Sydney versus UNSW - whats the difference? (1 Viewer)

[bustinjustin]

Okay I know UNSW Law is more hands on, social justice, save the world with Law thing, and it seems to me Sydney is 'sit down, read and analyse' style.

Is this accurate?
What does Sydney Uni Law focus on? How do their teaching methods differ from UNSW?

 

[Lazarus]

Ultimately... I really don't think they're that different.

Personally I would recommend making the decision based on the degree you're combining it with.

 

[Suvat]

Equally respected degrees, usyd with slight edge in terms of prestige (which won't matter for ~90% of ppl)

Okay I know UNSW Law is more hands on, social justice, save the world with Law thing, and it seems to me Sydney is 'sit down, read and analyse' style.

That view is kinda stereotypical, your experience at law school is much more dependant on the instructors you get than which law school you attend. This is especially true at usyd (and prolly unsw) where we have a policy of 'instructor autonomy'. Also, many instructors teach at both usyd and unsw.

The course pattern is almost identical between the unis, with the exception being unsw does 2 compulsory units of criminal law whereas usyd does 1 compulsory unit of criminal law and 1 compulsory unit of international law.

The main reasons I choose usyd over unsw are
1. Usyd easier to get to
2. I could do 2 majors for my commerce degree, whereas the unsw commerce faculty will generally only let law students do 1
3. Usyd is slightly more prestigious

Having said that, there is very little (if any) difference between the employment prospects of a usyd and unsw law graduate with equal marks, work experience etc...

 

[lukebennett]

ive always heard unsw is better than usyd despite the popularity of usyd. i think more people apply to usyd cause of easier of access and the prestige gives the uni a more reliable image

 

[clancy04]

I know this debate has been really, really exhausted, however, it does come down to a choice having to be made and there is so little information to go on. Each student says there uni is better, each brochure extolls their own courses brilliance, each helpline advisr tries to persuade you ("let me level with you son, and I'm not trying to convince you sydney is better just because I go there, but we, unlike unsw, are accredited with...") that their institution is exceptional. Help!! The Good Universities Guide is barely helpful and is of questionable integrity. So, does anybody have any suggestion of an independent survey or adviser whom can be trusted? Please help me make this decision because although they are both brilliant uni's I can only choose one.

 

[lukebennett]

I know this debate has been really, really exhausted, however, it does come down to a choice having to be made and there is so little information to go on. Each student says there uni is better, each brochure extolls their own courses brilliance, each helpline advisr tries to persuade you ("let me level with you son, and I'm not trying to convince you sydney is better just because I go there, but we, unlike unsw, are accredited with...") that their institution is exceptional. Help!! The Good Universities Guide is barely helpful and is of questionable integrity. So, does anybody have any suggestion of an independent survey or adviser whom can be trusted? Please help me make this decision because although they are both brilliant uni's I can only choose one.

well if they are both great you shud think in terms of ease of access, comparing subjects available in courses and decide which course has the subjects yuod prefer. look at the course structure and and think of the one which suits you and your thinking most.

also look at it in terms of social life. which uni are all your friends going to. look at what clubs the unis have and stuff like that. visit the unis and look around and see which atmosphere you feel more comfortable with etc

 

[clancy04]

yeah, I must venture to sydney for open day. Thanks for the advice!

 

[KingMassive]

social life. unsw rocks. transport usyd is good but unsw is not too bad
but if u value ur social life highly as i do, u srsly cant go past unsw.
7000 people party for octoberfest while raining

 

[latania]

earlier someone said that choosing either UNSW or USyd should depend on the combined degree ie. arts/law, commerce/law...
so if I want do do science/law, which uni is recommended?

 

[011]

Sydney. Unless its maths.
And i think the 'prestige' (only because of age) that usyd has actually does matter quite a lot when it comes to law schools, maybe not necessarily as much for anything else. Sydney has been doing it for longer, more trusted by employers in it.
note: MY OPINION. =P

 

[Not-That-Bright]

I guess it depends where u wanna work, my dad's lawyer who i talked to before going to uws (closest uni) to do law told me that it's not bad at all to go there (in his opinion), and that he has people at his firm now who are completing degree's at both uws and unsw, and there's not much of a real difference other than their personal differences.

