Course in brief

Our qualifying law degree, Law with Criminology LLB(Hons) develops your understanding of the principles of law and which addresses specialist topics including crime theory and the criminal justice system. 

Taken over three years, or four years with an optional salaried placement, core learning provides practical skills in presentation, negotiation, oration, mooting and advocacy and develops an understanding of the English legal system.

As you progress, option modules provide opportunities to tailor your learning. Learning is delivered through a stimulating mix of seminars, guest lectures, skills sessions and workshops. Extracurricular activities, such as industry-sponsored mooting and client interviewing competitions and pro bono work, allow you to further develop practical skills in problem-solving, critical analysis and communication. 

This degree is currently recognised by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) and the Bar Standards Board. It is a qualifying law degree, which means that Law LLB(Hons) graduates will have completed the academic stage of training for entry into the legal profession. 

The SRA have announced that they are introducing a new qualifying exam – the Solicitors Qualification Exam (SQE) – which will take the place of the existing Legal Practice Course. There's more information on this change in the Solicitors Qualification Exam section below.

This course is one of three LLB pathways offered by Brighton Business School, alongside Law LLB(Hons) and Law with Business LLB(Hons). 

Key facts

Location Brighton: Moulsecoomb

UCAS code M6L1

Full-time 3 years
With placement year 4 years

Recognised by the Solicitors Regulation Authority and the Bar Standards Board

Book your open day place

Apply now with UCAS for 2019 entry

Entry criteria

Entry requirements

A-levels or BTEC
Entry requirements are in the range of A-level BBB–CCC (120–96 UCAS Tariff points), or BTEC Extended Diploma DDM–MMM. Our conditional offers typically fall within this range. 

We will generally make you an offer if your predicted grades are at the top of this range. If your predicted grades are towards the lower end of this range we may still make you an offer if you have a good GCSE (or equivalent) profile or relevant non-academic achievements.

International Baccalaureate
30 points including 16 at Higher level.

Access to HE Diploma
Pass with 60 credits overall. Units in law, business or humanities required. At least 45 credits at level 3, with 24 credits at merit or above.

GCSE (minimum grade C or grade 4)
At least English language and maths.

Foundation degree/HND
May enable you to start the course in year 2. Relevant subjects required. HNC may also count towards direct entry.

Studied before or got relevant experience?
A qualification, HE credits or relevant experience may count towards your course at Brighton, and could mean that you do not have to take some elements of the course or can start in year 2 or 3. 

For non-native speakers of English
IELTS 6.0, with 6.0 in writing and a minimum of 5.5 in the other elements.

International equivalencies

International equivalencies by country
 
Albania
Algeria
Argentina
Australia
Austria
Bahrain
Bangladesh
Belarus
Belgium
Bermuda
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Botswana
Brazil
Bulgaria
Burma (Myanmar)
Cameroon
Canada
Chile
China
Colombia
Croatia
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Denmark
Ecuador
Egypt
Estonia
Finland
France
Germany
Ghana
Greece
Guyana
Hong Kong
Hungary
Iceland
India
Indonesia
Iran
Iraq
Ireland
Israel
Italy
Jamaica
Japan
Jordan
Kazakhstan
Kenya
Kosovo
Kuwait
Latvia
Lebanon
Liechtenstein
Libya
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Macedonia
Malaysia
Malawi
Malta
Mexico
Moldova
Montenegro
Morocco
Namibia
Nepal
Netherlands
New Zealand
Nigeria
Norway
Oman
Pakistan
Palestinian National Authority
Philippines
Poland
Portugal
Qatar
Romania
Russian Federation
Saudi Arabia
Serbia
Sierra Leone
Singapore
Slovakia
Slovenia
South Africa
South Korea
Spain
Sri Lanka
Syria
Sweden
Switzerland
Taiwan
Tanzania
Thailand
Tunisia
Turkey
Uganda
Ukraine
United Arab Emirates
United States
Uzbekistan
Venezuela
Vietnam
Yemen
Zambia
Zimbabwe

We can help you meet our English language or academic entry requirements.

Visit our language institute

For English language preparation courses.

Visit our International College

For degree preparation courses.

Course in detail

Why choose this course?

