Law Entrance Exams

Usha Albuquerque &
Nidhi Prasad

Lawyers affect our everyday lives in countless ways. They are involved in everything from buying a home, to writing a will, to prosecuting and defending criminals. They counsel, strategize, problem-solve, write, advocate, negotiate - the list is endless.
Law, for a layman, means a system of rules and guidelines, legally enforceable. But as a profession, it means lots more and encompasses various fields such as litigation, media, IP, academics, etc. The role of a lawyer in today's era has completely evolved and moved many moons away from black robes and white collars to swanky corporate offices and jobs in movies and the media. As law incorporates diverse fields, it opens various options for law graduates. The demand for savvy law school graduates, with the requisite skills to handle key positions at leading organizations across diverse sectors, has surged dramatically.
Law as a profession is in great demand these days. Besides being financially lucrative, Law is an adventurous and exciting career option.
Lawyers advice clients about their legal rights and recommend course of action in a meticulous manner. They also counsel clients and pre-legal documents, such as wills and contracts and conduct negotiations on legal matters and may represent clients in court and tribunal proceedings.
Academic excellence does not count for success in this profession. Professional competency acquired through experience and practice with lawyers is the main benchmark of success.
There are various areas of specialization in this field which one can choose from like: Civil Law, Criminal Law, Corporate Law, Taxation Law Labor Law, International Law, Family Law, Constitutional Law, Adminis-tration Law, Patent Law etc.
What Lawyers Do?
A lawyer is a person who practices law, as a paralegal, advocate, barrister, attorney, counselor. Lawyers advice clients and provide solutions to legal issues at both private and public level. They interpret laws, rules and regulations and prepare legal documents. They argue and debate at the courts and take decisions on legal matters. As a lawyer one is expected to apply abstract law theories to solve problems of clients in diverse set of situations.
Earlier law was a family profession - with sons and daughters following into the family legal practice. But the scene has changed today, and anyone having the traits and passion for this field can opt for the course and achieve their dreams. The legal profession, that third wing of the democratic system, is once again one of the more respectable careers, and  so, highly sought after that the buzz is that lawyers are not only making news, but much money too. The black coat doesn't only have to do the rounds of musty civil courts, today's lawyer can choose the sophistication of corporate boardrooms also.
COURSES AVAILABLE: One can either pursue a 5-year integrated B.A. LL. B (Hons) course after passing class XII examinations or a 3-year law course after graduation in any discipline. Many universities offer integrated courses such as B.B.A. - LL. B, B. Com - LL. B and even B.Tech - LL.B.
SKILLS REQUIRED
Primarily, skills such as an inquisitive nature, attention to detail, logical reasoning, persuasiveness, sound judgment and writing ability are significant for success as a professional in law. While these skills remain necessary but today, more skills are required to practice law competently. Some of these are:
lOratory skills
lReading habit
lCommand over language
lTeam work
lEmotional Intelligence
LAW ENTRANCE EXAMS
Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) is a centralized test for admission to 19 National Law Universities in India for admissions to their under-graduate and post-graduate degree programmes (LL.B. & LL.M.). The test is taken after the Higher Secondary Examination or the 12th grade for admission to integrated under graduate programmes in Law and after Graduation in Law for Master of Laws (LL.M) programmes conducted by these law universities.
The 19 participating NLU's in the order of their year of establishment are:
*National Law School of India University (NLSIU), Bengaluru
*National Academy of Legal Study and Research (NALSAR), University of Law, Hyderabad
*National Law Institute University (NLIU), Bhopal
*The West Bengal National University of Juridical Sciences (NUJS), Kolkata
*lNational Law University (NLU), Jodhpur
*Hidayatullah National Law University (HNLU), Raipur
*Gujarat National Law University (GNLU), Gandhinagar
*Dr. Ram Manohar Lohiya National Law University (RMLNLU), Lucknow
*Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law (RGNUL), Punjab
*Chanakya National Law University (CNLU), Patna
*The National University of Advanced Legal Studies (NUALS), Kochi
*lNational Law University Odisha (NLUO), Cuttack
*National University of Study and Research in Law (NUSRL), Ranchi
*lNational Law University and Judicial Academy (NLUJA), Assam
*Damodaram Sanjivayya National Law University (DSNLU), Visakhapatnam
*Tamil Nadu National Law School (TNNLS), Tiruchirappalli
*Maharashtra National Law University (MNLU), Mumbai
*Maharashtra National Law University (MNLU), Nagpur
*Maharashtra National Law University (MNLU), Aurangabad
Other than National Law University-Delhi and HP National Law University-Shimla, which have their own process to select the students.
