A Week in the Life of a Law Undergraduate

Jun 04, 2024

Written By Maudie Powell-Tuck

Describing a typical week in the life of a law undergraduate is like asking a single-jointed being to lick their elbow: nigh on impossible. Firstly, every week is unique in some way, thus typicality seldom occurs. Secondly, a typical week is dependent upon the lifestyle choices of the undergraduate. What follows, therefore, is an account of the constants that occur week in week out, based upon personal experience.

Sunday – footloose and library free

Any account of the life of a law undergraduate must start on a Sunday. It is well known that, having toiled for six long days, God pronounced Sunday to be His day of rest. Thus, it is only proper that a student respects the wishes of a higher power and forgets about the word “work” for a day.

As an added bonus, the library is rarely open on a Sunday either. Common activities include recovering from the Saturday night hangover; lounging in front of the television with housemates; or increasing one’s overdraft in the shops.

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Monday – last-minute seminar reading

Monday is perhaps one of the best days of a university week. With Sunday having usually been quiet, it is unlikely that rising on a Monday morning should prove too difficult. A normal Monday is spent in around three to four hours of lectures and an hour or two of supervision.

In between, expect to take to the library to polish off any work that remains to be finished for supervision or, more probably, to check your Facebook account for the evenings plans.

Monday evening is usually a big night out, so heading home early to eat, shower, and dress, ready to go to a friend’s for “pre-drinks” is vital. The evening will, no doubt, finish in sensational drama or chips and cheese and a stroll home to bed.

Tuesday – the undergraduate Monday

Tuesday is the working world’s Monday: a day when nobody wishes to get out of bed (usually due to last night’s antics) coupled with the realisation that there is still four days of lectures left and a fair amount of work that needs to be completed.

Wednesday – extracurriculars

Wednesday is a half day, as no lectures take place in the afternoon as the sports teams prepare to do battle with other universities. Options include participating, spectating or ignoring the fact that it is sport afternoon entirely and working in the unusually quiet library (expect to be mocked if this is your choice). Bloodied, bruised and battered, but rarely defeated, the sports teams typically embark on a quest of debauchery following their fixtures. Get caught up in the ensuing savagery at your peril.

Thursday – hangover homework

Rolling into Thursday morning lectures smelling like a brewery is fairly standard. Park yourself too close to a lecturer and expect to receive abuse for wearing the wrong scent – typically eau de stale alcohol.

After a coffee, banana and a slice of toast (the best combination to cure a hangover – tried and tested), it is off to the library for a hard day of toil. Keeping your head down and pushing on is the key to getting through the day.

Following the final class, the majority of students scurry off home to bed, or, if they are so inclined, to get ready for another night out.

With Friday in sight, Thursday lectures and supervisions tend to fly by. If it is the milkround season, the law undergraduate must attend presentations from firms and attempt to schmooze graduate recruitment in order to better their chances of landing a training contract (after a shower and a change of cologne).

Friday – preparation

Friday has a tendency to be somewhat of a non-entity, work, work and more work, followed by a night in front of the television and a catch up with the housemates. It’s a chance to recharge one’s batteries.

Saturday – work hard, play hard

Work depending, Saturday is either spent in the library preparing for the coming week’s supervisions or participating in sporting fixtures. The evening is similar in activity to a post Wednesday sport afternoon: a trip to the Guild of Students for some light refreshments, a few social beverages with friends, and a chance to embarrass oneself by wearing the most outrageous fancy dress outfit in the closet. Often, a somewhat poor rendition of Chesney Hawkes’s “I am the one and only” signals the end of the evening and indeed the week.

Whoever said the life of a law undergraduate was dull, most definitely made the wrong lifestyle choice. Party animal or library hermit: you decide.

Law Degree