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
The department regularly provides visiting speakers for the benefit of undergraduate and postgraduate students through the guest lectures that are arranged throughout the week as part of the LLB programmes. The School and University also engage with high profile external speakers such as high-ranking legal officers and past members of UK Government through the Global Choices series, as well as individuals associated with the Business Accountability and Research Centre.

Volunteering

Both law and non-law graduates can obtain qualifying work experience via the Legal Advice Clinic by selecting the reflective dissertation assessment of the Legal Practice Research Project module. Law graduates who choose the traditional dissertation element of the Legal Practice Research Project module can choose to complete the Legal Advice Clinic (QWE) module to obtain qualifying work experience.

Students are provided with many opportunities to volunteer throughout the course. Regular announcements are posted on the course organisation site and students are invited to sign up. Examples include:
• Thompsons’ Solicitors, Speed Networking Social Justice Event,
• National Pro-Bono week and volunteer opportunities
• Virtual volunteering opportunities with a Regional Employment Judge
• ELIPS (Employment Tribunal Litigant in Person Scheme)
• Shelter Cymru Volunteer Pathways Programme
• Age Cymru Independent Volunteer Advocates
• StreetLaw in collaboration with other Welsh Law Schools
• Cardiff Lawyers Care Homelessness Clinic
• Clinic vacation and summer placements

Work Placements
Work placements may be arranged for students, either in the Legal Advice Clinic or elsewhere.

Work-based Learning
Both law and non-law graduates can obtain qualifying work experience via the Legal Advice Clinic by selecting the reflective dissertation assessment of the Legal Practice Research Project module. Law graduates who choose the traditional dissertation element of the Legal Practice Research Project module can choose to complete the Legal Advice Clinic (QWE) module to obtain qualifying work experience.

Employer Forums
Students are encouraged to attend regular networking events delivered by the Careers and Employability Service, the School and the Faculty where they may meet in a more informal manner a wide spectrum of employers

Means of Assessment

• Onsite Open Book Examination
• Onesite Specialist Software Computer Based Closed Book Examination
• Oral Assessment
• Dissertation
• Time-constrained Assessment
• Practical Coursework
• Portfolio

Learning Support

Induction
Full-time students will start in week one of the course with a two-day induction. Year 1 and Year 2 part-time students will only be required to attend a one-day induction.

These will introduce the students to the aims, ethos and learning outcomes of the course. Students will meet the LLM team and will be provided with their learning materials for each module. Students will also be introduced to the ICT resources and to the Careers and Employability Service

Personal Academic Coach
We propose that in the first instance, the Course Leader will act as personal tutor to all students. If enrolment numbers are higher than anticipated, we will allocate further tutors in addition to the Course Leader.
Students will be asked to book specific coaching sessions with their tutor in order to catch up with them, consider if there are any issues they can be helped with and also to encourage them with their studies.

Learner Analytics
Learning analytics will be used by the course leader and tutors 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 as a whole. Whether or not the issues relate to a single module or the course as a whole, 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
All tutors will operate bespoke office hours which will be listed on the Blackboard Organisation site, inside the Course Handbook and also on a notice outside their offices.

Seminars
Seminars, known as practice sessions on this course, form the foundation of learning and teaching. Students will be given the opportunity to discuss subjects and skills in depth. In the SQE subjects, students will complete practical law file exercises and replicate real-life legal scenarios. Students will be expected to prepare for the seminars, as directed by tutors, in advance of classes.

Formative Assessment
In all practice sessions, students will be afforded the opportunity to engage in formative assessment activities to put their learning into practice. Tasks set in advance of practice sessions may also be classed as formative assessment; feedback on these will be given during practice session discussions. Following practice sessions, there may be quizzes with instant feedback or reflective questions.
For the SQE1 subjects, students will be afforded the opportunity to undertake a mock examination with feedback provided in a general session and on individual scripts.

Research Supervision
Academic staff will supervise students completing their Legal Practice Research Project. This could entail either clinical or academic supervision depending on the nature of the research project.

Online Resources
Students will be able to access a variety of resources via the UniLife portal to support their studies.
Students will be able to access course materials such as the course handbook, course timetable, assessment diary, marking criteria, staff-student liaison meeting minutes and copies of course-level announcements through the course organisation on Blackboard (Unilearn).
At 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 benefit from access to Oxford University Press’ Law Trove service to support their studies with some tutors providing directed study activities utilising this resource. Students will also have access to the Student Development and Study Skills Service and USW Careers to help develop their skills.
Students will also have access to Office365 and UniApps throughout their studies.

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

Disability
The Disability and Dyslexia 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.
The Disability and Dyslexia 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 to support their studies.
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 throughout the course.
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 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 have access to PCs in the Postgraduate Centre in Ty Crawshay, the Library and across all campuses. They are able to loan laptops from the library via Connect2 and self-service facilities.
There are dedicated resources available in Ty Crawshay to students working in the Legal Advice Clinic including PCs, practitioner texts and resources, online resources such as Advisernet (used by CAB) and the CLIO case management system.

Course Exit Points

Progression Route

Upon completion of the LLM Professional Practice (SQE), students will be able to:

1. complete the SQE1 examinations;

2. embark on a period of QWE with a view to qualifying as a solicitor as a paralegal, legal assistant or trainee solicitor;

3. embark on a Master of Philosophy or Doctor of Philosophy programme should they wish to continue their studies; or

4. enter a different progression altogether, as many of the skills they will develop through the course are transferable.

Entry Requirements

Admission to the course is typically through the following qualifications:

Students must achieve an undergraduate degree of class 2:2 or above and will then be placed into either the law graduate or non-law graduate stream.
• For the law graduate stream, students must have achieved a LLB (Hons) degree, a Common Professional Examination/Graduate Diploma in Law, or a combined studies degree including the foundation law subjects within the last 5 years. Students who have reached the appropriate level of qualification with the Institute of Legal Executives are also eligible for consideration for admission to the law graduate stream.
• For the non-law graduate stream, students must achieve an undergraduate degree with a classification of 2:2 or above in any subject, or achieved a LLB (Hons) degree, Common Professional Examination/Graduate Diploma in Law or combined studies degree including the foundation law subjects more than 5 years ago.
The course also welcomes international applicants and requires an English level of IELTS 6.0 with a minimum of 5.5 in each component or equivalent. International students will be expected to undertake the non-law graduate route unless they have achieved an undergraduate degree in law focused on the UK legal system.

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