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Law (Philosophy, Politics and Law Pathway)

Entry requirements


A level

A,B,B

Overall: ABB Applicants taking an A level science subject with the Science Practical Endorsement are required to pass the practical element. We do not include General Studies or Critical Thinking in our offers.

Access to HE Diploma

D:30,M:15

Overall: QAA recognised Access to Higher Education Diploma with 45 Level 3 credits overall including 30 at Distinction and 15 at Merit.

Extended Project

A

Applicants taking the Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) will receive our standard A level offer, plus an alternate offer of one A level grade lower, subject to achieving an A grade in the EPQ. The one grade reduction will not apply to any required subjects.

GCSE/National 4/National 5

GCSE English Language at Grade C(4) and Mathematics at Grade C (4) (or equivalent).

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme

33

Overall: 33 GCSE or Equivalent: English, HL4/SL4 (including MYP). Maths, HL4/SL4 (including MYP). Maths Studies, SL4.

Scottish Advanced Higher

A,B,B

Overall: ABB GCSE or Equivalent: English Language: Scottish National 5 - C Maths: Scottish National 5 - C

Scottish Higher

A,A,B,B,B

Overall: AABBB GCSE or Equivalent: English Language: Scottish National 5 - C Maths: Scottish National 5 - C

Overall: Pass overall with ABB from a combination of the Advanced Skills Challenge Certificate and two A levels. Applicants taking an A level science subject with the Science Practical Endorsement are required to pass the practical element. We do not include General Studies or Critical Thinking in our offers.

UCAS Tariff

128-152

We've calculated how many Ucas points you'll need for this course.

About this course


Course option

3years

Full-time | 2024

Subjects

Philosophy

Law

Politics

**Why choose this course**
Top lawyers not only know what the law is, but they understand why it is this way, what philosophical ideals and values it is based on, and how it can be made better.

If you are keen to get a solid legal education and dig deeper to better understand fundamental questions about why the law functions the way it does, then this is the course for you.

The heightened analytical skills that can be obtained on our LLB in Law (Philosophy, Politics and Law Pathway) are increasingly in demand by employers. As technology eliminates simplistic tasks, employers are progressively seeking law graduates who have complex problem-solving skills, can think abstractly, argue critically and find creative solutions to novel legal problems. This is what our course delivers.

Graduation from Surrey will stand you in good stead for accessing the postgraduate qualifications necessary to become a solicitor or a barrister. To best ensure this opportunity, we have partnered with the University of Law to facilitate access to the solicitors’ courses offered there.

We are ranked 4th for law in the National Student Survey 2022. We are ranked 13th in the UK and 64th in the world for law in the world by the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2023. We are ranked top ten in the UK for politics in The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2023.

Our award-winning Professional Training placements prepare students for roles in industry.

We were shortlisted for University of the Year in The Times/Sunday Times Good University Guide 2023.

**What you will study**
You’ll gain a strong understanding of the main areas of legal knowledge, including law as it regulates the functions of the state (public law and criminal law), regulates relations between private individuals (contract law and tort law), and regulates the ownership and control of land and other property (land law, and equity and trusts).

After your first year, you will immerse yourself in deeper questions about the operation and design of our legal system and the principles of legal change and reform. You will take optional modules on the philosophical, social and political dimensions of law, focusing on cutting-edge legal problems and developing your knowledge of the relation between law and society, and the values and political structures our legal system is based on.

You will learn how to evaluate the law, analyse its application to given situations and apply your legal understanding in a national or international context. We also provide a series of employability training seminars, digital lawyering, pro bono opportunities, and extracurricular activities focusing on client interviewing, negotiation and mooting.

Modules

To see the full range of modules for this course please visit our website – the link is under the Course contact details. You will also find full details of the programme, including programme structure, assessment methods, contact hours and Graduate prospects.

Academic year structure:
The academic year is divided into two semesters which are both 15 weeks long. Each semester consists of teaching, revision/directed learning and assessment periods.

