Urgent question for current law students/grads !! (1 Viewer)

[ris08]

Hey everyone,
I have a question for current law students/law graduates- which university is the best pick for law. UAC applications came out and im figuring out my preferences. Obviously preferably, I would love to do law at UNSW or USYD as I know these are better options for law, however the ATAR entry requirements are super high like 99+ above. Right now based of my atar estimate I'm sitting at roughly at the high edge of 98 at a top 20 selective high school so its a good estimate but I'm worried I might just miss the cut off especially as law is really compeitive.

Would it be better off to go for say macquarie or a uts law degree and just do super well with WAM or better off to go to UNSW/USYD with a different degree and do a IPT transfer into a law degree?

Also SUPER IMPORTANT QUESTION do Macquarie/UTS offer any scholarships I could potentially get with a high enough Atar? And also is ANU any good (I'm a bit unwilling to travel all the way to Canberra though)
ANY HELP WITH THESE QUESTIONS WOULD BE SO SO GREATLY APPRECIATED!

 

[dillydally]

hmm you can ask @Reasonabledoubt she does law i think

 

[idkkdi]

Hey everyone,
I have a question for current law students/law graduates- which university is the best pick for law. UAC applications came out and im figuring out my preferences. Obviously preferably, I would love to do law at UNSW or USYD as I know these are better options for law, however the ATAR entry requirements are super high like 99+ above. Right now based of my atar estimate I'm sitting at roughly at the high edge of 98 at a top 20 selective high school so its a good estimate but I'm worried I might just miss the cut off especially as law is really compeitive.

Would it be better off to go for say macquarie or a uts law degree and just do super well with WAM or better off to go to UNSW/USYD with a different degree and do a IPT transfer into a law degree?

Also SUPER IMPORTANT QUESTION do Macquarie/UTS offer any scholarships I could potentially get with a high enough Atar? And also is ANU any good (I'm a bit unwilling to travel all the way to Canberra though)
ANY HELP WITH THESE QUESTIONS WOULD BE SO SO GREATLY APPRECIATED!

anus better than uts/macq. but yeah canberra may limit getting a paralegal side hustle during uni

uts is also better than macq

 

[Reasonabledoubt]

Hey everyone,
I have a question for current law students/law graduates- which university is the best pick for law. UAC applications came out and im figuring out my preferences. Obviously preferably, I would love to do law at UNSW or USYD as I know these are better options for law, however the ATAR entry requirements are super high like 99+ above. Right now based of my atar estimate I'm sitting at roughly at the high edge of 98 at a top 20 selective high school so its a good estimate but I'm worried I might just miss the cut off especially as law is really compeitive.

Would it be better off to go for say macquarie or a uts law degree and just do super well with WAM or better off to go to UNSW/USYD with a different degree and do a IPT transfer into a law degree?

Also SUPER IMPORTANT QUESTION do Macquarie/UTS offer any scholarships I could potentially get with a high enough Atar? And also is ANU any good (I'm a bit unwilling to travel all the way to Canberra though)
ANY HELP WITH THESE QUESTIONS WOULD BE SO SO GREATLY APPRECIATED!

For law at unsw or usyd it just depends on how much torture you want to put yourself through voluntarily. usyd has closed book exams but it comes with prestige. while unsw may not have as much prestige as usyd, unsw is still ranked 1st in australia right now for law i think and its still respectable AND it has open book exams, which in my opinion is way more reasonable since the profession will never require you to know case law or legislation off by heart.
I just finished my first term at unsw law and i would still chose unsw because i couldnt imagine the amount of stress i would experience if my upcoming exams were closed book.

for your transfer questions it also just depends on your preferences.
if you are really aiming for a good university then an itp at usyd/unsw might be worth it only if youre okay with doing a degree that has nothing to do with law for a year. the itp is also really competitive so its good to keep that in mind. if you dont think you can do a year without law then your best alternative is macq or uts.
i dont really know much about uts or macquarie but i would go to uts before macquarie but theyre about the same, t just depends which campus you like better or is closer to you.

ANU is also pretty good but if you can get into usyd/unsw that would be a better career option for you, and im not to sure about scholarships, sorry.

 

[Study to success]

For law at unsw or usyd it just depends on how much torture you want to put yourself through voluntarily. usyd has closed book exams but it comes with prestige. while unsw may not have as much prestige as usyd, unsw is still ranked 1st in australia right now for law i think and its still respectable AND it has open book exams, which in my opinion is way more reasonable since the profession will never require you to know case law or legislation off by heart.
I just finished my first term at unsw law and i would still chose unsw because i couldnt imagine the amount of stress i would experience if my upcoming exams were closed book.

for your transfer questions it also just depends on your preferences.
if you are really aiming for a good university then an itp at usyd/unsw might be worth it only if youre okay with doing a degree that has nothing to do with law for a year. the itp is also really competitive so its good to keep that in mind. if you dont think you can do a year without law then your best alternative is macq or uts.
i dont really know much about uts or macquarie but i would go to uts before macquarie but theyre about the same, t just depends which campus you like better or is closer to you.

