QUOTE(KuzumiTaiga @ Aug 26 2019, 11:43 PM)
choosing LLB over business admin just doesn't "seem" to be a better choice, it is a no-brainer one.
Well... my statement is going to step on a few toes here, although most in the field would agree with me. UKM's LLB reputation is on the lower rung of the ladder when compared against UIA, UM, UUM, UOL, Cardiff, MMU and I daresay UiTM, list goes on.
In my years I've had more than several encounters with UKM law students and graduates... save for a couple, the rest are rather... on the slower side? Some could not even converse in proper English (similar to this instance although it is an extreme example
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ffbSgUy_1E).
Perhaps their graduates would come to eventually serve in Shariah, judiciary (eg. I've met two magistrates who were from UKM) When I had asked our UKM counterparts during some legal event in 2014, they told me that their course is considered
fully in BM except for certain papers (double check before enrolling if it concerns you). It shouldn't affect their employability in govt positions especially when everything is in Bahasa Malaysia, however in the upper courts we use English, and you'd be torn to shreds during cross examinations. I am not basing my conclusions on only a couple of encounters I've met with people from UKM, this is from on my detailed conversations with about a baker's dozen of them.
Pop into any major law firm's associates' and partners' rosters, i.e. Shearn, Shook Lin, Thomas Philip, Cheang & Ariff, Raja, Darryl & Loh blah3 you'll notice that there is an absence of UKM graduates. (Here's an example:
http://shooklin.com.my/lawyers/associates/) That industry of upper-tier legal eagles is not skewed against local U grads favoring British LLB holders, for there are many UIA, UM, UUM graduates in them.
In conclusion, there is no denying that if you are motivated to go far in your career, it wouldn't hurt to consider UOL. There is PTPTN, it is arguably a much harder course in combination with the CLP requirement, but it will place you ahead of the pack, if you steeled through it.
Ultimately, a graduate's attitude and how he/she presents himself during interview is also an important factor. Just try to remember that this field, like any other, is an unjust one. There will be prejudices, there will be a lot of judging and looking down on, just do your best and recall that statistics do not lie.Deffo a no-brainer for an existing lawyers/students or unemployed BBA graduates that's for sure. For people from families struggling financially where getting any place in an IPTA is pretty much a blessing? Nah. Not totally, I mean since options like PTPTN exist. Probably couldn't do the 3+0 UOL thing either even if I was really into it as I wouldn't be eligible for CLP as I'm a Matriculation leaver and not from the holy STPM/A-Levels path.
Well yeah, I guess it's pretty much the case that most major firms are stacked with graduates from law degrees by universities overseas. Digging around, I did seem to come across a few UKM grads in big firms (around the same number as UiTM grads and maybe even IIUM grads, and outnumbering MMU and UUM grads who hover somewhere around the zero mark). Small sample size, not an actual one-per-one headcount though. Apparently, the course is a mix over there, with English tutorials and Malay lectures (which also seems to be the case for UM) and a weird mix for exams (answer one question in English, one in BM). Seems pretty acceptable, seeing as we're in Malaysia right now. Also, not trying to pull stereotypes, but do the non-bumi/English-background UKM law grads fare the same? I ask this because there's just a handful of us over there, and most of the nons I've encountered there (during sharing sessions and interviews) seem to be the bright, well-spoken kind. Just doesn't fit into the picture you painted.
Anyhow, I'm not trying to defend the golden standards of UKM whatsoever and thanks for the heads up, I guess it might be a tough road for me if I continue here.
Btw, I take it that you're a practising lawyer?
This post has been edited by roy595: Aug 27 2019, 06:57 AM