He said to him it basically comes down to the marks (a distinction is what you'd need for like.... a pretty good prospect of getting a job), and if he had two people from different uni's with distinctions it'd come down to an interview to test their skills.

I'm sure there'd be some firms that only prefer 'prestigious' graduates, but this guy runs a company of around 30 people so it's pretty good...
It'd be good to hear from a law graduate to see what experiences they've had when going for jobs, from the different uni's.

 

[hYperTrOphY]

I guess it depends where u wanna work, my dad's lawyer who i talked to before going to uws (closest uni) to do law told me that it's not bad at all to go there (in his opinion), and that he has people at his firm now who are completing degree's at both uws and unsw, and there's not much of a real difference other than their personal differences.

He said to him it basically comes down to the marks (a distinction is what you'd need for like.... a pretty good prospect of getting a job), and if he had two people from different uni's with distinctions it'd come down to an interview to test their skills.

I'm sure there'd be some firms that only prefer 'prestigious' graduates, but this guy runs a company of around 30 people so it's pretty good...
It'd be good to hear from a law graduate to see what experiences they've had when going for jobs, from the different uni's.

Yeah, I plan on studying at UWS next year because they provide the opportunity to combine law with criminology, but have questioned (and had so many people question it) because of the attitude many employers supposedly have.

Hopefully, if my marks are good I will not be disadvantaged when applying for work.

 

[04er]

Yeah, I plan on studying at UWS next year because they provide the opportunity to combine law with criminology, but have questioned (and had so many people question it) because of the attitude many employers supposedly have.

Hopefully, if my marks are good I will not be disadvantaged when applying for work.

way to revive a dead thread all the best with your HSC

 

[PopcornPixie]

Yeah, I plan on studying at UWS next year because they provide the opportunity to combine law with criminology, but have questioned (and had so many people question it) because of the attitude many employers supposedly have.

Hopefully, if my marks are good I will not be disadvantaged when applying for work.

There's a possibility UTS lets you do that as well (Law/Criminology). I think I remember seeing it on the list last year, but I'm not entirely certain.

 

[gordo]

someone i spoke to said alot of the applications she gets from unsw grads have all very high marks in particular subects, she said after 20 years of hiring, everyone just seems to get d's and hd's in particular subjects a unsw where as at usyd the marks are alot lower.
i guess it comes down to wats more convinient for u though, u will become a good lawyer (if u want to be one) practicing in a firm, the degree will just ground you with knowledge of the law, u hav to be able to apply legal principles.

 

[Jago]

what about if i'm combining with economics/commerce?s

 

[bustinjustin]

I can't believe I started/resurrected this thread and cringe at my choice of words in the first post...

Right now I have Usyd Combined Law as my first preference and New South Law as my second (UTS doesn't cut it for me, but to repudiate any accusations of snobbery I'm er, considering Wollongong). I've decided that I much prefer New South Law, but Sydney has a better established Political Economy Department. Of course, having undermined my chances of getting that wretched 99+ UAI, I've resigned myself to Graduate Law in the most probable event that I don't get into Combined Law (UWS is too inaccesible, as a dirty Southerner I don't care much for Macquarie and going down to the 'Gong seems impractical unless I move there...)

Ideally, I'll do my undergrad at Sydney and Grad Law at UNSW, but I'm one for loyalty and once I attend Sydney, I'll probably stay there for Law too...

...and quite frankly, I don't care anymore.

 

[ujuphleg]

Sydney has a better established Political Economy Department.

Yep, you can't beat USyd's ECOP department - they fought very hard for it, and have really put in everything they have to make it work.

 

[erawamai]

someone i spoke to said alot of the applications she gets from unsw grads have all very high marks in particular subects, she said after 20 years of hiring, everyone just seems to get d's and hd's in particular subjects a unsw where as at usyd the marks are alot lower.

Yeah unsw hands HD's out like there is no tomorrow

That's rather odd because many of the unsw academics have taught at usyd or have come from different unis. I dont think turn up at unsw after a stint at usyd and think 'wow I'm going to give everyone HD's!'

 

[gordo]

well i know for torts,
at sydney, we have 80% exam and 20% take home assignment
at unsw, it is 50% take home assignment, 20% for just attending class and 30% exam
i wonder which uni will giv out more hd's...