Law - LLB (Hons)

with a Language (French)

Course structure

Duration: 3 years full-time, 6 years part-time

The course structure below gives a flavour of the modules that will be available to you and provides details of the content of this programme. This listing is based on the current curriculum and may change year to year in response to new curriculum developments and innovation.  

Please note that the first-year modules listed for this degree are compulsory. Contact us for more detail about the exact composition of this programme of study.

Teaching and assessment

Kent Law School emphasises research-led teaching which means that the modules taught are at the leading edge of new legal and policy developments. Kent Law School is renowned nationally for research quality, being ‘world-leading’ or ‘internationally excellent’. All of our research-active staff teach, so you are taught by influential thinkers who are at the forefront of their field. We also have one of the best student-to-staff ratios in the country, which allows small, weekly seminar-group teaching in all of our core modules, where you are actively encouraged to take part.

Most modules are assessed by end-of-year examinations and continuous assessment, the ratio varying from module to module, with Kent encouraging and supporting the development of research and written skills. Some modules include an optional research-based dissertation that counts for 45% or, in some cases, 100% of the final mark. 

Assessment can also incorporate assessment through oral presentation and argument, often in the style of legal practice (such as mooting), and client-based work and reflection through our Law Clinic.

Contact hours

For a student studying full time, each academic year of the programme will comprise 1200 learning hours which include both direct contact hours and private study hours.  The precise breakdown of hours will be subject dependent and will vary according to modules.  Please refer to the individual module details under Course Structure.

Methods of assessment will vary according to subject specialism and individual modules.  Please refer to the individual module details under Course Structure.

Programme aims

The programme aims to:

• meet the needs of those contemplating a career in the professions of law, especially where proficiency in French may be required, of those motivated primarily by an intellectual interest in law and legal issues, and of those who wish to combine their intellectual or professional interest in law with proficiency in French
• be compatible with widening participation in higher education by offering a wide variety of entry routes
• provide a sound knowledge and systematic understanding of the principal institutions and procedures of the English legal system
• provide a sound grounding in the major concepts and principles of English law, the law of the European Union, and the European Convention on Human Rights
• develop a critical awareness of law in its historical, socio-economic and political contexts, and to introduce students to a range of different theoretical approaches to the study of law
• offer a range of modules covering the foundations of legal knowledge, as defined by the Solicitors Regulation Authority and Bar Standards Board, which will enable students who successfully complete them to obtain a qualifying law degree
• offer a range of options to enable students to study some selected areas of law in depth, including French law
• offer students the opportunity to study French language in depth with the object of promoting European integration
• provide a curriculum supported by scholarship and a research culture that requires students to engage with aspects of work at the frontiers of knowledge
• offer the opportunity to acquire direct experience of legal practice and to critically reflect on it through participation in the Kent Law Clinic
• enable students to manage their own learning and to carry out independent research, including research into areas of law they have not previously studied
• develop general critical, analytical and problem-solving skills which can be applied in a wide range of different legal and non-legal settings
• enable students to develop skills relevant to their vocational and personal development.

Learning outcomes

Knowledge and understanding

You gain knowledge and understanding of:

• principal features of the English legal system, including its institutions, procedures and sources of law
• principal features of the law of the European Union and the European Convention on Human Rights
• the concepts, principles and rules of a substantial range of English legal subjects, including an in-depth knowledge of some areas of law, and, depending on options, an in-depth knowledge of the law of the European Union, the European Convention on Human Rights, international law and comparative law
• the relationship between law and the historical, socio-economic and political contexts in which it operates
• French language to a high level
• a range of theoretical and critical perspectives that can be applied to the study of law.

Intellectual skills

You gain intellectual skills in how to:

• recognise and rank items and issues in terms of their relevance and importance
• effectively apply knowledge to analyse complex issues in both English and French
• collect and synthesise information from a variety of English and French sources
• formulate and sustain a complex argument in English and French, supporting it with appropriate evidence
• recognise potential alternative solutions to particular problems and make a reasoned choice between them
• independently acquire knowledge and understanding in areas, both legal and non-legal, not previously studied
• demonstrate an independence of mind and an ability to critically challenge received understandings and conclusions
• reflect constructively on your own learning processes.

Subject-specific skills

You gain subject-specific skills in:

• recognising the legal issues arising in factual situations of limited and great complexity
• identifying and applying case and statute law
• providing informed and reasoned opinion on possible legal actions and their likelihood of success
• identifying legal and related issues that require research
• locating and using primary and secondary legal, and other relevant, sources
• conducting both guided and independent legal research using a range of resources
• critically evaluating an area of law both doctrinally and in terms of its socio-economic and other consequences
• functioning effectively in both English and French languages and in English law

Transferable skills

You develop transferable skills in the following areas:

• communication in both English and French – how to communicate effectively, in speech and writing, in relation to legal matters and generally; engage constructively and effectively in arguments and discussions of complex matters; how to use communication and IT for the retrieval and presentation of information, including statistical or numerical data; how to read complex legal and non-legal materials and summarise them accurately; employing correct legal terminology and correct methods of citation and referencing for legal and other academic materials
• information technology – how to produce written documents; undertake online research; process information using databases
• working with others – how to define and review the work of others; work co-operatively on group tasks; collaborate with others and contribute to the achievement of common goals
• improving own learning – how to explore personal strengths and weaknesses; review your working environment; develop specialist learning skills (for example in foreign languages); develop autonomy in learning; demonstrate initiative and manage your own time
• problem solving – how to identify and define problems; explore alternative solutions and discriminate between them.

Careers

Graduate destinations

The University has an excellent employment record, with Kent Law School graduates commanding some of the highest starting salaries in the UK. Law graduates can go into a variety of careers, including:

• solicitor or barrister in a private practice
• company lawyer
• legal work within government at local and national level, or within international institutions such as the EU
• legal work within the charity and NGO sector
• non-legal careers, such as banking, finance and management.

Help finding a job

Kent Law School has an active careers programme – leading law firms and prominent members of the legal profession visit the University to meet our students. We also work with employers to create work placement opportunities for our students.

The Law School's dedicated Employability and Careers Development Officer can give you advice on how to:

• apply for jobs
• write a good CV
• perform well in interviews.

You also have access to the University's friendly Careers and Employability Service.

Work experience

Our award-winning Kent Law Clinic gives local people access to free legal advice and representation. As a student, this gives you the chance to work on real cases under the guidance of qualified lawyers. You take on clients and sometimes have the chance to act as the client’s advocate in court or at a legal tribunal.

Career-enhancing skills

Our approach to law helps you to develop:

• a detailed knowledge of the law
• sophisticated legal research and writing skills
• practical skills in mediation, negotiation and interviewing clients.

You gain intellectual, analytical and practical skills that are vital to lawyers but also useful in many other professions. These include the ability to:

• think critically
• communicate your ideas and opinions
• manage your time effectively
• work independently or as part of a team.

You can also gain extra skills by signing up for one of our Kent Extra activities, such as learning a language or volunteering.

Professional recognition

Our degree programmes contain the foundations of legal knowledge required by the Bar Standards Board to satisfy the academic component of professional training for intending barristers. For entrants in 2021 who wish to qualify as a solicitor, our programmes can lead to the award of a Qualifying Law Degree, validated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. They also provide a strong foundation for students who wish to take the Solicitors Qualifying Examinations (SQE).

Our critical approach to law and legal practice enables students to develop creative intellectual and transferable skills which prepare them for contemporary legal practice – in the UK and worldwide, and for successful careers in many fields.