Students’ views (part-time LLB)
Students
Programme Director James Slater introduces and describes the Part-time LLB:
At Buckingham Law School, we are proud of the success of our students and graduates. You will find below what some of our recent part-time LLB graduates have to say about their time at Buckingham and how it helped their careers.
Alumni
Helen Gardner (LLB 2019)
I happened upon the part time Law degree programme at the University of Buckingham quite by chance, seeing an article in a local paper. I was a busy mum to two young and very active boys and my husband worked long hours in London. It caught my eye as I had had an emerging fascination with the law and the programme presented me with the opportunity to pursue an interest with the possibility of attaining a degree, in an accessible way for those of us coming to it later and needing to juggle significant commitments.
Anne Swetnam (LLB 2018)
I joined the part-time LLB course in September 2013. I was looking to fill the gap that was going to be left once my daughter went to university. As a more mature student (then aged 51), I wondered if I would be able to keep to cope with a return to study. However, once I had a few assignments under my belt, there was no stopping me. I loved every minute of the course and really appreciated the time the tutors took to explain difficult and pivotal cases in depth.
Hannah Howard (LLB 2018)
Like many students on the part-time LLB at Buckingham, I had been out of education for some time when I started in 2013. I had gone to Warwick University at 18 to study English Literature, but I didn’t find it engaging so left in my second year. All I wanted was to work, so having just turned 21 I began my career as a police officer. 7 years of valuable life experience later, I realised it wasn’t what I wanted to do f
or the rest of my working life, so I started exploring my options. I wanted to study and, as I’d always thought I’d do the GDL after my English degree, law was an obvious choice.
Belinda Hamilton (LLB 2017)
I left school without taking any qualifications and had always felt that I never knew my academic capabilities. I spent my adult life wanting that piece of paper that stated that demonstrated what I was academically capable of achieving. In every job application and subsequent interview I had to explain my reasons for not taking qualifications and explain how, although I lacked the qualifications, I was more than capable of carrying out the role I was applying for.
Marcos Kauffman (LLB 2016)
The subject of law, and its impact on societies and businesses, has always fascinated me. However, due to entering the job market very young and focusing my studies on professional development around business, manufacturing and supply chain, I was unable to study law until later in my career, which brought me to the part-time LLB at Buckingham.
Melanie Thrower (LLB 2015)
I had always been interested in studying law but never thought I’d get the opportunity, having left school at 16 and not continuing with further education. When I explored the possibility of studying law at the University of Buckingham, on the part-time programme, I was surprised and equally delighted to realise that I could.
Adam Sargent (LLB 2015)
I was approaching the end of my schooling years and was at a real crossroads with my future aspirations. I had studied law at both GCSE and A Level and had a desire to further my legal knowledge. It was through a friend of the family that I learnt about the University of Buckingham’s Part-time Law Programme. This programme instantly resonated with me, as I was able to “earn and learn”.
Frederick Appiah (LLB 2015)
Growing up, I never contemplated studying law, let alone working in the legal industry. Originally, my aim was to become an accountant. And so, after secondary school, I obtained a diploma in accounting and contemplated becoming a chartered accountant (ACCA). My search for an institution to pursue my ACCA certification led me to the University of Buckingham. The more I browsed on the University’s website, the more I fell in love with the University.
Nigel Smith (LLB 2013)
I left school at 15 with a minimum of qualifications. Formal education wasn’t ‘my thing’ and it was always expected that I would follow a non-vocational apprenticeship, which I did in mechanical engineering. Thirty years on, I found myself in a senior managerial position at an industrial conglomerate, negotiating and signing contracts in excess of £5M in the oil and gas sector. Both my children were by then pretty much grown, and so for the first time in decades I could focus on how I was going to spend my free time.
Nicola Maynard (LLB 2013)
From a young age I had an interest in the criminal law and my ambition was to practise as a solicitor in this field. I also knew when I left school that I didn’t want to take the conventional route of full-time university. Instead, I secured a position at a law firm as a receptionist at the age of 17. I made good progress and, in 2001, joined the Criminal Litigation Department as a paralegal. My supervising partner encouraged me to undertake my police station accreditation. Once this was finished he and another colleague, who had studied at Buckingham, spoke to me about undertaking the part-time Law degree at Buckingham.
Laura Vasiliu (LLB 2011)
Why did I choose to join the Buckingham part-time law degree? Partly because I knew it has a very good reputation, and partly because I was convinced that it had to offer the most stimulating, intellectual and diverse environment…. and I wasn’t wrong!