ANU is also pretty good but if you can get into usyd/unsw that would be a better career option for you, and im not to sure about scholarships, sorry.

wait they have open book exams in unsw? is it jsut law

 

[Reasonabledoubt]

wait they have open book exams in unsw? is it jsut law

its just law not every degree

 

[idkkdi]

For law at unsw or usyd it just depends on how much torture you want to put yourself through voluntarily. usyd has closed book exams but it comes with prestige. while unsw may not have as much prestige as usyd, unsw is still ranked 1st in australia right now for law i think and its still respectable AND it has open book exams, which in my opinion is way more reasonable since the profession will never require you to know case law or legislation off by heart.
I just finished my first term at unsw law and i would still chose unsw because i couldnt imagine the amount of stress i would experience if my upcoming exams were closed book.

for your transfer questions it also just depends on your preferences.
if you are really aiming for a good university then an itp at usyd/unsw might be worth it only if youre okay with doing a degree that has nothing to do with law for a year. the itp is also really competitive so its good to keep that in mind. if you dont think you can do a year without law then your best alternative is macq or uts.
i dont really know much about uts or macquarie but i would go to uts before macquarie but theyre about the same, t just depends which campus you like better or is closer to you.

ANU is also pretty good but if you can get into usyd/unsw that would be a better career option for you, and im not to sure about scholarships, sorry.

nah not many closed book law subjects, vast majority are open book

 

[Reasonabledoubt]

nah not many closed book law subjects, vast majority are open book

thats nice

 

[skzza]

Hey everyone,
I have a question for current law students/law graduates- which university is the best pick for law. UAC applications came out and im figuring out my preferences. Obviously preferably, I would love to do law at UNSW or USYD as I know these are better options for law, however the ATAR entry requirements are super high like 99+ above. Right now based of my atar estimate I'm sitting at roughly at the high edge of 98 at a top 20 selective high school so its a good estimate but I'm worried I might just miss the cut off especially as law is really compeitive.

Would it be better off to go for say macquarie or a uts law degree and just do super well with WAM or better off to go to UNSW/USYD with a different degree and do a IPT transfer into a law degree?

Also SUPER IMPORTANT QUESTION do Macquarie/UTS offer any scholarships I could potentially get with a high enough Atar? And also is ANU any good (I'm a bit unwilling to travel all the way to Canberra though)
ANY HELP WITH THESE QUESTIONS WOULD BE SO SO GREATLY APPRECIATED!

Hey!! A bit of a late reply, but I'm a second-year law/comm at UNSW, so I have some insights! I have seen a lot of people get into USYD with low 98 (98.15-98.3) ATARs, so it's not out of reach with your estimated ATAR! I'm not sure if the LAT is still used at unsw, but the average ATAR, I'm pretty sure, was between 97.5-98.5 with a high LAT in my admission year (you can check this on the unsw website).

As someone said before, most of USYD law exams actually aren't closed book anymore, so it's the same sorta exam for UNSW and USYD. A lot of difference between them is in class participation. At UNSW, every single class across the 10-week trimester counts towards your class participation grade, which makes up between 10-20% of your overall grade. As a result, you must be up to date with the readings for each lesson, which can be pretty hard as they're usually 20-30 pages long and very hard to understand... USYD (if I'm correct) does it differently, where there's one lesson a semester where you're picked to answer some questions to count for your class participation. Some people find this easier as you don't need to stay on top of the readings, especially around mid-term season!

I've heard ANU is pretty good, especially if you want to take just a Bachelor of Laws alone, as UNSW and USYD don't offer this. However, my friend who does law there says the life in Canberra is really boring, and wishes she was back in Sydney

Going to UTS/MQU and getting a high WAM in law isn't a bad idea, especially if you think you will struggle at UNSW/USYD. From what my friends at UTS/MQU say, the marking is a lot nicer and isn't as demanding as it is at UNSW. However, a WAM above ~70 with decent extracurriculars and experience is enough to get a good graduate job by the end of your degree. If you work consistently, then this is definitely attainable at UNSW/USYD.

IPT into UNSW law isn't too hard, as long as you maintain a competitive WAM in another degree (above 75), then you're likely guaranteed a spot.

Good luck!!

