Career support in the Faculty of Business and Law
We are committed to providing flexible higher education that meets the changing educational and career needs of students of all ages, at any stage in their business or law career.
Birkbeck's Careers and Enterprise service is free and available to all Birkbeck students throughout their journey, and to recent graduates, to support career development and enhance skills. The service offers career planning advice and guidance, including goal setting, reflecting on career choices and realistic advice on career options.
The faculty provides numerous routes into study to fit around working life, for example short courses and modular enrolment, alongside our respected undergraduate and postgraduate courses leading to University of London degrees.
Careers in business
A business education with a difference
From our commitment to the UN Principles for Responsible Management Education, to our economics programmes that address pressing issues such as inequality, we consider social responsibility and sustainability in all that we do.
Our teaching enables our students to make sense of a changing world and to act as global citizens within it.
Use your day to kickstart your career
As a lot of our lectures take place between 6 and 9pm, many of our students come to us on an established career path or use their day to get ahead through work experience or internships.
Many of our lecturers are also working or consulting in their field of expertise, ensuring our teaching is informed by the latest industry knowledge. Through sharing classes with other working Londoners with a wide range of backgrounds and experiences, our students enjoy a stimulating and supportive learning environment.
Our graduates have gone on to build successful careers in the public and private sectors, scientific research institutions, not-for-profit organisations or set up their own companies. Students who have studied with us are now working at many well-established multi-national companies, such as Deutsche Bank, Accenture, Microsoft and The Economist.
Find out more about how we support our students, or start your journey with us by browsing our courses.
Careers in Law
As a student in the Birkbeck Law School, you will have access to a wealth of opportunities to support your career aspirations.
Birkbeck Careers and Enterprise
The Birkbeck Careers and Enterprise team is able to assist in reviewing job/Bar applications, CVs and cover letters and build your confidence with mock interview practice and assessment centre guidance. Every student will also receive a copy of 'A Guide to Careers in Law'. In recent years, the Careers and Enterprise team has supported students in gaining internships and places on vacation schemes with organisations including Allen & Overy, Barclays, BCLP and RPC.
Scholarships
Students have also been supported to successfully apply for scholarships such as the Access to The Bar Awards (Middle Temple) and the Freshfields Stephen Lawrence Scholarship Awards.
We also offer Goldman Sachs and Birkbeck Diversity Scholarships, which support new, full-time LLB students from Black backgrounds.
Annual events
Legal Practice Conversations enable students to meet solicitors and barristers, many of whom are Birkbeck alumni, and gain first-hand knowledge into how the law works in practice. Recent speakers include employees from Leigh Day solicitors, the Equality Challenge Unit and Clifford Chance.
Take a look at Birkbeck Law School's events.
Seminars and workshops
There will also be opportunities to attend commercial and risk awareness seminars, as well as presentations and workshops from organisations including Aspiring Solicitors (commercial awareness and assessments), Government Legal Department, Sheridans and STRIVE (applying for vacation schemes and training contracts).
There is a Legal Professionals Insight Evening, attended by BCLP, Hardwicke Chambers and the Inner Temple, as well as workshops on preparing for face-to-face, video and panel interviews and how to maximise recruitment opportunities at law fairs, vacation schemes and other networking events.
Many of our courses have option modules focused on real-world legal skills. For example ‘Taking a Case to the European Court of Human Rights’ gives students a chance to work on a real case arising from alleged UK violations, taught in collaboration with the AIRE Centre (Advice on Individual Rights in Europe). First year students studying the Legal Systems and Methods module will be able to take advantage of a Meet the Practitioners annual event.
Mentoring
The Mentoring Pathways programme, run by Birkbeck's Alumni team, offers the opportunity for final-year students and professional mentors to work together. Mentors are drawn from our Birkbeck graduates and corporate partners working in a diverse range of professions and industries. Our students have been mentored by experienced professionals from such organisations as Clifford Chance, Ashurst LLP and the Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC).
Clinical opportunities
We offer clinical opportunities for our students to gain experience alongside their academic studies at three partner organisations.
Open days
Open days are held exclusively for Birkbeck students at firms including Hogan Lovells and Field Court Chambers, while places are reserved for Birkbeck students at open days at firms including BCLP.
Take a look at Birkbeck Law School's upcoming events.
Mooting
We have a long-running and highly successful mooting programme, run by two Birkbeck alumni who are now practicing barristers.