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Courses
Courses
Choosing a course is one of the most important decisions you'll ever make! View our courses and see what our students and lecturers have to say about the courses you are interested in at the links below.
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University Life
University Life
Each year more than 4,000 choose NUI Galway as their University of choice. Find out what life at NUI Galway is all about here.
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About NUI Galway
About NUI Galway
Since 1845, NUI Galway has been sharing the highest quality teaching and research with Ireland and the world. Find out what makes our University so special – from our distinguished history to the latest news and campus developments.
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Colleges & Schools
Colleges & Schools
NUI Galway has earned international recognition as a research-led university with a commitment to top quality teaching across a range of key areas of expertise.
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Research & Innovation
Research & Innovation
NUI Galway’s vibrant research community take on some of the most pressing challenges of our times.
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Business & Industry
Guiding Breakthrough Research at NUI Galway
We explore and facilitate commercial opportunities for the research community at NUI Galway, as well as facilitating industry partnership.
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Alumni, Friends & Supporters
Alumni, Friends & Supporters
There are over 90,000 NUI Galway graduates Worldwide, connect with us and tap into the online community.
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Community Engagement
Community Engagement
At NUI Galway, we believe that the best learning takes place when you apply what you learn in a real world context. That's why many of our courses include work placements or community projects.
Law (BCL)
Course Overview
Students can focus their studies on the law to maximise their understanding of the legal process. Students can tailor this degree to particular areas of law that interest them. Students who wish to qualify professionally as a solicitor or a barrister will have completed the modules required by the Law Society and the Honourable Society of King’s Inns. Students can study abroad at partner institutions around the world, giving them the opportunity to experience legal education in an international setting and to gain a different perspective on the law.
Throughout the programme there is an emphasis on acquiring the fundamental practical skills required of lawyers – legal research, writing, oral presentation and advocacy.
Students will have the opportunity to engage in a professional work placement in a leading law firm, a corporate firm or a public sector organisation. Students on placement will see application of the law in action, and thereby supplementing their academic legal education with practical experience.
Law at the Virtual Open Day
Read questions and answers from our 'Ask a Lecturer' in Law Live Q&A session.
Explore courses and careers in Law through a video presentation.
Applications and Selections
Who Teaches this Course
Requirements and Assessment
Key Facts
Entry Requirements
Minimum Grade H5 in two subjects and passes in four other subjects at O6/H7 level in the Leaving Certificate including Irish, English, another language and any three other subjects recognised for entry purposes.
Additional Requirements
Duration
4 years
Next start date
September 2021
A Level Grades (2020)
nuigalway.ie/alevels
Average intake
60
Closing Date
NFQ level
Mode of study
ECTS weighting
Award
CAO
GY251
Course code
Course Outline
Year 1 |
Year 2 |
Year 3* |
Year 4 |
---|---|---|---|
Constitutional Law | Administrative Law | Study Abroad | Land Law |
Contract Law | Company Law | OR | Equity Law |
Tort Law | Criminal Law | Professional Work Placement | Jurisprudence |
Understanding the Law | European Union Law | Guided Research Essay | |
Legal Skills | Evidence Law | Choose one of the following Specialist Streams: | |
Optional Modules: | Mooting | Stream 1 – Business and Commercial Law | |
French/German/Teanga an Dlí (Legal Irish) or Family Law | Optional Modules: | Stream 2 – Public Law, Risk and Regulation | |
French/German/Teanga an Dlí (Legal Irish)
|
Stream 3 – Human Rights, Crime and Equality | ||
Health Law | Stream 4 – International, Comparative and Transnational Law | ||
Housing Law | Stream 5 – Language | ||
Information Technology Law | Stream 6 - General | ||
Intellectual Property Law | |||
Media Law |
*Year 3
Caithfidh na mic léinn a dhéanann Teanga an Dlí seimeastar amháin ag staidéar ar champas Gaeltachta Ollscoil na hÉireann Gaillimh ar an gCeathrú Rua agus seimeastar amháin eile ar shocrúchán oibre i dtimpeallacht lán-Ghaeilge. (Students who study Legal Irish will spend one semester studying at NUI Galway’s Gaeltacht campus in An Cheathrú Rua and one semester of professional work placement in an Irish-speaking environment.)
