Hull Law School | llb degree | llb course

The law department at Hull is a very well established, extremely well organised department of the university. Its lecturers have an excellent track record and students inform us that they are very responsive to the requirements of their students. Whilst the majority of them being researchers, they are still very much lecture like teachers- rarity unfortunately in many institutions.

The law department has a had a rocky upward progress through the league tables, not yet reaching the top ten, except for the guardian in fact. It’s reputation is ever increasing as the school gets bigger, as do the funds. With a current 320 points to gain entry into the law school, this could soon be changing, however with the odd exception still being allowed in with less ucas points than required.

Future developments include the extension of the business school, of which the law department is a part of. Lecture rooms often take place in the business school theatres due the sheer size of intake for the law school, these rooms being immaculate with great acoustics. However, once options have been chosen, lecture rooms are dramatically changed to smaller, more intimate rooms.

The law library is a vast one, dominating the 2nd floor of the hugely imposing library at the University (it can be seen for miles). It has a vast selection of books, although as with all libraries, struggles a little during exam time and coursework deadlines. Within the library there are also computers (complete with flat screens!) working at a reasonably quick speed on the university network.

Staff numbers are fairly good in terms of seminars, often 8-10 in a seminar, however in some lectures there can be a full house, consisting of 300 students. Lectures are most days, and seminars tend to occur every other week. In terms of hours per week, lectures and seminars could add up to a possible 14 hours. Add that to personal study time and you’re looking at a 9-5 Mon-Friday.

Hull has specialities in commercial law, with several lecturers having written the recommended handbooks for the course. And of course, with level of support, most tutors are more than happy to see you at their office. If you aren’t able to catch them there, they will always reply with a speedy response via e-mail, often within 24 hours.

In terms of location, whilst the University of Hull sits in immaculate grounds, it is very much out of the City, being a good two miles away from the City Centre. There are several shops around, as well as a vast amount of bars along the infamous Beverley road, with the new St Stephen’s Development being a good half an hour bus ride from the university on a busy day.

The university has a multi-million pound, award winning nightclub known as ‘Asylum’ with various mini-bars in the Union. Cinemas are all based in town, as are the nightclubs and the ‘mainstream’ bars. So if you’re looking for huge sports grounds, a well spaced out campus and are happy to pay for taxi’s after a night out on the town, then the universities location is prime.

The 2008 course fee for LLB Law is £3145, with international students being charged £8500. As I’m sure you’re aware, law is one of those subjects where you need a book for everything. Book costs can be generally quite high, with some of the core books coming in at £30+. If you are very keen to buy all the recommended purchases, you’re probably looking at £200-300 for a year on books.

With accommodation in mind, The Lawns, Needler Hall and Thwaite Hall are the haven for first year students. These halls are set out a few miles away from the university, even further away from town. However they too are set in lovely grounds.

Being a campus university set on the edge of a bustling city, Hull provides the best of both worlds. Students are able to relax amongst the lovely grounds of the campus and enjoy the vibrancy of Hull city centre very easily.

The on-campus nightclub, Asylum, is an excellent addition to the university, providing all that you could expect and want from a student union nightclub. However, if you’re after a bit of variety, the city offers more than enough to do to keep you busy in between your studies.

Now the most important thing about university is the career prospects it offers you. Hull often has visits from law firms, however has no direct links with the LPC, unlike surrounding universities.

The university careers centre as a whole offers all that you would expect from a well functioning facility, providing CV workshops, interview practice sessions and applications advice.