Curriculum Information

Document Version

QAA Benchmarks

Educational Aim

Learning Outcomes

Course Structure

Level 7 Modules

Teaching and Assessment

Learning and Teaching Methods

Employer Engagement

Visiting Speakers

There is an established guest lecture series in the Law School. These sessions will appear on the student timetables, as is current practice for the undergraduate students, and can be delivered on campus or online.

As a School, we have been associated with the Global Governance/Tomorrow Matters events and students have been invited to post-talk events which allows them to make links with political and legal local and national context and their curriculum.

Students at Blackburn University Centre are invited to join remotely, and all speaker opportunities are made available to them.

Volunteering

Students are provided with opportunities to volunteer throughout course. Regular announcements are posted on the course organisation site and students are invited to sign up. Examples include volunteering within LAC, StreetLaw project and Cardiff Lawyers Care Homelessness Clinic.

Fieldwork

Not applicable.

Fieldtrips

Trips have included a trip to the Supreme Court for a Mooting Competition and Cardiff Crown Court. We hope to have opportunities to do more in the future.

Work Placements

We advertise work placement opportunities through course organisation sites and students are encouraged to apply. Examples include Civil Service job opportunities in Wales?and Hugh James internships.

Work-based Learning

There is no compulsory work-based learning module on this course.

Sandwich Years

No.

Employer Forums

We make available through the course organisation sites information relating to opportunities within the local and national legal sector including National Pupillage Fairs, Lincoln’s Inn Open Days, Grays Inn Scholarship Day, the annual Legal Wales Conference with networking opportunities and free online LawWorks training sessions on cv writing, applying for training contracts.

Means of Assessment

Research Proposal

Essay

Presentation

Student Choice

Report

Annotated Bibliograph

TCA Online

Classroom Test

Case Study

Presentation of Academic Poster

Portfolio

Dissertation

Learning Support

Induction

All students will be given a full induction to the course in their first week, enabling them to adjust to university life, get to know the teaching team, meet their peers, plan their studies, and understand how the University works. This is complemented by the First Experience University induction programme. The induction will include a full explanation of the course handbook, a tour of Blackboard and its resources, and team-building activities to help foster a sense of cohort and course identity among new and existing students.

Induction activities will extend into the first weeks of term where appropriate like the library tour and meet the librarian/career advisor talks.

Induction for returning students (on the part time course) will be held in the form of a half-day session during induction week and will serve as an introduction to the curriculum, teaching teams, assessment diary and skills development.? Induction activities will also extend into the first few weeks of term like sessions delivered by the study skills team and library refreshers.

Personal Academic Coach1

No Personal Academic Coach (PAC) for postgraduate courses.? Course Leader will provide support and signpost students to support within the University.

Learner Analytics

Learner analytics will be used by module leaders and the course leader to identify students who may not be engaging on the course. The course leader will review the information and contact the student about individual modules or engagement across the course. Whether or not the issues relate to a single module or the course, the course leader will advise the student about the best course of action. In most cases, this will be to contact module leaders for academic support and the Advice Zone to discuss applications for extenuating circumstances and advice on appropriate support services.

Office hours

There will be course leader office hours made available per week.? In addition, each member of the course teaching team will have at least one scheduled office hour per teaching week on campus or online. These office hours will be drop-in sessions for which students will not need to book.

Students will also be able to book an appointment to meet with members of the course team, as well as using online tools like the discussion forums on Blackboard.

Tutorials

Tutorials will be scheduled for some modules at Treforest. They will be used to discuss feedback on assessments or project- and portfolio-based coursework in progress.

Seminars

Seminars will be the bedrock of learning and teaching on this course. In seminars, students will be given the opportunity to discuss subjects and skills in depth. They may sometimes be asked to take the lead in running seminars. Students will be expected to prepare for the seminars by completing the reading and tasks set in advance of the classes.

Formative Assessment

Formative assessment will be scheduled for all modules. It may take the form of coursework plans or partial drafts on which the module team make comments before the final version is completed. Activities and tasks set in advance of seminars may also be classed as formative assessment; feedback on these will be given during seminar discussions.

Progress meetings

Students will attend an individual progress meeting once per block to discuss academic progress and any issues that they have.? These meetings will also enable students to ask questions and/or discuss future options and we will signpost the students to appropriate sources of information.

Research Supervision

Students will have individual and group supervision sessions during their dissertation process.? The two research modules: Advanced Legal Skills and Methods and Research Methodologies for Law will prepare students for the dissertation.? Students will have 18 hours of project supervision during the period of their dissertation to support their progress towards completing the research.

Online Resources

Students will be able to access course materials, like the course handbook, course timetable, assessment diary, marking criteria, staff-student liaison meeting minutes and copies of course-level announcements, through the course organisation site on Blackboard.