Specialist Streams
Stream 1 – Business and Commercial LawBanking Law
Alternative Dispute Resolution
Medical Device Law & Regulation
Labour Law I
Labour Law II
Commercial Law
EU Competition law
International Trade Law
Law and Economics
Industrial and Intellectual Property Law
English Land Law
Criminal Justice
Environmental Law I
Environmental Law II
Criminology
Health Law & Policy
Housing Law & Policy
Medical Device Law and Regulation
Information Technology Law
Industrial and Intellectual Property Law
Media Law
Admin Law II
Street Law
Health Law & Policy
Criminal Justice
Criminology
Family Law
Labour Law I
Housing Law & Policy
Applied Legal Theory
European Human Rights 1
European Human Rights 2
Comparative Disability Law
Public International Law
International Human Rights 1
International Human Rights 2 (new)
Jurisprudence II
Street Law
Comparative Disability Law
Applied Legal Theory
Public International Law
Comparative Law
International Trade Law
European Human Rights 1
European Human Rights 2 (New)
EU Competition Law
International Human Rights 1
International Human Rights 2 (new)
English Land Law
One of the following language modules are compulsory within this stream. Note: the language stream must be selected from the beginning, Year 1, of your Programme.
Legal French
Legal German
Teanga an Dlí (Legal Irish)
Students will choose from Law & Business modules available to meet the 60 credits (ECTS) requirement per year.
Stream 6 – GeneralStudents can choose from a variety of available modules to meet the 60 credits (ECTS) requirement per year.
Curriculum Information
Curriculum information relates to the current academic year (in most cases).Course and module offerings and details may be subject to change.
Glossary of Terms
- Credits
- You must earn a defined number of credits (aka ECTS) to complete each year of your course. You do this by taking all of its required modules as well as the correct number of optional modules to obtain that year's total number of credits.
- Module
- An examinable portion of a subject or course, for which you attend lectures and/or tutorials and carry out assignments. E.g. Algebra and Calculus could be modules within the subject Mathematics. Each module has a unique module code eg. MA140.
- Subject
- Some courses allow you to choose subjects, where related modules are grouped together. Subjects have their own required number of credits, so you must take all that subject's required modules and may also need to obtain the remainder of the subject's total credits by choosing from its available optional modules.
- Optional
- A module you may choose to study.
- Required
- A module that you must study if you choose this course (or subject).
- Required Core Subject
- A subject you must study because it's integral to that course.
- Semester
- Most courses have 2 semesters (aka terms) per year, so a three-year course will have six semesters in total. For clarity, this page will refer to the first semester of year 2 as 'Semester 3'.
Year 1 (60 Credits)
Optional LW127: Family Law - 10 Credits - Semester 1Optional GR106: Legal German - 10 Credits - Semester 1
Optional GA1101: Gaeilge & Scileanna Cumarsáide 1_Teanga an Dlí - 10 Credits - Semester 1
Optional GR1104: Beginners German for Law Students - 10 Credits - Semester 1
Required LW262: Tort - 10 Credits - Semester 1
Required LW118: Contract - 10 Credits - Semester 1
Required LW117: Constitutional Law - 10 Credits - Semester 1
Required LW3120: Understanding the Law - 10 Credits - Semester 1
Optional LW109: Legal French - 10 Credits - Semester 2
Required LW3121: Critical Thinking for Lawyers - 10 Credits - Semester 2
Year 2 (60 Credits)
Optional GR208: Legal German - 10 Credits - Semester 3Optional LW213: Legal French I - 10 Credits - Semester 3
Optional LW212: Labour Law I - 5 Credits - Semester 3
Optional LW356: Industrial And Intellectual Property Law - 5 Credits - Semester 3
Optional LW357: Environmental Law I - 5 Credits - Semester 3
Optional LW371: Alternative Dispute Resolution - 5 Credits - Semester 3
Optional LW405: Health Law & Policy - 5 Credits - Semester 3
Optional LW3127: International Protection of Human Rights I - 5 Credits - Semester 3
Optional LW3130: European Human Rights Law - Systems & Themes I - 5 Credits - Semester 3
Required LW427: European Union Law I - 5 Credits - Semester 3
Required LW229: Company Law I - 5 Credits - Semester 3
Required LW513: Evidence I - 5 Credits - Semester 3
