individual students.
The Law School at UEA is home to an active student Law Society and you will be able to enhance your studies with a broad range of extra-curricular activities. You can get involved with a mooting competition, where points of law are explored in a mock-court setting with an actual judge. The Law Society also holds negotiation, client interviewing, mediation and legal triathlon competitions, the finals of which are hosted by law firms.
You will have the chance to build your experience by getting involved in pro bono activities through the UEA Law Clinic, where students and staff offer free legal services. Our current pro bono activities include Street Law, Norfolk Citizens Advice Bureau Digital Hub, and our multi-award-winning partnership with Norfolk Community Law Service.
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Important Information
Whilst the University will make every effort to offer the courses listed, changes may sometimes be made arising from the regular review of course programmes. Where this activity leads to significant (but not minor) changes to programmes, there will normally be prior consultation of students and others. Changes may for example consist of variations to the content and method of delivery of programmes, courses and other services, to discontinue programmes, courses and other services and to merge or combine programmes or courses. The University will endeavour to keep such changes to a minimum, and will inform students.Accreditation
Further information on the study of law
For students undertaking the course in 2020/21, a Qualifying Law Degree is required for those wishing to become a solicitor in England and Wales. At present, qualifying as a solicitor also requires a further postgraduate qualification (the Legal Practice Course) and a period of training (training contract).
From September 2021, the Solicitors Regulation Authority will introduce a new pathway for qualifying as a solicitor, the Solicitors Qualifying Examination and Qualifying Work Experience. Those graduating in 2021 will benefit from the transition period and be able to choose between the two pathways to qualification. Further information can be found here –
https://www.sra.org.uk/students/
For students wishing to become a barrister, further information can be found here -
https://www.barstandardsboard.org.uk/training-qualification/becoming-a-barrister.html
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After the Course
Following successful completion of the Diploma as a QLD, you will be eligible to progress to either the Legal Practice Course for solicitors or, if you wish to qualify at the bar, the Bar Professional Training Course.
Career destinations
A Law degree allows students to develop a strong set of transferable skills that can be applied to a wide variety of law and non-law related professions.
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Solicitor
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Barrister
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International Qualification
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Assessment for Year 1
You will be assessed predominately by examination aside from the research project.Throughout your course you will be given guidance on your work and constructive feedback to help you improve.
Assessment for Year 1
You will be assessed predominately by examination aside from the research project.Throughout your course you will be given guidance on your work and constructive feedback to help you improve.
Important Information
Whilst the University will make every effort to offer the modules listed, changes may sometimes be made arising from the annual monitoring, review and update of modules. Where this activity leads to significant (but not minor) changes to programmes and their constituent modules, the University will endeavour to consult with students and others. It is also possible that the University may not be able to offer a module for reasons outside of its control, such as the illness of a member of staff. In some cases optional modules can have limited places available and so you may be asked to make additional module choices in the event you do not gain a place on your first choice. Where this is the case, the University will inform students.Entry Requirements
Degree classification
Bachelors degree or equivalent (minimum 2.2 or international equivalent)Degree subject
Non Law degree (for UK Study)Additional entry requirements
The Bar Standards Board (BSB) and the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) specify eligibility requirements for the GDL. All applicants are responsible for ensuring that they meet these eligibility requirements and are advised to consult the following websites prior to applying:
Bar Standards Board - https://www.barstandardsboard.org.uk
Solicitor's Regulation Authority - www.sra.org.uk
Applicants who have studied in the UK/Republic of Ireland should normally hold a good first degree in any subject, excluding Law. Applicants who have studied outside of the UK should have the equivalent of a good first degree in any subject.
Please note that all students must attend the induction programme and pass a short piece of coursework in order to enter the Diploma course.
Special Entry Requirements
We welcome applications from students with non-standard degrees (i.e. a degree that is awarded without classification) or overseas degree holders of a standard equivalent to a 2:2. Such applicants must, however, note the following;-
Applicants in this category wishing to qualify as a barrister
Any applicant who has a degree other than a UK/Republic of Ireland undergraduate degree at 2:2 level or above and who wishes to qualify as a barrister will need to apply to the BSB for a Certificate of Academic Standing. This includes applicants with overseas undergraduate degrees and applicants with non-standard UK / Republic of Ireland Degrees. Details of the process are available on the BSB website. Although we do not make admission to the GDL conditional upon having a Certificate of Academic Standing, it is important to note that such candidates will not be able to use the GDL as a step towards qualifying for the Bar (as opposed to becoming a solicitor) unless prior to admission to the GDL they have obtained the Certificate of Academic Standing from the BSB. It is their own responsibility to do this. Admission to the GDL does not imply either that the BSB's requirements as regards a Certificate of Academic Standing are met or that successful completion of the course will count towards qualification as a barrister if the student in question has not obtained a Certificate of Academic Standing as outlined above.
Applicants in this category wishing to qualify as a solicitor
For applicants who wish to qualify as a solicitor, since July 2014 the Solicitor's Regulation Authority no longer requires applicants with overseas degrees to apply for Certificates of Academic Standing.
Students for whom english is a foreign language
We welcome applications from students whose first language is not English. To ensure such students benefit from postgraduate study, we require evidence of proficiency in English. Our usual entry requirements are as follows:
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IELTS: 7.0 (minimum 6.5 in Reading and Writing, and 5.5 in listening and speaking)
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PTE (Pearson): 65 (minimum 58 in Reading and Writing, and 42 in listening and speaking)
Test dates should be within two years of the course start date.
Other tests, including Cambridge English exams and the Trinity Integrated Skills in English are also accepted by the university. The full list of accepted tests can be found here: Accepted English Language Tests
INTO University of East Anglia
If you do not meet the academic requirements for this course, you may be able to study one of the International Graduate Diploma programmes offered by our partner INTO UEA. These programmes guarantee progression to selected masters degrees if students achieve the appropriate grade. For more details please click here:
International Graduate Diploma in International Development
INTO UEA also run pre-sessional courses which can be taken prior to the start of your course. For further information and to see if you qualify please contact intopre-sessional@uea.ac.uk
Intakes
This course is open to UK, EU and International applicants. The annual intake for this course is in September each year with the next intake being Monday 21 September 2020.
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Fees and Funding
Tuition fees for the Academic Year 2021/22 are:
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UK Students: £8,300 (full time)
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International Students: £17,600 (full time)
If you choose to study part-time, the fee per annum will be half the annual fee for that year, or a pro-rata fee for the module credit you are taking (only available for Home students).
We estimate living expenses at £1,015 per month.
Further Information on tuition fees can be found here.
Scholarships and Bursaries
The University of East Anglia offers a range of Scholarships; please click the link for eligibility, details of how to apply and closing dates.
Course related costs
Please see Additional Course Fees for details of course-related costs.
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How to apply
Applications for the Diploma are made through the centralised Central Applications Board.
Tel: +44(0)1483 451080.
Applicants who need to apply for a visa to study in the UK are advised that the process can take up to two months in some countries. Please make sure that applications are submitted to study in good time to obtain a visa.
If you would like to discuss your individual circumstances with the Admissions Office prior to applying please do contact us: admissions@uea.ac.uk
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