Professional course Professional Skills Course

Content

Compulsory core modules

The PSC course is divided into three compulsory core modules, the content of which is set by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA):

• Advocacy and Communication Skills (three days) - provides you with the knowledge, understanding and skills to exercise the rights of audience available on admission in the civil and criminal courts.
   
• Financial and Business Skills (three days) - develops your awareness of professional conduct relating to financial and accounting matters, including money laundering and mortgage fraud issues. This module also provides you with the knowledge of investment business in accordance with the SRA rules made under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000.
   
• Client Care and Professional Standards (equiv. two days) - enables you to identify and understand the significance of client care, ethical and professional conduct issues, helping you to respond appropriately within the training context. You'll be equipped to understand and apply methods of effective working, business awareness and the importance of personal and professional development.

Elective modules

In addition to the compulsory core modules, you will complete four days of elective modules to suit your areas of interest, which will allow you to expand on one or more of the subject areas from the compulsory modules, so you can specialise in particular areas of practice.

Each elective module lasts one day and, although there is no formal appraisal, you will be expected to actively participate and full attendance is mandatory. You will choose four electives in total, which you will normally study after the compulsory core modules in the second year of training.

People who have completed the CILEX route to qualification may be exempt from the electives but you will need to check this with the SRA. You can also apply to the SRA to exempt you from certain core modules, for example, on the basis of your past experience in practice.

List of elective modules and further details

The University continually enhances our offer by responding to feedback from our students and other stakeholders, ensuring the curriculum is kept up to date and our graduates are equipped with the knowledge and skills they need for the real world. This may result in changes to the course. If changes to your course are approved we will inform you.

Learning and Teaching

Our PSC is now predominantly delivered online, with one element of the Financial & Business Skills course hosted Face-to-Face on-campus at Frenchay.

The course is highly interactive, with plenty of classroom discussion, group work and opportunities to use your skills and reflect on your practice. As well as industry talks, you will have the chance to prepare and present a trial in a courtroom environment. This exercise is recorded for future analysis.

You will need to attend 12 days of training in total to complete the full course and 8 days for the core-only option. You can choose to do the modules in whichever order you like, although it is advisable to complete the compulsory core modules first before going on to your electives. 

The course is run by experienced lawyers and teachers, drawn from the Bristol Institute of Legal Practice, Bristol Business School and legal practice.

For more details see our glossary of teaching and learning terms.

Study time

The different options

You can choose to study the PSC course in one of three ways:

Day release

Day release courses take place throughout the year online, however, the Financial & Business Skills examinations take place in-person at UWE Frenchay Campus in Bristol.

Fast-track

We run a fast-track course in the Summer at UWE Bristol. If you are exempt from a training contract, you may prefer to take the fast-track option. Fast-track modules are bookable throughout the year however, and spaces are available on a first-come-first-served basis so book early in the year to avoid disappointment.

In-house

We also run bespoke PSC training in-house for a number of firms. If you think this may be of interest, please contact the PSC Course Director.

Please note that, if you have already completed some core and electives modules at other institutions, you can complete any remaining number of your modules at UWE Bristol.

Assessment

The only formal assessment on the course occurs in the Financial and Business Skills module, where you will need to sit a 90-minute unseen 'open book' examination on day three. For the other modules, there is no formal assessment but you must attend the full training days and will be expected to participate fully and will receive feedback on your performance during each module. You may also need to do some preparatory work ahead of the session and in some cases, follow-up activities to demonstrate your understanding of the module.

The results of your Financial and Business Skills exam and your attendance on all other modules will only be confirmed to you after our exam board. These occur four times per year and not always immediately after your modules. You will need to have fully completed the requirements of the PSC before applying for admission as a solicitor.

For more details, see our full glossary of assessment terms.