Required LW337: Administrative Law I - 5 Credits - Semester 3
Required LW301: Criminal Law I - 5 Credits - Semester 3
Optional LW422: Administrative Law II - 5 Credits - Semester 4
Optional LW216: Labour Law II - 5 Credits - Semester 4
Optional LW358: Environmental Law II - 5 Credits - Semester 4
Optional LW365: Criminology - 5 Credits - Semester 4
Optional LW370: Comparative Disability Law - 5 Credits - Semester 4
Optional LW374: Banking Law - 5 Credits - Semester 4
Optional LW3128: International Protection of Human Rights II - 5 Credits - Semester 4
Optional LW3131: European Human Rights Law - Systems & Themes II - 5 Credits - Semester 4
Required LW231: Company Law II - 5 Credits - Semester 4
Required LW514: Evidence II - 5 Credits - Semester 4
Required LW437: Moot Court - 5 Credits - Semester 4
Required LW428: European Union Law II - 5 Credits - Semester 4
Required LW304: Criminal Law II - 5 Credits - Semester 4
Year 3 (60 Credits)
Year 4 (60 Credits)
Further Education
Further study can lead to the LLM or PhD degrees. The PhD is undertaken by research and the taught LLM programmes on offer include LLMs in Public Law; International and Comparative Business Law; International Human Rights Law; Peace Operations; International Criminal Law; and Disability Law.
Why Choose This Course?
Career Opportunities
Graduates of the Law (BCL) programme will be well equipped to succeed in professional studies at either the Law Society (solicitor) or the Honourable Society of King’s Inns (barrister). This degree will also provide an excellent platform for graduates interested in working outside of the professions – as more and more areas of life are legally regulated, the comprehensive grounding in the law and the legal process that graduates receive during this degree will make them attractive to a wide range of potential employers in financial services, consultancy, industry and the public sector.
Who’s Suited to This Course
Learning Outcomes
Work Placement
Students will have the opportunity to engage in a professional work placement in a leading law firm, a corporate firm or a public sector organisation.
Students on placement will see application of the law in action, and thereby supplementing their academic legal education with practical experience.
Study Abroad
Students can study abroad at partner institutions around the world, giving them the opportunity to experience legal education in an international setting and to gain a different perspective on the law. More information on these opportunities is on our International Study page.
Related Student Organisations
Course Fees
Fees: EU
Fees: Tuition
Fees: Student Contribution
Fees: Student levy
Fees: Non EU
EU Fees 2020/21:
- Tuition: may be paid by the Irish Government on your behalf if you qualify for free tuition fees see - free fee initiative.
- Student Contribution: €3,000 - payable by all students but may by paid by SUSI if you apply and are deemed eligible for a means tested SUSI grant.
- Student Levy: €224 - payable by all students and is not covered by SUSI.
Find out More
Administrative Offices: Room 406, Floor 2, Tower 2, Concourse (Arts/Science Building)
Office hours: 11.00 - 13.00, 14.00 - 16.00 (Monday – Friday)
Phone: +353 (0)91 492389
Email: law@nuigalway.ie
What Our Students Say

Ferdia Breathnach | BCL
“Studying Civil Law in NUI Galway afforded me the opportunity to delve deep into the law and initially focus on a wide range of subjects. I studied the foundations of law and formed a great understanding of the core principles and subjects that are a pre-requisite for any future career in law and have stood me in good stead to this day. The option now of the Clinical Legal Education course provided by the School of Law enables students to undergo invaluable practical experience of working in various careers in law and this opportunity should be encouraged and availed of.”

Peo Mosepele | BCL
“This course is extremely interesting and offers a lot of diverse opportunities to students. The lectures are often interactive which makes them enjoyable to attend. Additionally, the lecturers are very approachable and always willing to help. One of the fantastic opportunities the degree has offered me was the ability to spend a year studying abroad in Southern Utah University in the US. This allowed me to broaden my experience in a unique and very interesting way. Studying Law in NUIG was one of the best decisions of my life and I would highly recommend it to anyone.”