Skip to content

Toggle navigation

HomeUndergraduateCoursesLawWhy study Law?WHY STUDY LAW?

Studying law offers the opportunity develop a range of skills and explore many aspects of human life. It
gives you the chance to sharpen your mind, strengthen your understanding and deepen your experience
across the full range of humanities and social sciences. You acquire both breadth of understanding and
depth in the areas that interest you most.

Law should therefore appeal to those who want to develop both abstract thinking and practical
problem-solving. It’s easy to see why you don’t have to become a lawyer just because you’ve done a law
degree; many choose other paths. A law degree can give you the skills to be a successful lawyer but also
a successful producer, politician, manager, journalist, diplomat or police officer; a law degree equips you
for almost any profession that requires intellectual strength combined with a practical approach to the
world.

So, why bother doing a (demanding) three-year law degree when you could do a (less intense) degree
for three years and then do an (intense) one-year law conversion course, to end up seeking the same
jobs as those who did a law degree? When couched in these terms, the answer may seem a no-brainer:
do the less intense course. We disagree. A law degree may come at the price of fewer lie-ins and mid-
morning coffees but most law students combine an active social life and extra-curricular activities with
the demands of the course. Most importantly, we think they come out much the better for it. Here are
just six advantages of reading law at university:

Law homeLaw course detailWhy study law?Law at TrinityFind out moreLaw ResidentialRobert Walker
Essay PrizePolishing your applicationSample interview video1. LAW STUDENTS ACQUIRE BOTH BREADTH
AND DEPTH OF LEGAL KNOWLEDGE

Those reading law typically cover 14 subjects in their degree, whereas students taking a law conversion
course normally study only seven core subjects. Students who have an undergraduate law degree have
the opportunity both to pursue specialised areas of particular interest beyond the core and also to
appreciate the bigger picture: how the law fits together and how the law relates to other subjects, such
as politics, economics, history, criminology and philosophy. We are often asked what makes a successful
lawyer. We offer a variety of answers: the ones you would expect — intelligence, determination, drive,
hard work; and one you might not — imagination. Creative arguments are derived from thinking
laterally around a problem, and the ability to do that is often related to breadth of legal knowledge. A
particular line of reasoning in a case involving commercial contracts might be inspired by something you
learned in a labour law seminar 20 years earlier.

“In my view, pupils who have done an undergraduate Law degree start with a very considerable
advantage over those who have tried to cram in everything in less than a year. A Law degree allows a
student to gain a broader and more mature understanding of the subject.” – Jonathan Hirst QC, former
Chairman of the Bar of England and Wales

2. LAW IS AS COMPLEX AND MULTI-FACETED AS THE SCOPE OF HUMAN ENDEAVOUR, INTELLECT AND
EMOTION

Yes, the conversion course lets you glimpse the delights of the window-climbing burglar dressed only in
his socks and the snail in a ginger beer bottle. However, if you only did a conversion course, you would
miss out on learning what Bernard Manning did at a Roundtable dinner and what the supermarket chain
Safeways did to the pony-tail wearing Mr Smith. The law reaches into every aspect of human life and a
three-year degree plainly offers much a greater opportunity to sample the rich variety of problems and
possibilities with which the law engages.

3. LAW IS MORE THAN CRAMMING CASES AND STATUTES

Acquiring the skills of thinking like a lawyer comes with practice – lots of practice. Children take years to
acquire the skills of communicating, learning from their parents and others not just the vocabulary but
also the grammar, intonation, subtleties and structures of the language. The same is true for learning
law. Law is the language society uses to define relationships, to explain rights and obligations and to
regulate interaction between individuals and society as a whole. Robots can be taught the basics but law
students develop an affinity for the subject by being exposed to different writers and arguments, and by
exploring the social phenomena and other intellectual disciplines that are implicated in legal problems.
In a law degree, you learn to read and interpret the primary sources, put them in context, evaluate
them, and make up your own mind. Developing these critical skills and this contextual understanding
takes time – more time, we suggest, than is realistically available in a one-year conversion course.

