FIRST NAMES .................................................................... SURNAME .......................................................

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APPLICATION FOR ADMISSION TO THE
FULL-TIME/PART-TIME DIPLOMA IN PROFESSIONAL LEGAL PRACTICE
YEAR 2011/12
APPLICANTS SHOULD COMPLETE ONLY ONE APPLICATION FORM. NO APPLICANT WILL BE
CONSIDERED UNLESS A COMPLETED APPLICATION FORM HAS BEEN LODGED. PLEASE COMPLETE IN
BLOCK LETTERS THROUGHOUT.

Current Glasgow students or Glasgow graduates should complete this form and send it as soon as possible to Kirsty
Davidson, Room G/21, The Stair Building, School of Law, 8 The Square, Glasgow G12 8QQ. The closing date for
receipt of applications is 18 April 2011. Applicants submitting their application forms late will not be considered
for nomination for awards from the SAAS and may not be considered for a place. Please see the attached
Guidance Note for details of arrangement for Diploma funding and related issues. Students will be notified if they
have been successful/unsuccessful in gaining a place some time during the second half of July 2011.

A CHOICE OF ACADEMIC INSTITUTION

Applicants are requested to indicate one choice of Institution from the following Diploma providers: The Universities of
Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh (full-time), Edinburgh (part-time), Glasgow, Robert Gordon, Stirling, Strathclyde (full-
time) and Strathclyde (part-time). Please note that your form will be forwarded to the institution you name. If
unsuccessful in your application, the institution you have named will advise you of what further options (if any) may be
available at that time. This will be done in July.
I WISH TO APPLY FOR A PLACE AT ………………………………………………………………………………..
______________________________________________________________________________________________
B PERSONAL INFORMATION
1 Surname (Mr/Mrs/Miss/Ms) _________________________________________________________________

2 First Names _________________________________________________________________

(underline name used)

3 Any previous name used _________________________________________________________________

4 Address for Correspondence _________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________

________________________________________ TWO

Postcode _________________ PHOTOS

Telephone Number
(include mobile phone) ______________________________________ to accompany this
application. Please
5 Address if different from ________________________________________ print your initials
above after 30 June and surname on
(Please tell the Institution _________________________________________ the reverse of
you are applying to of any each photo
change of address) __________________________________________

Postcode _____________________
Telephone Number ________________________________

Personal email address

(if available) _________________________________________________________________

6 Date of Birth _________________________________________________________________

7 Nationality _________________________________________________________________

8 Please state your matriculation

number (present or former and/or ___________________________________________________________
from other universities)
. PLEASE STATE GRADUATING UNIVERSITY ___________________________________________________
AND NAME OF DIRECTOR OF STUDIES
. CLASS OF DEGREE & YEAR COMPLETED - ORDINARY/HONOURS P.T.O.
9. Ethnicity Please tick the box which best describes your ethnic origins:

White
Scottish Other
British
Irish
Any other White Background – please tell us about this →
Mixed – please tell us about this →
Asian, Asian Scottish, or Asian British
Indian
Pakistani
Bangladeshi
Chinese
Other Asian Background – please tell us about this →
Black Scottish, or other Black British 
African
Caribbean
Other Black Background – please tell us about this →
Other Ethnic Background – please tell us about this →
I would prefer not to answer this question
_______________________________________________________________________________________________

10. Gender Please circle as appropriate

Male
Female
I would prefer not to answer this question
_______________________________________________________________________________________________

11. Disability, Learning Support Please tick box if you have a disability or learning support needs that you wish to
bring to our attention. (Please supply details on a separate sheet if necessary) □
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
C QUALIFICATIONS

1 LLB APPLICANTS

(i) Degree in law already held or presently being taken

University _____________________________ Dates of Attendance _________________________________

Actual or expected date of graduation Ordinary or Honours

(give class if awarded)
_______________________________________ ________________________________________________

Academic Record - Please attach a list of all Courses, including those presently being taken – which you are
taking as part of your Law degree (or Law subjects taken outwith the law degree). Please provide details of
all marks if known, whether at 1st or 2nd diets of examination. Please include the calendar year in which the
examination was taken. Please state the year in which you commenced your Law Degree.

