Law with Quantitative Research - LLB (Hons)

This is an archived course for 2021 entry
2023 courses

Law is a stimulating degree that sharpens your thinking and your powers of persuasion while giving you extensive legal knowledge. This prestigious qualification opens doors, not only into the legal profession but to many other areas, such as politics, business, the civil service and the NGO sector. On this programme you also develop valuable quantitative research skills which are in high demand by employers.

Overview

At Kent, we have one of the top law schools in the UK. Kent Law School is renowned for its world-leading research and its distinctive ‘critical approach’ that places law within the wider context of society. This creates an exciting environment in which to gain your Qualifying Law Degree.

Adding a quantitative research minor to your programme opens your mind to new ways of thinking. Starting with no assumed statistical knowledge, you graduate with an advanced package of practical quantitative skills alongside your subject-specific knowledge.

Our degree programme

You study the detail of the law, as well as its history. You analyse judgments and legal developments while taking into account the political, ethical and social dimensions of the law. This ‘critical approach’ enhances what is already a fascinating subject. It helps you to fully understand the law and there are many chances to discuss and debate its role in society.

Teaching is via lectures, small group seminars and case studies. Our popular mooting programme, hosted in a dedicated space within the £5m Wigoder Law Building, gives you the chance to develop advocacy skills in a simulated courtroom setting before a bench comprised of local judges, practising barristers, solicitors and lecturers.

Kent Law School has a supportive environment and your lecturers have office hours where they provide guidance on a one-to-one basis. We also provide:

  • the Skills Hub offering tailored guidance, five days a week in term time
  • a law librarian to guide you in the use of online and printed resources.

In addition to your Law modules, you study compulsory modules focusing on Quantitative Research. Statistics and data analysis are becoming more and more important in a huge range of fields, including policing and criminal justice, business and finance, and the media. Quantitative methods are also important in the academic study of law, offering a toolkit to compare legal systems across time and space, analyse policy and explore the relationship between the law and wider society.

Study resources

Kent Law Clinic is based within our new, purpose-built building. It is ideal for developing your practical skills and has a replica courtroom for mooting.

Our academic resources are extensive. You have access to a wide range of materials, including:

  • collections of legislation and case law in UK, European and international law
  • Lawlinks, our award-winning gateway to online legal resources
  • major legal databases that are used on a daily basis in the legal profession
  • audio recordings of your lectures.

The Q-Step centre boasts a team of world-class quantitative researchers,
and innovative technology-based teaching methods. Our Placement Officer provides one-to-one support in arranging your placement if you choose this option in Stage 3. Please see www.kent.ac.uk/qstep for more information.

Extra activities

There are plenty of activities related to your studies, including:

  • Kent Student Law Society for aspiring solicitors
  • Kent Temple Law Society for those intending to go to the Bar
  • Kent Critical Law Society
  • Kent Canadian Law Society
  • Nigerian Law Society
  • European Law Students’ Association (ELSA) Kent.

Kent Student Law Society and Kent Temple Law Society arrange events that are attended by members of the legal profession, many of them Kent alumni. They include QCs, judges, barristers, solicitors and members of the Bar Council and Law Society.

In previous years, events have included the:

  • Kent Law Fair
  • Kent Law Ball
  • Temple Dinner.

Kent Critical Law Society has also put on events where students, academics and practitioners can debate topical – and often controversial – legal issues.

Professional network

We have approximately 100 legal professionals registered on our Professional Mentoring Scheme, and leading law firms visit the campus to attend the annual Kent Law Fair, offer mock interviews, or run workshops.

We regularly hold careers talks given by practising lawyers (many of whom are Kent alumni) and host guest lectures given by some of the leading legal figures of our time.

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Accreditation

Recognised by the Solicitors Regulation Authority as a Qualifying Law Degree.

Entry requirements

Please also see our general entry requirements.

  • medal-empty

    A level

    AAB-ABB

  • medal-empty Access to HE Diploma

    The University will not necessarily make conditional offers to all Access candidates but will continue to assess them on an individual basis. 

    If we make you an offer, you will need to obtain/pass the overall Access to Higher Education Diploma and may also be required to obtain a proportion of the total level 3 credits and/or credits in particular subjects at merit grade or above.

