Law is a stimulating degree that sharpens your thinking and your powers of persuasion while giving you extensive legal knowledge. This programme brings valuable added depth and an international dimension to your degree, as well as offering an unforgettable experience in another country, without a requirement to learn another language.

At Kent, we have one of the top law schools in the UK. Kent Law School is renowned for its world-leading research and its distinctive ‘critical approach’ that places law within the wider context of society. This creates an exciting environment in which to gain your Qualifying Law Degree.

Our degree programme

This distinctive four-year programme offers you the unparalleled opportunity to obtain a Law degree (LLB) while developing an enhanced understanding of law in an international context. Your studies include an additional year, taught in English, at one of our partner universities in Canada or Asia.

You study the detail of the law, as well as its history. You analyse judgments and legal developments while taking into account the political, ethical and social dimensions of the law. This ‘critical approach’ enhances what is already a fascinating subject. It helps you to fully understand the law and there are many chances to discuss and debate its role in society.

Teaching is via lectures, small group seminars and case studies. Our popular mooting programme, hosted in a dedicated space within the £5m Wigoder Law Building, gives you the chance to develop advocacy skills in a simulated courtroom setting before a bench comprised of local judges, practising barristers, solicitors and lecturers.

Kent Law School has a supportive environment and your lecturers have office hours where they provide guidance on a one-to-one basis. We also provide:

• the Skills Hub offering tailored guidance, five days a week in term time
• a law librarian to guide you in the use of online and printed resources.

If you are interested in developing your skills in a modern European language, we also offer the following three-year programmes:

• Law with a Language (French)
• Law with a Language (German)
• Law with a Language (Spanish)

Accreditation

All of our undergraduate Law degrees are recognised by the Solicitors Regulation Authority as Qualifying Law Degrees for entrants in 2020. They also contain the foundations of legal knowledge required by the Bar Standards Board to satisfy the academic component of professional training for intending barristers.

Year abroad

An alternative to the International Legal Studies with a Year Abroad programme is European Legal Studies, where you spend a year abroad at one of our partner universities in Europe, and teaching is also in English. 

We also offer English and French Law, which includes a year at one of our partner universities in France. Teaching on this programme is in French.

Student view

Kent student Shria talks about studying International Legal Studies with a Year Abroad.

Study resources

Kent Law Clinic is based within our new, purpose-built building. It is ideal for developing your practical skills and has a replica courtroom for mooting.

Our academic resources are extensive. You have access to a wide range of materials, including:

• collections of legislation and case law in UK, European and international law
• Lawlinks, our award-winning gateway to online legal resources
• major legal databases that are used on a daily basis in the legal profession
• audio recordings of your lectures.

Extra activities

There are plenty of activities related to your studies, including:

• Kent Student Law Society for aspiring solicitors
• Kent Temple Law Society for those intending to go to the Bar
• Kent Critical Law Society
• Kent Canadian Law Society
• Nigerian Law Society
• European Law Students’ Association (ELSA) Kent.

Kent Student Law Society and Kent Temple Law Society arrange events that are attended by members of the legal profession, many of them Kent alumni. They include QCs, judges, barristers, solicitors and members of the Bar Council and Law Society.

In previous years, events have included the:

• Kent Law Fair
• Kent Law Ball
• Temple Dinner.

Kent Critical Law Society has also put on events where students, academics and practitioners can debate topical – and often controversial – legal issues.

Professional network

We have approximately 100 legal professionals registered on our Professional Mentoring Scheme, and leading law firms visit the campus to attend the annual Kent Law Fair, offer mock interviews, or run workshops.

We regularly hold careers talks given by practising lawyers (many of whom are Kent alumni) and host guest lectures given by some of the leading legal figures of our time.