If you’re considering applying for Law, it’s important to know what A-Levels are needed to secure your place at a top university.Â
To help you best understand your choices, this guide will go explain the A-Levels that the top universities desire.
Short on time? Here’s a summary of what this guide covers:
What A-Levels are Needed to Study Law?
Applicants will be expected to have 2 – 3 A-Levels ranging from BCC to A*AA, depending on the university.
What A-Level Subjects are Needed for Law?
There aren’t any specific subject requirements for Law but recommended A-Levels include English, Maths, History, Politics and more.Â
What are the Best A-Level Combinations for Law?
This will depend on how you plan to specialise. English and another essay-based subject combined with a subject relevant to your specialisation is a good option. Â
What A-Levels Do I Need For Oxford Law
The A-Level grade requirements for Oxford Law are AAA, with no specific subjects.Â
What A-Levels Do I Need For Cambridge Law
The A-Level grade requirements for Cambridge Law are A*AA, with no specific subjects.Â
essential A-Levels For Law
To be accepted onto a Law degree you will usually require a minimum of two A-Levels, with three A-Levels and A grades needed for the most popular courses.
Entry requirements range from BCC to A*AA, with the most common offer applicants receive being ABB.
It is not a requirement to have studied Law at A-Level; generally speaking, there are no A-Levels required to apply for Law.
According to universities’ entry requirements, A-Level Law is not a must-have which is highly beneficial if you are not 100% certain that it is the degree path you wish to pursue. Further to this, it means you can keep your A-Level choices open rather than restrict them to meet any Law course entry requirements.
This does not mean you cannot take A-Level Law to get a feel for what the subjects involves before committing to study it for three years.
Primary A-Levels For Law
Many A-Level choices can help you prepare for your Law degree, usually because of the knowledge or skills that are taught. Some of these are highly recommended and should be considered by anyone applying for law. These include:
English
English is the top pick for Law applicants due to its heavy focus on reading and writing. More specifically, the analytical and reasoning skills you develop are crucial for anyone studying law.
History
Another subject with a heavy emphasis on essay writing, History teaches a lot about the interpretation of historical information, including how to spot unreliable information and inconsistent recounts.Â
Politics
Politics teaches a lot about how laws are made and upheld on a national and global scale. While not always directly related, the curriculum offers lots of valuable information about the legal system.
Languages
Not necessary for all applicants, studying a language is essential if you wish to study International Law relating to a specific country. This A-Level is required for many combined law and language degrees.
Maths
Not directly linked to Law, Maths is still a valuable A-Level to have as a demonstration of intelligence and logical thinking. Many fundamental principles taught in Maths can be transferred to the legal profession.
Secondary A-Levels For Law
Beyond these A-Levels, there are other options that may be helpful for your application:
Geography
As well as being another essay-based subject, Geography also has a heavy focus on human geography, which can provide a lot of useful information about the functions of societies across the globe. This is especially helpful for anyone considering land law.
Psychology
Law is a humanities subject, so understanding human psychology can be a great advantage to have when studying for your degree. Psychology can play a major role in many legal cases, so having the skills to identify certain traits will help you specialise in the future.Â
Religious Studies
If you’re interested in legal cases heavily-based on religious factors, studying Religious Studies would be a good way to demonstrate your interest and begin your specialisation.Â
Economics
While Economics and Law don’t cross over as much as some other subjects, financial law is still a major field to enter. Studying Economics at A-Levels will help you better understand the principles behind this.Â
Philosophy
Philosophy is a great option to select if you have an interest in the ethical aspects of law. Bear in mind that the content taught may not be too transferable in most fields of law.Â
Business Studies
Business law is another major field, so having an understanding of how businesses operate will give you a head start in specialising in this direction in the future.
Law
This may seem like an essential A-Level to have, but no university requires it. While it may give you a head start in understanding the fundamentals of the subject, most of the content from this qualification will be covered at university as well.Â
Taking secondary subjects such as these will rarely be extremely advantageous or disadvantageous but may help you in very specific circumstances. It is more important that you achieve high grades for them and explain why the skills you developed whilst studying them will help you during a Law degree.
Critical Thinking may help with skills required when sitting the LNAT but to keep your options open, the subject is best done as an extra AS-Level.
In addition, you will also need five GCSEs – at A-C grades – including Science, English, and Maths.
We provide expert support for Oxbridge applicants during their Law applications
Our Oxbridge Law Programme is perfect for anyone who is determined to earn their offer from Oxford or Cambridge. Through one-to-one tuition, live intensive courses, extensive materials and much more, we build on each of our students’ potential to give them the best chance of finding Oxbridge success.Â
Discover our Oxbridge Law Programme by clicking the button below to learn how you can enrol and triple your chances of success.
