Law resources from Reach

Find resources which can help if you are considering becoming a law student.

On this page

Core values and attributes

The following links will give you an idea of the skills and qualities needed to be a solicitor as well as the variety of careers available within the legal profession. Not only will this help you gain a further understanding of what the profession requires, but it will also help you when it comes to writing your UCAS personal statement – how have you developed some of these skills and qualities? What attributes do you have that make you suitable for a career in the legal sector, and how can you demonstrate these attributes through your school commitments, or extra-curricular activities?

Keeping up to date

The following links are a good way of keeping up to date with all that is happening in Scottish legal world.  They can also count as career exploration as you get to see the wide variety of roles available.  Make sure you keep up with the national & international news in general too! 

Other online learning opportunities

The Open University offers flexible part-time study, and they have lots of free courses which could be of interest to you, and give you a good introduction to some key legal concepts, processes and theory! If you have some free time, why not try a couple and develop your understanding?

Please note that this list is not exhaustive, and we encourage you to search for other free courses too! Most don’t need a huge amount of time, and may also give you some suggested further reading if you are keen!

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) 

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) are online courses aimed at an unlimited number of people which can be accessed online through certain online learning platforms. They allow you to learn in a flexible way, and can help you to expand your knowledge and connect with educators across the world!

MOOCs don’t involve as high a level of studying as your school subjects; they can take up a few hours per week and normally run for between 2-6 weeks. However, you can access all the materials in your own time at a time that suits you best.

A high proportion of MOOCs are completely free for you to access and learn. Some courses will charge additional fees for you to be given an accredited certificate of participation. However, for the purpose of broadening your own understanding of different topics in law, you DO NOT NEED TO PAY extra for this. You can simply keep a note of any courses you do and make reference to these in your personal statement, if you find they are relevant for this.

Suggested MOOC courses

Other resources

Professional bodies

Like all professions, Lawyers must register with professional bodies in order to practice. In Scotland there are 2 main professional bodies: the Faculty of Advocates and the Law Society of Scotland. 

Virtual internships

These are all free programmes which you can do in your own time and are self-assessed, so your work won't be graded.  You can complete tasks then compare your work to that of an actual solicitor or lawyer – a great opportunity and something to reflect on in your UCAS personal statement.

Aimed at current Law students, so they will be a bit ahead of where you are just now, but they can still give you a useful insight into working for these large firms. 

Visiting courts

We would normally be running our Sheriff Court visits during the summer and autumn, to give you the chance to see court procedure in action and learn more about the Scottish Judicial system. However, this may not be possible during the Covid-19 pandemic, and we thought we would give you some other resources to help you explore this area.