What is a law conversion course?
Find out what to expect when studying a law conversion course such as a GDL or a PGDL, including masters options, funding, and costs.
A law conversion course, such as a Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL) or Postgraduate Diploma in Law (PGDL), is a postgraduate qualification aimed at non-law graduates or career changes who are looking to pursue a career as a solicitor or barrister.
The course builds the crucial legal knowledge that would be held by those who have studied a law degree (LLB). Graduates of a GDL or PGDL may then go on to study for the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE) or the Barrister Training Course (BTC). It also builds the key skills you’ll need to secure Qualifying Work Experience (QWE) or pupillage.
What does a law conversion course entail?
During your law conversion course, you will develop your knowledge and understanding of fundamental legal principles, while also building professional skills to help you prepare for life in practice. The legal areas you will cover are:
Company Law
Contract Law
Criminal Law
Land Law
Public Law
Tort Law
Trusts Law
Can I study a master’s (LLM) law conversion course?
You can upgrade your law conversion course to a master’s (LLM) if you wish to do so. If eligible, this enables you to apply for postgraduate funding to help support with paying your fees.
The LLM upgrade will differ based on your chosen provider. For example, our LLM covers the same legal principles as the diploma, with the master’s element comprising a professional project which is carried out through independent research. The output of the project could be a report, presentation, training session, article, or similar, and you’ll be required to submit a 3,000-word essay that reflects on your learning and development throughout the completion of the project.
How long does a law conversion course take?
The length of a law conversion course can vary depending on the provider and whether you wish to study on a full or part-time basis. At BPP, our Law Conversion Course (PGDL) takes 8 months full-time, or 20 months part-time. The Law Conversion Course (Master’s) takes 12 months full-time or 24 months part-time.
How much does a law conversion course cost?
The price of a GDL or PGDL varies from provider to provider and may change based on whether you study online or in-centre. Our Law Conversion Course (PGDL) starts from £9,824 for the academic year 2022/23, with the master’s starting from £13,323.
Do I need a law conversion course for the SQE?
Under the new SQE route to qualification, the SRA has stipulated that you do not need a law degree or conversion course to sit the assessments. However, we would strongly advise against going into these rigorous examinations without appropriate preparation. The assessments (both SQE1 and SQE2) require a level of legal knowledge that only law graduates, conversion course graduates, or existing professionals with a breadth of legal work experience would hold.
If you’d still like to study an LLM, it’s worth noting that some providers now offer an LLM by combining a law conversion course with SQE1 preparation, allowing non-law graduates a pathway into becoming a solicitor via the SQE route to qualification.
Find out more about our Law Conversion Courses here.