Best A-Level Combinations For law
While thinking about your individual A-Levels is important, it’s equally important to think about how your combination of subjects will benefit your application. If you want to apply to the top law schools in the UK, it’s important that you select three subjects that are related to law and teach skills that can be transferred to your degree,Â
As an example, Cambridge has generally recommended that English Literature, History, Languages, and Mathematics are good core subjects – meaning choosing one or more of these can provide a good foundation for your subject combination.
Other good choices to combine these subjects with include: an additional language, Ancient History, Classical Civilisation, Economics, English Language, Further Mathematics, Geography, Government and Politics, History of Art, Law, Music, Philosophy, Religious Studies, Sciences, and Sociology.
A Freedom of Information (FOI) request submitted against the University of Cambridge provides us with a helpful and clear breakdown of the subjects applicants for 2021 admission of Law applied for. From this information, we can see that the most valuable combinations are:
- English Literature, History, Politics
- English Literature, History, Religious Studies
- English Literature, French, History
- English Literature, History, Psychology
- English Literature, Politics, Mathematics
These are all very solid picks, though they may not be the best choices for everyone. As previously mentioned, a big factor of what A-Levels you choose is how you may want to specialise in the future. If you don’t know yet, that’s okay, but if you do know, you should start working towards it now.Â
For example, anyone looking to enter international law will need to study the language of the country they’re interested in (in many cases this is actually required for admission).Â
The same principle is true for those considering fields such as business, politics, psychology and more. So the best combination for your A-Levels will generally be English Literature, a secondary essay-based subject and a subject related to your own personal interest within the legal field. Â
Cambridge Law A-Level Requirements
Students applying for Law at Cambridge will typically receive an offer of A*AA.
The Faculty of Law itself does not have any specific requirements for which subjects you study at A-Level. As well, there are no specific subjects required by any of the colleges at the time being but do check the website of the college you wish to apply, for any additional guidance they may have.
Cambridge highly recommends taking essay-based subjects such as English and History as they are good preparation for the critical reading and writing applicants will be asked to do as Law students.
As previously stated, A-Level Law is not required, and in fact, the majority of students do not encounter it before starting their degree.
Additionally, Cambridge sees the Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) as a valuable way to explore your interest in legal ideas and gives you something to write about in your Personal Statement or talk about in your Interview. However, as not all schools offer the option to complete an EPQ, it will never be part of your formal offer.
Do keep in mind that these are just recommendations and are not required, and many students who have other backgrounds go on to do very well.
Access "The Big Book Of Oxbridge Applications" For FREE
A-levels are just one step of a much larger process – a process you can learn about in The Big Book Of Oxbridge Applications, available for free here! Through over 350 pages, you will find:
- Proven A-Level study techniques
- 28 example Oxbridge Personal Statements
- Over 40 admissions test practice questions
- Interviews with Oxbridge students and graduates
- Additional downloadable resources
Fill in your details below to claim your digital copy today!
Oxford Law A-Level Requirements
Applicants hopeful of attending Oxford to study Law will typically receive offers of AAA.
Just as with the University of Cambridge, the Faculty of Law at Oxford has no specific A-Level requirements to be admitted to the course.
However, there are two Law courses available at Oxford. Course I is a three-year course, which has no specific subject requirements.
Course II is a four-year course that follows the same syllabus but with a third-year abroad at a university in either France, Germany, Italy, or Spain. Applicants can also study in the Netherlands, where you will study European and International Law.
As such, to study in France, Germany, or Spain, candidates will be expected to have the appropriate modern language at A-Level. To study in Italy, candidates may be admitted without A-Level Italian. However, they would be expected to demonstrate sufficient language aptitude to be able to achieve the standard required to study successfully in Italy.
Intensive language training will be offered during the first two years of the course to assist with gaining a sufficient level of competency.
Whichever of these courses you opt to take, the University of Oxford recommends taking an essay-based subject at A-Level as they have proven helpful for the content of the course.
Just as with Cambridge, History, Mathematics, and English Literature are the most popular A-Levels studied by applicants to Oxford.
From this, we can assume that applicants are choosing these subjects as they enable degree options to remain open rather than restricting them.
Conclusion
With no A-Level subjects required to apply for Law at university, you have the freedom to study whatever you want.Â
If you are wanting to apply for Oxbridge, do keep in mind the A-Levels subjects which have time and again proven to be the most beneficial to applicants. These are English Literature, History, Politics, Religious Studies, a language, Psychology and Mathematics.Â
However, do carefully consider your options, so you do not end up restricting yourself if you decide Law is not the path you wish to take.Â
Earn Oxbridge Law success by starting your preparation early with UniAdmissions.
Writing the perfect Personal Statement, scoring highly on the LNAT and interviewing like a pro is how you get your dream Oxbridge Law offer. UniAdmissions will support you through each step with our unique and comprehensive curriculum.Â
Discover our Law Programme for comprehensive admissions support by booking a free consultation or clicking the button below to enrol and triple your chances of success.
