LLM/PGDip Bar Training Course

Content

The optional modules listed are those that are most likely to be available, but they may be subject to change. 

PG Diploma Bar Training Course

You'll study: 

• Criminal Litigation
• Civil Litigation
• Civil Advocacy 
• Drafting, Opinion Writing and Legal Research
• Criminal Advocacy
• Conferencing 
• Professional Ethics.

Completion of the Full Award, LLM Bar Training Course

The course offers the option for students to attain the remaining 60 credits to enable them to graduate with an LLM Bar Training Course:

You'll study

• A 30 credit Project (Bar Professional Practice) together with any two of the 15 credit taught optional modules listed below, totalling 60 credits.

Optional modules:

• Clinical Negligence
• Commercial Law
• Criminal Law 
• Employment Law
• Family Law
• Refugee and Asylum Law  
• International Trade.

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'll inform you. 

Learning and Teaching

Highly experienced and supportive tutors, drawn from legal practice and the academic side of law, will help you develop your knowledge quickly.

Most of the course is taught face to face through small group sessions, providing substantial contact and opportunities for discussion, with your tutors and peers.

Weekly skills sessions,  in small groups (no more than six students in Conference Skills and Advocacy sessions), will support you to develop the skills you will need to practise law and support clients effectively. You will take part in workshops, extended practice activities and role-play activities, and receive regular written and oral feedback on your skills. The sessions are also recorded to allow for subsequent reflection and analysis.

Studying the course means that Criminal Litigation and Civil Litigation are taught alongside the other subjects, and feed into them, to embed your learning at the deepest level.

For example, after studying sentencing in Criminal Litigation, you will be expected to apply that knowledge during a conference with a client awaiting sentence (Conference Skills), and to represent that client during their sentencing hearing (Advocacy).

Developing your skills under the supervision of experienced teachers, you will be supported to progress during the course to the level expected of a pupil barrister.

Guest lectures; mock trials with professional actors; and extensive online resources, such as recorded lectures, podcasts, blogs and demos, will further embed your learning and skills.

If you study towards the LLM, you will undertake further taught modules on specialist subjects (such as working with refugees), and complete a dissertation or project, to work towards your master's award.

See our glossary of teaching and learning terms.

Different awards

On successful completion of the UWE Bristol BTC, you'll graduate with either a PG Diploma or LLM award.

Students undertaking the LLM course will receive their transcript of results in the seven compulsory modules required for Call while they are still undertaking their option, project or dissertation modules.

If you do not successfully complete the whole course, you would still potentially be eligible for:

• a PG Certificate in Legal Knowledge, if you pass Criminal Litigation and Civil Litigation
• a PG Certificate in Legal Skills, if you pass Conferencing, Advocacy, Opinion Writing (to include Legal Research), Drafting and Ethics.

The certificates would evidence your attainment of particular competencies and would be of value to you in pursuing another legal or non-legal career.

Study time

PGDip: the course runs for nine months, from September to May, with up to 14 hours of face-to-face tutorial group teaching a week, over three to four days. You will be required to spend approximately 30 hours a week on independent study, on top of your taught contact hours.

LLM: The taught part of the course is delivered over one year full time.

You'll study further modules to complete the master's award. Taught option modules can be undertaken immediately after completing the compulsory modules, and account for up to 30 credits, with up to 20 hours of contact time per module a week. Alongside this, you'll undertake project or dissertation modules which are predominantly self-study. These modules are to be completed within the same academic year.  

Assessment

Civil Litigation and Criminal Litigation assessments are set by the Central Examination Board, on behalf of the Bar Standards Board, and examined using multiple choice questions.

Professional Ethics is set by UWE Bristol as an unseen assessment in controlled conditions.

All other assessments are also set locally and are either completely seen or partially seen, in that you will receive information in advance to research the relevant areas of law.

In most assessments, you will be graded as either Outstanding, Very Competent, Competent, or Not Yet Competent.

We use mock assessments with feedback to help you monitor and improve your performance, and prepare effectively. Our tutors have extensive experience of the centralised assessments, so are well placed to support you.

For added flexibility, there is some choice about when you take your assessments, although we structure the teaching to allow you to complete them at the earliest opportunity.

See our full glossary of assessment terms.