The Philosophy, Politics and Law (PPL) Pathway explores the same compulsory modules as the LLB in Law, including Public, Tort, Crime, Contract, EU, Land, Equity & Trusts.

To complete the requirements of the PPL Pathway, you must complete a sufficient number of optional modules from the specified list of PPL modules (equal to at least 90 credits or six modules). Upon completion of this Pathway, you will receive a recognised LLB degree, but one that also signals your PPL specialism to prospective employers.

An indicative list of modules that count toward the minimum of 90 credits required for the PPL Pathway (subject to change) are:

Year 2:

• Law & Contemporary Social Issues (15 credits)
• Law & Economics (15 credits)
• Environmental Law (15 credits).

Year 3:

• Dissertation in a PPL topic (30 credits)
• Commercial Restitution (15 credits)
• Jurisprudence I (15 credits)
• Legal Obligation and Punishment (15 credits)
• Medical Law I (15 credits)
• Medical Law II (15 credits)
• Core Issues in Private Law (15 credits)
• Tax Law (15 credits).

Expected progression through the PPL Pathway:
In Year 1, you will take eight compulsory 15 credit modules just as other LLB students.

In Year 2, you will take three core compulsory modules and one optional module in each semester. The options available include several modules on the PPL Pathway.

You may then decide to gain work experience through our award-winning Professional Training placement programme, or else progress straight to final year.

In your final year, you will take four optional modules each semester, which include a number of options from the list of PPL approved modules.

Extra funding

The University of Surrey offers a range of scholarships and bursaries to support our students, please visit https://www.surrey.ac.uk/fees-and-funding/scholarships-and-bursaries for more details.

The Uni


Course location:

Stag Hill

Department:

FASS - School of Law

Read full university profile

What students say


We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.

91%
Law
87%
Politics

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.

Philosophy

Sorry, no information to show

This is usually because there were too few respondents in the data we receive to be able to provide results about the subject at this university.


Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

C
A*
B

Law

Teaching and learning

84%
Staff make the subject interesting
93%
Staff are good at explaining things
83%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
82%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

85%
Library resources
92%
IT resources
87%
Course specific equipment and facilities
71%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

85%
UK students
15%
International students
32%
Male students
68%
Female students
69%
2:1 or above
12%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

B
B
B

Politics

Teaching and learning

87%
Staff make the subject interesting
91%
Staff are good at explaining things
91%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
87%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

87%
Library resources
95%
IT resources
93%
Course specific equipment and facilities
91%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

83%
UK students
17%
International students
47%
Male students
53%
Female students
75%
2:1 or above
3%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

B
C
B

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.

Sorry, no information to show

This is usually because there were too few respondents in the data we receive to be able to provide results about the subject at this university.

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.

£21,000
high
Average annual salary
99%
high
Employed or in further education
69%
high
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

41%
Legal associate professionals
11%
Legal professionals
10%
Sales, marketing and related associate professionals

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.

Politics

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.

£27,000
high
Average annual salary
94%
low
Employed or in further education
66%
med
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

19%
Sales, marketing and related associate professionals
8%
Business, research and administrative professionals
8%
Other elementary services occupations

The numbers of people taking politics degrees fell sharply last year and we'll keep an eye on this one - it can't really be because of graduates getting poor outcomes as politics grads do about as well as graduates on average. Most politics or international relations graduates don't actually go into politics - although many do, as activists, fundraisers and researchers. Jobs in local and central government are also important. Other popular jobs include marketing and PR, youth and community work, finance roles, HR and academic research (you usually need a postgraduate degree to get into research). Because so many graduates get jobs in the civil service, a lot of graduates find themselves in London after graduating. Politics is a very popular postgraduate subject, and so about one in five politics graduates go on to take another course - usually a one-year Masters - after they finish their degrees.

What about your long term prospects?

Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.

Sorry, no information to show

This is usually because there were too few respondents in the data we receive to be able to provide results about the subject at this university.

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.

£20k

£20k

£26k

£26k

£34k

£34k

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.

Politics

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£23k

£23k

£29k

£29k

£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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This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).

This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.

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You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.

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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:

The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show

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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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