There are a wide range of electives and pathways. You can choose elective modules and LLM pathways that are both practice-focused and academically rigorous, you can choose elective modules in a broad range of specialist practice areas, enabling you to broaden and deepen your knowledge and skills in areas in which you wish to gain pupillage or legal employment. Access to an engaging and innovative online learning environment, plus face-to-face tutor and peer support when you need it most. Location - You may choose to study in the area where you hope to practise once you've qualified as a barrister, particularly as law schools are likely to have good links with the Bar in their area.

You need to complete an academic component (typically a law degree or an unrelated degree and a law conversion course), vocational component (postgraduate course - Bar course) and a work-based learning component (usually pupillage). Additionally, trainee barristers must join one of the four Inns of Court and complete 12 qualifying sessions. Choose to study this award and you will have the opportunity to add an internationally recognised LLM qualification to your CV and pupillage applications. A number of local Chambers have been enthusiastic in their support for the course and our students and former students are represented amongst those they recruited as pupils with a view to tenancy.The BSB states that students will have unlimited attempts to pass the Bar course assessments within five years. That said, the academic regulations of the vocational course providers may differ from this for their associated academic awards. Barrister apprenticeships You could also take advantage of the scholarships and bursaries that are offered by universities. Find out more about funding postgraduate study. Supplementary online learning is another important resource for students: “The virtual learning environment is a valuable resource that sets out required learning and reading in an engaging way. It also includes short videos and demonstrations. We provide an app, ‘Synap’, which enables students to practise the kind of multiple-choice questions that they’ll face in the litigation assessments. It also has a ‘space learning’ feature that tests students on the types of question that they’ve failed previously to help them improve.” More flexibility, more to think about A newsletter run buy Future Pupils that ensures students are kept up to date with relevant information on topics such as mini-pupillage openings, job opportunities, volunteering opportunities, pupillage application pointers, scholarship information and events. Post BPC advice Complete real-life work experience via our Pro Bono clinics - you will advise, manage and represent clients on a variety of cases in legal areas. You will also be paired with a Master’s Supervisor, who will guide you through a reflective learning process so that you can complete your reflective assessment and obtain your Master’s Degree.

Students should view careers advice as something about which any BTC tutor can be approached. All teaching staff come from practice, some from London and some from the local area, and some retain tenancies in Chambers. We are thus able to offer first-hand advice and guidance to students. All applications for Bar courses need to be made directly to the course provider. If you plan to complete the vocational component immediately after your degree or law conversion course, you need to apply in the autumn of your final year or the first term of your conversion course respectively. What do Bar courses involve? The content of the new courses is unlikely to differ substantially from the old BPTC, and we'd offer largely similar advice on how to approach it. Do take the time to research what each provider is offering, to make sure you find the Bar Course that's right for you. These core areas, especially ethics, are essential because "barristers are individuals, and they get thrown to the wolves more often. When you're a solicitor you have the protection of the firm around you – barristers have to be equipped with all the knowledge they can get." In the final term, students select two option subjects in areas they're targeting for practice.A course that combines the academic and vocational stages (where the Bar course is integrated into an undergraduate degree). Successful completion of your chosen course enables you to be called to the Bar and proceed to pupillage. We have a dedicated careers and placement service who will support you in your search for both pupillage and alternative employment. A barrister apprenticeship pathway combining the academic, vocational and pupillage/work-based component is still being discussed, as such this route is currently unavailable. All students should note that, on enrolment, you will be required to sign a declaration by which you: While plans for barrister apprenticeships have been discussed and are considered a “viable option” to qualifying as a barrister, this route is not yet available but is expected to be developed by 2024. Much like a solicitor apprenticeship, the proposed barrister apprenticeship will take six years to complete and will involve a combination of work and study with barrister apprentices completing a law degree and the Bar course while they work. What are the transitional arrangements for BPTC students?