So it is that time of the year that every student dreads: EXAM TIME.

Today, I sat my first of two exams this diet in the fine art of Contract Law and it was an absolute nightmare. I left the house this morning confident that I’d done all that I possibly could and that I knew more than enough to get me through it, but disaster struck when I started to write my answers to the exam…I could remember the law, but not the authority! Absolute nightmare!

So, I sat the whole exam, wrote out my required three answers and used a total of one case and two statutes. The case I used was one that had been etched into my mind when I did contract last year and the two statutes I remembered as I’d used them in other modules. I did know another couple of cases (ones which had been etched into my mind from day one as a law student (Carlill v Carbolic Smoke Ball Company and The Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain v Boots Cash Chemists Southern Ltd)

Alas, what is done is done and it is now pointless worrying about it. Need to look forward and focus on my Property Law exam on Tuesday!

It’s been a while again since I last posted anything here.  It is becoming increasingly difficult to find the time to blog between work and the mounting pile of revision that I have for my upcoming exams (only 4 weeks to go).

My exams in January are Contract and Property.  I have remembered
more about the former than I had thought (which is always good!)

A couple of you have asked how my talk went at my voluntary work regarding Legal Issues for Children and Young People.  Well, the answer was that it went very well.  There were around 20 people there, all of whom had lots of questions (some very complicated ones, which I was unable to answer on the spot).

I’ve also recently been to court a couple of times.  On one occasion it was another day of shadowing a Procurator Fiscal Depute and on another occasion it was shadowing a Defence Solicitor (both at Anytown Sheriff Court).  Both days were fascinating and once again, I came away from both with more enthusiasm and knowledge.

I’ve also had a few problems with my Asthma which have resulted in a number of trips to the Accident and Emergency Department at Anytown Royal Infirmary, but that seems to be settling back down again.

I should probably wrap this up here and get back to restrictive covenants (they joys!)

Well, the plan explained in my last blog entry has taken a major dent. It all hangs in the ballance.

As I will be a part-time student next year (not what I really wanted, but the only realistic way of doing it so that I can stay at university and still meet all the requirements I need to go on and get my professional accreditation) the university are unable to offer me accommodation. It had been my plan to stay in university accommodation for my third year (this was before it became apparent that I’d be repeating part of my second year).

Now because of the number of hours I will be at uni over the course of the next year (108 hours of classes) I am no longer available for a council tax exemption. This means that all student accommodation is pretty much off limits (although one of the private companies is looking into it and will get back to me next week).

The wages that I will earn (plus the small amount of money my parents can afford to give me) will not be enough to covere food, travel, bills and rent in the private sector. This means that I could be forced into leaving university because I do not have anywhere to live close enough to the university in order to continue studying there!

As you can imagine, I am pretty gutted.

So, if you have read my blog over the last two weeks you will know that I was in two minds about whether to continue at university. Well, today I have had a meeting with two members of senior academic staff at the university and we discussed all of my options.

The agreed plan of action is that I will sit just one of my outstanding modules in August (this particular exam is 4 weeks today). I will then return in September to complete my outstanding modules as a part-time student. Assuming I pass the exam in August I will be sitting two modules in the first semester and one in the second next year. Providing all this goes to plan and I pass all 4 modules between August and September 2009 I will be able to progress to third year and continue my degree. We spoke briefly about the future and providing I fill in all the correct paperwork and pass each exam (well) when I sit it over the course of the next year there will be no problems in progressing in the legal profession (should I choose to do that) – after all it will look like I passed each exam in one sitting.

The only downside is that I will need to pay for next year, but the fees are not all that expensive (£887.50 if I don’t pass my exam in August or £665 if I do). My mum started flapping about this (she didn’t even give me a chance to tell her how much it would cost). Essentially I should be able to cover the fees myself from my wages (being a part-time student will mean that I’ll be able to work more hours than I would normally). The fees can also be paid in three instalments meaning that I should never need to pay more than £300 of fees at anyone time.

All is nearly sorted and I am much happier (and less stressed). Now all I need to do is get the doctor to give me a note for the exam board.

I have finally managed to contact someone at the university at which I study who is able to help (it being the holiday, most members of academic staff are on holiday). She was really supportive and is looking in to what can and cannot be done according to university regulations. A number of options were briefly discussed:

1. Suspend my studies until September, going back and completing those modules I have yet to achieve as a Part-time student (she needs to check out the feasibility of this option though)
2. give the exams a shot in August and see if I can pass three of them (I can carry a maximum of one module forward)
3. Do some of the modules now in August and re-take those modules that I don’t pass again next year (again, the feasibility of this needs to be checked out)

I’m just hoping that when the time comes for me to apply for my Diploma in Legal Practice (essential if I want to practise as a lawyer in Scotland) as although I have passed one of the professional exams this year (Commercial Law) I only achieved a C for the module (on a grading from A – F with A – D being pass grades).

Anyway, no point in worrying about these things just now, I can discuss this with those that know best next week when I meet with them to discuss the options available to me.

To those that commented and E-mailed thank you, your support/advice has been of great help (sad I know, but blogging here over the past 6 months has really helped me re-engage with who I was before I became ill)

I have four exams to sit in August. None of these exams is a re-sit in the classic sense. Over the past year I have been having a lot of health problems (severe depression). I am better now. As a result of these health problems I did not sit my exams in January and was granted Mitigating Circumstances. This means that I now have to sit my exams in August as a first diet. The helath problems were still affecting me slighhtly in May and failed one of my exams then (I have been granted Mitigating Circumstances for this one as well)

If I do not manage to pass these then I will have to re-do second year, something which I cannot afford financially (if I was in this position I would have to seriously consider my place at university).

My health problems caused me to miss a lot of university during the first semester as a result my notes are rather lacking. It also means that instead of just revising I have to learn most of the course for the first time (which in the short space of time over the summer is a lot)

My university lecturers, with the exception of one (who happens to also be my advisor and as such is privy to exactly what went on and knows just how difficult this last year has been for me), are being less than helpful when I ask them for assistance.

I am now doubting whether I will be able even scrape a pass in these exams. I am questioning, for about the third time, my ability to get through university and pursue a career as a graduate.

An opportunity has come up which I am giving serious consideration to. This option is to pursue my management training in the large supermarket chain that I work for. Should I undertake this, I could be appointed to a manager’s job anytime within the next 6-9 months. The management in the store believe that I have the ability to progress quite far quickly in the company. As I’ve said I am seriously considering this. I know that should I chose this option, my parents will be upset (possibly even angry).

What to do? I only really have a maximum of a week to make this decision.

For various reasons I have some exams to sit in August.

I have 5 weeks until the exam diet begins so I really must start studying for them (if I fail even just one I’ll not be allowed entry into third year).

I really am a master at procrastination and as such I have decided to take a break from blogging until August.

See you all in August. Have a great July!

Exam results were released today. I’m relatively pleased with the results in that I passed 3 out of the 4 exams I sat at the last diet (failed the one I expected to).

Anyway, better get my head down and start revising for the August diet…after soome long overdue sleep