Law School Bulletin
October 2025

Welcome from the Acting Head of Law

Welcome to the October edition of our newsletter, where you will find the latest information on the 'Law School Social', top tips for applying for a vacation scheme and an introduction to Mabel, our newest Law School recruit!

It has been an exciting start to the new academic year, as we welcomed our largest ever undergraduate cohort in Law, as well as 10 new members of academic staff. We have also appointed a firm of architects to make improvements to the Law parts of the Amory Building, which we hope to complete within the next two years. We care passionately about making the Law School a really great place to study; do please take us up on opportunities to develop your skills, receive support, or plan for your future career. I hope you find the information in this newsletter helpful and timely. 
Best wishes, 
Richard, 
Dr Richard Bowyer, Acting Head of Exeter Law School

Education Matters with David Yuratich

Hello! I’ve been really pleased to hear that so many of you are enjoying the start of term, and the feeling among Law School staff is mutual. It’s been a very happy October so far.

Many of you will now have been offered the chance to complete formative work as a practice ahead of your summative assessments later this year, and every module will be providing this opportunity in due course. I urge you to take advantage of this opportunity. Formative work is only one of the ways we provide feedback to you, but the advantage of formative feedback is that it directly addresses your assessment-writing abilities. Whether or not you submit formative work, please remember to reflect on your academic progress after each class and reach out to your seminar tutor or module convenor (via the ELE forums in the first instance) if you still have questions about the content you have covered.

You will see in our ‘Spotlight’ below that we have a series of infographics designed to guide you to the best source of advice. Two other good places to start as you think more about assessment are the various resources on the Law ELE Gateway, and the library’s law subject guide. On the Gateway, you will find the slides from the 'Welcome' and 'Welcome back' talks, and these also contain guidance on assessment planning. Another great place is The Successful Law Student by Imogen Moore and Craig Newbery-Jones, which you can access on Law Trove via the law library subject guide.

We will soon be in reading week, to allow you time to consolidate and catch up on your studies. I hope you also take the opportunity to take a short break. If you’ve not managed to explore the city or the surrounding countryside, this is a good time to do it.
Best wishes,
David
Dr David Yuratich, Director of Education and Student Experience

Spotlight on Academic Advice

Need some help, but not sure quite where to go?
Feedback from students has said that knowing where to go for further support can be difficult, so in response the Law School has created a series of infographics on questions such as:
👉 How do I improve my work?
📅 Should I book an Office Hours appointment?
🔍 How do I improve my analysis skills? 

See the Module graphic below and go to the ELE webpage for further infographics about assessments and office hours appointments.

Your Voice Matters

Your feedback helps us to better understand and improve your student experience. If you have any feedback to share with us, good or bad, please reach out to a member of academic staff, your academic tutor or a Law Student Rep. You can also contact David Yuratich, Matthew Channon, Amy Man. Student Reps work with the Students' Guild and University staff to address specific issues and implement positive changes. You can find your Reps on the Students' Guild webpages.

Academic Literary Fellows

Following on from feedback from students who said they found it hard to get an appointment with a Royal Literary Fund Fellow (RLF), this year Exeter Law School is hosting two RLFs – Christopher Wakling and Roland Chambers. They offer free, confidential writing tutorials to help students at all levels improve their academic writing. 

The Fellows sit alongside our own law skills activities and University skills provision, but is particularly helpful in focusing on non-subject specific writing advice and offering dedicated one-to-one support.

How they might help:

• Guidance in essay planning
• Structuring your argument 
• How to make a draft clearer and more economical
• Rewriting and editing
• ‘Writer’s block’

• Or just understanding an essay question.

Book a session (up to 50 minutes):
Christopher (chris.wakling@rlfeducation.org.uk) or
Roland (roland.chambers@rlfeducation.org.uk) who will tailor the session to your needs. The sessions are available both in-person and online.

Our latest recruit: Mabel

Have you seen a very cute dog in and around the Law School? It's probably Mabel who works with one of our Pastoral Mentors, Sarah Street. This initiative is aimed at offering an extra layer of support and wellbeing for students.

You can book to see either Sarah, Sarah and Mabel or Jay Ford, in person or remotely via law-pastoral@exeter.ac.uk. Sarah and Jay have years of experience helping with student wellbeing and will endeavour to find you the right support and guide you as a first step.   

Looking for advice to secure a vacation scheme?

Final year LLB Law student April Coslett has written two very useful articles based on her experience of applying and completing a summer vacation scheme with Clarke Wilmott. Find out her top tips for writing a well-crafted application and how to make the most of a vacation scheme on our webpage here.

Want some funding for a law activity?

If you have an idea for an event or an activity which would benefit a large number of students but you need some funds to get it up and running, you could apply to the University's Alumni Fund. 

Funded by thousands of alumni and supporters of the University, donations are used to enhance the student experience. Grants are given to all kinds of sports clubs, societies, music groups, student conferences and community outreach projects. In the past this has been used to purchase barrister wigs, fund alumni visits and this Canadian Law Employability event (pictured).

Find out more and get advice on how to apply for funding by emailing: annualfund@exeter.ac.uk. Click the button below to read more about the scheme.

Opportunities and Events 

Don't forget to regularly visit the Opportunities page where you will find a variety of employability and career development events. Recent notices include the Law School Negotiation Competition, Ashurst's 'Uniquely You' competition, Brand ambassador updates and Mooting opportunities.

Here's a date for your diary - Wednesday 5 November. Come along to the Great Hall between 2pm and 4pm to join the Law School Social event. There will be a chance to network with fellow Law students and Law staff through an afternoon of games and activities. Click the link in our bio to book your ticket.

Campus Ambassadors

Different law firms have Brand or Campus Ambassadors. These positions are held by current students to provide students with insights and opportunities organised by these firms. A reminder, if you are an ambassador for this coming year, email lawcomms@exeter.ac.uk and we will add your details to the Campus Ambassadors section of the webpage.

Review us at Whatuni for a chance to win £100 

Whatuni publishes real reviews from students across the UK. Your review helps future students to make really important decisions about where and what to study and is another way we get an insight into how we can improve your Uni experience. Plus you’ll be entered into the prize draw just for taking part; there is £100 up for grabs, and it's open to all students.

Our Socials 

UNIVERSITY OF EXETER LAW SCHOOL

If you would like to see previous editions of the bulletin, they sit on our website here.  And if you have any suggestions for future editions, or would like to share a story with us, please email lawcomms@exeter.ac.uk. Fin