As a law student, in your second and third year you will be given the opportunity to study some courses of your choice. Considering that every course in your first year is compulsory, making that decision may be difficult. In my opinion, four things could potentially make that choice easier for you. Read on to find out what they are!

Discussing with other students

It may be a good idea to contact friends and/or other students who have already taken a course that you are interested in. Of course, experiences may vary – some students may find certain courses more intellectually stimulating and interesting, whilst others may not. For this reason, it may be a good idea to ask for the opinions of more than one person. Additionally, syllabuses can change in between years. With the introduction of new legislation or with the publication of particularly important cases, some areas of law that you may not initially be drawn to could, therefore, become very appealing.

Contacting your academic mentor or course conveners

Academic mentors are a great point of reference, who can provide very insightful recommendations on your decision when choosing between courses. Therefore, you may find it useful to book a meeting with them to discuss this decision. Equally, if you would like further information than what’s provided in the options booklet and online, don’t be afraid to drop a course convener an email.

Thinking about your future career

If you already have an idea of what kind of career you would like to go into, it may be useful to tailor your course choices accordingly. For example, if you are interested in going into commercial law, you may find it interesting to pick a course such as LL202 (Commercial Contracts) or LL253 (The Law of Corporate Insolvency).  Keep in mind that, although your course choice does not necessarily determine what career you will have in the future, thinking about your career aspirations may help guide your decisions.

Thinking about what you enjoy

Although all courses are compulsory in your first year, your interest and performance in these may help inform your choices in your second and third year. This does not limit itself to continuing with an advanced option of a course offered in the first year. For example, based on your first year, you may realize that you prefer courses with assessments that lend themselves to including more essay rather than problem questions.

So to recap, the four things that I think can help you when choosing your second and third year modules are: discussing potential options with other students; contacting your academic mentor and/or course conveners for more information; thinking about your future career, and (arguably most importantly) thinking about what you enjoy. Hope this helps!