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Before starting university in September of 2021, I’d been warned by those I knew who’d studied at university about the step up from year one to year two. Having just completed my second year of study, I’m taking a look back to see if the dreaded second year is actually as bad as the rumours suggested. 

Moving into the second year, the key difference is, of course, assessed work counting towards your final grade. First-year gives you an opportunity to gain and consolidate knowledge, allowing you to test yourself against assessments without many consequences. This is an excellent opportunity to improve and test your knowledge without the worry and greater consideration that assessed work (that counts towards the final grade) may bring.

The second-year assessments bring their own set of challenges and the importance of them can bring greater stress and anxiety; however, they’re key to unlocking your full understanding and potential. Ultimately, I’ve seen an increase in both my writing and legal analysis skills in my second year, improvements to which I attribute to the greater detail I went into to prepare my work, as well as the higher expectations set by the teaching of assessed modules.

On the theme of teaching, another warning I was given was that there were massively greater expectations of lecturers. Fortunately, the way in which my course has been structured has demanded a consistently high level of application and completed work from students from the first day of my degree. This has allowed the transition to feel far less daunting, as the expectations from lecturers have stayed relatively similar.

This ultimately, I believe, is the key aspect which can make the transition from first to second year daunting, or seamless. Due to excellent planning, high expectations and efficient communication from lecturers, I’ve found the transition to be almost unnoticeable. However, if you find yourself left in the dark by your lectures and aren’t kept up to date with what will be changing and what they expect of you, you may have to prepare yourself for the changes which will be taking place regarding your teaching and assessments. 

Finally, moving into your second year brings with it the expectation of having a general idea of where you’d like to take yourself within the world of law. In the second half of this year, I completed a placement module with a local firm, which helped boost my skills in legal research and writing. This was a fantastic way to develop some of the key skills it takes to become a solicitor. However, its worth noting that a placement module like the one I did works best when you know which route you one to take (ie, solicitor or barrister).

 If you’re not sure about your direction yet, then you can apply for a placement to test out different pathways and get a taste of various aspects of the law. You can also use sites such as LawCareers.Net or Forage to research a sample of a range of legal roles. Your second year is an excellent opportunity to cater your modules to either fit the pathway you’re looking to follow or to give you a range of experiences ready to make your module selection for the third year. 

Overall, I believe that the transition truly comes down to the organisation of your course, and the communication from lecturers. Good teaching and good course structure will allow this transition to flow seamlessly and help you to not put any unwanted pressure on yourself. If you’re a first-year waiting to make the transition into your second year, the key thing to remember is that although expectations are higher, if you prepare properly and apply yourself to the work set by your lecturers, then you shouldn’t feel too much of the change.