Wondering how to give yourself the best chances when applying to UK law schools? There’s one easy way to set yourself up for success and that's to apply early! While it’s true that a majority of law school in the UK will accept applications all the way until June, exceptions exist! Beyond that, focusing on a later deadline, can also prompt students to feel like they have lots of time to put together their application and even to procrastinate right up until the deadline. This could end up costing them their potential spot in a top law school! Below we’ve outlined addition reasons why submitting an early application (before the winter holidays is ideal) is a good idea.
 

ROLLING ADMISSIONS

A majority of law schools in the UK will operate their admissions on a rolling basis. This means that they will review and make decisions on applications as they come in throughout the year (as opposed to gathering all applications submitted before a deadline and holding them to review all at once).

The peak period of for applications to our partner law schools is in the fall through early winter. In fact, the application portal used for law applications, UCAS, actually operates an equal consideration deadline in January. While most law schools may continue to accept applications from international students after this, it’s not a guarantee. The deadline does apply to all UK applications therefore universities will receive almost all of their UK applications before the end of January. 

For popular law schools this may mean that they hit capacity and close to new applications because they’ve already awarded offers to cover all the spaces they have on their degree. Applying early, can help to ensure your application is not only reviewed but in plenty of time before the UCAS equal consideration deadline. 
 

ADMISSIONS PROGRESSIVELY COMPETITIVE THROUGH YEAR

Beyond that ,we observe that law schools accept a greater range of applicants when they still have a significant number of places remaining on each course. Therefore, if you apply early, and meet the minimum academic requirements, your chances of receiving an offer are significantly higher as long as the rest of your application is of good quality.

After the equal consideration deadline, there will be fewer available study places at the law schools. When this happens, the competition for each remaining place becomes higher. An applicant who would have been accepted earlier in the year may unfortunately experience being rejected because it wasn’t considered as competitive as another late application received.  

In addition to the academic requirements, you must also attach a personal statement. This statement is an essential part of your law application and is frequently used when admissions are needing to decide between two applicants with similar academic backgrounds. Therefore, you also want to ensure you put forth a well-written personal statement tailored towards a UK admissions audience. There are some notable differences between a UK personal statement and what you may be more familiar with in Canada. Our student advisors can help to ensure you are on the right track with this but it usually takes students a few drafts before their statement is application-ready. Starting your applications early means you’ll have lots of time to work with your advisor to perfect you statement before you apply.
 

EARLY APPLICATION = EARLY OFFER

When the university has processed your application, you will either receive a refusal or a conditional offer. Students who apply in the fall may even start to receive decision from law schools before the holidays. If you are still in school when you apply, your offer may be made with “conditions”. This means it will tell you exactly what grades or final average you will need to achieve in your remaining studies in order to gain admission to university. This way, with your applications out of the way and an offer in hand, you focus your energy for the rest of the school year on your studies with certainty of exactly which grades you need to be guaranteed a study place in the autumn.
 

SCHOLARSHIPS AND FUNDING

Many law schools in the UK have a selection of scholarships for international students. Some scholarships may be merit-based and awarded automatically when you receive an offer of admission. Others, and often the more substantial scholarships, require an application in order to be considered for the scholarship. For these, in order to apply for a scholarship, it is a criterion that you have applied to the university. Some scholarship applications may even require an admissions’ offer to have been made before the scholarship application can be submitted. 

Spring is the peak season for scholarship applications and most scholarships have an application deadline from March to May. If you submit your law school applications in the winter, you will have lots of time to look and apply for scholarships. Feel free to ask your student advisor about scholarship opportunities or read more about scholarships on our website.
 

FIRST CHOICE ACCOMMODATION

For many, living on campus is a big part of the experience of studying in the UK. Most law schools will offer international students guaranteed housing on campus as long as you apply within the university’s accommodation deadline.

Furthermore, the housing on campus is distributed on an ongoing basis. The most popular styles of room (based on price and available facilities) are naturally selected first. Ensuring you apply early will you the best shot at securing your preferred housing. Your student accommodation will be one of the biggest expenses you have during the year, and if you get affordable and good accommodation, you will have provided yourself with safe and friendly space for a fantastic study year.