Torn on Commerce, Law or Both (1 Viewer)

[mcchamp]

G'day team,

I'm just about to finish my HSC and I'm a bit torn on what I want to do after. I know that I want to do something in the realm of law and business, however, I'm not sure whether I'm better off doing one or the other. I'll describe my situation a little bit:

• Looking at an approx. 88 ATAR
• With adjustment factors, I should have the ATAR for Macquarie Com/Law, as well as the ATAR for UNSW Commerce.
• I'm not sure whether a Macquarie law degree will actually be employable since I'll probably need a distinction WAM for a chance at any job.
• UNSW Commerce is ranked #1 in Australia, and I have been told by my career advisor that it's a more employable degree.
• I do want to do law, but I also want to have confidence that I will find success with a law degree if I were to get it from Macquarie.
• There may be the option to internally transfer to law at UNSW, however, I'm not sure how easy or hard this is.

Would really appreciate if someone who has had a similar dilemma could give me some advice on this, and I wish everyone the best of luck with HSC.

Cheers.

 

[jimmysmith560]

Nice to meet you, Mr Goodman.

Generally speaking, the university that a graduate attended is taken into consideration in the legal field, especially at the more established firms, unlike some other fields, where the specific university plays little to no role in graduate employability. Based on this, Go8 universities such as USyd and UNSW are typically considered superior options for students who wish to study a Bachelor of Laws. With that being said, the specific university is not the only relevant factor. As you mentioned, academic performance is also emphasised, meaning that solely attending a higher-ranked law school is not enough.

If you are determined to study law, then you should enrol at the university that makes you an offer, even if it is not USyd or UNSW. This is because it is better to be able to study law than not have that option altogether, not to mention the possibility of transferring to a different university at a later stage. This option provides more certainty than attempting an internal transfer to UNSW's Bachelor of Laws, as it would still allow you to study a Bachelor of Laws in the worst-case scenario.

While UNSW is definitely well regarded for commerce, the business field is not as simply interpreted as the legal field. A Bachelor of Commerce is a multifaceted degree, with many majors to choose from. Each specialisation constitutes a different area of business, and the extent to which the specific university that a graduate attended matters can differ between areas. Therefore, if you decide to study a Bachelor of Commerce (regardless of whether you choose to combine it with a Bachelor of Laws), you should consider your study interests and performance potential in choosing your major(s).

I hope this helps!

 

[mmmmmmmmaaaaaaa]

why don't you just go into unsw commerce and ipt into law, a 75 wam from 1st year commerce units isn't too hard

 

[mcchamp]

Nice to meet you, Mr Goodman.

Generally speaking, the university that a graduate attended is taken into consideration in the legal field, especially at the more established firms, unlike some other fields, where the specific university plays little to no role in graduate employability. Based on this, Go8 universities such as USyd and UNSW are typically considered superior options for students who wish to study a Bachelor of Laws. With that being said, the specific university is not the only relevant factor. As you mentioned, academic performance is also emphasised, meaning that solely attending a higher-ranked law school is not enough.

If you are determined to study law, then you should enrol at the university that makes you an offer, even if it is not USyd or UNSW. This is because it is better to be able to study law than not have that option altogether, not to mention the possibility of transferring to a different university at a later stage. This option provides more certainty than attempting an internal transfer to UNSW's Bachelor of Laws, as it would still allow you to study a Bachelor of Laws in the worst-case scenario.

While UNSW is definitely well regarded for commerce, the business field is not as simply interpreted as the legal field. A Bachelor of Commerce is a multifaceted degree, with many majors to choose from. Each specialisation constitutes a different area of business, and the extent to which the specific university that a graduate attended matters can differ between areas. Therefore, if you decide to study a Bachelor of Commerce (regardless of whether you choose to combine it with a Bachelor of Laws), you should consider your study interests and performance potential in choosing your major(s).

I hope this helps!

Likewise, Mr. Specter

Really appreciate this, it has clarified a lot of things for me.

Cheers.