Course details

Summary

UC School of Law's mission statement is 'the internationally recognised, professionally relevant, community focused Law School'.

Students gain a professional degree of outstanding quality in four years. In addition, Bachelor of Laws (LLB) students deal with real people with real problems as part of the innovative clinical studies programme at UC. By helping the community, our students hone critical practical skills in the process.

Qualification structure and duration

The Bachelor of Laws is made up of the following:

• eight compulsory Law courses
• 13 optional Law courses
• 75 points of non-Law courses (five 100-level courses).

Double Degrees

Many Law students also study towards a second degree, with the Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Commerce and Bachelor of Science the most popular. The new Bachelor of Criminal Justice degree is also a good fit as a double degree with the LLB.

Bachelor of Laws Honours

If you achieve a satisfactory standard in your first two years of study for the Bachelor of Laws you may be invited to enter the honours programme. If you meet the criteria you can enrol in three additional Law courses in fourth year:

• LAWS410 Advanced Research Skills
• LAWS420 Honours Research Paper
• LAWS430 Honours Dissertation

Further study

If you want to differentiate your qualification but do not want to complete a double degree, you could consider postgraduate study. Options include:

• Master of Laws
• Master of Laws (International Law and Politics)
• Doctor of Philosophy

Career opportunities

With one of the largest Law internship courses of any New Zealand law school, this UC course and the clinical and community work experience available can really give your résumé the edge over other graduates.

Graduates can become a practice solicitor, in-house lawyer or a self-employed barrister. Recent UC graduates have also found roles as research council, judge's clerk, policy analyst and Maori development advisor.

Legal skills of research, writing, analysis and reasoning are highly prized in many professions such as politics, policy, public service, foreign affairs, journalism, publishing, immigration and business.

Entry criteria

Admission to UC with University Entrance, or equivalent, is required to enrol for a Bachelor's degree. Applicants must have completed New Zealand University Entrance through NCEA; or Cambridge International Examinations (CIE); or International Baccalaureate Diploma (IB) or any other equivalent overseas qualification.

Recommended preparation

The study of Law does not require a background in any specific subject at school and entry to the first year of the LLB is open to all students with University Entrance.

You will need to have good reading, writing and analytical skills. Subjects such as English, drama, economics, te reo Maori, languages, history and classical studies are useful preparation.

Other English language requirements: TOEFL PBT with a minimum score of 550 and TWE with a minimum score of 4.5; CCEL EAP Level 2 with a minimum C+ grade; CAE or CPE minimum score of 169 with at least 162 in reading, writing, listening and speaking; Pearson Test of English (Academic) - PTE with an overall score of 57 and no PTE communicative skills score below 50.