You may wish to set out your list of courses and marks as per example below:

First Year 1 2 Second Year 1 2 Third Year 1 2 Fourth Year 1 2

(insert date) Die Die
t t
Example

(ii) Other degree already held or presently being taken

University ......................................................................... Faculty ....................................................................

Dates of Attendance ......................................................... Degree Course ...................................... (Ord/Hons)

Date of Graduation ............................................................ Class of Honours (or Distinction) ...........................

P.T.O.
2 NON LLB APPLICANTS
Name and Address of Employer _________________________________________________________________

Period of Employment _____________________________ Law Society/Faculty of ________________________

Advocates Examinations

(a) Exams already passed __________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________

(b) Exams still to be taken __________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

Please indicate below if there are any matters you wish to bring to the attention of the Diploma provider, for
example if your examination performance was adversely affected by external circumstances not already taken
into account in your results. The onus of bringing such matters to the attention of the provider lies with you.
This can be done by means of an academic reference if you wish, and where appropriate, external supporting
evidence should be provided.

In making decisions on admissions to a Diploma place, it is understood that each provider will utilise similar
criteria to those used for the allocation of SAAS awards (see page 4 overleaf for details). In relation to awarding
a place, the fact that an applicant has an offer of a traineeship at the time of applying for a Diploma place may
be a factor taken into account, but ONLY as another possible factor when deciding among applicants who have
extremely similar academic records.

I wish to bring the following matter to the attention of the Diploma provider:

(please continue on a separate sheet if necessary)


If your choice is a Diploma provider other than that at which you are, or have been, a candidate for the LLB
degree, your parent institution will be requested to forward a statement of your academic record upon
publication of your final degree examination results. Until this statement has been received, your application
cannot be considered.

P.T.O.
D POSTGRADUATE STUDENT AWARDS (NOT APPLICABLE TO PART-TIME APPLICANTS)

This application form also constitutes your initial application for a postgraduate student’s allowance from the Student Awards Agency for
Scotland (SAAS). PLEASE REFER TO THE ATTACHED GUIDANCE NOTE FOR IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT
ARRANGEMENTS FOR SAAS AWARDS FOR THE DIPLOMA IN PROFESSIONAL LEGAL PRACTICE. IT IS VITAL
THAT YOU READ THE GUIDANCE NOTE IN FULL BEFORE APPLYING FOR A PLACE ON THE 2011/12 DIPLOMA IN
PROFESSIONAL LEGAL PRACTICE. THESE AWARDS WILL PAY ONLY A PROPORTION OF FEES.

Information about postgraduate student awards and eligibility criteria is available from the SAAS website www.saas.gov.uk. Please refer
to the information there before making your application and if in any doubt, contact SAAS for guidance about your eligibility.

Last year, the criterion for the allocation of awards was marks obtained in Law Society pre-requisite subjects on the results obtained in the
first sitting by each candidate of each examination. This criterion could be moderated (in either direction) by the class and type of Degree
obtained, overall number of failed subjects at undergraduate level, other qualifications (both under-graduate and post-graduate), and special
circumstances (unless already taken into account internally) affecting the academic performance of individual students such as illness,
other personal factors and the weight and nature of curriculum. A similar system will operate for 2011/12, subject to the attached
guidance note. The fact that an applicant has an offer of a traineeship will not be taken into account in the allocation of awards.

Awards will be allocated during the Summer vacation. It is likely that awards will be allocated in the first round of offers by each Diploma
unit. Students who have applied for awards will be notified whether their application has been successful or not as soon as nominations
have been made, and successful applicants will then be entitled to apply for an award to SAAS. This application form will be treated as
confirmation that you wish to be considered for a nomination UNLESS you are able to indicate that you are ineligible or do not wish to
apply. IF YOU ARE IN DOUBT, PLEASE CHECK ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA ON THE SAAS WEBSITE OR CONTACT
SAAS DIRECT.

