Study in the UK
A one-year master's in law that most UK universities open to law and non-law graduates alike. Compare verified 2026 fees, 2:2 entry routes and September and January intakes at six universities — with honest advice on what an LLM does (and doesn't) do for a legal career.
Duration
1 year full-time (January starts and professional placement routes typically take 15–21 months)
International fees / year
£18,450 – £21,450
Intakes
January & September
English requirement
Most LLMs on this list currently ask for IELTS 6.5 overall — Coventry requires no component below 5.5, while some Birmingham City law courses expect stronger sub-scores. PTE Academic and other approved tests are widely accepted and pre-sessional English routes are available everywhere. Medium of Instruction (MOI) letters are considered case by case at Coventry, De Montfort, Hertfordshire and Kingston, but Greenwich and Birmingham City currently insist on an approved test — we confirm the live policy for your shortlist before you book anything.
Overview
The LLM (Master of Laws) is a one-year taught master's that lets you specialise in fields such as international commercial law, international law, business law and human rights. At most of the universities we work with you do not need a law degree — a 2:2 or equivalent in any discipline is usually enough — which makes the LLM popular with business, politics and social-science graduates as well as lawyers from Pakistan, India, Nigeria and the Gulf. It is also a degree where honest advice matters: an LLM alone does not qualify you to practise as a solicitor or barrister in England and Wales, because solicitor qualification now runs through the separate SQE assessments. So we help you choose an LLM based on what you actually want afterwards — specialist expertise, a UK legal-sector career via the Graduate Route, academia, or a stronger position back home — rather than just what is easiest to get into.
Where to study
Coventry, West Midlands
PG fees from £18,600/year
Intakes: September, January, May
Coventry profileBirmingham, West Midlands
PG fees from £18,970/year
Intakes: September, January
BCU profileHatfield, East of England
PG fees from £17,950/year
Intakes: September, January
Herts profileLeicester, East Midlands
PG fees from £16,100/year
Intakes: September, January
DMU profileLondon, Greater London
PG fees from £18,700/year
Intakes: January, September
Greenwich profileKingston upon Thames, Greater London
PG fees from £19,300/year
Intakes: January, September
Kingston profileAfter you graduate
Paralegal, legal analyst, contracts and compliance roles with law firms, banks and corporate legal teams — the most realistic first UK destination for international LLM graduates, and valuable qualifying work experience if you later pursue the SQE.
In-house legal and regulatory roles in sectors that hire specialist knowledge directly — international trade, shipping, energy, fintech and insurance all recruit LLM graduates with commercial law specialisms.
Policy, advocacy and casework roles with NGOs, charities and international organisations, a natural fit for human rights and international law specialisms.
Academia and research — the LLM dissertation is the standard stepping stone to a PhD in law, in the UK or at home.
A word of honesty on practising law: an LLM alone does not qualify you as a solicitor or barrister in England and Wales. Solicitor qualification runs through the SRA's SQE route — passing SQE1 and SQE2 plus two years of qualifying work experience — and the Bar has its own separate training route. A law degree is not required to sit the SQE, and some universities now build SQE preparation into their LLM programmes, so we help you plan the two together if practising is your goal.
The Graduate Route lets you stay and work in the UK after your degree — currently two years for applications made by 31 December 2026, reducing to 18 months for applications from 1 January 2027 (PhD graduates continue to receive three years).
FAQ
At the universities we work with, 2026/27 international fees run from around £18,450 at De Montfort to £21,450 for Hertfordshire's flagship Master of Laws — Coventry charges £18,600, Greenwich £18,700 and Birmingham City £20,370, with Kingston typically around £19,300–£20,500. On top of tuition, budget for a CAS deposit of typically £4,000–£5,000 and around £1,000–£1,400 a month in living costs depending on the city.
Yes — all six universities on this list ask for a 2:2 or above, and a Pakistani, Indian or Nigerian bachelor's degree of around 55–60% is usually assessed as equivalent to a 2:2. The exact conversion depends on your university and grading scale, so we check your transcript against each admissions team's current policy before you apply.
Usually, yes. Coventry, Birmingham City, Greenwich and Kingston currently consider a 2:2 honours degree in any discipline; Hertfordshire asks for law or a related subject such as business, politics or international relations; and De Montfort prefers a law background but does not insist on one. If you have no law degree, a statement showing genuine engagement with the subject — work experience, policy work or relevant modules — makes a real difference.
Sometimes, but check before you commit: most LLMs require IELTS 6.5, and Medium of Instruction (MOI) acceptance varies sharply on this list — Coventry, De Montfort, Hertfordshire and Kingston consider MOI evidence case by case, while Greenwich and Birmingham City currently require an approved test. PTE Academic and pre-sessional English routes are widely available. Tell us your background via our contact page and we will confirm who would currently consider you without IELTS.
September is offered everywhere on this list, and January starts are currently available at Birmingham City (a 15-month route), Greenwich, Kingston, Hertfordshire and Coventry, with De Montfort mainly recruiting for September. Popular law courses can fill early, so applying 6–9 months before your intended start is the safest approach.
Yes — most of these universities offer international awards typically worth £2,000–£5,000 off first-year tuition. Coventry's postgraduate scholarships have been worth up to £2,500, Greenwich has offered regional discounts of up to £2,500 for offer-holders from countries including India, Pakistan, Nigeria and Ghana, and Kingston's merit-based scholarship is worth £5,000. Scholarship pots change every cycle, so we confirm what is live for your intake when we build your application.
Not on the LLM alone — and this is worth understanding before you commit. To qualify as a solicitor in England and Wales you must pass the SQE1 and SQE2 assessments and complete two years of qualifying work experience under the Solicitors Regulation Authority's rules; the Bar has its own separate training route. The good news is that any degree-holder can sit the SQE, paralegal and compliance work counts towards qualifying work experience, and the Graduate Route currently gives you two years in the UK after graduating (18 months for applications from 1 January 2027) to build exactly that experience.
Fees, entry requirements, English-language policies and intake dates are correct to the best of our knowledge at the date shown, but universities review them every cycle and immigration rules change. Always treat figures as a guide — we confirm the exact, current requirements with the university before you apply.
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