What's In It For You?
Reputable qualification & profession
Studying law has many perks. As a highly regarded qualification, you can enter into a respectable profession fighting for justice for the downtrodden. As a lawyer, you can choose to work in a law firm or in the legal department of a company. As a lawyer, you can find satisfaction in doing pro bono work (work that you do not charge for). Under legal aid, you can provide legal counselling to those who earn below the average wage or help those who are seeking shelter from abuse or persecution. Even without doing pro bono work, you can find satisfaction in a fulfilling career. The legal profession itself offers many diversifications. You can specialise in litigation where you can move on to become a judge. The private sector also offers lucrative returns for an experienced lawyer. You can be a contract lawyer, taxation lawyer or even manage a law firm. A lawyer can go into the commercial sector and further specialise in different industries - be it finance, construction or intellectual property. The effort you put in can bear rich rewards, whether in terms of personal satisfaction or remuneration, and stimulating challenges to the inquisitive mind.
Professional Qualification
This rewarding career is partly due to the fact that to become a practicing lawyer, you must possess a professional qualification. That means only people who have the qualification can practice the vocation, thus making it a specialty job. This in turn means that if you have a law degree, you will have more job security than your peers without a professional qualification. With the right legal qualification, you to can practice anywhere in Malaysia and even abroad, and you will be remunerated according to the number of years and experience you have. This is reassuring in the current economic climate as this qualification almost guarantees that you will be able to keep up with the rising costs of living.
Flexibility of Careers
If you choose not to be a practising lawyer, you may still enter into another closely linked career. With a law degree, you will be qualified to be a legal writer or editor. You can enter into politics and be a member of parliament. You can even go into education and become a lecturer or work in the foreign office, becoming a diplomat and representing the country on foreign soil. A good understanding of the law will allow you to make sound decisions.
Vast Career Options
Besides careers in the legal field, with a law degree you can enter into other professions. Among the industries that you could do well in is journalism, where knowledge of the law will come in handy for a newspaper reporter. Going into business, a law background would help you understand the mechanics and legalities that can help propel a business. The larger the business organisation, the more legal advice is needed. A solid legal knowledge will be useful here. In other career lines, a law background gives you the confidence and security of understanding your surroundings better. You will be able to contribute ideas and advice to your employers, whether they are the boss of a small start-up or a CEO of a large multinational company. Ultimately, your knowledge of the law will be the most marketable part of what you have to offer in your career.
If you would like to know more about how Law can be the right programme for you, visit www.bac.edu.my/bac/law/
Did You Know?
Lim Phaik Gan, better known by her initials P. G.Lim, pioneered many things for Malaysian women. She was one of the earliest Malaysian women to obtain a Masters in Law from Cambridge University, one of the first Malaysian women lawyers, and the first to open a private practice (in the 1940s, the Colonial Civil Service did not employ women lawyers). As a junior lawyer she served in a case that became instrumental in introducing the jury system in the Federated Malay States. She was a dedicated defence lawyer who championed the rights of the downtrodden and in 1971 was the first Malaysian woman appointed to the United Nations.
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