  • medal-empty BTEC Nationals

    The University will consider applicants holding BTEC National Diploma and Extended National Diploma Qualifications (QCF; NQF; OCR) on a case-by-case basis. Please contact us for further advice on your individual circumstances.

    A typical offer would be to achieve Distinction, Distinction, Distinction.

  • medal-empty International Baccalaureate

    34 points overall and 17 points at HL

  • medal-empty International Foundation Programme

    Pass all components of the University of Kent International Foundation Programme with a 60% overall average including 60% in Academic Skills Development and 60% in the Law module (plus 60% in LZ013 Maths and Statistics if you do not hold GCSE Maths at 6/B or equivalent).

The Law School welcomes and accepts a range of domestic and international qualifications for entry (including but not limited to BTEC qualifications and Access to Higher Education programmes).  We welcome enquires about the required level in individual qualifications.

All applicants are also expected to meet the University’s general entry requirements.

International students should visit our International Student website for further specific information. International fee-paying students who require a Student visa cannot study part-time due to visa restrictions.

English Language Requirements

Please see our English language entry requirements web page.

If you need to improve your English language standard as a condition of your offer, you can attend one of our pre-sessional courses in English for Academic Purposes before starting your degree programme. You attend these courses before starting your degree programme.

Course structure

Duration: 3 years full-time (standard route), 2 years full-time (Senior Status route)

The LLB Law with Quantitative Research methods is carefully designed to take you from a basic level, with no assumed prior knowledge of quantitative methods, to a complete package of practical quantitative skills, all while gaining a thorough grounding in law.

Your quantitative research studies are completed alongside a complete grounding in law, with scope to specialise with advanced optional law modules in Stages 2 and 3.

The course structure below gives examples of the kinds of module you can expect to take during the programme. This listing is based on the current curriculum and may change year to year in response to new curriculum developments and innovation.

Converting to a Quantitative Research Minor after Stage 1

Students studying other undergraduate programmes in Law may convert to LLB Law with Quantitative Research after Stage 1 (subject to completion of the compulsory first year Law modules and consultation with the Director of Studies for Law or their nominee).

To catch up on the quantitative research skills learned in the first year of a quantitative research minor, converting students must attend and pass the Quant GROUP Summer School, in the summer after Stage 1, in order to be eligible to convert.

Stage 1

Compulsory modules currently include

The module will introduce students to critical legal techniques grounded in critical legal and social theory. Throughout the course, concepts are introduced through socio-legal and critical investigation of selected case studies - such as new pieces of legislation, emerging political campaigns and prominent litigation - ensuring that the course maintains a focus on 'law in action'. Particular attention will be paid to developments in foreign jurisdictions and in the international arena. Accordingly, case studies will alter from year to year, and draw heavily on research projects on-going in the Law School. The course has a heavy focus on primary legal materials and core critical texts, but will also draw on film, museum artefacts, art and literature as appropriate.

Find out more about LAWS3130

Section 1 Introduction to Obligations

a) The nature of the common law and its development.

b) The idea of precedent and legal reasoning.

c) The distinction between public law and private law.

d) The main divisions of obligations.

e) Drafting case notes

Section 2 Introduction to the law of contract

a) The historical development of contract law and its functions in the modern world.

b) A special area of study in contract e.g. formation and modification of contracts.

Section 3 Introduction to tort

a) The historical development of tort. An overview of different types of tort. The centrality of the tort of negligence and its role in the modern world.

b) A special study in tort – e.g. trespass to the person.

Section 4 Conclusion

A summary; critical approaches to the study of contract and tort; guidance to legal problem solving.

Find out more about LAWS3150

Following on from 'Introduction to Contract and Tort', 'Introduction to Property Law' continues the study of private law by introducing students to property law. 'Property' is something we tend to presume we know about, and rarely examine as an idea or practice closely. Most often we use it to connote an object or 'thing', and presume that it has something to do with ‘ownership’ of that object; we use expressions such as, 'This is mine,' and often do not examine the detail of what that really means.

This module begins to unpack and examine the ideas and practices of property more closely, looking in particular at land to ask questions such as: what do we mean by ‘ownership’? What happens when a number of competing ‘ownership claims’ in one object exist? What are the limits of 'ownership'? Does 'ownership' entail social obligation?

When preparing for the module it will be useful to think about (and collect material on) current debates over contested ownership (or use) of property and resources, especially in relation to land.

Find out more about LAWS3160

Part A: English Legal System

This module provides an overview of the English Legal System, including the following indicative topics:

1. An introduction to Parliament and the legislative process

2. The court structure and the doctrine of precedent

3. An introduction to case law, including how to identify and the importance of ratio decidendi and obiter dicta

Part B: Introduction to Legal Skills

The module also gives students an introduction to the basic legal skills that they will develop further in their other modules throughout the degree. The focus here is on specific exercises to support exploration and use of the library resources that are available, both in paper copy and electronically through the legal databases, and on understanding practices of legal citation.

Find out more about LAWS3270

TERM 1

• Constitutionalism: history, theories, principles and contemporary significance

• Models of Government at national, local and supra-national levels

TERM 2

• Human Rights – history and contemporary significance and deployment

• The scope of governmental authority and its limits

• Judicial review and other forms of citizen redress

Find out more about LAWS5880

The module aims to develop the understanding of the policy making process and the role of the different actors within the wider context of the tools and limits of the ability of the UK national government to influence behaviour. It has a particular focus on processes of social control as they relate to social policy. Learning will be centred around two main tasks:

i. Understanding the links between social policy and the regulation of behaviour e.g. the uses and outcomes of incentives, sanctions and educative communication to promote behavioural changes sought by policy makers.

ii. Taking topical examples of policy issues, contextualised analysis of the policy making process, its 'stages', key actors and institutions will be used to explore how and why particular policy options emerge and evolve. A central concern will be to help students understand the nature of support and opposition for particular policy proposals and the implications for developing alternative policies.

Find out more about SAPO3000

This module is designed to help students understand and critique the numbers and research they encounter in their everyday lives. The first half of the course focuses on teaching the knowledge and skills need to critically evaluate factual quantitative claims. Each lecture uses example quantitative claims, largely drawn from the news media, to teach a particular quantitative skill. For example, highlighting a statistic based on a biased sample to teach students the principles of sampling. The seminars build on the content of the lectures and aim to teach students the practical, computer-based skills needed to evaluate quantitative claims.

The second half of the module is based around students conducting their own research, and also brings in qualitative skills element. Students apply the critical and quantitative skills they have learned to conducting their own mixed-methods project.

Find out more about SOCI3410

Stage 2

Stage 3

Compulsory modules currently include

This module introduces the student to the jurisprudence of equity and trusts. Building on knowledge and understanding developed in LAWS3160/LAWS5316 Introduction to Property Law and LAWS5990 Land Law, but also LAWS6500 Law of Contract and private law more generally, the module examines equity's contributions to private law and jurisprudence. The module is designed to challenge the somewhat dull image of this area of law and to encourage a critical and imaginative understanding of the subject. Departing from conventional approaches, this module does not study equity merely in regards to its role as originator of the trust. Equity is instead acknowledged to be what it really is a vital component of the English legal system, a distinct legal tradition possessing its own principles and method of legal reasoning, and an original and continuing source of legal development in the sphere of remedies. The law of equity and trusts is contextualised within a historical and jurisprudential inquiry, providing a wider range of possible interpretations of its development and application. What then becomes central to the module's approach is the complex interrelation of law with ethical, political, economic and jurisprudential considerations, and of that between legal outcomes, pragmatic concerns and policy objectives.

Find out more about LAWS5980

The focus of the module is private property in English land: title by registration; squatting; owner-occupation; leases; covenants and land development. It builds on the Foundations of Property module to develop an in-depth understanding of English land law, its conception of property and its politics and effects. And it gives experience in how to advise clients on land law problems – and on how to avoid problems for clients.

