I am currently a junior in US high school. I am targeting at law major of LSE or UCL. I have heard about that the only grades UK universities care about is your AP scores. But I am only taking two AP classes right now. In this scenario, all the AP classes I can probably take is AP physics/AP English in junior year plus AP Lit/ AP Econ/ AP Calc in senior year, that is only 5 APs. However, I am fluent with Chinese and doing well in world history, so I can take those two APs to have 7 APs in total. Since my school offers neither of those two classes, there is no guarantee I can find an available test center for these two subjects, meaning I may or may not have an opportunity to take them. I have never known somebody who applies to UK universities, so I do not know the acceptance rate. I would like to know what is the chance for me to get an offer from LSE/UCL with 5 APs, or with 7 APs. By the way, I am taking the new SAT reasoning test and I expect that to be 1500 out of 1600. Thanks guys!
Why are you targeting law at a UK uni?
What is your end-goal?
You don’t need masses of APs, just 3-5 (depending on the university) of the more rigorous ones (you’ll need to do both Macro and Micro for Econ to count, as these are regarded as half-APs when compared to UK qualifications), so you’re fine with your course selection, and I wouldn’t bother trying to squeeze more in by self-study. You’ll want to get scores of 5 in the exams - this is vital for the universities you’re targetting.
If you meet those standards you have a pretty good shot, although nothing’s certain. Your Personal Statement needs to be good, showing why you want to study Law. You know it’s not just a major, right? You will study nothing but law for the three years.
You will need to be able to pay international fees and living expenses - no FA for US students in the UK.
^ Pretty good shot at UCL.
I would give it a shot. It seems reading some of the other threads, admissions standards for UK universities for international students is a bit like the pirate code, more like guidelines! If you can write the international fees cheque it gives you a huge advantage. Be under no illusion though, if you get accepted on either course you will be among the brightest kids in the UK, expect a very rigorous curriculum.
End goals should matter, though.
Graduating with a BA in Law from a UK uni wouldn’t qualify you to practice law in the US, for instance.
So you really need to figure out why you want to get a law degree in the UK. Are you eligible to work in the UK?
As I said on another thread recently, the law degree in itself won’t qualify someone as a lawyer in the UK either - but it’s as valid as any other undergraduate degree that doesn’t lead immediately to a job.
You need to get 5’s in your APs, LSE and UCL are top UK schools, they won’t be as forgiving as other schools that come up in the UK threads (3 might well not be enough, and at the very least it has to be the right 3, check their list and major reqs). CHeck if they take SAT2s as AP substitutes as you are really just betting at the minute with no actual scores under your belt. You don’t have a PSAT score?
As above, be very aware of costs, no FA, huge COL in London, potential political/fiscal/visa limitations change (might work in your favor, might not).
Thanks guys for you comments! I know you guys are wondering why I am going to UK. Well… Nowadays tuition for US universities is getting ridiculously high. And US has a lawyer training system requiring a bachelor degree before law school, that almost doubles my tuition. That means the money I need to pay is still much higher in US even if I am paying the international fee in UK. Plus I do not need to qualify in US, I would like to work in London if it is possible. There are multiple pathways going through. Right now, I just can not decide whether I should squeeze another two APs in my schedule. I still need to do some self-study even though I have known most topics in AP World History/AP Chinese. It would be super painful to do so. I would only do it if 5 APs are not enough for LSE/UCL.
Is it cheaper though? At the very least you are looking at UCL, 40K for london with minimal flights home. I dunno what you would have to pay for health insurance. And that is only accommodation during term time, so that must leave you at least 2 return flights a year or paying to stay outside of term time and whatever extra rate that would be. A student that gets into UCL or LSE would garner merit in some decent schools if you have over $40K to throw into the mix. That is with the nice exchange rate, that could go either way or you could have universities raising rates because of impact of the exchange rate against them. If it is a 3 yr degree, you probably win though. There are plenty of reason to go to the UK to uni but money isn’t a real factor IMO.
Also, if you’re looking at becoming a lawyer in the UK, the law degree alone will not be enough. Further study, and then a training period in work, are required.
To qualify as a solicitor: http://www.lawsociety.org.uk/law-careers/Becoming-a-solicitor/qualifying-as-a-solicitor/
http://www.lawsociety.org.uk/law-careers/becoming-a-solicitor/
To qualify as a barrister:http://www.barcouncil.org.uk/careers/students/vocational-stage/
And to get a job, unless you are a UK citizen, you would need a work visa, which is not easy to get.