  • Professional accreditation from the Solicitors Regulation Authority and the Bar Standards Board
  • This qualifying law degree enables you to train as a solicitor or barrister after graduation
  • Optional paid placement year with a law firm
  • The course satisfies the academic stage of training to become a solicitor or barrister
  • You will explore topics such as business planning and business development
  • You will be able to choose options such as commercial law, family law, digital marketing and entrepreneurship
  • Learning is delivered through a stimulating mix of seminars, guest lectures, skills sessions and workshops
  • Extracurricular activities, such as industry-sponsored mooting and client interviewing competitions and pro bono work

Making sure that what you learn with us is relevant, up to date and what employers are looking for is our priority, so courses are reviewed and enhanced on an ongoing basis. If you apply to us, you’ll be told about any new developments through our applicant portal.

Lady Justice

Year 1

Our law degrees share the same first year modules, introducing you to the different aspects of law, such as legal research skills and courtroom procedures.

Modules

  • Public Law
  • Criminal Justice and Theory
  • Law in Practice: Skills
  • Legal Structures and Legal Ethics
  • Law of Torts
  • Business Planning

Students in a seminar

Year 2

From your second year you will be able to choose from law and criminology options such as crime control, cross-cultural criminology, employee relations and commercial law. All Criminology modules will be taught at our Falmer campus.

You may also have the opportunity to take part in national mooting competitions and take advantage of work shadowing opportunities, which could include showing judges and law firm partners. 

Modules

  • Law in Action: Moot
  • Criminal Law
  • Contract Law
  • European Union Law
  • Punishment, Power and the State
  • Critical Perspectives on Criminal Justice

Law with Criminology

Students about to take part in a mock trial at Lewes Crown Court

Placement year

The year's paid work placement is a vital part of the course. It gives you the chance to apply your learning to real-life situations and challenges, to meet and network with potential employers, and have opportunities to get real work experience before you graduate. This is something that employers value highly.

On your placement, you will complete a business project. This project contributes to your degree and, depending on the topic you choose, could provide valuable insight for your placement employer.

Our LLB students have completed placements at the Home Office, House of Lords, Acumen Business Law, Alfred James & Co Solicitors, Devonshires Solicitors and Gaby Hardwicke Solicitors. It is also possible to undertake a placement year abroad.

Our dedicated placements and employability team will support you throughout. Read more about our placement years.

Business Placements

Final year

In your final year, core modules further deepen your knowledge and understanding.

You will also be able to tailor the course to the subjects you are most interested in through option modules.

Modules

  • Legal Research Project
  • Equity and Trusts
  • Land Law

Options*

One from:

  • Global Issues: Harm, Crime, Power
  • Violence and Society
  • Criminology of Borders

One from: 

  • Law Dissertation
  • Commercial Law
  • Negotiation, Mediation and Alternative Dispute Resolution
  • Company and Finance Law
  • Human Rights and Business
  • Employment Law
  • Intellectual Property Law
  • Family Law
  • The Innocence Programme
  • Environmental Law
  • Migration Law
  • Small Business and Entrepreneurship
  • Social Enterprise: New business planning
  • Placement Project (for students who undertake the optional placement year)
  • Business Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility
  • Understanding Employee Relations
  • HRM and Organisational Change
  • Current Issues in Strategic Management

*Option modules are indicative and may change, depending on timetabling and staff availability.

Law Courts

 

Law societies 

Student Law Society

The Student Law Society is a thriving community of over 150 law students. With support from the Students’ Union, it organises an exciting schedule of social and educational events.

Members have recently enjoyed visits to Lewes Crown Court, Brighton Magistrates Court and the Houses of Parliament. Social events have variously involved paintballing, go-karting, surfing, a Christmas Ball at the Brighton Hilton Metropole, and a trip with law students from other universities to Amsterdam.

Through initiatives such as these, the society provides excellent opportunities for personal development and for networking with other students interested in a career in law.

Student Mooting Society

The Mooting Society has a fast-growing membership of over 120 students. The society provides workshops, guest speakers, socials, trips and competitions to help build members' confidence and adversarial skills that are increasingly essential in any career path in the legal sector.

The objective of the mooting competitions is to develop the research and advocacy skills of future practitioners. Students argue both sides of a fictitious legal case in a court room setting in front of a panel of judges.

