Step one: Get your degree
A qualifying law degree will exempt you from the Common Professional Examination (CPE). If you are doing a law degree, especially if it is a combined honours degree, ensure the course options cover all seven Foundations of Legal Knowledge – Obligations I (Contract) & II (Tort), Foundations of Criminal Law, Foundations of Equity and Law of Trusts, Foundations of the law of the European Union, Foundations of Property Law, Foundations of Public Law – otherwise any gaps will have to be made up the following year before you can apply for the Legal Practice Course (LPC).
Likewise, if you do not commence the LPC within seven years of graduation, then you will have to take the CPE.
With a few exceptions, a 2:1 is pretty much a minimum requirement (see law firm table, page 48-49), whether a law degree or not. Law firms are not as Oxbridge-dominated as they once where, but most still favour the old ‘red brick’ universities over newer ones. GCSE and A-level results are taken into account as well as degree performance, but if you do have a good non-academic reason for choosing a new over old university, this may be taken into account.
Some universities have arrangements with individual law schools which guarantee places for their students who achieve a certain grade. It is certainly worth finding out if your university is one of these.
Total cost so far: tuition fees plus living expenses: £18,000.
Step two: If your degree is not a qualifying law degree you will have to take the CPE or post-grad Diploma in Law.
This course run for one year (full-time) or two years (part-time). The course covers the seven Foundations of Legal Knowledge, with an examination in each. Additionally, the course will include legal research, the English legal system and another module.
The course is offered by a multitude of
institutions throughout the country from
universities to traditional law schools (details on the Law Society website), but applications for full-time courses are made centrally to: CPE/Diploma in Law Course Central Applications Board, PO Box 84, Guildford, Surrey GU3 1YX. Forms are available from October to the beginning of December (and can be downloaded from www.lawcabs.ac.uk) in the year before you intend to start the course. Applications for part-time courses should be made directly to the relevant college.
Competition for places on the course can be fierce. In the 1998-99 academic year, there were 2,692 places on CPE/Diploma of Law courses for which more than 3,000 people applied.
Not all courses are the same. It is wise to get hold of a prospectus from the college(s) you are interested in before application.
Completion of the CPE/Diploma does not guarantee a place on the LPC. However, some institutions will guarantee LPC places if the CPE is passed at the same college – worth bearing in mind when applying for CPE places. And some course providers have contacts with law firms which can make that important summer placement much easier to get hold of.
Finally, if you need a break after all that studying, make sure it is not too long. If you do not start the LPC within seven years of passing the CPE or diploma, then it will have to be done again.
Total cost so far: £28,000. Fees for the CPE range from £2,000-£4,800 plus living expenses can bring the cost of the CPE year to £10,000.
Funding available: Many larger firms will pay the fees of those who have already secured training contracts with them, and some provide a grant of up to £5,000 for living expenses. The banks offer career development loans (see box, page 52) to students at this stage. Some course providers give bursaries.
