LLM student, Sophia Ahmed, tells us more about her experience studying at Birmingham Law School.
Why did you choose the LLM at the University of Birmingham?
“I chose to study both my LLB and LLM here at the Birmingham Law School for several reasons. Firstly, the Law School is renowned for its diversity in both academics and extra-curricular activities. The Law School is premised upon 3 core values; being a global, civic, and diverse School, which it proudly lives up to and compelled me to undertake both my undergraduate and postgraduate studies here.
“The global initiatives engaged with in the wider international legal sphere – both academically and in practice – incited me to study here, due to the strong links the University has to such a global community in regards to my options post-graduation.
“The civic nature of the Law School further compelled me to study here, as the School proudly engages within the wider community in a variety of manners, whether this be through Pro Bono legal initiatives, or in the participation of crucial legal research for organisations.
“Lastly, the diverse environment that the Birmingham Law School is proudly home to, reinforces the excellence of the School, in terms of not only benefiting its students by opening such an array of academic and career avenues to them, but in contributing to the wider global community with its legal research.”
What has been the highlight of your programme?
“There have been several highlights of studying the Birmingham LLM. Firstly, I was fortunate enough to study a diverse array of legal topics, assessed through different methods, to overall enhance my learning capabilities. Additionally, the Law School proudly hosts a variety of guest lectures, with renowned figures such as Lady Hale, United Nations Special Rapporteurs, and also a variety of professionals to discuss career prospects and employability with us. The final highlight of the programme for me was being able to interact and study with such a passionate and determined cohort of students, who are all equally as enthusiastic about studying the law as myself.”
What have you learnt from your programme?
“The LLM course has equipped me with an all-round good foundation of the commercial, administrative, criminal and theoretical aspects of a legal system. I believe that the diversity in modules has prepared me sufficiently for a career in legal research, due to my sound knowledge of a host of core legal disciplines. Furthermore, the process of writing the LLM dissertation further allowed me to hone in upon legal disciplines which matched my own interests. Additionally, it was extremely easy to find a supervisor willing to aid me, as the members of the Law School are all well-versed in both broader and more niche areas of study.”
What is life like as a student at the University of Birmingham?
“There is no set mould for how your student life here at Birmingham will pan out. Being a member of the Birmingham community comes with endless opportunities and activities. I have taken part in a host of activities on campus to complement my studies, such as taking part in free language classes in the evenings – I studied both Level 1 IWLP Mandarin and Japanese! – and also taking the time to tutor fellow law students in Tort law as part of the Holdsworth tutoring scheme. Additionally, there is an endless flow of social events with societies at the Guild, and with the incredible course mates that you will meet here!”
Find out more about the Birmingham LLM over on our course pages.