Graduate Certificate in Law

The Graduate Certificate in Law at Adelaide University is a short postgraduate qualification for people who need a grounding in Australian law without committing to a full degree. It runs for 26 weeks, one semester or half a year of full-time study. You study a set of law units at postgraduate level, taught through seminars and tutorials, with assessment by written work and exams. The exact units change from year to year, so check the official course page for the current list. Credit points and unit structure follow the university's standard postgraduate rules, and the certificate is a qualification in its own right on the Australian Qualifications Framework, below the master's level.

How it fits together

Australian postgraduate coursework is measured in units of study, each worth a set number of credit points. A graduate certificate usually makes up half a year of full-time study, or 24 credit points at many institutions. You can often take it full-time over one semester or part-time over a longer period. Some students use it as a stepping stone into a Juris Doctor or master's, applying for credit for the units they have already passed. The certificate itself does not qualify you to practise as a lawyer, and it is not the same as the Juris Doctor, which is the professional law degree.

What you learn

You build skills in legal reasoning, statutory interpretation, case analysis and legal writing. You learn to read a judgment and pull out the ratio, to find the relevant Act and apply it to facts, and to write advice that another lawyer could act on. Class sizes are usually small enough for discussion. If you are coming from another discipline, this is where you learn the language and method of law before going further.

Who it suits

It suits graduates from other fields who work alongside the law, compliance, human resources, policy, business, health administration, community services, and want formal study rather than a short course. It also suits people considering a Juris Doctor who want to test the water first. International students should check the English requirement: law sits at the higher end, typically IELTS Academic 7.0–7.5 overall, and the Student visa has its own separate English threshold set by the Department of Home Affairs. While studying, a student visa generally allows 48 hours of work per fortnight during term. After graduating, the Temporary Graduate visa (subclass 485) post-study work stream may be available depending on your circumstances. Confirm all details, including tuition, on the official CRICOS listing and the university's course page.

• Compliance officer or analyst in banking, insurance or government
• Policy officer in state or federal public service
• Contracts administrator or procurement officer
• Human resources adviser handling workplace relations
• Legal support roles in community legal centres or law firms
• Further study pathway into a Juris Doctor or master's degree