LLB Single Honours drafted

Program Overview

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The SOAS Law degree programme produces highly skilled, civic minded and critically engaged graduates, who can effectively contribute to their communities and societies through the knowledge and skills gained on this course.

In an increasingly interconnected world, law is no longer the preserve of single jurisdictions as legal issues are no respecters of national borders. A SOAS Law degree addresses this need by providing our students with an educational experience that equips you with a distinctive set of skills far beyond what is offered by most traditional Law Schools.

Why study Law at SOAS?

We are ranked in the UK top 20 (QS World University Rankings 2023)

Our research publications have been rated first in the UK - and our School of Law rated sixth in the UK - in the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021

SOAS is unique as the only higher education institution in the UK specialising in the study of Asian, Middle East and North African (MENA) and Sub-Saharan African regions

This programme will immerse you in the legal traditions and practices of a number of global regions, which will give you a critical understanding of the role of law in the world today

We specialise in key topics including international and transnational law, human rights, transnational commercial law, environmental law, comparative law and socio-legal method

We are specialists in the delivery of more than forty African and Asian languages. Your command of a language will set you apart from graduates of other universities

You will be able to flexibly structure your programme using our open options modules to take advantage of the expertise of our other departments, including the opportunity to learn a regional language

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Year 2 entry to the LLB

We will consider applications for transfer direct to the second year of the SOAS LLB from students who are currently studying the first year of LLB programmes at other English or Welsh universities. These applications must be made through UCAS.

Applicants are generally required to meet our standard high school entrance requirements but those who have taken the LNAT test and performed well and/or are working towards at least 2.1 level in their current LLB studies may also be considered. Each case will be considered by the admissions team on an individual basis taking into account all aspects of the application including the personal statement and reference which must be from the current university. The personal statement should include the motivation for transferring.

Students on the University of London External Programme must pass all four papers of the Intermediate examination of the LLB degree. These papers must all be taken on one occasion, and candidates must obtain a total of at least 200 marks overall. Candidates who meet this criterion are not guaranteed admission to the School, as the School considers the whole UCAS application, not just examination results.

Program Outline

Students take 120 credits per year composed of core and optional modules, which allows for students to design their own intellectual journey while maintaining a strong grasp of the fundamentals.

Year 1

In Year 1 students are introduced to the core elements and principles of the English legal system, and provided with the key analytical skills necessary for undertaking a demanding law degree program. During this first-year students’ will also be introduced to elements of legal principles and practice from other countries.

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Year 2 and 3

In the second and third years our students will be even more fully immersed in the distinctively SOAS program. Our students can choose from a wide array of optional courses that draw on the unique research expertise of our staff.

The emphasis we place on choice, and research-led teaching, will allow our students to pursue a number of distinct specialisms as their degree progresses, but whichever path they choose to focus on the courses they study will all be imbued with that distinctive SOAS dimension, that stresses critical engagement and understanding of the role of law in the world at large.

Important notice

The information on the website reflects the intended programme structure against the given academic session. The modules are indicative options of the content students can expect and are/have been previously taught as part of these programmes. However, this information is published a long time in advance of enrolment and module content and availability is subject to change.

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Year 1

120 credits total

Students must pass all modules in Year 1 to progress to Year 2

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Compulsory modules

Module	Credits
Introduction to Law and Legal Processes	0
Criminal Law	30
Contract Law	30
Property I	30
Public Law	30

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Year 2

120 credits total

Students must take the below compulsory modules (60 credits)

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And

Choose modules from the list of

Year 2 guided option modules

to the value of 30 credits and

Choose modules from the

list of Year 2 guided option modules

OR language
on-language open option modules to the value of 30 credits.

Module	Credits
Legal Systems of Asia and Africa I	15
Law of Tort	30
Property II	15

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Year 3

120 credits total

Students must take the below compulsory modules (30 credits)

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And

Choose modules from the list of

Year 3 guided option modules

to the value of 60 credits and

Choose modules from the list of

Year 3 guided option modules

OR choose language
on-language open option modules to the value of 30 credits.