CLAT Score is also accepted by other law schools including NMIMS, Mumbai, UPES Dehradun and Nirma University, Ahmedabad, to name a few.
ELIGIBILITY FOR CLAT
UG Programme
There will be no upper age limit for UG Programme in CLAT 2018.
About minimum percentage of marks in (i.e., 10+2), the candidates must have secured: Forty five percent (45%) marks in case of candidates belonging to Unreserved/ OBC/ Specially Abled Persons (SAP) and other categories, and
Forty Percent (40%) marks in case of candidates belonging to Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe (SC/ST) categories.
CLAT EXAM DETAILS FOR UG PROGRAMME:
The two-hour admission test consists of objective type covering questions on Elementary Mathematics or Numerical Ability, English with Comprehension, General knowledge and Current affairs, Legal Aptitude and Legal Awareness and Logical reasoning.
It has 200 Multiple choice questions of one mark each. There is negative marking for 0.25 marks for each wrong answer.
English including comprehension:
The English section will test the candidate's proficiency in English based on comprehension passages and grammar. In the comprehension section, candidates will be assessed  on their understanding of the passage and its central theme, meanings of words used therein, etc. The grammar section requires correction of incorrect grammatical sentences, filling of blanks in sentences with appropriate words, etc.
General Knowledge and Current Affairs:
General knowledge will be evaluated on the basis of general awareness including static general knowledge. Questions on current affairs will test the candidates on their knowledge of national and international current affairs.
Mathematics:
This section will test the candidate's knowledge on elementary mathematics, i.e., Maths taught upto 10th Class/Standard.
Legal Aptitude:
This section will test the candidate's interest towards the study of law, research aptitude and problem-solving ability. Questions may include legal propositions (described in the paper), and a set of facts to which the said proposition must be applied. Some propositions may not be "true" in the real sense, candidates will have to assume the "truth" of these propositions and answer the questions accordingly.
Logical Reasoning:
The purpose of the logical reasoning section is to test the candidate's ability to identify patterns, logical links and rectify illogical arguments. It may include a variety of logical reasoning questions such as syllogisms, logical sequences, analogies, etc. However, visual reasoning will not be tested.
Date of CLAT 2018 online Examination is 13th May 2018 (Sunday)
CLAT EXAMS DETAILS FOR PG PROGRAMME:
ELIGIBILITY
The candidates must have minimum percentage of marks in the qualifying examination [i.e. LL.B./Five-Year Integrated LL.B. (Hons.)/any other equivalent exam] as under:
Fifty five percent (55%) marks in case of candidates belonging to Unreserved/ OBC/ Specially Abled Persons (SAP) and other categories, and
Fifty percent (50%) marks in case of candidates belonging to Scheduled Caste/ Scheduled Tribe (SC/ST) categories.
The candidate must have passed/ appeared in the final semester/final year examination of the qualifying examination on the date of his/her admission.
TEST DETAILS
The two-hour admission test consists of 150 Multiple choice questions of one mark each. There is negative marking for 0.25 marks for each wrong answer. Questions are asked from following areas of Law:
*Constitutional Law
*Jurisprudence
*Other Law Subjects such as Contract, Torts, Criminal Law, International Law, IPR etc.
For information one can visit www.clat.ac.in.
