How do I choose my courses? What should I take? Will I be a successful lawyer if I don’t take course X, Y or Z?
Don’t worry, the Student Affairs team here to help! Below we’ve set out some links to key pages in the Allard Law Student Portal to assist you. By reviewing all the linked info, you should have a better idea of options available to you. Additionally, the Law Students’ Society 1L Academic Representatives, working with the Assistant Dean, Students, approached lawyers in a number of practice areas to ask for their video advice on choosing courses.
For one-on-one advising, please reach out to an Student Affairs academic advisor.
Key Links to Help You Choose Your Courses
Degree Requirements
Review the JD degree requirements to help ensure you will meet all the requirements for graduation. The Degree Requirements also set out details about how to meet the experiential requirement.
Course and Registration Information
Summer 2024 and Winter 2024 (TBA) Course Registration Information.
- Note the registration dates and times for Summer and Winter
- Summer 2024 registration opens on March 14.
- Winter 2024 registration dates will be confirmed in May. Expect to register sometime between the last week of June and the first two weeks of July. Your registration date will depend on your year. 3Ls have registration priority.
- Summer 2024 (2024S) registration will take place on the Student Service Centre (SSC). Registration for Fall 2024 and Spring 2025 (2024W) will take place on UBC's new student information system, Workday Student.
- Winter 2024 course descriptions and course listings will be released by the end of May 2024.
- Review the detailed course descriptions (at the Summer and Winter links above) rather than those on the Student Services Centre or Workday Student: these descriptions give you detailed information about each course section as well as describing the evaluation method
- Consider timetables, schedule changes and exam dates to plan your course selection.
- Review the detailed information about registration dates and tips to improve your registration experience
Further Reading: Course Selection Advice, Frequently Asked Questions for course selection and registration
Beyond Courses
- Specializations and Concentrations: consider whether you wish to complete one and what courses are required.
- Experiential Opportunities: consider how you wish to complete your mandatory experiential requirement.
- Clinics and Externships: Consider how you wish to complete your mandatory experiential requirement. Review the Clinic & Externship Handout for detailed info about clinics and externships.
- Upper Year Moots: Consider how you wish to complete your mandatory experiential requirement.
- Joint Legal Education Programs: Explore opportunities in Hong Kong or Melbourne.
Course Selection Advice from Alumni Lawyers
We are grateful to our lawyer alumni who have prepared short videos about their perspectives on course selection based on their experience and practice area and we hope they are helpful to our students. These videos should be viewed as part of the advice that a student may receive in considering their upper-year course selection. Every student has unique goals and realities and the advice an individual lawyer’s (even if the student intends to practice in a lawyer’s field) may not be applicable to a student’s situation.
We also recommend that students speak to professors, upper year students and seek advice from the Assistant Dean, Students or Manager, Student Affairs.
Matthew Nakatsu, Allard Law Class of 2020, Litigator (Estates, Corporate-Commercial)
Naomi Moses, Allard Law Class of 2016, Former Clerk of the BC Court of Appeal, Small Firm Lawyer (Aboriginal, Constitutional, Criminal, Administrative Law)
Patrick Chou, Allard Law Class of 2018, Business lawyer
Maria Oswald, Allard Law Class of 2017, Former Clerk for the BC Court of Appeal, Government Lawyer (litigation)
Mark Iyengar, Allard Law Class of 2018, Former Clerk for the Supreme Court of Canada and BC Court of Appeal, Criminal Defence Lawyer
Tanya Thakur, Allard Law Class of 2018, Family Law Lawyer
Randy Robinson, Allard Law Class of 2016, Crown Prosecutor
Tyson Gratton, Allard Law Class of 2013, Business Lawyer
Sabrina Spencer, Allard Law Class of 2016, Former Clerk for the BC Supreme Court, Vice President (Environmental / Regulatory / Aboriginal Law)
Need More Advice?
Please reach out to the Assistant Dean, Students or the Manager, Student Affairs in the Student Affairs Office for one-on-one advising. They would be happy to meet with you! Appointments can be directly booked online via Calendly.