Course statistics

Unistats and key information sets

Unistats enable you to compare information when choosing a UK university course. All UK universities publish Unistats data on their website.

Programme specification

The programme specification is the approved description of each course. They are updated following course changes, and give a detailed breakdown of the content and structure of the course.

Programme specification

These charts give an indication of how much time you will spend on different activities at each level of the course, and an indication of the balance of assessment by coursework, and written and practical exams. For courses with option modules, actual proportions will depend on the modules you choose.

Find out more about how the academic year and degree courses are organised, and about learning and assessment activities you might get to grips with at Brighton. More specific information about this course is detailed in the programme specification (linked above). You can find out also about the range of support we offer to help you adjust to university life.

Overall workload

Assessments

Careers and employability

Career prospects  

The combination of law and criminology allows you to continue your legal training to qualify as a solicitor or barrister or to pursue alternative graduate opportunities both in private and public sector organisations.

As this is a qualifying law degree, you will be able to progress directly to the vocational stage of training: the Legal Practice Course if you want to become a solicitor or the Bar Professional Training Course if you want to become a barrister.

The criminology focus provides an ideal basis for graduates who wish to develop careers in areas such as probation, policing, the prison service, youth work, voluntary organisations and government.

Recent Law graduates have joined companies in roles such as:

  • Alpha Shindara Legal, Legal Secretary
  • Aston Bond, Solicitor
  • Bennett Griffin, Trainee Solicitor
  • Bernard Chill & Axtell Solicitors, Trainee Solicitor
  • Blake Morgan LLP, Litigation Paralegal
  • BlueBay Asset Management, Compliance Intern
  • Carmelite Chambers, Barrister
  • Financial Ombudsman Service, Adjudicator
  • Fox William, Trainee Solicitor
  • G2 Legal, Junior Consultant
  • Howlett Clarke, Legal Assistant
  • Mayo Wynne Baxter, Paralegal
  • Nationwide, Fraud Analyst
  • Turpin Miller, Solicitor

Bar Standards Board

Solicitors Regulation Authority

Skills development 

CLOCK Legal Companion Scheme

The university is part of the CLOCK Time for Justice scheme. Students volunteer in the Brighton Family and County courts and assist litigants in person by accompanying them into hearings; helping them to fill in court forms and signposting to our legal and charitable partners. As well as enabling you to gain unique court experience, you will develop essential skills through assisting clients on many issues and build on links with local law firms.

Negotiating

Negotiation is a key lawyer skill – many legal disputes do not end up in the courts, but instead are resolved by some form of negotiated agreement. Our negotiation programme is an opportunity to prepare for a negotiation, and to apply and practise your negotiation skills. The programme is sponsored by solicitors’ firms who judge the final competition and the top teams go on to represent the University of Brighton at the national negotiation competition sponsored by the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution.

Client interviewing

Our client interviewing skills programme enables students to develop the essential skill of interviewing clients, a key component of legal work. The programme culminates in an
internal competition, sponsored by a local law firm, and the winning students proceed to represent the university in the national Law Society competition.

In 2016 two of our Law with Business students, Fionnuala Richardson and Chloe Chatton, won the national competition and went on to represent England and Wales in the international competition, finishing third in the world.

University of Brighton Innocence Programme

Our University of Brighton Innocence Programme offers the opportunity to advise and investigate issues of potential wrongful criminal convictions. Students participate in real-life casework supervised by academics and working with practising lawyers, providing pro bono assistance to prisoners who maintain their innocence and have exhausted their appeal rights. 

Work-related opportunities 

Our dedicated placements and employability team provide a huge portfolio of employers offering business-related placement opportunities. They support all students to find a placement and offer several services to improve your employability including:

  • CV and cover letter reviews
  • mock assessment centres
  • fast-track interviews
  • interview practice sessions.

They will also support you throughout your placement and act as referees if you are offered a permanent role, or wish to continue to a masters.

JobTeaser

We are one of the first UK universities to use JobTeaser, a new online placements system presenting placement options in the UK and Europe.

It gathers together all the job opportunities, events, and resources you need to help you with your professional development.