Lisa Buckridge (LLB 2010)
Although originally intending to go to university immediately after school, life and health got in the way. I was lucky enough to be taken on in a law firm as a paralegal and never lost sight of my dream of being a solicitor. It was my employer who suggested that I consider the University of Buckingham’s part-time Law degree as this offered the qualification I wanted with exceptionally high quality teaching. She had also done her degree at Buckingham and being the head of a successful department in a large firm in Milton Keynes, I was happy to follow her advice.
Tamara Barbeary (LLB 2010)
It had long been a personal ambition to study for a law degree, but being a working mother of three children at the time, I knew that a full-time course would not be possible. When I found out that I could study for the LLB (Hons) (a law degree) part-time at Buckingham, I was delighted and decided to take the plunge.
Rita Acquaah (LLB 2010)
I had always wanted to do a degree programme but the last thing on my mind was to pursue a daunting course like a law degree. My main challenge was to find something that would allow me to continue working full-time, study and attend lectures without compromising on my working hours. After a lot of research, I found that the part-time law degree with the University of Buckingham would meet all my needs.
Clarence Philipneri (LLB 2010)
The law has always fascinated me, but my training was in accountancy and so my interest was more or less amateur in nature. However, my ongoing role as the Regional Financial Controller for a blue chip company and my regular contact with clients and suppliers involves complex legal and contractual matters, and this made me think seriously about a legal qualification.
Wadzanai Richardson (LLB 2010)
While working as an administrator, I was persuaded to study law on a part-time basis and the University of Buckingham was the perfect choice for me. The course structure allowed me to continue to work full time and study at the same time. As I continued to work, this meant that I was able to pay for my own university fees without getting into any debt.
Michael Chambers (LLB 2009)
I have been a Project Manager for over 10 years, managing many complex initiatives for various blue chip organisations. However, about 5 years ago, I realised there was a gap in my range of skills, and that gap was legal know-how. I felt I would be in greater control of my projects if I also had a good understanding of their legal dimensions. This insight brought me to Buckingham Law School, and its 4-year Part-time Law degree.
Matt Boddington (LLB 2007)
As somebody whose school days are a faded memory, I began the part-time LLB course with a degree of uncertainty, obsolete studying skills and, if I am honest, a bit of a lack of discipline. I did not anticipate that the course would provide not just legal knowledge, but a whole set of tools with which to better myself and improve my career prospects.
Ian Mackenzie (LLB 2008)
Law is traditionally a demanding and highly challenging discipline, requiring time consuming extensive library based research and study. Which would make studying Law part-time in addition to work or family commitments almost impossible. Thankfully, this is not an issue with the Buckingham course as all student are supplied with comprehensive module materials, which include all the relevant cases and references to further reading, which is also provided. So even the student on the tightest time schedule will be able to manage the reading commitments. Read Ian’s story.
Marcia Killen (LLB 2007)
Working at a solicitor’s office as a legal secretary I was persuaded to study for the examinations with the Institute of Legal Executives. It fitted in nicely with my work commitments and young family as I studied by way of a correspondence course. I wanted to attend a course where I could interact with other students and lecturers this time.
Samantha Wilson (LLB 2006)
After having children at a relatively young age and prioritising my family commitments over my own ambitions for some years, it was always my plan to return to education and study for a Law degree, with the aim of being a solicitor. The part-time course at Buckingham enabled me to put my plan into action, even when combined with a job and three children.
Maggie Ryde (LLB 2006)
During my business career I have developed my various skills through maintaining a continuous programme of study relating either to my direct job function or to the interests of the Company that employs me, mainly relating to Health and Safety, Human Resources and Commercial Contract. This led me to the further need to understand more of the legal aspects associated with each of these areas.
Suzanne Bullock (LLB 2001)
One would not normally associate the time-consuming commitment to academic studies at the end of a working day, assignment deadlines and exam pressure with ‘great fun’ and yet surprisingly that is the way I look back at my part-time degree years.
Andy Goves (LLB 1999)
I chose a law degree through my previous involvement in the fire service teaching all manner of legislation. The whole aspect of undertaking a demanding four-year course as a mature student has stretched my intellectual abilities and widened my personal horizons. I have found a huge level of personal satisfaction in achieving a difficult qualification. Read Andy’s story.