Law and Language (French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Spanish) with Foundation Year
Birkbeck, University of London
UCAS Code: M112 | Bachelor of Law (with Honours) - LLB (Hons)
Birkbeck, University of London
UCAS Code: M112 | Bachelor of Law (with Honours) - LLB (Hons)
Entry requirements
Access to HE Diploma
Access to Higher Education Diploma with a Merit or Distinction in law, humanities or social science units.
UCAS Tariff
The UCAS tariff score is applicable to you if you have recently studied a qualification that has a UCAS tariff equivalence. UCAS provides a tariff calculator for you to work out what your qualification is worth within the UCAS tariff.
About this course
Our LLB in Law and Language is a specialist course that allows you to study towards a career in legal practice while developing proficiency in a language. In an ever-globalising world and workplace, this combination of legal skills and language proficiency gives you access to unique opportunities for work and further study.
Alongside the main law curriculum, comprising the seven foundations of legal knowledge and taught in the Birkbeck Law School, you will pursue study in the language of your choice in our School of Creative Arts, Culture and Communication. Starting at the level that suits you, you will be able to choose to study one of the following languages:
- French
- German
- Italian
- Japanese
- Korean
- Spanish.
Not only will you attain a good level of competence in your chosen language, you will also have a chance to learn about the culture of the language-speaking area, choosing from a range of modules covering fields such as literature, film, history, visual culture and philosophy. You will also have the chance to study a number of cross-cultural modules which will allow you to explore specific themes across a variety of language-speaking areas.
The law curriculum for this LLB Law and Language is taught by internationally renowned researchers and includes not only the foundations of legal knowledge, but specialist option modules from a broad range of topics.
This course satisfies the first stage of professional qualification laid down by the Bar Standards Board. It also provides a foundation for the Functioning Legal Knowledge tested on the Single Qualifying Exam (Part One) set by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.
**Foundation Year**
If you opt for the Foundation Year route, this will fully prepare you for undergraduate study. It is ideal if you are returning to study after a gap, or if you have not previously studied the relevant subjects, or if you didn't achieve the grades you need for a place on your chosen undergraduate degree.
**This course has an evening timetable with lectures, seminars and classes taking place in the evening. Some daytime and online teaching is available, depending on the modules you choose.**
**Highlights**
- Birkbeck is a leading international centre for world-class legal teaching, research and scholarship. You will be taught by field-leading academic staff, alongside experienced solicitors, barristers and judges from across the legal sector.
- Your language modules will be taught by specialists from a centre of teaching and research excellence that prides itself on research-led teaching in French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean and Spanish, making it an outstanding multidisciplinary department.
- You will have access to a huge range of careers support including Birkbeck's Careers Service, Birkbeck Talent and Birkbeck Futures. This comprehensive support links our students and recent graduates with top UK employers and offers you help with job applications, interviews and career planning.
- You will be able to take part in our Legal Practice Conversation series, in which lawyers and Birkbeck graduates discuss their work and offer advice to students looking to pursue a law career. Recent speakers have discussed the Pfizer/AstraZeneca takeover bid, international human rights, sports law, and litigation brought on behalf of veterans of the 1950s nuclear testing programme on Christmas Island.
**Careers and employability**
As well as gaining proficiency in a language, this degree provides you with transferable skills and knowledge of the English legal system that will be relevant within a diverse range of jobs.
Our law graduates follow successful careers in the following:
- barrister
- solicitor
- paralegal and legal assistant
- advocate
- policy researcher.
Modules
For information about course structure and the modules you will be studying, please visit Birkbeck’s online prospectus.
Assessment methods
Law modules are assessed, depending on the module, via independent research essays, problem scenario essays, seen and unseen exams, workbooks, group work, oral presentations, reflective journals and creative and critical-thinking exercises.
Language modules are assessed through a variety of exercises testing skills in writing, reading, speaking and listening, including short coursework assignments, in-class written tests and oral and listening comprehension tests.
Tuition fees
Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:
The Uni
Birkbeck, University of London
Birkbeck Law School
What students say
We've crunched the numbers to see if the overall teaching satisfaction score here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.
How do students rate their degree experience?
The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
Others in language and area studies
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
Law
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
After graduation
The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
Modern languages
What are graduates doing after six months?
This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.
Top job areas of graduates
This is a broad subject for a variety of European languages. No matter which you take, the general theme is that some graduates go to that country to work, often as English language teachers, some go into further study, often to train as teachers or translators, but most get jobs in the UK in education - most often as language tutors, unsurprisingly, or translators. Modern language grads can also be in demand in business roles where communication and language skills are particularly useful, such as marketing and PR, and in finance or law. But remember — whilst employers say they rate graduates who have graduates who have more than one language, you need to have them as part of a whole package of good skills.
Law
What are graduates doing after six months?
This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.
Top job areas of graduates
Law graduates tend to go into the legal industry, and they usually take similar routes. Jobs are competitive — often very competitive - but starting salaries are good and high fliers can earn serious money - starting on over £24k in London on average. Be aware though - some careers, especially as barristers, can take a while to get into, and the industry is changing as the Internet, automation and economic change all have an effect, If you want to qualify to practise law, you need to take a professional qualification — many law graduates then go on to law school. If you want to go into work, then a lot of law graduates take trainee or paralegal roles and some do leave the law altogether, often for jobs in management, finance and the police force. A small proportion of law graduates also move into another field for further study. Management, accountancy and teaching are all popular for these career changers, so if you do take a law degree and decide it’s not for you, there are options.
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
Others in language and area studies
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£25k
£23k
£37k
Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.
Law
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£28k
£31k
£31k
Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.
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Post-six month graduation stats:
This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.
It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.
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Graduate field commentary:
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The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.
While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?
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