 

[ventventventent]

For law at unsw or usyd it just depends on how much torture you want to put yourself through voluntarily. usyd has closed book exams but it comes with prestige. while unsw may not have as much prestige as usyd, unsw is still ranked 1st in australia right now for law i think and its still respectable AND it has open book exams, which in my opinion is way more reasonable since the profession will never require you to know case law or legislation off by heart.
I just finished my first term at unsw law and i would still chose unsw because i couldnt imagine the amount of stress i would experience if my upcoming exams were closed book.

for your transfer questions it also just depends on your preferences.
if you are really aiming for a good university then an itp at usyd/unsw might be worth it only if youre okay with doing a degree that has nothing to do with law for a year. the itp is also really competitive so its good to keep that in mind. if you dont think you can do a year without law then your best alternative is macq or uts.
i dont really know much about uts or macquarie but i would go to uts before macquarie but theyre about the same, t just depends which campus you like better or is closer to you.

ANU is also pretty good but if you can get into usyd/unsw that would be a better career option for you, and im not to sure about scholarships, sorry.

do u know anyone who does comm/law? and how it is?

 

[skzza]

do u know anyone who does comm/law? and how it is?

I know you weren't asking me, but I actually do comm law at UNSW, so if you have any questions, I'm happy to answer as well!

 

[ventventventent]

I know you weren't asking me, but I actually do comm law at UNSW, so if you have any questions, I'm happy to answer as well!

how is it?

 

[skzza]

how is it?

It's not too bad! Personally, I didn't do any business/legal subjects in high school, so I kinda blindly chose Law/Comm.

I don't enjoy commerce too much... Commerce at UNSW is structured in an IFY (integrated first year) course system. This means that you are required to take courses that act like an introductory course to most of the available majors (e.g, commerce, finance, light coding, economics, etc). It's good if you enjoy business and want to experience a bit of every major before you actually finalise your major. The course isn't as easy as most people say it is. Marking is very subjective and depends on your tutor for each course. In some courses, I've had tutors put marks into a spinner wheel and use that to allocate grades for students, so it's not always fair. If you find that you enjoyed high school business subjects, then I definitely recommend picking commerce! If you haven't done any business-related subjects, then commerce is still a safe pick, but it may not be as interesting in the first year. Once you hit the middle of the second year, that's when you can pick your major. The major options are pretty interesting- I'm about to start cybersecurity management.

The law is really good and interesting! It's definitely a lot harder and demanding in terms of workload compared to commerce, but it pays off. At UNSW, you take 1 law course and 1-2 commerce courses per semester until your third year. You have to do 2 law classes (either monday/thursday or tuesday/friday) per week, and each class has set readings ranging from 10 pages to 40 pages, but it's typically ~20. If you want to read properly, understand content, and make notes, this can take up to 4 hours per reading. This can get hard to do, especially around mid-term assignments, and it's really easy to fall behind in readings as well.

Your law grade typically comprises class participation (10-20%), a mid-term take-home assignment (30-40%) and an in-person final exam (50-60%). Class participation is the hardest to keep up with, imo, as some tutors require you to contribute multiple times in every tutorial to even get a distinction. It may seem easy, but it's hard to contribute in a class of 30-50 people who are all trying to sweat asw Law marking really depends on the course and subject as well, but it's usually not too bad if you get the correct laws and evidence. However, it'll be a bit of an ego blow at first, because the max people usually get is like 78/100, with the average sitting around 65/100 for each assignment.

The first semester at UNSW is competency-based. This means you only need to pass, and you won't be given a number grade, just a Pass/Fail on your academic results.

The content in law is really interesting! In your first year, you go through the history of law, torts (things like battery, assault, false imprisonment, breach of duty/care, negligence, etc) and property law (sale of land, trespass, conversion, etc). The readings may make the information sound really boring, but once you understand it, it's a lot more interesting! In your second year, you move onto criminal law, where you learn about police powers and offences.

The quality of content for both law and commerce also depends on your tutor. I've had a lot of good and bad tutors, and they really make a difference. Always check Reddit or ask senior students about their opinions on certain tutors before you enrol...

Overall, LawComm at UNSW is really good! The social life in both, however, isn't too good unless you're in a society, or have people from the same school as you do the same degree. If you end up coming to UNSW, I recommend joining subcoms and going to camps to make friends, as it's a lot harder to do in class...

Sorry for the spam, and let me know if you have any specific questions!

 

[ventventventent]

It's not too bad! Personally, I didn't do any business/legal subjects in high school, so I kinda blindly chose Law/Comm.

