BA (Hons) Law

Why study at Buckinghamshire New University?

Our BA (Hons) in Law is designed for students who may not wish to pursue a professional legal career but have an interest in a career in law and/or looking to apply knowledge in another area of business or service provision.

We will help you build up your legal knowledge and commercial awareness, and gain a wide range of transferable skills, such as abstract thinking and practical problem-solving, which are relevant to a wide range of related careers.

Although this degree does not offer exemptions from the academic stage of training to become a solicitor or barrister, the first year content is common with our LLB (Hons) Law, and those who are successful in all first year modules may choose to transfer on to year two of the LLB programme.

With smaller class sizes, our staff are committed to nurturing your development, helping you graduate with the skills and capabilities for a successful and fulfilling career.

Our team of tutors includes qualified lawyers combining backgrounds as academics and as practitioners, so they add depth and breadth to your experience of the study of law.

You will also benefit from talks by guest lecturers from specialist areas.

We also hold careers events, such as ‘life after graduation’ where employers and alumni are invited to talk about career opportunities in law and related industries, providing valuable networking opportunities.

With our convenient position in the Thames Valley, you have easy access to London and regional areas for law events, as well as work opportunities and placements during the holidays.

Our active Student Law Society and Mooting Society also organises both legal and social events and our students are active participants in national mooting competitions.

We actively encourage, and support, our students to take part in work experience with a wide variety of organisations or legal practices during the summer break.

Work experience in the form of placements and internships can greatly improve your employment prospects. Taking part can also help enhance academic results as you can apply your learning to a professional setting.

Employability is at the heart of this course and we will help you hone your skills for the workplace.

How will I be taught and assessed?

The dedicated course team are committed to supporting you throughout your degree programme.

In addition to the core curriculum, you will also benefit from additional activities, all designed to bolster your career prospects. These include talks from guest speakers, alumni sharing their experiences, sessions organised by the Careers Service, and personalised support by Careers Service and Learning Development Unit. Tutors will also help you try to find work-experience suited to your needs.

The course is underpinned by classroom-based teaching of current theory, concepts and research, delivered through a blend of lectures, interactive seminars and workshops, small-group activities and debates and supported at every stage by material on the virtual learning environment.

We will help give you the confidence to analyse and manage large quantities of complex information from both printed and electronic sources. You will also learn to construct clear and well-reasoned legal arguments.

You will develop your knowledge of all aspects of law through lectures and seminars, and supplement this with your own independent study. Lectures are often interactive, involving exercises and informal assessment. Seminars are small group discussions which you will need to prepare for in advance. Here you will learn to analyse legal principles and apply them to practical situations, assess competing arguments and choose between alternative approaches. Group work and moots (pretend courts) will hone your verbal arguing and presentation skills.

You will be assessed through exams, moots (pretend courts), presentations and coursework. The variety of assessment methods will help test your knowledge and analysis of legal principles and different areas of law.

You will also be assessed on your ability to carry out effective research, understanding, analysis and use of source materials, ability to assess competing legal arguments, and capacity to recognise potential conclusions for situations and give reasons for them. You will also need to show you can work successfully in a team for moots and presentations. These are all valuable skills to help prepare you for your future career.