Time to change? Try law
Ever considered a change of career? How about becoming a lawyer? It's not as complicated as you might think.
Laura-Jane Filotrani
Most people think you need a law degree to become a lawyer. But you don’t. You can take a law conversion course called the Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL).
This intensive course is designed to enable graduates of any discipline to convert to law, without the need to study for a law degree.
Sometimes known as the Common Professional Exam (CPE), the course aims to build academic knowledge and skills equivalent to a law degree, but is studied over a far shorter timeframe.
Julia Stephenson, 33, has a degree in philosophy, politics and economics and decided to change careers three years ago. She had spent the first eight years of her working life in the music industry. She worked as an international promotions manager.
She said: “After a couple of years I started to feel that something was missing from my career. I realised that although fun and definitely varied, I wasn't really challenged intellectually in my job, which was something that I wanted.”
Julia started to investigate the possibilities of a career in law and after two years of thinking about it finally enrolled as a part-time student at The College of Law.
GDL courses cover the seven foundation subjects of contract, crime, EU law, equity and trusts, land law, public law and tort. They also cover what is known as the additional or the eighth subject, which could be a specific set topic or research and a dissertation on a subject of the student’s choice.
All full-time GDL applications are handled centrally by the Central Applications Board (known as CAB). Students can apply on-line via the website lawcabs.ac.uk.
Applications are normally accepted from November of the year before you plan to start the course, and the first round application deadline is usually February 1, in the year you plan to start the course. Later applications are usually considered until the courses are full. Part-time GDL applications are handled individually by the different providers.
“The thought of going back to study was incredibly daunting,” Julia continued, “as I had not studied since leaving university and at 30 I felt almost too old to be starting again.”
Julia like many opted to study part-time so that she could work in order to meet financial commitments.
She said: “It wasn’t easy - I had to give up my social life and buckle down to some very hard work. But it was also two of the most rewarding years I've experienced.”
Once you pass your GDL you then have a couple of options. If you want to become a solicitor, the next step is to study the Legal Practice Course (LPC) or if you want to qualify as a barrister you need to study the Bar Vocational Course (BVC).
Julia starts a training contract at Charles Russell in 2009.
