How To Get Into Oxford Law
The prestigious Oxford Law course is a dream for many. Here’s how to turn that dream into an offer.
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What’s covered
Admissions deadlines
Course and grade requirements
Preparing for the LNAT
‘Super-curriculars’ and work experience
Writing a standout personal statement for Law
Admissions Deadlines
Step one to getting into your dream university is knowing the admissions deadlines inside out – because missing just one could completely void your application before you’ve even begun.
Pay special attention to the LNAT registration and booking deadlines. It’s easy to miss but it’s so important!
All deadlines are for 2026 entry.
Oxford Law Deadlines
| Content | Deadlines | Work Needed |
|---|---|---|
| Apply for funding (international only; UK students apply in spring) | Depends on student’s home country | Submit on time |
| Registering for LNAT | 15 September 2025 | Submit on time |
| LNAT (Law National Admissions Test) | On or before 15 October | 2-3 months, ideally begin in June. |
| Personal statement (UCAS application) | 15 October 2025 | 2-3 months, begin in July. |
| Interview | Usually mid-late December | 1-2 months, begin late October. |
Course and Grade Requirements
A-levels: AAA
Advanced Highers: AAB or AA, plus an additional Higher at grade A
IB: 38 including core points (with at least 6,6,6, at HL)
Or any other equivalent
Course Duration:
3 years (BA in Jurisprudence)
4 years (BA in Jurisprudence with Senior Status or Law with European Law; includes a year abroad)
No specific subjects are required, but essay-based subjects such as History or English are recommended. If you’re applying for a BA with European Law, you’ll need the appropriate modern language. More on that below!
Annual Course Fees:
Home: £9,250
Overseas: £35,080
About the course:
The first year covers core subjects like Constitutional Law, Criminal Law, and Roman Law. In years two and three, students study Contract Law, Tort Law, Administrative Law, and more, with the opportunity to choose optional papers.
There are two Law courses at Oxford:
Course I is the standard three-year course;
Course II (Law with Law Studies in Europe) is a four-year course. It’s the same as Course I, except the third year is taken abroad at a university in France, Germany, Italy or Spain (studying French, German, Italian or Spanish law respectively) or in the Netherlands (studying European and International law). You would be expected to study in the native language (except in the Netherlands) and so must possess either a Modern Language subject at school or native proficiency.
Law:
Interviewed: 31%
Successful: 10%
Intake: 188
Law with Law Studies in Europe:
Interviewed: 26%
Successful: 9%
Intake: 29
Preparing for the LNAT
You should be preparing extensively for the LNAT, ideally months ahead of the exam. You’ll want to be practising your analytical and written skills, as well as honing your exam technique to be able to answer the 42 questions in limited time. Register before September 15 to be able to take the test before submitting your UCAS application.
The LNAT doesn’t necessarily test legal knowledge, but it does assess your critical thinking, logical reasoning, and essay-writing skills. A good LNAT score is crucial to obtaining that dream offer, especially at the UK’s most competitive universities.
The test is divided into two parts:
Section A:
A 95-minute multiple-choice segment where you’ll analyze passages and answer 42 questions testing comprehension and critical reasoning.
Section B:
A 40-minute essay section where you’ll choose one of three prompts to demonstrate your ability to construct a coherent, persuasive argument.
You can check out our page on the LNAT if you’re interested in more on the exam!
Writing a standout personal statement for Law
Your personal statement should be 4000 characters of pure persuasion. It’s your first impression on the Oxford Law admissions tutors, and, along with your LNAT score, plays a huge role in whether you secure an interview.
Make it count. You want to be drafting and redrafting your statement over and over again until it’s perfect, and this can take several weeks of hard work (don’t hesitate to get in touch with us if you’d like some guidance on it).
Oxford Law is all about critical thinking and intellectualising Law. They’re interested in potential students who not only have a passion for all things legal, but those who are intrigued by the ethical and moral implications of Law, often to a philosophical level. Try to get this across in your personal statement. One of the best ways you can do this is with:
‘Super-curriculars’ and work experience
What are ‘super-curriculars’? Think of them like extracurriculars, but academic – things like voluntarily watching lectures, shadowing lawyers, and reading about Law beyond your subjects at school. Super-curriculars are key to proving your passion with real things you do, not just words on a UCAS page.
Some examples for Law include:
Reading
Books like Letters to a Law Student (McBride) or The Rule of Law (Bingham)
Academic papers on legal philosophy or human rights law
Following legal cases in the news and forming arguments on them (this is especially good as Oxford tutors like to see an interest in current affairs)
Online courses
Oxford's Jurisprudence Open Courseware
Harvard’s Justice course by Michael Sandel
FutureLearn courses on constitutional or criminal law
Competitions
Entering the Bar Council’s Law Reform Essay Competition
Submitting an article to a student-run legal journal or blog
Taking part in the FT Essay Competition on legal and ethical topics
‘Mooting’ (debating)
Joining a school debating society
Participating in national mooting competitions (e.g., the UK Supreme Court Mooting Competition)
Watching real court proceedings (via the Supreme Court’s live stream)
Work experience
Shadowing a solicitor or barrister
Attending a court hearing and writing a reflective piece
Volunteering at a legal advice centre, such as Citizens Advice or Amnesty International
Legal podcasts & lectures
Listening to BBC Law in Action
Watching Oxford or Cambridge law faculty lectures on YouTube
Following legal discussions from The Guardian or The Times
These are just some of the many, many things you could consider doing in the months before your Oxford Law application to position you in the best light.
Don’t do too much at once; it’s better to pick a couple and really show the tutors the impact it made on you – perhaps it made you consider an ethical dilemma in a different way, or showed you the importance of law.