As a final year law student, there are two experiential learning opportunities available to you: Legal Advice Clinic and Law Professional Placement. As instrumental components of UniSA's law programs, undertaking a placement as part of these courses will provide you with opportunities to apply your academic knowledge in a real-world context and develop your professional skills.
Establish
Connect with industry contacts and gain the edge to succeed in today's job market
Explore
Use your work placement experience to discover potential future career paths
Experience
Get your foot in the door of your chosen industry/firm
Program details
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Legal Advice Clinic
At UniSA's Legal Advice Clinic, students gain first hand experience interviewing and advising clients.
The Legal Advice Clinic is an instrumental part of the University’s law program. Final-year law students can choose to undertake a placement in the Clinic at UniSA's City West campus and outreach services. This clinical placement provides law students with the opportunity to do legal work under the supervision of qualified legal practitioners. Students work on a range of matters including family law, criminal law, civil law, consumer law among others.
Law students gain invaluable experience in interviewing clients, taking relevant notes, maintaining files, conducting research, drafting documents and providing written advice. Undertaking the role of a Student Advisor in the Legal Advice Clinic equips students with the experience they need to meet clients’ needs once they begin their professional career.
The aim of this 9-unit course is to develop professional skills and values, including UniSA graduate qualities, with a structured analysis of, and reflection on, the professional experience gained in the Legal Advice Clinic. In addition to analysing and reflecting on their personal experiences, students will consider the role of legal professionals in the legal system and in society generally.
Students will attend 10 placement days over the study period (70 hours). Students attend one placement day per week if enrolled in Study Period 2 or 5, and two placement days per week if enrolled in the intensive course in Study Period 1. Students will also attend weekly on-campus seminars (20 hours) designed to prepare them for their clinic placement, enable constructive reflection on their progress and to assist the preparation of their assessment.
To enrol you must have successfully completed Lawyers, Ethics and Society (LAWS 4006), and have a GPA of 4.0 or higher.
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Law Professional Placement
Undergo a work placement in a legal firm or another legal setting that prepares you for your career.
Law Professional Placements aim to develop final year law students’ professional skills and values via a 15-day legal industry placement. Students apply their knowledge of the law gained throughout their studies while gaining valuable professional experience related to their future careers. In collaboration with a legal academic, work placement supervisors provide students with appropriate legal tasks and constructive feedback at the conclusion of the placement. Students work on a range of legal tasks in a variety of environments, including commercial, government and community organisations. Work placement opportunities include state government legal services, private law firms, community legal centres and other justice-oriented non-government organisations.
The aim of this 9-unit course is to develop professional skills and values, including UniSA graduate qualities, with a structured analysis of, and reflection upon, experience gained during a work placement. Students apply their knowledge of the law gained throughout their studies to these work placements through related legal tasks and gain valuable professional experience related to their future careers. In collaboration with a legal academic, host work placement supervisors provide students with appropriate tasks and also provide students with constructive feedback.
In addition to the 15 days (105 hours) spent at the placement workplace, students will also attend five on-campus seminars (10 hours). These seminars are designed to prepare them for their placement, enable constructive reflection on their progress and to assist the preparation of their assessment. The dates of the fifteen placement days are to be negotiated between the student and supervisor. Placements can be spread over the term from 1 to 4 days each week.
To enrol you must have successfully completed Lawyers, Ethics and Society (LAWS 4006) and 72 units of undergraduate law study, and have a minimum GPA of 4.0 across UniSA courses.
FAQs
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Can I undertake both placement courses in the same study period?
Students can undertake both Law Professional Placement (LAWS 4021) and Legal Advice Clinic (LAWS 4018) concurrently in Study Period 2 and Study Period 5. Both courses are nine units, so when undertaken concurrently they are a full-time load. Please keep in mind that you will need to be available in person for a minimum of three days per week to undertake the seminar and placement requirements for both courses. In addition, you will be required to complete weekly assessment tasks for both courses.
