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LLM SQE

Do you want to become a solicitor? Our LLM SQE is designed to equip you with the knowledge, skills and understanding of the procedures and practice needed to begin further training within the legal profession.

Overview

DMU's LLM SQE is the successor of our long-running Legal Practice Course (LPC). This course is designed to prepare you for the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE) – the new, centralised assessment which anyone wanting to qualify as a solicitor in England and Wales must take. It is part of a new, four-stage route to becoming a solicitor, introduced in 2021. SQE will eventually replace the Legal Practice Course (LPC) and become the only way of qualifying as a solicitor in England and Wales.

The LLM SQE provides you with the materials which will enable you to prepare for SQE 1 and develops your wider employability skills which are assessed as part of SQE 2. The programme will enable you to apply theoretical legal knowledge previously gained during a law degree or Graduate Diploma in Law. During the course, you will have an opportunity to learn key legal professional skills including practical legal research, drafting, advocacy, legal writing and interviewing.

The SQE assessments are taken externally at a central provider appointed by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.

Key features

  • You will be taught by legal experts who have a wealth of experience. This includes barristers, solicitors, professors and practitioners from the international legal arena.
  • Gain practical experience by getting involved with our pro bono activities. 
  • You can expand your knowledge of the law in dedicated learning spaces, including access to a crown court – a site of trials since the Middle Ages, a training courtroom and a simulated Judge's Chambers suite. In addition, the university's Hugh Aston Building has a dedicated law library exclusively for law students, allowing you to practice scenario-based learning.
  • You will develop and apply values, skills, knowledge and behaviours that will enable them to contribute to the development of a just, peaceful and sustainable world.
  • Enjoy access to BARBRI SQE Prep software, adaptive and intuitive software which will provide you with bespoke, exam-focused workbooks and study materials to assist with SQE 1.
  • Benefit from Education 2030, where a simplified ‘block learning’ timetable means you will study one subject at a time and have more time to engage with your learning, receive faster feedback and enjoy a better study-life balance.

Scholarships

DMU offers a range of undergraduate and postgraduate scholarships and bursaries to help you realise your academic ambitions.

International student scholarships

Find out about available international scholarships or visit our fees and funding page for more information.

 

  • UK
  • EU/International

Programme code: M25090

Start date: September 2023

Duration: One year full-time

Fees and funding: 
2023/24 tuition fees for UK students: £11,200

Find out more about course fees and available funding.

How to apply

Submit a study-related enquiry

 

Programme code: M25090

Start date: September 2023

Duration: One year full-time

Fees and funding: 
2023/24 tuition fees for international students: £17,200

Find out more about course fees and available funding.

How to apply

Submit a study-related enquiry

 

Entry criteria

Applicants will normally hold a undergraduate law degree at 2:2 or above (or equivalent).


English language requirements

If English is not your first language an IELTS score of 6.5 overall with 5.5 in each band (or equivalent) when you start the course is essential.

English Language tuition, delivered by our British Council-accredited Centre for English Language Learning, is available both before and throughout the course if you need it.

Structure and assessment

Education 2030

We want to ensure you have the best learning experience possible and a supportive and nurturing learning community. That’s why we’re introducing a new block model for delivering the majority of our courses, known as Education 2030. This means a more simplified timetable where you will study one subject at a time instead of several at once. You will have more time to engage with your learning and get to know the teaching team and course mates. You will receive faster feedback through more regular assessment, and have a better study-life balance to enjoy other important aspects of university life.

Read more about Education 2030
 

Course modules

Teaching and assessment

Teaching contact hours

 

  • Block 1: Business Law and Financial Management in Practice
  • Block 2: Property Law and the Administration of Estates in Practice
  • Block 3: Dispute Resolution in Practice
  • Block 4: Criminal Litigation in Practice
  • Block 5: Dissertation in Legal Practice

See detailed module descriptions


Note: All modules are indicative and based on the current academic session. Course information is correct at the time of publication and is subject to review. Exact modules may, therefore, vary for your intake in order to keep content current. If there are changes to your course we will, where reasonable, take steps to inform you as appropriate.

Teaching and assessment

You will be taught through a combination of lectures and guest lectures, seminars and tutorials, PC Labs and Trading Room Labs and asynchronous support.

Assessment is through assignments, essays, exams, and projects. Some assessment opportunities will have additional support via groupwork, such as simulations and case studies; and students have access to a personal tutor for mentoring and signposting for additional needs.

Teaching contact hours

This is a full-time course and in total you should be prepared to devote approximately 2 hours of lectures, 6 hours of workshop and 2 hours of asynchronous activity each week.

Facilities and features

 
Placements
Placements
Placements
 

Hugh Aston Building

You will have access to our purpose-built Hugh Aston Building, equipped with lecture theatres and classrooms, break-out spaces for group work, quiet study zones for individual work and IT labs. Wherever possible, students will be given home access to specialist software.

You’ll also have access to the building’s new £5.5 million extension called The Yard, which provides more than 22,000 square metres of extra space. This is designed to facilitate your learning experience with large and airy breakout spaces, a new Student Advice Centre, and a balcony on the top floor. The Yard also features more comfortable classrooms and self-study spaces, allowing you to carry out independent study as well as group work.

Library services

On campus, the main Kimberlin Library offers a space where you can work, study and access a vast range of print materials, with computer stations, laptops, plasma screens and assistive technology also available. 

As well as providing a physical space in which to work, we offer online tools to support your studies, and our extensive online collection of resources accessible from our Library website, e-books, specialised databases and electronic journals and films which can be remotely accessed from anywhere you choose. 

We will support you to confidently use a huge range of learning technologies, including Blackboard, Collaborate Ultra, DMU Replay, MS Teams, Turnitin and more. Alongside this, you can access LinkedIn Learning and learn how to use Microsoft 365, and study support software such as mind mapping and note-taking through our new Digital Student Skills Hub. 

The library staff offer additional support to students, including help with academic writing, research strategies, literature searching, reference management and assistive technology. There is also a ‘Just Ask’ service for help and advice, live LibChat, online workshops, tutorials and drop-ins available from our Learning Services, and weekly library live chat sessions that give you the chance to ask the library teams for help.

Learning zones

Our Learning Zones and The Greenhouse also provide space for group or individual work and study.

There are 1,600 study places across all library locations, more than 700 computer stations, laptops to borrow, free wi-fi and desktop power outlets.

You can also book rooms with plasma screens, laptops and DVD facilities for group work and presentations, secure an individual study room with adjustable lighting or make use of our assistive technology.

Opportunities and careers

Find the people who will open doors for you

DMU's award-winning careers service provides guaranteed work experience opportunities DMU Works
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DMU Global

This is our innovative international experience programme which aims to enrich your studies and expand your cultural horizons – helping you to become a global graduate, equipped to meet the needs of employers across the world.

Through DMU Global, we offer a wide range of opportunities including on-campus and UK activities, overseas study, internships, faculty-led field trips and volunteering, as well as Erasmus+ and international exchanges.

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Graduate careers

An LLM SQE will open up a wide range of career opportunities as you develop a broad base of skills that are in great demand with global employers.

Take your next steps

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