Work, Uni and starting over again

[ajs88]

I am currently working in film which to be honest i find quite pointless, its not of any real benefit to others or society (my contribution anyway), it doesn't give me the time i'd like to spend at home or the money needed to have one. Also the whole recession, looming redundancies etc. is making it increasing unpleasant.

And so I've decided to start over, i'm only 21 (have been working for a year) have 5 GCSE B-C (but not the essential maths), BTEC ND Media (Moving Image) and BA (fon) Broadcast Post-Production. Because I didn't do the third year to get honours I can still get finance for another BA.

But what to study and how to get there? I've been considering law as you can earn a living and make a contribution to society and individuals by providing legal advice or representation, there are also a few jobs with citizens advice and community and women's' groups etc.

Does anyone on here work in law or have studied law?

Also I need to sort the maths out really. I could do a boring straight maths course first or an Access to Humanities which includes sufficient maths and Kings College will accept for their LLB. But am afraid that I will be over qualified for the Access course to accept me but under qualified for the LLB without something else, they have a pretty broad acceptance range but I don't quite fit it and I couldn't start untill Sep 2010 anyway, may as well do something untill then.

Advice Please & Thanks

[the.fee.fairy]

I did Law at A-Level and its really interesting, you learn a lot. The essays were a pain in the behind for me, because i'm an English person - my degree is in English Language and Literature, and Law essays don't allow for as much twittering...they have a set form that you have to follow and i had trouble following it.

Not sure whether its worth it for a pure moneymaker qualification to be honest, there's jobs, yes, but most of them are unpaid - you're expected to do 6 months unpaid work to qualify.

Good luck!

[Mylovelyhorse]

When I was 16 I decided I wanted to be a lawyer. I did my A levels and went off to university to study law. I found it very dull, and the prospect of being able to help people/do something useful didn't really carry through. A lot of what was needed was corporate stuff (which I hated), and tedium on a stick (trusts, probate etc). The family/welfare side of law was definitely looked down on at the time (this was around 20 years ago). Part way through the course I realised that I really really didn't want to practice law. So when I graduated I went into legal publishing - making use of the law, and doing a more interesting (to me!) job.

So... Law is definitely a way of earning money, but you have to go through quite a lot of processes before you'll get there. And without wishing to malign anyone in the law, there are an awful lot of people out there who would sell their own grandmother to make a buck. The law does seem to attract those who want to make money at whatever cost. Maybe I was unlucky in my course, but I found VERY few people who wanted to do anything socially aware/give back to society.

If you feel a real calling, go for it. Possibly try an A level in law, to see if you like the feel of it?

Hope that helps (and hasn't put you off!)
MLH x

[Thomzo]

I have only studied law as part of my accountancy training. I found some of it was quite interesting and some really tedious.

The one thing I would say is that all the lawyers that I know work incredibly long hours. Whether you work in practice or for a large company, you seem to be expected to work crazy hours. A friend of mine looked into working for herself but the set-up costs of insurance, practicing certificates etc were very high.

I wouldn't worry about being overqualified for any access courses, they are designed for people who are looking to change careers. I got a place on an art access course despite my existing qualifications.

With your background in film, have you thought about marketing? You could use your existing skills but look at working with businesses that interest you or working with charities to get their messages across. Just a thought.

Good luck in whatever you chose.

Zoe

[ajs88]

Thanks for all of your comments. I've decided that I'm definatly going to the Access to Humanties course with History, Philosphey and Social Policy,and see what I want to study after that. I've really got to get out of the carear mindset because its not making me happy and isn't going to give me what I want in life, but its like its programmed into me. I would be intrested in working for a chairty or ngo so might have a look at the kind of things they look for.

[Green Aura]

I studied a module on environmental law when I did my Masters.

Once you get past the torts and liability stuff, some of it was quite fascinating.