Bar Course

Northumbria University

United Kingdom, Newcastle upon Tyne

University RankQS Ranking

537

Apply Now!

Go to Official Website

Home/United Kingdom/Newcastle upon Tyne /Northumbria University/Bar Course

Northumbria University

United Kingdom , Newcastle upon Tyne

Key Facts

Program Level

Master by Course Work

Study Type

Full Time

Delivery

On Campus

Campuses

Newcastle

Northumbria University

Program Language

English

Start & Deadlines

Next Intake Deadlines

Apply to this program

Go to the official application for the university

Duration 1 year(s)

Tuition Fee

GBP 13,200 / year(s)

Bar Course

About

In a demanding and rapidly changing legal landscape, the highest quality training is required to succeed as a barrister. Northumbria University’s Bar Course will support you in gaining the necessary knowledge and practical skills that are essential to practice at the modern Bar.

The new Bar course replaces the former Bar Professional Training Course. Teaching on Northumbria’s Bar Course is led by a team of highly experienced barristers and supported by a well-established network of members of the Bar, Judges and other practitioners.

You will study:

Civil Litigation (incorporating evidence and alternative dispute resolution)
Criminal Litigation (incorporating evidence and sentencing)
Advocacy
Conferencing
Drafting
Opinion Writing
Professional Ethics
Legal Research

From our law school you will develop the knowledge and skills to practice in a broad range of briefs. These are focused on the foundation areas of pupillage and early practice. From the outset you will be taught to think and behave like a barrister. You will be instructed in cases conducted as in practice, incorporating conferences, advocacy, drafting and opinion writing. You will also learn your professional, ethical obligations. This invaluable, practical experience will equip you to be immediately effective in pupillage.

You will benefit from generous contact hours throughout the course including dedicated exam-focused teaching sessions during which the teaching team will share their expertise to support you in preparing for the Bar Standards Board (BSB) centralised assessments.

You may also gain, at no further cost, an additional qualification in Mediation.

Northumbria delivers opportunities to develop distinctive and unique knowledge and skills with opportunities to undertake:

Vulnerable witness training
Practitioner advocacy masterclasses
Teaching in respect of forensic science and forensic statistics
Participation in international mooting competitions
A mentoring scheme delivered in conjunction with the Bar

Together these opportunities in Bar training will allow you to distinguish yourself in a competitive environment and ultimately thrive in this prestigious profession.

On successful completion of the Bar Course you will be eligible for Call to the Bar of England and Wales (subject to meeting the qualifying requirements of your Inn of Court)

All fees are inclusive of the Bar Standards Board (BSB) fee, practitioner texts required for study, external Mediation training and the Northumbria Qualifying Dinner.

Our flexible suite of Bar Courses offer you the opportunity to learn in the way that suits you best, with part-time, LLM and separate Bar Knowledge and Bar Skills options available.

Find out more about Bar Courses or if you are interested in postgraduate study at Northumbria, get in contact with us now.

Requirements

Entry Requirements

Entry Requirements 2025/26

Standard Entry

Applicants should normally have:

A minimum of a 2:1 honours degree in Law, or a minimum of a Commendation in the Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL) – or to be on course to achieve this. Applicants with a 2:2 honours degree or a Pass in the GDL will be considered exceptionally on an individual basis, and with appropriate evidence.

Please note academic qualifications must satisfy the requirements outlined by the Bar Standards Board. Applicants that hold, or are completing a non-UK/ROI degree or conversion course, must apply to the Bar Standards Boards for a Certificate of Academic Standing and be studying or have studied a Conversion Course such as the GDL. Further information can be found on the Bar Standards Board Website.

All applicants are required to join one of the four Inns of Court before commencing the course. Applicants must have achieved a minimum standard as specified by the BSB within the past five years. For more information, please visit www.barstandardsboard.org.uk

Bar Course Aptitude Test (BCAT):

The Bar Standards Board (BSB) has decided to discontinue the BCAT as an entry requirement for the vocational component of Bar Training with effect from 31 July 2022. Please see this statement on the BSB website for more information: https://www.barstandardsboard.org.uk/resources/bsb-to-abolish-the-bar-course-aptitude-test-from-31-july.html

English language requirements:

Please visit www.northumbria.ac.uk/barapplications

For further information and how to apply, please visit www.northumbria.ac.uk/barapplications

Please review this information before submitting your application.

Career

On successful completion of the Bar Course you will be fully prepared for the demands of practice, and will be eligible for call to the Bar of England and Wales (subject to meeting the qualifying requirements of your Inn of Court).

At Northumbria, we aim to ensure that you are prepared in every way for pupillage selection and life as a barrister. The course will build on your existing legal knowledge and equip you with the skills, knowledge and values necessary for practice as an effective and successful legal professional.

Northumbria Law School is internationally-recognised as delivering excellence in training for the Bar, and we are an integral part of the local legal community. Local firms and practitioners often sponsor prizes celebrating student success on the programme – evidence of the high esteem in which our graduates are held and a remarkable opportunity for you to gain recognition.

Previous graduates have gone on to positions as barristers in Newcastle and all over England and Wales, as well as in Commonwealth jurisdictions across the globe.