I don't enjoy commerce too much... Commerce at UNSW is structured in an IFY (integrated first year) course system. This means that you are required to take courses that act like an introductory course to most of the available majors (e.g, commerce, finance, light coding, economics, etc). It's good if you enjoy business and want to experience a bit of every major before you actually finalise your major. The course isn't as easy as most people say it is. Marking is very subjective and depends on your tutor for each course. In some courses, I've had tutors put marks into a spinner wheel and use that to allocate grades for students, so it's not always fair. If you find that you enjoyed high school business subjects, then I definitely recommend picking commerce! If you haven't done any business-related subjects, then commerce is still a safe pick, but it may not be as interesting in the first year. Once you hit the middle of the second year, that's when you can pick your major. The major options are pretty interesting- I'm about to start cybersecurity management.

The law is really good and interesting! It's definitely a lot harder and demanding in terms of workload compared to commerce, but it pays off. At UNSW, you take 1 law course and 1-2 commerce courses per semester until your third year. You have to do 2 law classes (either monday/thursday or tuesday/friday) per week, and each class has set readings ranging from 10 pages to 40 pages, but it's typically ~20. If you want to read properly, understand content, and make notes, this can take up to 4 hours per reading. This can get hard to do, especially around mid-term assignments, and it's really easy to fall behind in readings as well.

Your law grade typically comprises class participation (10-20%), a mid-term take-home assignment (30-40%) and an in-person final exam (50-60%). Class participation is the hardest to keep up with, imo, as some tutors require you to contribute multiple times in every tutorial to even get a distinction. It may seem easy, but it's hard to contribute in a class of 30-50 people who are all trying to sweat asw Law marking really depends on the course and subject as well, but it's usually not too bad if you get the correct laws and evidence. However, it'll be a bit of an ego blow at first, because the max people usually get is like 78/100, with the average sitting around 65/100 for each assignment.

The first semester at UNSW is competency-based. This means you only need to pass, and you won't be given a number grade, just a Pass/Fail on your academic results.

The content in law is really interesting! In your first year, you go through the history of law, torts (things like battery, assault, false imprisonment, breach of duty/care, negligence, etc) and property law (sale of land, trespass, conversion, etc). The readings may make the information sound really boring, but once you understand it, it's a lot more interesting! In your second year, you move onto criminal law, where you learn about police powers and offences.

The quality of content for both law and commerce also depends on your tutor. I've had a lot of good and bad tutors, and they really make a difference. Always check Reddit or ask senior students about their opinions on certain tutors before you enrol...

Overall, LawComm at UNSW is really good! The social life in both, however, isn't too good unless you're in a society, or have people from the same school as you do the same degree. If you end up coming to UNSW, I recommend joining subcoms and going to camps to make friends, as it's a lot harder to do in class...

Sorry for the spam, and let me know if you have any specific questions!

u should make a thread for this response, i do med but was just curious! thanks for the detailed response

 

[Zbang]

Hey!! A bit of a late reply, but I'm a second-year law/comm at UNSW, so I have some insights! I have seen a lot of people get into USYD with low 98 (98.15-98.3) ATARs, so it's not out of reach with your estimated ATAR! I'm not sure if the LAT is still used at unsw, but the average ATAR, I'm pretty sure, was between 97.5-98.5 with a high LAT in my admission year (you can check this on the unsw website).

As someone said before, most of USYD law exams actually aren't closed book anymore, so it's the same sorta exam for UNSW and USYD. A lot of difference between them is in class participation. At UNSW, every single class across the 10-week trimester counts towards your class participation grade, which makes up between 10-20% of your overall grade. As a result, you must be up to date with the readings for each lesson, which can be pretty hard as they're usually 20-30 pages long and very hard to understand... USYD (if I'm correct) does it differently, where there's one lesson a semester where you're picked to answer some questions to count for your class participation. Some people find this easier as you don't need to stay on top of the readings, especially around mid-term season!

I've heard ANU is pretty good, especially if you want to take just a Bachelor of Laws alone, as UNSW and USYD don't offer this. However, my friend who does law there says the life in Canberra is really boring, and wishes she was back in Sydney

Going to UTS/MQU and getting a high WAM in law isn't a bad idea, especially if you think you will struggle at UNSW/USYD. From what my friends at UTS/MQU say, the marking is a lot nicer and isn't as demanding as it is at UNSW. However, a WAM above ~70 with decent extracurriculars and experience is enough to get a good graduate job by the end of your degree. If you work consistently, then this is definitely attainable at UNSW/USYD.

IPT into UNSW law isn't too hard, as long as you maintain a competitive WAM in another degree (above 75), then you're likely guaranteed a spot.

Good luck!!

Regarding IPT, I think the actual WAM required was closer to 79 for 2026 T1 intake. Generally aim 80+ for IPT into UNSW law double just cause a lot of people do want to do it