BCL (Clinical)
Why choose the BCL (Clinical) – CK 305?
The BCL (Clinical) is an innovative four year degree which involves combining the core BCL law programme with a one year placement in a legal professional working environment with either national or international organizations. Established in 2004, it is being offered through the CAO for the first time in 2009.
Students taking BCL (Clinical) are supported and advised by the Clinical Education Coordinator who is a member of the Faculty of Law.
Placements are arranged in areas including: International Commercial Law, Corporate and Financial Services Law, Consumer Law, Immigration and Refugee Law, Human Rights Law, Welfare Law, Medical Law, Employment Law, Environmental Law, Criminal Law and Criminal Justice.
This programme is unique in Ireland and reflects UCC’s commitment to innovative skills-based education. The placement experience has proven very beneficial to students by both developing the professional, organisational and interpersonal skills required of legal professionals and providing direction in terms of their goals after graduation. The degree has also shown to be very attractive to employers with a number of BCL Clinical students securing traineeships on foot of their placements.
Core Modules
The core modules taken over the four years are:
- Introduction to the Legal System
- Constitutional Law (either through English or Irish "Dlí Bunreachtúil")
- Criminal Law
- Law of Contract
- Legal Research and Writing
- Law of Torts
- Law of Property
- Law of the European Union
- Legal Skills - Statutory Interpretation and Legal Skills (Clinical)
- Equity
- Moot Court
- Jurisprudence
In addition to the areas listed above, the BCl (Clinical) student will complete two placements with associated research projects and presentations. The placements are arranged by the Clinical Education Coordinator, Dorothy Appelbe (d.appelbe@ucc.ie).
For more details on module content, please click here.
Elective Modules
A wide variety of elective modules are available to the BCL (Clinical) student, incorporating Law modules as well as modules in the areas of Language (French, German, Spanish, Italian or Irish) and Business (Management and Marketing or Accountancy).
With the variety and range of module options open, the BCL (Clinical) student may graduate with a broad-ranging general BCL (Clinical) degree or alternatively choose to tailor their subject choices towards, for example, International Law, Finance, Human Rights or Commercial. Please discuss your electives with your personal tutor, especially if you wish to angle your degree and start to specialise in one particular area.
Please see here for a full listing of the options available.
Student Profiles
Rita Gillen, BCL Clinical Student, placement year 2010/2011
"Participating in the clinical law programme was a fantastic experience. Over the course of the year, I had the opportunity to work in a general solicitor’s practice and in a large corporate law firm in Dublin. I was surprised at the level of responsibility given to clinical placement students, as I had assumed that I would be undertaking a passive role. Instead I was actively involved in Court proceedings, attended client meetings and even participated in a research project with a senior partner! Not only did the year reaffirm my career choice to become a solicitor, but it has also made me consider specialising in certain areas of law, such as employment law, in the future. I have become a more confident person as a result of working 9 months in two legal working environments and I would highly recommend the clinical programme to any person who is seriously considering pursuing a legal career."
Emma Roche-Cagney, BCL Clinical Graduate 2011
"The BCL Clinical programme gave me an invaluable opportunity to translate legal theory into professional reality and to use studied course material to practical effect in the workplace. The placement experience gave me a greater insight into the career avenues open to law students and proved an interesting and enjoyable challenge that accelerated both my academic and professional development. I would strongly recommend the programme to any law student."
Orlaith O’Riordan, BCL Clinical Graduate 2010
"The BCL Clinical programme gave me an invaluable opportunity to translate legal theory into professional reality and to use studied course material to practical effect in the workplace. The placement experience gave me a greater insight into the career avenues open to law students and proved an interesting and enjoyable challenge that accelerated both my academic and professional development. I would strongly recommend the programme to any law student.
