Law

Large numbers of Exeter graduates enter the legal profession including both law graduates and graduates of many other disciplines. Non-law students will need to take a Law Conversion Course, and all entrants to the profession will need to take the Legal Practice Course for solicitors or the Bar Professional Training Course for barristers.

Timing your application to the profession is vital. You are likely to be applying for training contracts more than two years in advance of starting in the role of trainee solicitor. Entrants will have usually gained a wide variety of law related work experience such as open days, vacation schemes and mini pupillages to demonstrate commitment, insight and motivation. 

You'll also find plenty of information and a variety of law firms, some chambers and professional training providers to talk to at our Law Fair in November. It is never too early to attend and start interacting with law professionals.

The Careers Zone has a number of useful magazines and handbooks to help you which are free, so please make sure you come in to collect your copies.

You can also download a list of Employers of Exeter graduates in the legal sector.

Job and information sources

• Handshake - our vacancy database with employers who are targeting University of Exeter students
• TargetJobs
• Prospects Law Sector Briefings
• Prospects Law careers Job Profiles
• All About Careers

Reference Books available from the Careers Zone:  Chambers Guide to the Legal Profession, Commercial Bar Association Directory,  Top Legal Employers, Bewigged and Bewildered? A Guide to Becoming a Barrister in England and Wales, The Gherkin Guide to Securing a Training Contract, Blackstone's Guide to becoming a Solicitor, Employability Skills for Law Students, All You Need to Know about being a Trainee Solicitor, Commercial Awareness, Top Law Firms by Inside Buzz.

Additional resources

General advice

• Law Careers Advice Network - comprehensive site covering contracts pupillages, courses and finance
• Law Careers Net - useful overview of profession and timetable for action
• Lawyer2b - useful information and advice on a career in law
• All about law - careers information from undergraduate to full qualification
• Lex100 - information about all the major law firms in the UK, including vacation scheme deadlines
• Arbitration & Mediation - useful information on getting into these areas
• Aspiring Solicitors - advice and information from organisation committed to increasing diversity in the legal profession
• Bar Council - the equal opportunities office offers an introductory scheme for disabled applicants to be linked with practicing barristers with a similar disability
• The Corporate Law Academy - helpful application and interview advice
• The Pupillage Pages - essential reading for those wishing to enter the Bar
• Law Society Support - for solicitors with disabilities
• Society of Black Lawyers E-mail: national-office@sbl-hq.freeserve.co.uk
• Wikijob - information on companies, application and assessment procedures, typical interview questions.
• Trainee Solicitor Surgery - specialist careers advice on how to get a solicitor's training contract - includes free ebook offer.
• The Lawyer Portal - guides and events for aspiring lawyers. 

Professional bodies

• Law Society
• Law Society of Scotland
• Association of Personal Injury Lawyers
• Bar Council
• Bar Standards Board
• British Institute of Comparative and International Law
• British Insurance Law Association
• British Maritime Law Association
• Chartered Institute of Arbitrators
• Legal Aid Agency - group to support finance and training of Legal Aid solicitors
• Institute of Legal Executives
• Institute of Paralegals
• Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators
• International Association of Entertainment Lawyers
• International Bar Association

Firms, chambers and directories

• Law Society Directory of Solicitors
• The Legal Action Group - Legal Aid practitioners group
• The Scottish Law Directory

Sites listing placements, contracts and pupillages

• Prospects Job Site - select "Law" job category
• Pupillage Gateway Information on the Bar Council and pupillage
• Law Careers.Net - careers information and vacancy details for training contracts and pupillages
• Law Crossing - site listing pupillages and training contracts
• Government Legal Service
• Crown Prosecution Service
• Agency central - various agencies which deal with legal vacancies
• Recruitment & Employment Confederation (REC) - useful to identify agencies which specialise in legal vacancies
• The Lawyer - legal vacancies including agency vacancies
• Totally Legal - legal vacancies including agency vacancies
• Law Gazette jobs - the latest legal jobs for solicitors
• BCL Legal - legal recruitment agency for newly qualified solicitors, lawyers and all types of legal jobs.
• Simply Law - job site
• New York Bar Qualification - can offer the opportunity to train in the jurisdiction of some States in the United States of America

Courses - Law Conversion, LPC, BPTC

• CPE, Diploma in Law and LPC Courses - course lists and application procedures
• Bar Council - education and training site
• BarSAS - Bar professional training courses
• Joining an Inn - see Bar Standards Board

National newspapers carrying job adverts for this area include Independent (Wednesdays) and The Times (Tuesdays).

Alternative careers for Law graduates

Many Law students want to explore the value of their degree in the world of work beyond the legal profession. It may be a conscious choice or it may be to secure a ‘Plan B’. Whatever your reasons, you will find very useful information in the following sites:

• Lawyer2B - Alternative careers directly related to law
• LCAN - A wider range of careers where a Law degree is seen as providing a strong basis
• What can I do with my degree? - careers portfolios of the most popular careers destinations for Law students.

Law Videos

Videos on the following topics can be found in My Career Zone Digital:

• Industry overview: Law
• The key skills for working in law
• Top tips for working in law
• Diversity in law
• What do you enjoy most about working in law
• What qualifications do you need to become a lawyer
• Is work-life balance possible as a lawyer

Industry Report Legal Industry

There is an Legal Industry Report on the legal industry in My Career Zone Digital.