Various entrance examinations for LLB

In this article, we will be looking at various options that are available to students looking to make a career in the law field – after 12th class, and even after graduation. Moreover, we will see which colleges offer 3-year LLB courses, and which ones offer the 5-year integrated LLB course.

So, instead of doing LLB after your graduation (which will take 6 or 7 years in total), you can do both simultaneously. If you enrol in a 5-year integrated course, then you will not only get a graduation degree (e.g. B. Com., BA, B. Sc., BBA, etc.), but will also get a LLB degree. These degrees are called BA LLB, BSc LLB, B. Com LLB, BBA LLB, etc.

Law is not only a career, but also can be a good way forward for people who want to do social service, or go into politics. As a lawyer, you may earn money of course, but it also allows you to help a lot of people.

Some professions have no retirement age, such as teachers, doctors, lawyers, politicians, etc. You may continue practicing till your body and mind permits. That’s why there’s no age limit to when you can get enrolled in a LLB course. You can do it anytime in your life, whenever you get time.

It also fits in well with some other job profiles, such as police, insurance, etc. That’s why you will see many people from other professions pursuing LLB degrees. Even many IAS, IPS officers get a LLB degree after getting selected.

Note

My father was a lower court judge (now retired), and my sister is practicing as a lawyer. Many of my cousins are lawyers too. So, you can say that I belong to a law background family.

I was also planning to appear in DU LLB exam, and attend the evening classes. But the evening classes have been scrapped now. Moreover, it would have been hard to manage with the job. But it can be done – two or three of my friends took admission in Faculty of Law, Delhi while doing a regular job.

So, for those who want to pursue it even in later phases of their life, it’s a good option. You can do social service and will be in a better position to help people with a LLB degree in hand, or raise pertinent questions in the court of law. Even if you want to switch your career, it’s a good option.

Whatever your motivation might be, the first step is to get into a good college. So, let’s begin.

Most of the good colleges nowadays give admission through a national level entrance examination, and not on the basis of the marks secured in 12th or graduation. Let’s see some of such examinations.

Note

Most of these exams ask questions from Maths, Reasoning, English (i.e. Aptitude), Current Affairs, General Knowledge and Reasoning related to law.

Table of Contents

• Five-year Integrated LLB courses for 12th pass students
• Three-year LLB courses for Graduates

Five-year Integrated LLB courses for 12th pass students

First of all, we will have a look at the five-year integrated LLB courses and entrance exams, that will provide you a graduation degree along with a LLB degree.

Common Law Admission Test (CLAT)

If you want to get into National Law Universities (NLUs) in India, this is the exam you should aim for. NLUs are the most prestigious law colleges in India. They are like the IITs and IIMs of the law world.

Apart from NLUs, many good private colleges also accept the scores of CLAT.

However, we want to clarify one thing here. CLAT is only for 5-year integrated course. If you are already a graduate and are looking for a 3-year LLB program, this exam is not for you.

Note

The annual fee of NLUs is pretty high (over 2 lakhs). Just keep this in mind.

All India Law Entrance Test (AILET)

The National Law University of Delhi does not consider the marks of CLAT. It rather conducts its own entrance examination called AILET.

Law School Admission Test (LSAT)

Many other universities in India accept LSAT score to give admission to candidates in their LLB courses. You can get admission to 5-year integrated course, as well as 3-year after-graduation course through this exam.

Only Reasoning, English and Critical Thinking ability is checked in this exam, not Maths. Also, there’s no negative marking in this exam.

Some other law entrance examinations for 12th pass students have been listed below (they all offer 5-year integrated LLB course):

• Symbiosis Entrance Test (SET) – for admission into Symbiosis Law school in Pune and Noida
• PU LLB – for admission into law college of Punjab University, Chandigarh
• Bhartiya Vidya Peeth (BVP) CET Law
• Christ University – The School of Law, Christ University, Bangalore
• Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) – Faculty of Law, Aligarh
• Faculty of Law, Jamia Milia Islamia, Delhi

Then there are some state level law entrance examinations too, e.g. Andhra Pradesh Common Law Entrance Test (APLAWCET), CEE Kerala, Maharashtra Common Entrance Test (MH CET Law), etc.