Find out more about LAWS5990

In contrast to LAWS5080 (LW508) Criminal Law (at Level 5), this Level 6 module will consider each of the following discrete, but identical, topics to a much greater depth making use of, and improving, skills developed in earlier years of their degree programme:

• Introduction to the concept of crime, the structure of criminal justice and the general principles of liability

• Harm and the boundaries of criminal law

• Considering cases – how to effectively summarise cases and write a case note

• Murder

• Defences to murder

• General defences

• Manslaughter

• Non-fatal offences against the person

• Sexual offences

• Inchoate offences

• Complicity

• Property-related offences

Find out more about LAWS6010

This module aims to develop standard research skills into a quantitative research skillset that will enable the student to work with data, from working with different types of datasets/variables to analysing this data and presenting it in oral and written form.

Learning will be orientated towards:

• Learning ways to work with and manipulate datasets to make them ready for statistical analysis (i.e. to create tidy data)

• Critically understanding the limitations of simple (OLS) regression, with particular emphasis on endogeneity/confounding and causal heterogeneity;

• Learning a number of advanced methods for investigating the social world through quantitative research (e.g. associative and causal methods). For each method, students will first consider the rationale for the method (its strengths and limitations), and then use the method in hands-on statistical analysis sessions using appropriate statistical software (e.g. R);

• Learning how to communicate and present data and quantitative analysis (e.g. with various types of data visualisations)

Find out more about SOCI5012

This module will involve students undertaking quantitative research in a real world setting, while simultaneously reflecting on the process of undertaking real-life quantitative research (through a log), culminating in an assessed report on their work. This real world setting can be of the form of an individual research project, working in a support role with an academic or within a placement organisation. Students will receive support by a supervisor and receive lectures covering such topics as:

- Turning an organisation's ideas into a viable research project;

- Good practice in undertaking quantitative research projects (e.g. data security, data management, replicability);

- Ethics in applied quantitative research (certainty/uncertainty, power, and 'usefulness');

- Reflecting on research practice (linked to the assessments below).

Find out more about SOCI7480

Fees

The 2021/22 annual tuition fees for this programme are:

  • Home full-time £9,250
  • EU full-time £13,500
  • International full-time £18,000

For details of when and how to pay fees and charges, please see our Student Finance Guide.

For students continuing on this programme, fees will increase year on year by no more than RPI + 3% in each academic year of study except where regulated.* 

Your fee status

The University will assess your fee status as part of the application process. If you are uncertain about your fee status you may wish to seek advice from UKCISA before applying.

Additional costs

General additional costs

Find out more about accommodation and living costs, plus general additional costs that you may pay when studying at Kent.

Funding

We have a range of subject-specific awards and scholarships for academic, sporting and musical achievement.

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University funding

Kent offers generous financial support schemes to assist eligible undergraduate students during their studies. See our funding page for more details. 

Government funding

You may be eligible for government finance to help pay for the costs of studying. See the Government's student finance website.

Scholarships

General scholarships

Scholarships are available for excellence in academic performance, sport and music and are awarded on merit. For further information on the range of awards available and to make an application see our scholarships website.

The Kent Scholarship for Academic Excellence

At Kent we recognise, encourage and reward excellence. We have created the Kent Scholarship for Academic Excellence. 

The scholarship will be awarded to any applicant who achieves a minimum of A*AA over three A levels, or the equivalent qualifications (including BTEC and IB) as specified on our scholarships pages.

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 Law 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.

For the Quantitative Research modules, in addition to learning through lectures, seminars, workshops, project supervision, and statistics classes, you have opportunities for hands-on research in the ‘field’ through placements and field trips. Most modules are assessed by examination and coursework in equal measure.

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

This programme aims to:

  • attract and meet the needs of both those contemplating a career in the legal professions and those motivated primarily by an intellectual interest in law and legal issues
  • 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 areas of law in depth
  • provide teaching which is informed by current research and scholarship and which 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 University 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 that can be applied in a wide range of different legal and non-legal settings
  • provide opportunities for the development of personal, communication, research and other key skills appropriate for graduate employment both in the legal professions and other fields
  • provide a pioneering educational opportunity within the UK context combined with student engagement in a range of disciplines, enabling students to progress into high-level careers and related postgraduate opportunities
  • provide students with the statistical and analytical tools to independently and successfully conduct advanced quantitative research
  • help students make persuasive arguments using quantitative research, and to critically assess the arguments made by others within legal and non-legal settings
  • help students link theoretical knowledge with empirical enquiry, so that they understand how to conduct and critique social research in the real world.  