Brighton_Uni_IBM_Students_high_res-8

Careers advice 

Our careers service provides help and advice from the very start of your studies, on subjects including careers counselling sessions, CV checking, mock interviews and advice on settingup your own business. 

Mentoring – Momentum is our award-winning mentoring scheme. It pairs students with professionals who wish to share their experience. Students and their mentors meet regularly to exchange ideas. The scheme helps students to develop new skills and enhance their career prospects.

Students at Placement Fair

Postgraduate study

f you decide that you would like to go onto postgraduate study, we offer a 10% discount to alumni.

Here are some courses that may interest you:

BU_27NOV17_AW_097

Starting your own business 

Beepurple is the university’s entrepreneurship support network. They offer free support for any student or graduate with their business ideas, freelance plan or social enterprise project.

Beepurple run events throughout the academic year, designed to equip you with skills that will improve your employability and help you grow a successful business.

By taking part in beepurple activities, you will meet like-minded people, hear how other recent graduates have set up their own businesses and gain key enterprise skills that will help you stand out from the crowd.

beepurple-logo

Solicitors Qualifying Exam 

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has announced it will be introducing the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE). The earliest date for introduction is September 2020.

The SRA will be providing information and guidance about how to qualify in the new system so keep checking the SRA website.

At the moment, to become a solicitor you need to complete a qualifying law degree (or another degree followed by a Law Common Professional Examination/Postgraduate Diploma in Law) moving on to do the Legal Practice Course (LPC), and then a two-year period of recognised training, usually called a training contract.

The new proposal is that the SQE will consist of two parts; part one assessing legal knowledge, research and writing and the second part testing practical skills gained after completing a recognised period of training.

The SRA have confirmed that the SQE will not be in place until 2020 and have proposed that students who begin a qualifying law degree before 2020 will be able to use the old route to qualification.

We’re reviewing the curriculum of our qualifying law courses and will make changes as necessary to provide an integrated approach to preparing students for the SQE.

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Fees and funding

Your fees

UK/EU (full-time) 9,250 GBP

International (full-time) 12,900 GBP

If you choose to take the professional placement (sandwich) year offered on this course you will pay a reduced fee during this year. Our fee for the professional placement year is £1,230 for home students and £2,000 for international students. This fee may be subject to small increases, in line with inflation.

The fees listed here are for full-time courses beginning in the academic year 2018–19.

Further tuition fees are payable for each subsequent year of study and are subject to an annual increase of no more than 5% or RPI (whichever is the greater). The annual increase for UK/EU students, who are subject to regulated fees, will increase no more than the statutory maximum fee.

You can find out more about our fees in the university's student contract and tuition fee policy (pdf).

The tuition fee you have to pay depends on a number of factors including the kind of course you take, and whether you study full- or part-time. If you are studying part-time you will normally be charged on a pro rata basis depending on the number of modules you take.

What's included in the fee?

When costs such as health or DBS checks, or use of specialist materials are incurred as a mandatory requirement of the course they are included in your tuition fee.

You may incur additional costs depending on the optional modules or activities you choose. The cost of optional activities is not included in your tuition fee and you will need to meet this cost in addition to your fees. Before you apply check with the school that provides your course using the contact details in the Find out more tab (at the end of this page) for advice about what is included and what optional costs you could face so you can budget accordingly.

See our finance pages for advice about funding and scholarships as well as further information about fees and advice on international and island fee-paying status.

Location and living here

Location

About Brighton

Forward-thinking and welcoming, the city of Brighton & Hove is a community of creative and diverse people who share values like sustainability and inclusivity – just like its university.

Miles of pebble beaches, hundreds of bars, restaurants and clubs, a packed calendar of culture, music and sport and great independent and high street shopping attract visitors from all over the world. By the end of your course you’ll still be finding new things to enjoy about the city.

The Brighton Festival, England’s largest arts festival, takes place every May – as does the Great Escape Europe’s leading industry showcase for new music, 300 bands perform over three days at venues across the city. Major events celebrate Pride, digital culture, cinema, photography, food and the winter solstice. Our own Brighton Graduate show is a highlight, turning the university into the largest exhibition space in the south east as we celebrate the outstanding creativity of our students.