Most of the state-specific law entrance exams gives preference to students of their own state (70-80% students selected will be from that state), and competition is comparatively lower in such exams. So, students must give their state law entrance exams too as a backup plan, even if they are aiming to clear some All-India entrance exam.

Three-year LLB courses for Graduates

If you are already a graduate, then you just need to do a 3-year LLB program. Let’s see some of such courses and entrance examinations.

Note

Except a few cases, in most of the law colleges you should have at least 45% marks in graduation to be eligible for admission (for General category). For other categories it’s generally 40%.

Faculty of Law, University of Delhi (DU LLB)

Faculty of Law, University of Delhi conducts a separate exam for 3-year LLB course (it does not offer a 5-year integrated course). In fact, it’s National Testing Agency (NTA) that conducts this exam on behalf of DU. Though the counselling process is conducted by DU itself.

You must have 50% marks in graduation to apply for this exam (for General students). It’s lower for students of other category.

There are three campuses that you can take classes in, once you are selected. Which one you will get will depend on your choice and merit list.

Note

DU LLB exam is different from All India Law Entrance Test (AILET), which is conducted for admission into National Law University of Delhi.

Chief Justices MM Punchhi, BN Kirpal and YK Sabharwal, and famous lawyers and politicians like Arun Jaitely, Kiran Bedi, Kabil Sibal, Bhoopendra Singh Hooda, Mira Kumar are some of the famous alumni of Faculty of Law, University of Delhi. You will find many High Courts and Supreme Court judges who have studied from this college. So, it’s one of the prestigious colleges to get into, especially after graduation.

Note

The annual fee of Faculty of Law, DU is pretty low (around 5-10k). It’s peanuts as compared to the fee charged by many other government colleges like NLUs and many private colleges (which is in lakhs). This is one of the many reasons why many students try to get into this college.

In fact, fee of most of the DU colleges is pretty low. For example, Faculty of Management (FMS), DU has an annual fee of around 15-20 k, while that of IIMs is in lakhs.

Banaras Hindu University Undergraduate Entrance Test (BHU UET)

You can pursue your three-year LLB degree from BHU too, by giving their separate entrance examination.

Law School Admission Test (LSAT)

As already mentioned, many other universities in India accept LSAT score to give admission to candidates in their LLB courses. You can get admission to 5-year integrated course, as well as 3-year after-graduation course through this exam.

Only Reasoning, English and Critical Thinking ability is checked in this exam, not Maths. Also, there’s no negative marking in this exam.

Some other law entrance examinations for graduate students have been listed below (they all offer 3-year LLB course):

• PU LLB – for admission into law colleges of Punjab University, Chandigarh. Here the graduation marks are given 50% weightage, and 50% weightage is given to the entrance examination. There are 4 law colleges in Punjab University.
• Kurukshetra University
• Bhartiya Vidya Peeth (BVP) CET Law
• MD University, Rohtak
• IIT Kharagpur – Though it conducts its own separate entrance examination, it also gives admission on the score of LSAT.

Then there are some state level law entrance examinations too, e.g. Andhra Pradesh Common Law Entrance Test (APLAWCET), CEE Kerala, Maharashtra Common Entrance Test (MH CET Law), etc.

We hope this article was helpful enough to you. Just target a few entrance examinations, have a look at their previous year papers, and start studying. If you want help regarding Maths, Reasoning, English sections, then you may refer our online aptitude guides:

• Website for Aptitude Exam Preparation (In English)
• Website for Aptitude Exam Preparation (In Hindi)

Note

As far as I know, government lawyers and teachers may even fight elections (unlike many other government jobs). So, if you want a government job, and also want to get into politics in the future, get into law or teaching field.