Module	Credits
Introduction to EU Law	15
Legal Systems of Asia and Africa II	15

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Lists of Year 2 and Year 3 Guided Option Modules (subject to availability)

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Year 2 guided option modules

Module	Credits
Islamic Law	30
Foundations of Human Rights Law	15
Public International Law	15
Environmental Law in Action: Comparative and Domestic Perspectives	15
International Environmental Law	15
Law and Justice in Contemporary China	15
Criminal Justice, Race and Rights	15

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Year 3 guided option modules

Module	Credits
Family Law	30
Law and Society in South Asia	30
Law and Society in Africa	30
Law and Society in Africa	15
Independent Study Project on a Selected Legal topic	30
Company Law	30
Advanced Comparative Administrative Law	30
Commercial Law in a Global Context	30
Law, Multiculturalism and Rights	30
Law of Commercial Arbitration	15
Alternative Dispute Resolution	15
Asylum and Immigration Law	30
Law, Terror and State Power	15
Islamic Law	30
Public International Law	15
Environmental Law in Action: Comparative and Domestic Perspectives	15
International Environmental Law	15
Law and Justice in Contemporary China	15
Law and the Atlantic Slave Trade, Slavery, and Post-Slavery	15
Copyright Law	15
Intellectual Property Law	30

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UoL options

Students may take up to one 30 credit level 5 or level 6 LLB module in Law taught at another University of London Law School - King’s College, LSE, QMUL, UCL and Birkbeck - subject to approval and provided that a similar module is not taught at SOAS.

Modules are taught through a combination of lectures and tutorials, usually two hours lecture and one hour tutorial a week. Sometimes, one follows the other in a three-hour bloc. Sometimes, the tutorial is at a different time or on a different day than the lecture.

Tutorials are sessions in which students are expected to present reports and take a lead in discussions.

Depending on the size of the class, some intermediate and final year  modules are less strictly divided between a formal lecture and a tutorial discussion, and instead, the topic is briefly introduced by the lecturer, followed by a seminar discussion.

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Contact hours

All full-time undergraduate programmes consist of 120 credits per year, in modules of 30 or 15 credits. They are taught over 10 or 20 weeks. The programme structure shows which modules are compulsory and which optional.

As a rough guide, 1 credit equals approximately 10 hours of work. Most of this will be independent study. It will also include class time, which may include lectures, seminars and other classes. Some subjects, such as learning a language, have more class time than others. In the Department of Law, many undergraduate modules have a weekly two hour lecture or seminar. Some modules may also had an additional hour of smaller group classes weekly or fortnightly.

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The Independent Study Project (ISP)

This can be taken by final-year students only. Like the Special Subject dissertation, its aim is to provide an opportunity for students to conduct original historical research on their own initiative, to engage in in-depth analysis of particular subjects and to use a range of primary historical sources. It involves no formal classes and is assessed by a single 10,000-word dissertation (including notes but excluding bibliography).

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SOAS Library

SOAS Library

is one of the world's most important academic libraries for the study of Africa, Asia and the Middle East, attracting scholars from all over the world. The Library houses over 1.2 million volumes, together with significant archival holdings, special collections and a growing network of electronic resources.

SOAS Law graduates leave SOAS as civic minded and critically engaged individuals who can effectively contribute to their communities and societies. With a thorough understanding of the legal dimensions underlying many of our global challenges today, our Law students are valued by employers due to their analytical skills, specialist knowledge, and global perspective

Recent graduates have been hired by:

Allen & Overy

Baker McKenzie

BLM Law

BloombergNEF

British Medical Association

Clifford Chance

DAC Beachcroft LLP

Department for Work and Pensions

EY

Gibson Young Solicitors

HM Treasury

Latham & Watkins

Legal Cheek

Linklaters

Lloyds Banking Group

PwC LLP

Simpson Millar Solicitors

Slaughter and May

The Economist

Travers Smith

United Nations

Vodafone

World Cancer Research Fund

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