Other Law Entrance Exams are:
Law School Admission Test (LSAT) is a standardized test of reading and verbal reasoning skills conducted four times every year specially designed for LLB and LLM admissions. LSAT scores are accepted by top institutes like Rajiv Gandhi School of Intellectual Property Law, IIT Kharagpur Law School, Galgotia University Law School, The Jindal Global Law School, UPES Dehradun, SRM University, Amity Law School and many more LSAT-India is a paper-and-pencil test with four sections. (visit: http://www.pearsonvueindia).
All India Law Entrance Test (AILET) - All India Law Entrance Test is an exam conducted exclusively for National Law University (NLU) Delhi BA-LLB, LLM, PhD Admissions.The question paper of AILET 2018 will have 150 questions of one mark each. Candidates will need to answer the questions in a time limit of 90 minutes. Test will cover several subjects including English, General Knowledge, Legal Aptitude, Reasoning and Mathematics, whereas that for LLM programme will have questions from LLB subjects including Law of Torts, Business Laws and Family Laws
www.nludelhi.ac.in
*DU LLB/LLM - Faculty of Law, University of Delhi conducts a separate law entrance exam for admissions to various law courses namely LLB and LLM courses.Entrance examination is a national-level law admission test conducted by Delhi University for admissions to seats in three-year law programmes offered at three law centers of the university namely Campus Law Centre, Law Centre I and Law Centre II.
*SLAT (SET LAW)- Symbiosis Law Entrance Test is a common written test conducted for taking admission to undergraduate law programs offered by various institutes under Symbiosis International University.SET law exam will include 150 Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs) will be based on Legal Reasoning, Reading Comprehension, Logical Reasoning, General Knowledge and Analytical Reasoning. (Visit: www.set-test.org).
*ULSAT- UPES Law Studies Aptitude Test commonly known as ULSAT is conducted by the University of Petroleum and Energy Studies (UPES). The competitive entrance test is conducted to grant admission to Bachelor of Laws (B.A. LLB) and LLB in Corporate Laws, Cyber Laws and Intellectual Property Rights. This test is held online across India. The law aspirants will need to answer as many as 150 questions of the UPES computer-based law entrance aptitude test in a time limit of three hours as the examination. The objective-type questions with multiple-choice options are set from five subjects-Language Comprehension, Numerical Ability, Logical Reasoning, Legal General Knowledge and Legal Aptitude. Each of these subjects will comprise 30 questions of one mark each. There will be no negative marking done for any wrong attempts. (visit :www.upes.ac.in)
*IPU CET LLB Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University Common Entrance Test -Guru Gobind                 Singh Indraprastha University (GGSIPU) will conduct the IPU CET law 2018 for admissions to its law programmes on May 19, 2018. The common entrance test for LLB (IPU CET Law) will be conducted in offline mode. The university offers admissions to five-year integrated law programmes including BA LLB and BBA LLB. The UG law programmes are offered in as many as eight colleges affiliated to GGSIPU. (Visit - www.ipu.ac.in).
FEW OTHERS LAW ENTRANCE EXAMS
*Christ University Entrance Test
*lJamia Millia Islamia Law Entrance Exam
*Allahabad University LLB Admission Test
BASIC INGREDIENTS FOR EXAM PREPARATION
*Persistence towards studies
*Dedication to their preparation
*Clear objective towards your career and life ahead
*lHard work and clarity of basic concepts of your study programme
TIPS TO CRACK CLAT
*Time management and accuracy is the most important factor in CLAT. CLAT paper has negative marks so the test taker needs to make sure that they do not attempt questions which they are not sure of.
*Online mock tests are available therefore taking mock online test will help in improving the time management skills.
*English language skills are important in securing good score therefore students must have a habit of reading English newspapers and magazines to improve language skills. They should concentrate on Current affairs and read newspapers, watch news channels, to get updated
*lRevise topics daily.
Hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard.
Good Luck!
Usha Albuquerque(Director) & Nidhi Prasad (Senior counseling Psychologist) Careers Smart Pvt. Ltd
careerssmartonline@gmail.com