Please indicate your intentions by ticking one of the boxes below:-

I shall be applying for an award from an English Local Authority or from

Northern Ireland

I am not applying to be nominated for a Student Awards Agency for Scotland award for the
following reason(s)
................................................................................................................................................................................
Note:
Award eligibility has no bearing on the award of a Diploma place, although Diploma places may be limited. Please refer to the attached
guidance note for further information about the anticipated number of places available at each Diploma provider.

Are you classed as an overseas student for university fee purposes? YES/NO

I consent to the University at which I have been studying sharing all information relevant to this application with any Diploma provider
to which I apply and with the Law Society of Scotland where necessary.

Signature of Applicant ………………………………………………………………………. Date ………………………

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
For Office Use

Award Number _________________

 The Faculty of Advocates
The Law Society of Scotland

Note for all Intending Diploma Students

In deciding to apply for a place on the Diploma in Professional Legal Practice, you are no doubt at least considering the
possibility of a career in one or other branch of the legal profession in Scotland. Both the Faculty of Advocates and the
Law Society of Scotland are pleased to have this opportunity to introduce themselves to you, and to congratulate you on
having taken this first step along the road leading to a career in Scottish legal practice. The officers of the Faculty and
the Society whose addresses are shown below will be happy to deal with any individual queries which you may have in
relation to your future career. Please note, however, that enquiries about whether or not you will receive a Diploma
place or funding for that place should be directed to your undergraduate university or Diploma provider.

As you may have had little or no contact with the professional bodies during your undergraduate degree, you may not
be aware that both the Faculty and Society are interested in more than your academic qualifications.

In order to be granted an Entrance Certificate by the Law Society, you must satisfy the Society that you are a "fit and
proper person" to become a solicitor. You will be asked to provide the names of two referees, one from the academic
staff of your university with whom you have had recent regular contact and someone of known standing outwith the
university who has known you for at least five years. They will be asked by the Society to provide character references.
The Council of the Society also has the power to call on any intrant for interview in order to be satisfied of his or her
fitness, and may do so, for example, where the intending trainee has a conviction for a criminal offence (other than, for
example, a very minor Road Traffic offence), or where other information has been brought to its attention which calls
into question the intrant's fitness.

When you apply to the Society for an Entrance Certificate, you will be asked to complete a form on which you are
required to state whether you have ever been convicted of any offence - no matter how trivial it may seem to you - and,
also, whether you have ever been declared bankrupt. You will also be required to fill in an application form for a
Standard Disclosure. The Society, as the governing body, then applies to Disclosure Scotland for the Disclosure.
Accordingly, if you are in any doubt as to how seriously some past misdemeanour or difficulty may be viewed, you are
advised to contact the Society NOW, before entering the Diploma Course. The Society's Council will be able, at this
stage, to offer guidance only as to how a particular matter might affect the issue of an Entrance Certificate, with any
final decision being taken only when an application for an Entrance Certificate is made following completion of the
Diploma. Although it is rare for an applicant to be refused an Entrance Certificate, it is in your own interests to seek
guidance on where you stand as soon as possible.

The Dean of the Faculty of Advocates exercises a similar discretion over the admission of intending advocates, and the
foregoing advice accordingly applies equally to those who may be considering a career at the Bar.

If you are in any doubt, write to the appropriate officer named below in the first instance, giving as much information as
you can about the matter and you will be given further guidance as quickly as possible.

Dean’s Secretariat Manager

Faculty of Advocates Registrar’s Department
Parliament House The Law Society of Scotland
Parliament Square 26 Drumsheugh Gardens
EDINBURGH EH1 1RF EDINBURGH EH3 7YR
Tel: 0131 260 5795 Tel: 0131 476 8105 /8200
Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected]