Student review [#15805] for Law
at University of Portsmouth - UoP

Overall, I would recommend the university for someone considering a law degree. I found that the course overall was well-structured over the three years, with the quality and frequency of seminars being a key reason for this. This may depend on individual preferences, but I always found seminars to be very helpful in understanding lectures, but I often found lectures to be tiring and difficult to concentrate on, dependent on the time of the lecture and the lecturer. However, that may be due to my preferred learning style.

It is definitely worth noting the law department’s swift adaption to the COVID-19 restrictions. When the university closed, the entire law department worked out how they would be delivering the remainder of the course within a few days. I found that the way in which the university delivered its online teaching was sufficient and comprehensive and did not feel disadvantaged in comparison to if I had been able to attend face-to-face lectures/seminars.

I also note that the expertise/quality of lecturers, especially in my final year, was of a very high standard. Having a lecturer who has vast demonstrable knowledge of their area of law is encouraging, motivating and makes learning much easier!

However, I would note that I felt a lack of support in trying to find a placement. I intended to take a year out of studying to gain relevant work experience, but I struggled to; balance a comprehensive job search with studying; get input from the university career service beyond improving my CV/Cover letter; and felt a general lack of support in this area from the university. Though I ended up gaining valuable experience, it was not the placement year I had in mind.