Bespoke Careers Support for Law Students
Northeastern University London offers a unique and comprehensive career development pathway for Law students, tailored to you and your specific professional aspirations. Through one-to-one careers counselling combined with seminars, workshops, and guest speakers, we will guide and support you in choosing and preparing for your career, nurturing you through your applications for training contracts, vacation schemes and pupillages.
Furthermore, Northeastern University London Law graduates who wish to progress to postgraduate study or international practice can enjoy a generous alumni discount and preferred application process for the LLM at Northeastern University, which is available online. It will further enhance your career development, and can lead towards taking the California Bar.
EDGE
The Northeastern University London Career EDGE will provide structured support and guidance towards choosing and succeeding in a career and sector of Law that matches your interests, abilities and aspirations. It will provide you with a practical counterpart to complement your academic education, helping you to develop two kinds of practical experience: knowledge about work and organisations, and how to succeed in different kinds of working environments.
Education
You will be educated about the range of different careers and opportunities in Law across a variety of sectors, as well as other careers for which the study of Law provides an excellent foundation.
You will also participate in at least two workshops in each academic year, designed to provide you with the latest developments in legal education including the Solicitors’ Qualifying Examination (SQE) and the Bar Professional Training Course (BPTC).
Discover your passions and strengths
Students wishing to pursue a career in Law will work one-to-one with our Law Careers Counsellor. Associate Professor Ursula Smartt will guide you to understand your aptitudes and aspirations deeply and to assemble the personal and professional experiences that you will need to achieve your career ambition.
Starting from your first term at the University, Ursula, will work with you to identify your ambition, develop a personal narrative, and assist you in assembling the personal and professional experiences that will make you a compelling candidate
In your second and third year, she will assist you with individual applications for law firms, pupillages, vacation schemes, training contracts, etc. Ursula will help you with cover letters, make introductions to employers, and set up internships where possible.
Engage with the working world
You will have the opportunity to engage with practitioners from a variety of backgrounds including law firms, chambers, commercial and businesses, and in-house legal departments, through our Law guest speaker series. In previous years, speakers have included:
Emma Clements: Senior Graduate Recruitment Adviser at Herbert Smith Freehills LLP
Mary Carpenter: Graduate Recruitment Manager at Herbert Smith Freehills LLP
Kate Higgins: Legal Director at Mishcon de Reya LLP
Charlotte Lynch: Senior Graduate Recruitment Adviser at Mishcon de Reya LLP
Penny Newman: Graduate Recruitment Champion at Lewis Silkin LLP
Steven Lorber: Consultant Partner at Lewis Silkin LLP
BBC Legal Departments
Joan Purvis: Head of Rights at BBC Legal Department
Holly Allen: Graduate Recruitment Manager
Kunjal Raval: Solicitor/ Associate
Mark Stephens CBE: Media Lawyer
Dr Susi Fish: Partner
Harris Kyriakides Law Firm Cyprus
Elena Hadjiantoni: Head of Practice and Client Development,
Ben Yallop: Head of International and Head of the Office of the Judge Advocate General
Our Law Careers Counsellor
Associate Professor Ursula Smartt, Lecturer in Law & Law Careers Counsellor. Ursula Smartt has had a varied career and came to ‘the law’ later in life after studying for the law conversion course (Graduate Diploma in Law or GDL). She was a teacher and head of modern languages and PE at British comprehensive school and public boarding schools (incl. Leeds, Glasgow, Surrey). One of her many postgraduate qualifications is that of hotel management at Glasgow University which included master chef and sommelier certification as well as management accounting. She was HR Manager for a large UK chain of hotels (Trusthouse Forte) working in five star hotels in Glasgow and London’s Bond Street. Her earlier career was spent as DJ and radio show host in local radio – BBC Radio Humberside in Hull – where her training included ‘putting the needle on the record’, learning interviewing techniques and how to conduct vox pops in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire’s high streets. Her present academic career includes being an independent prison researcher and government consultant in prison labour and correctional industries on a global scale.
Ursula was a magistrate and presiding justice for adult and youth criminal courts or nearly 20 years (West London, Surrey and Sussex) and her practical experience in sentencing procedures and mentoring and appraising other magistrates makes her a perfect educator in practical court procedure, oral advocacy and assisting students in their educational legal practice. She also sat on criminal appeals at West London and Surrey Crown Courts.
Apart from her law teaching at a number of universities and being an external examiner in law, she authors a number of legal textbooks. The most popular being Media and Entertainment Law; Media Law for Journalists; and Optimize Public Law.
Where can studying Law at Northeastern University London take you?
Susan (2015) graduated with a training contract at Clifford Chance, and is now an Associate in Litigation & Dispute Resolution. Anna (2015) qualified with Hogan Lovells is now Litigation Associate at Kirkland & Ellis. Pacome Fofe (2015) is currently Sales Account Manager at Bloomberg.
Tahmid (2016) started work at M&C Saatchi as an Account Manager, and was promoted to Senior Account Manager. He is currently Account Director at The PR Office and Founder & Trustee of Here for Good.
“‘Many universities provide a good education, but Northeastern University London combines academic rigour with practical application in an unrivalled way. The University not only made me better at my subjects, they made me better at articulating my thoughts and defending my arguments – skills I use every day at work. LAUNortheastern University London provides a platform to hone and test those skills; weekly, in depth, and with support. I have no doubt that without Northeastern University London I wouldn’t be doing what I am today.‘”
- Tahmid Chowdhury, Law LLB with English (Lond/NCH, 2016)
Following a summer internship at PwC, Kasia (2017) graduated with a role as Assurance Associate at PwC, and has since been promoted to Senior Assurance Associate. George (2017) is currently a Startup Analyst at Rainmaking Colab FinTech.
Rebecca (2019) is currently studying for a Law LLM at Northeastern University, and will be taking up a place on the Deloitte graduate scheme as Indirect Tax Analyst in 2020, following a gap year.