As a student here you’ll have a unique opportunity to experience what the city has to offer. Volunteering and placement opportunities enable you to play your part in the events, organisations and communities that make Brighton such a compelling place to be.

i360 and ticket booth on the seafront What to expect enriching experiences

Campus where this course is taught

Moulsecoomb campus

Two miles north of Brighton seafront, Moulsecoomb is our largest campus. Subjects taught here include architecture, business, computing, construction, engineering, geography, product design, law and pharmacy.

On campus you will find professional-standard facilities including a flight simulator, trading room, design and digital media suites and specialist research laboratories, alongside the library, student centre, a nursery, fitness facilities and Students’ Union. There are excellent public transport links.

The Big Build
A major transformation of our Moulsecoomb campus began in summer 2018. By the time the Big Build is complete, there’ll be new halls of residence, academic building, and Students’ Union and fitness facilities – all created with sustainability, inclusivity and community in mind.

As the development grows it will provide many exciting learning opportunities for our students, ranging from live projects, placements and internships with the companies involved to guest lectures and site visits. Find out more...

 

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The Big Build

Accommodation

Brighton: Moulsecoomb

We have halls of residence across the city in Grand Parade, Moulsecoomb, Varley Park and Falmer.

  • Eligible students can apply for any of these options. Find out if you are eligible…
  • You’ll be prioritised for accommodation in the halls that are linked to your teaching base, subject to availability.
  • Moulsecoomb campus is linked to Varley Park and Moulsecoomb Place halls.
    • Varley Park offers a mix of rooms and catering options. Varley Park is around two miles from Moulsecoomb campus and four miles from the city centre. Public transport in the city is excellent, and there’s a shuttle bus between our Brighton campuses during term time.
    • Moulsecoomb Place halls are catered and are located on campus.

We also offer Unihomes and Unilets, student houses that we let out to our students on behalf of private landlords. This option provides the most choice and flexibility and can work particularly well when you’re balancing learning with placements and other commitments.

There’s plenty of support if you choose private rented accommodation. We manage our own studenthomes database of properties. And we run our housemates service over the summer for students, new and returning, looking for a place to live.

Find out more on our accommodation webpages.

Moulsecoomb Place Halls

Moulsecoomb Place accommodation close to the Moulsecoomb campus

Student in the Moulsecoomb Place hall of residence

Maps

house Accommodation
campus University building

Moulsecoomb campus map

Find out more

Law news

Sign up for advice about open days, new courses and opportunities in this subject area.

  • Year of entry
  • Providing this information will help us make our updates even more relevant to you.
    Please make sure you read our privacy notice

Book your open day place

If you have a question about this course, our enquiries team will be happy to help.

01273 644644

Find out more about what students do at Brighton Business School by subscribing to our blog.

 

Find out about the opportunities open to law students at Brighton, subscribe to our Law blog.

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Student views   

Rachel Braithwaite 

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I spent a year in Preston Park in Brighton working for a private practice law firm as a legal assistant... It seems to work out that people who do work placements get higher results in the final year.
Rachel Braithwaite, Law with Business LLB(Hons)

George Lyons 

"I graduated from Brighton with a first class honours degree (LLB) in Law with Business in 2008.

"Following my degree, I took the LPC at the College of Law and an LLM in Financial Law and the Regulation of Financial Markets at the London School of Economics (LSE). I joined Clifford Chance as a trainee solicitor in February 2012.

"I enjoyed studying a wide range of legal subjects while at Brighton. The law department has experienced academic lectures (many of whom are qualified solicitors or barristers, accomplished academics or both) who deliver comprehensive and challenging courses. The course was assessed in a variety of ways, from traditional coursework and examination to assessed mooting (mock legal arguments in court) and presentations. I felt well prepared for further academic study at the LSE.

"The requirement to produce written coursework on a regular basis greatly improved my ability to analyse legal problems and produce clear, logical and well-researched essays. The detailed feedback provided by the academic staff enabled me to further develop my writing skills which are vitally important in my role as a trainee solicitor.

"In an increasingly competitive graduate job market, having a first class degree from Brighton opened the door to interviews at a number of the UK’s top 20 law firms and offers of further study from leading universities around the world.

"More generally, Brighton is a fantastic city with a wide range of social and sporting events. I would certainly recommend it as a place to study!"

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