Law at Cambridge
Although our course (referred to elsewhere as LLB) is primarily concerned with English law, there are opportunities to study other legal systems, including civil (Roman) law, EU law and international law. You can also study theoretical and sociological aspects of law such as jurisprudence or parts of criminology.
Facilities and resources
The present Faculty teaching staff has expertise across nearly every aspect of English law and its history, as well as European Union law, international law, civil law, legal philosophy and criminology.
The Faculty building houses lecture theatres, seminar rooms and a moot court, as well as the comprehensive Squire Law Library, offering more than 180,000 volumes and excellent computing facilities.
The Faculty and University Law Society organise numerous activities including formal meetings, informal barristers’ and solicitors’ evenings, social events, lectures and moots (debates about hypothetical legal cases).
Additional course costs
There are no compulsory additional course costs for Law. However, most students prefer to purchase their own copy of a relevant statute book (c£17 each) for around 10 of their total 15 papers across the whole course (depending on papers chosen). If you have any queries about resources/materials, please contact the Faculty.
Erasmus+ Scheme
The Faculty has exchange agreements with universities in France, the Netherlands, Germany and Spain. About 20 undergraduates can spend their third year abroad studying the law of one of these European countries. See the Faculty website for details about the Erasmus+ Scheme.
Changing course
To be able to change course, you need the agreement of your College that any change is in your educational interests, and you must have the necessary background in the subject to which you wish to change – in some cases you may be required to undertake some catch-up work or take up the new course from the start/an earlier year. If you think you may wish to change course, we encourage you to contact a College admissions office for advice. You should also consider if/how changing course may affect any financial support arrangements.
If you wish to combine law with another subject it's best to discuss this with your preferred College before submitting your application.
Students who wish to combine law with another subject usually study law after that subject rather than before. It's desirable to study law for two years wherever possible since it's not possible to pass all seven 'foundation' subjects at Cambridge in less than two years.
If your first subject has a two-year Part I, you need to consider the implications – especially the financial implications – of four years as an undergraduate.
After Cambridge
Currently, a Law degree alone isn’t a qualification for practice but ‘qualifying law graduates’ (who’ve passed the seven ‘foundation’ subjects) may proceed directly to vocational courses that lead to professional examinations. The foundation subjects are Constitutional Law, Criminal Law, Law of Tort, Law of Contract, Land Law, Law of Trusts (Equity), and Law of the EU. Please note that professional bodies are reviewing the requirements for qualifying as a solicitor or barrister.
Our graduates go on to qualify as barristers and solicitors, and find employment within the legal departments of the Civil Service, local government, industrial and commercial firms, banks, and international organisations. Others stay in academia or seek careers in administration, management, politics or finance.