4. A LAW DEGREE TRAINS STUDENTS TO TALK ABOUT LAW SIMPLY AND EFFECTIVELY, WITHOUT THE
STEREOTYPES OF LEGAL LANGUAGE
Just as law involves distinctive ways of thinking, it also involves a distinctive vocabulary – a new
language. Students learn this language alongside their peers, who are also struggling with its forms and
subtleties. They also learn from their teachers, who often use simple vocabulary to explain difficult
concepts, preparing law students them to advise clients who will usually not be legally trained. The same
goes for writing about law. Writing verbose and unnecessarily complex opinions or other documents
might make lawyers feel good about themselves but are of little use to clients; statutes and contracts
drafted in such language can create enormous problems. Again, acquiring these skills takes time and
exposure to a wide range of speakers and writers – for which a three-year law degree plainly offers
much greater scope than a conversion course.

5. LAW STUDENTS ACQUIRE SKILLS, NOT JUST KNOWLEDGE

Many law students participate, for example, in mooting competitions, where they develop skills of oral
advocacy, or pro bono societies, where they can give legal advice and support to real people with real
problems. Such skills prepare students not only for careers as lawyers but also for diverse careers in
policy-related fields, such as government, international organisations, the voluntary sector and business.

6. COST AND TIME

Three years studying law followed by one year of vocational training is cheaper, and leads you into the
profession more quickly, than studying another subject for three years, then taking a one-year
conversion course and then the further year’s vocational training. These considerations are practical but
very real.

[photo: … \Dropbox\Trinity Law Shared Folder\3. Admissions Strengthening Programs\Law

Webpages\2017\Photos\Joshua\IMG_2922 (1×1).jpg]

During my A-level history studies, I became fascinated by how the law reflects societal development. I
enjoyed both history and English literature at A level and had considered studying these subjects at
university. However, when reading ‘What about Law?’, I became interested in the issues that arise in the
course of an undergraduate law degree, and the type of analysis involved. Ultimately, this led me to
study law rather than any other subject. – Danielle
What excites me most about the study and practice of law is the marriage of theoretical concept and
practical application. Engaging with the messiness and complexity of legal doctrines and rules, whilst
trying to come up with a workable solution, is intellectually challenging, and rewarding. – Joshua

OTHER VIEWS

Consistently with what we say above about studying law, we encourage you, of course, to listen to
competing views and to make up your own mind. If you have time, you might be interested to watch a
debate held in Cambridge in 2013 on the topic, “Those who wish to practise law should not study law at
university”. The speakers were The Rt Hon. Lord Sumption, a Justice of the Supreme Court of the United
Kingdom who read history and became an academic before becoming a leading barrister and judge, and
Professor Graham Virgo, Professor of English Private Law and currently Pro-Vice Chancellor for
Education in the University.

ABOUTAboutLibraryContact UsConnect with usData Protection NoticesCollege Publication

SchemeAcademic VisitorsVacanciesAbout the WebsiteWebsite Comment FormMyTrin

UNDERGRADUATEUndergraduate PagesMore information about applyingOpen

DaysCoursesFinanceAdmissions FAQsOverseas QualificationsUniversity Funding InformationLiving at
TrinityEssay Prizes and CompetitionsInformation for Offer-holders

POSTGRADUATEPostgraduate PagesGraduate AdmissionsHow to Apply: GraduatesGraduate Funding

and FinanceTrinity Graduate Student Funding AwardsCollege Tutorial SystemGraduate Life at
TrinityPostgraduate Studies Enquiries

ALUMNIAlumni HomeGiving to TrinityAlumni EventsAlumni PublicationsAlumni AssociationsAlumni

MerchandiseFamous Trinity AlumniMore InformationPast Alumni EventsAlumni Profiles

Enquiries:01223 338 400Trinity College Cambridge

CB2 1TQ, U.K.

Registered Charity No. 1137604

This site uses cookies: Find out more.