Before completing the first year of my Law degree at UCC, I was fortunate enough to secure a place on the BCL Clinical programme which provided me with the opportunity to gain invaluable work experience within the legal sphere. For 6 months, I was placed within the Employment, Pensions and Benefits Group of one of Ireland’s leading commercial law firms, Matheson Ormsby Prentice. I greatly enjoyed my time spent with MOP and the work I received was both challenging and varied. Mainly, my role involved research, preparing notes on various legal issues, giving presentations to my group on important updates in Employment Law and finally, preparing and drafting the Employment Pensions and Benefits Group Newsletter which was distributed to clients. Jennifer Hourihane, BCL Clinical Graduate 2010
I was also provided with the opportunity to spend one week with Goldsmith Chambers, who are a chamber of barristers based in London as part of the BCL Clinical experience. On this short placement, I shadowed the work of a number of Barristers who were specialised in many areas of law.
These two contrasting placements enabled me to gain an in depth understanding of what a future career within the legal world would entail. Following from my experience, I can honestly say that I would highly recommend this programme to all students."
Jennifer Hourihane, BCL Clinical Graduate 2010
"The transition from campus to the working world is always a challenge. The BCL Clinical presents just this. I applied to the Clinical programme to learn more of the opportunities that come from studying the law, and to find out what it takes to build a career in law. My third year began in a Cork law firm (Ronan Daly Jermyn) in litigation - an element of the law in practice that cannot be grasped from academic course modules. From meeting clients to attending court I got to experience the working day of a solicitor and got a glimpse of how the courts system works. After Christmas I packed my bags (and snow boots!) to move to Luxembourg to begin my second placement with Bonn Schmitt Steichen. Here I worked in a diverse environment with lawyers from every corner of the globe. I gained an active insight into the international corporate world, while living and working in a foreign country. This was certainly a second term with a difference!
The year away was one of constant learning and everyday brought new challenges. The programme opened my mind to the variety and possibilities which working in the law provides. I worked alongside dedicated and talented professionals. I met with clients - the people behind their work. All of this inspired me for my final year of study and brought my career aspirations into focus. I believe choosing the BCL Clinical has provided me with a perfect springboard to kick-start my career in law."
Kieran O’Sullivan, BCL Clinical Graduate 2010
"Going into your Clinical placement, it can be hard to tell what you're going to get out of it. A lot of people (and I include myself in this) may underestimate the potential for personal development and instead prioritise the more superficial benefits of building your CV and furthering your career prospects. That is not to say that the Clinical programme doesn't offer these things; it does. However, the greatest benefits you will get from the programme are the ones that you least expect. The workplace experience challenges you to apply the research and analytical skills that you hadn't realised you had acquired in your two years of University education. It teaches you that words like "teamwork" and "communication" are not just useful buzzwords but have a very real meaning in legal practice. Moreover, it gives you an opportunity to test your aptitude for a career in law. This, I believe, was one of the most important benefits that I derived from my experience. Having confirmed that this is where my aptitudes lie, I go into my final year with a renewed sense of purpose. What is more, I have developed the skills and self confidence that will further my career prospects in a truer way than I had anticipated coming into this programme. I come out of my Clinical experience as a more focused and competent person. I would definitely do this again."
Art Ward
click here for a video of Art Ward
BCL (Clinical) degree (CK 305)
Excerpt from presentation given following third year clinical placement on the BCL (Clinical)
Eleanor Kearney, BCL (Clinical) Student on Placement 2007/08
“My first placement was with Bonn Schmitt Steichen an international commercial law firm in Luxembourg. I can honestly describe it as the experience of a lifetime. It was so daunting at first to move to a new European city on my own but the whole experience was one of total self-discovery. For me the purpose of doing the BCL (Clinical) was to take a year to decide where I would go with my law degree and what I wanted from my career. I knew working for 6 months would help me with this and working in Luxembourg was an opportunity that might not present itself again. I met lawyers from all over the world, from hugely diverse backgrounds. I feel much more confident about my legal career now. I know so much more about the opportunities for law graduates in Europe and across the world. I am more confident as a person: the sense of achievement of working in a law firm alone was huge – let alone a law firm in Luxembourg. I have met some fantastic people who had a huge influence on me and who I am. I would recommend it to anyone.”
Further information can be obtained from the Clinical Education Coordinator at the Faculty of Law.