Health insurance £200 a year and about $450 for tier 4 visa. You should be OK with 5 APs in relevant subjects and strong SAT/ACT. UCL does not accept SAT2 as a substitute for AP.
Well Sybylla, I admit it won’t be a huge difference, But think about it this way, a private US university can charge $40K just for tuition, while UCL only charge 17k GBP for international students. Further more, UK grants long term students access to their national health care system, so I will not spend too much money on health insurance. Most importantly, the extracurricular system here really goes against me. My lack of extracurricular experiences shown on my resume will really prevent me from getting into any competitive universities.
jupiter98, This year UCL has expanded its possible entry routes to include one option that combines SAT subject tests and AP tests. Also, AP tests taken in 10th grade can now be counted.
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/prospective-students/international/countries/north-america/united-states
<<For general entry to undergraduate programmes at UCL we require a minimum of:
One of the following will be considered:
– Five AP subjects, taken in the final three years of high school
–High achievement in three AP subjects, when combined with a High School Graduation Diploma with 3.3/4.0 plus a
SAT I with a minimum score of 1950/2400 (old test) or 1380/1600 (new test), or an ACT of 29 in the Composite Score and 29 in the writing score (or combined English/writing Score if taken before 2015)
–High achievement in combination of five distinct AP and SAT subject tests, to include at least three AP’s. Please contact the undergraduate admissions office for further information.
–The successful completion of one year of study at a recognised US university, Community or Junior College, with an overall CGPA of 3.3/4.0 (equivalent to a 2.1), when combined with a High School Graduation Diploma with 3.3/4.0 plus a SAT I with a minimum score of 1950/2400 (old test) or 1380/1600 (new test), or an ACT of 29 in the Composite Score and 29 in the writing score (or combined English/writing Score if taken before 2015)
–Students who have not taken qualifications which are acceptable for direct entry to UCL will be considered if they have successfully completed a recognised international undergraduate foundation programme, including the UCL Undergraduate Preparatory Certificates.
Where a subject is required at A-level, the corresponding AP subject is required. Please note: Where A Level Mathematics is a required subject, students must hold AP Calculus. Calculus AB will only be accepted for Faculty of Engineering programmes, with the exception of Computer Sciences. All other programmes that require a Mathematics A Level will require Calculus BC.
Students who have not taken qualifications which are acceptable for direct entry to UCL will be considered if they have successfully completed a recognised international undergraduate foundation programme, including the UCL Undergraduate Preparatory Certificates.>>
5 APs will be as fine as 7 if they are all “A” list APs. Imo, you would strengthen your application with a history or the US/Comp Gov pair, both for content and for the essay element. If you decide to self-study your current school can order and give the APs to you (obviously they don’t have to, but they are allowed to order any AP and procter it as normal, and I know students who have done this).
But.
You can’t practice law (anywhere) with just the undergrad degree: to finish qualifying as a solicitor in the UK you need a training contract (3 years) with a law firm, and the firm would have to sponsor you for a work visa. It’s not that it can’t happen- but you would have to be enough better than the other UK & (for now anyway) EU applicants for training contracts that a firm is willing to go to the trouble (and expense) to do it. Having watched several cohorts of Oxbridge and LSE students (UK / EU / international) go through the process of getting training contracts- both before and after the Brexit vote- I think it is unlikely to play out the way you are hoping.
Good for them, @Junipero. It was painful to watch UCL american hopefuls FB group last year on IB and AP result dates. I could never understand why they did not want 10th grade AP results. Very few americans are willing to wait till the middle of July and even later to learn their fate.
OP: Please note that if you have the stats to get in to elite American colleges, you also have the stats to get full-tuition/full-ride scholarships to non-elite American colleges. Then note that even T14 law schools (outside of YHS) are throwing around massive scholarships like it is play money to those with a stellar LSAT score and a good GPA (the demand for law schools has dropped just a wee bit in recent years).
Put it all together, and you may actually end up spending more for a bachelor in law from UCL/LSE over 3 years than a bachelors + JD from a T14 law school over 7.
What citizenship/passports do you hold? If you are not a UK citizen, working in London straight out of uni seems like an unrealistic plan.