At a modular level, students will be able to access learning and teaching materials and tools via the Blackboard Virtual Learning Environment. These will include the module programme, lesson plans, TalisList, recordings of lectures and seminars, module-specific resources, tools for producing and submitting coursework (like Turnitin), staff contact details, discussion boards, and copies of modular-level announcements.

Most items for learning and teaching will be made available by the Library (through FindIt) or academic online resources. Students will also have access to the Student Development and Study Skills Service and USW Careers to help develop their skills.

Students will be able to access online resources provided by the University through their UniLife dashboards. The course and module leaders will be able to monitor engagement on the course via the Learning Analytics tool.

Advice Zone

Advice Zones are the first point of contact for advice and information regarding university life. Advice Assistants offer confidential, impartial guidance and advice on a range of issues including extenuating circumstances. Advice Assistants are also able to answer and advise on queries, questions or concerns regarding booking appointments with specialist teams such as Counselling, Disability and Dyslexia, Money Advice and Progression Advice.

Disability

The Disability Service provides information, advice and guidance to and co-ordinates support for USW students who have disabilities, including physical, sensory, mental health or unseen disabilities, specific learning difficulties (e.g.,?dyslexia) and autism.?A confidential service where students can discuss their individual requirements. DDS can advise on what support is available and help students apply for it.

The Disability Service also has a key role in ensuring the University meets its commitment to providing an inclusive environment for disabled students. See?our?Policies and Equality Scheme.

IT/Library

The course team consists of a Law librarian, who provides excellent support to module leaders and students.

José López Blanco is the Faculty Librarian for Law, Criminology, Humanities, Public Services, Sociology, Social Policy and Youth Work. He has responsibility for liaising with academic staff to support the learning, teaching and research activity of the Law Department with the help and expertise of other members of the Library Services team. He also supports students via group sessions and individual appointments.

José is a chartered librarian and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. He is currently very involved in the British and Irish Association of Law Librarians (BIALL) through his work on the BIALL PR & Promotions Committee. He has recently completed the BIALL Legal Reference Materials course and continues to develop his knowledge of legal information through webinars and self-directed reading.

Students are introduced to the law librarian during induction and signposted to them through course announcements, videos and guest lectures throughout the year.

Module leaders work closely with the law librarian to provide ‘themed’ displays in some modules which align with delivery of certain topics like race and gender.? Students are signposted to the librarian as a resource and research students in particular are required to book 1:1s with the law librarian.

The Law Collection at Treforest is maintained in a separate sequence as per the requirements contained within the Society of Legal Scholars’ ‘Statement of Standards for University Law Library Provision’ and contains materials on the law of England and Wales and the European Union, there are also some overseas materials. There are, amongst other items, reference books, textbooks, journals, main works with supplements, loose-leaf publications, indexes and citators, practitioners’ works, procedural manuals, encyclopaedias and digests, as well as case reports and legislation.? There is also considerable information available online via the Library’s FINDit Databases page through services such as LawTrove, Heinonline, Lawtel UK, LexisNexis and Westlaw UK.? The Law collection in print and online form is accessible to all University of South Wales students.

Students receive a library induction and workshop from the librarian to help them find information to support their studies. Ongoing help and guidance to use library services is available from the librarian and from staff at the Library Desk, in person, via telephone, e-mail, or instant message chat service and via the many guides available on our web pages.

Course Exit Points

Progression Route

MPhil

PhD MBA (Master of Business Administration)

DBA (Doctor of Business Administration)

Entry Requirements

Admission to the course is typically through the following qualifications:

A minimum 2:2 Honours degree in any discipline, or a relevant professional qualification such as the Institute of Legal Executives and others that include some element of law.

For applicants who do not possess formal qualifications, relevant professional experience may be taken into account via the Accreditation of Prior Learning (APL)/Accreditation of Prior Experiential Learning (APEL) mechanism (University regulations will apply).

The course welcomes international applicants and requires an English level of IELTS 6.0 with a minimum of 5.5 in each component or equivalent.

Please note that whilst this course does not require a DBS Check for entry, some professions will not consider candidates who have certain types of criminal convictions.? Therefore, if you have a criminal conviction and you are considering a particular career path we would recommend that you check with the relevant professional body or refer to their recruitment policy to make sure that your conviction will not disadvantage you.

Inclusive Curriculum Statement

The University of South Wales operates a policy of inclusive learning, teaching and assessment to ensure that all students have an equal opportunity to fulfil their educational potential. Course teams will have considered ways of designing out any potentially disadvantageous element of courses during the course design process. However some specific needs may remain, details about how to apply to have your needs assessed can be found at: http://unilife.southwales.ac.uk/pages/3040-disability-and-dyslexia-service/

Addendum for Delivery at a Partner Institution

N/A