In Study Period 1 Legal Advice Clinic (LAWS 4018) is delivered in an intensive 5-week format, and you will need to be available two days per week to undertake the placement requirements. In addition, you will be required to attend seminars in person and complete weekly assessment tasks. This 9-unit placement course is equivalent to a full-time load when undertaken intensively during Study Period 1.
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What are the course prerequisite requirements?
Legal Advice Clinic
This course is aimed at final year law students. To enrol you must have successfully completed Lawyers, Ethics and Society (LAWS 4006), and have a GPA of 4.0 or higher.
Law Professional Placement
This course is aimed at final year law students. To enrol you must have successfully completed Lawyers, Ethics and Society (LAWS 4006) and 72 units of undergraduate law study, and have a minimum GPA of 4.0 across UniSA courses.
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What screening is required for law placement courses?
Prior to the commencement of all law placements, students must demonstrate that they have a current National Police Clearance certificate that is valid for the duration of the course (12 months from the issue date). External placement providers may also require a current Department of Human Services Working with Children Check (WWCC), which needs to be valid for the duration of the course. The National Police Check will list disclosable court outcomes that may prevent a student's clinical placement/industry placement involvement, leading to withdrawal from the course. Students will need to apply for screening a minimum of four weeks prior to commencement of the study period and are required to fund all associated costs. Enrolled students will receive detailed instructions on how to apply for screening approximately six weeks prior to commencement of the study period.
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How do I enrol in a placement course?
You can enrol in law placement courses by accessing myEnrolment through the student portal (login required).
Enrolment for Legal Advice Clinic (LAWS 4018) closes four weeks prior to the commencement of the study period. Enrolled students will receive information via email four weeks before the study period starts about how to submit placement day preferences.
Enrolment for Law Professional Placement (LAWS 4021) closes eight weeks prior to commencement of the study period. Enrolled students will receive information via email eight weeks before the study period starts about how to apply for placement opportunities.
Students who have sourced their own placement opportunity will need to obtain Course Coordinator approval a minimum of eight weeks prior to the commencement of the study period. To seek Course Coordinator approval, download the Self-found Placement Approval form and follow the instructions.
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What kind of placement opportunities are available for the Law Professional Placement course and how do I apply?
Work placement opportunities include state government legal services, private law firms, community legal centres and other justice-oriented non-government organisations. The opportunities available vary in each study period.
Placement opportunities will be advertised via InPlace (login required) eight weeks before the study period commences. There will be a seven day application period, where students can identify which placement opportunities interest them and rank them in order of preference. Enrolled students will receive further instructions via email when the application period opens.
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Can I find my own placement for Law Professional Placement?
Yes, students are permitted to identify their own placement opportunities. You are not required to find your own placement, but if you have a particular area of law that you are interested in and wish to undertake your placement, it may be beneficial for you to find your own placement opportunity.
Students who have sourced their own placement opportunity will need to obtain Course Coordinator approval a minimum of eight weeks prior to the commencement of the study period. For further information and to seek Course Coordinator approval download the Self-found Placement Approval Form.
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How do I know what my placement will be for the Legal Advice Clinic?
All students enrolled in Legal Advice Clinic (LAWS 4018) will receive an email four weeks before the commencement of the study period with instructions on how to submit their placement day preferences. Clinic placement day options and locations vary in each study period due to enrolment numbers.
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Does the University provide insurance for students on placement?
Yes, the University of South Australia provides insurance for all unpaid placements. All placements need to be approved by the University before commencement to ensure that the insurance is in place.
- Find out more about UniSA's student placement insurance requirements.
- Download the Student Placement Insurance Form.
If the placement is paid, the host organisation will need to provide evidence that both Public Liability and Professional Indemnity insurance is provided for the full period of the placement.
Get in touch
For more information, you can submit an enquiry to our team and we will get back to you as soon as we can.