Learning outcomes

Knowledge and understanding

You gain knowledge and understanding of:

  • the principal features of the English legal system, including its institutions, procedures and sources of law
  • 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, international law and comparative law
  • the relationship between law and the historical, socio-economic and political contexts in which it operates
  • a range of theoretical and critical perspectives that can be applied to the study of law
  • a cross-disciplinary approach to qualitative and particularly advanced quantitative reasoning and the application of these methods to the analysis of complex societal problems
  • the principal sources of social sciences information and data relevant to law and socio-legal studies.

Intellectual skills

You develop the intellectual skills to:

  • effectively apply knowledge to analyse complex issues
  • recognise and rank items and issues in terms of their relevance and importance
  • collect and synthesise information from a variety of sources
  • formulate and sustain a complex argument, 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 learning processes
  • appropriately use quantitative analytical methods – including advanced methods – in handling, analysing and presenting statistical data across relevant disciplines.

Subject-specific skills

You gain the subject-specific skills to:

  • recognise the legal issues arising in a complex factual situation
  • identify and apply the case and statute law relevant to it
  • provide an informed and reasoned opinion on the possible legal actions arising from it, and their likelihood of success
  • identify the legal and related issues that require to be researched
  • effectively locate and use primary and secondary legal and other relevant sources
  • conduct independent legal research using a range of resources, both paper and electronic
  • critically evaluate an area of law both doctrinally and in terms of its socio-economic and other consequences
  • handle and interpret quantitative evidence in differing intellectual contexts
  • construct arguments within law and socio-legal studies using quantitative empirical evidence.

Transferable skills

Graduates of this programme will be able to:

  • use the English language, both orally and in writing in relation to legal matters and generally, with care, accuracy and effectiveness
  • engage constructively and effectively in arguments and discussions of complex matters
  • give a clear and coherent presentation on a topic using appropriate supporting materials
  • read complex legal and non-legal materials and summarise them accurately
  • employ correct legal terminology and correct methods of citation and referencing for legal and other academic materials
  • produce work in appropriate formats
  • work collaboratively in groups to achieve defined tasks, to respond to different points of view and to negotiate outcomes
  • present and evaluate information in a numerical or statistical form
  • word-process their work and use a range of electronic databases and other information sources
  • make appropriate use of analytical methods – including advanced methods – in handling, analysing and presenting statistical data in diverse real-world settings
  • use IT and software to word-process, store, retrieve and analyse quantitative data and conduct various forms of computer-based analysis.

Independent rankings

Law at Kent scored 93% overall and was ranked 9th for research intensity in The Complete University Guide 2021.

Law at Kent was ranked 13th overall and 8th for research quality in The Times Good University Guide 2021.

Careers

Graduate destinations

Law graduates can go into a variety of careers. Possible career paths include:

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

The quantitative skills gained in the LLB Law with Quantitative Research programme help set you apart from the crowd as a multi-skilled graduate able to analyse, interpret and explain quantitative data. These attributes are invaluable in the field of law; the rise in the availability and use of data means that quantitative skills are also increasingly in demand in a range of other fields, including business, finance, government, the civil service, journalism and the media.

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.

One of the particular strengths of this programme is the opportunity to complete a quantitative work placement as part of your degree. Workplace experience is highly valued by employers, and the placements offered involve applying quantitative analysis for business and organisations across a range of sectors, giving you the opportunity to add concrete workplace achievements to your CV.

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.

On this programme you also gain and develop advanced quantitative research skills through modules that offer specialist training in cutting-edge techniques, as well as training in how to understand, explain and critique data in diverse real-world settings.

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 2020 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 may wish to take the Solicitors Qualifying Examinations (SQE) in the future.
 
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.

Apply for Law with Quantitative Research - LLB (Hons)

This course page is for the 2021/22 academic year. Please visit the current online prospectus for a list of undergraduate courses we offer.

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