GDL Grade - Desperate Call For Help!

[RubySmithers]

Hi Everyone,

I received my GDL grades not so long ago, and I am very sad to say, but I completely messed them up.

I got a 53 for Contract and a 57 for Public Law (part-time GDL course).

I really do not know where I went wrong, I was so confident that I would at least hit 60% or above on both modules.

Please can someone help me on increasing my grade from a mere pass to a commendation level?

Fortunately, I can retake them uncapped and I want to be able to improve them drastically.

Any help would be much appreciated - I am the first in my family to attend university and haven't been able to tell my parents my results as they would be so disappointed in me. I feel so sad at the moment.

Thanks for reading.
Ruby

 

[Jane Smith]

Hopefully someone better qualified can advise you but you passed. Isn't that okay? At least you have passed those 2 subjects. Better than failing and in a few years time no one will be interested in or even know your GDL marks.

 

[RubySmithers]

Hopefully someone better qualified can advise you but you passed. Isn't that okay? At least you have passed those 2 subjects. Better than failing and in a few years time no one will be interested in or even know your GDL marks.

You are right, Jane. But I feel like passing is not good enough with the current competition. I need to up my game and I know I can get above 60% with some guidance.

 

[hktr]

Having just completed the GDL this summer, I know firsthand it can be tough! I hope some of this advice may be helpful to you:

• As you say you are unsure what went wrong, I think the best thing to do would be to talk to your tutors if you haven't already. Beyond this, try to look critically at any evidence you have at hand (i.e. mock exam scripts, compare and contrast specimen/past paper answers and your answers etc.) to determine how to improve.
• In terms of specific exam preparation, the exams are fairly formulaic and you can definitely question spot (within reason!). For me, I found it better to revise a smaller number of topics well rather than to spread myself out too thin.
• I also used the yourGDL notes as a starting point for my revision notes (I was at ULaw - I imagine there are equivalent study guides/notes for BPP if you go there). Personally, I found them great for getting the lay of the land and making sure you're familiar with key cases and concepts. I would highly recommend having a look online at these (there are samples available) to see if they would work for you.

Please feel free to DM me if you'd like to talk more. I hope things turn out fine for you!

 

[RubySmithers]

Having just completed the GDL this summer, I know firsthand it can be tough! I hope some of this advice may be helpful to you:

• As you say you are unsure what went wrong, I think the best thing to do would be to talk to your tutors if you haven't already. Beyond this, try to look critically at any evidence you have at hand (i.e. mock exam scripts, compare and contrast specimen/past paper answers and your answers etc.) to determine how to improve.
• In terms of specific exam preparation, the exams are fairly formulaic and you can definitely question spot (within reason!). For me, I found it better to revise a smaller number of topics well rather than to spread myself out too thin.
• I also used the yourGDL notes as a starting point for my revision notes (I was at ULaw - I imagine there are equivalent study guides/notes for BPP if you go there). Personally, I found them great for getting the lay of the land and making sure you're familiar with key cases and concepts. I would highly recommend having a look online at these (there are samples available) to see if they would work for you.

Please feel free to DM me if you'd like to talk more. I hope things turn out fine for you!

Thank you for your comprehensive response, HKTR.

The thing is, I have a problem with exam technique and I am not quite sure how to fix this.

I believe that my analysis and application is weak. How do you suggest I get over this hurdle?

 

[Jessica Booker]

You are right, Jane. But I feel like passing is not good enough with the current competition. I need to up my game and I know I can get above 60% with some guidance.

Are you working full time? If so, firms will be less concerned about your grades if you are basically going 1.5 x the work a full time student is.

Obviously continue to aim for a 60% or above in other modules, but I wouldn’t panic about this that much.

 

[RubySmithers]

Are you working full time? If so, firms will be less concerned about your grades if you are basically going 1.5 x the work a full time student is.

Obviously continue to aim for a 60% or above in other modules, but I wouldn’t panic about this that much.

I was working full-time from January to March (before lockdown) but since then I have been furloughed so I don't think firms will appreciate that I still didn't manage to get at least 60%.

 

[hktr]

Thank you for your comprehensive response, HKTR.

The thing is, I have a problem with exam technique and I am not quite sure how to fix this.

I believe that my analysis and application is weak. How do you suggest I get over this hurdle?

Generally, the basic formula is to state, define and apply the law to the given facts. I've noticed that there will often be niggly little details in the fact-pattern. You therefore need to identify these details and argue your position convincingly in order to gain marks at the top-end of the spectrum. E.g. "Based on A, the answer could be B because of C and D. However, it is more likely to be E because of F, G, and H." As you work through your reasoning, make due reference to case law and legislation. I'm afraid it's quite hard to generalise beyond this advice. Again, if you want to DM me some specific questions, I'd be happy to take a crack at answering them!

 

[Jessica Booker]

I was working full-time from January to March (before lockdown) but since then I have been furloughed so I don't think firms will appreciate that I still didn't manage to get at least 60%.

I think they would be more open minded than you would expect if the rest of your application is strong

 

[em311]

Hi Everyone,

I received my GDL grades not so long ago, and I am very sad to say, but I completely messed them up.

I got a 53 for Contract and a 57 for Public Law (part-time GDL course).

I really do not know where I went wrong, I was so confident that I would at least hit 60% or above on both modules.

Please can someone help me on increasing my grade from a mere pass to a commendation level?

Fortunately, I can retake them uncapped and I want to be able to improve them drastically.

Any help would be much appreciated - I am the first in my family to attend university and haven't been able to tell my parents my results as they would be so disappointed in me. I feel so sad at the moment.

Thanks for reading.
Ruby

I found the practice problem questions at the end of each chapter in the textbook really useful because they break down the structure of how to answer the questions! If you're able to get your exam answers back maybe go through your paper and the textbook structures side by side so you can see "oh I needed more analysis on this piece of legislation" etc

Also, download all the past papers Ulaw/BPP have available and have a go at answering them! Send them to tutors and perhaps schedule a Zoom call to receive feedback so you know exactly what you're doing well and what you can improve on!

Additionally the yourGDL was helpful in terms of providing the framework to structure your answers but I think by practising past papers they will definitely help you improve exam technique to attain a commendation. Hope this helps

 

[j2134]

I found the practice problem questions at the end of each chapter in the textbook really useful because they break down the structure of how to answer the questions! If you're able to get your exam answers back maybe go through your paper and the textbook structures side by side so you can see "oh I needed more analysis on this piece of legislation" etc

Also, download all the past papers Ulaw/BPP have available and have a go at answering them! Send them to tutors and perhaps schedule a Zoom call to receive feedback so you know exactly what you're doing well and what you can improve on!

Additionally the yourGDL was helpful in terms of providing the framework to structure your answers but I think by practising past papers they will definitely help you improve exam technique to attain a commendation. Hope this helps

Hi! Which textbook were you using for this?

 

[Zoo]

I’m sorry to hear that you’re in this position @RubySmithers , it’s so tough to not get the results you’ve been aiming for after working really hard.

I did the GDL last year at BPP and I agree with what’s been said above. The best way to improve exam technique is to do as many past exam papers as possible in timed conditions. That way by the time you do the exams you’ll be very experienced in issue spotting and getting all your info down in the required time. Also, often issues will come up in similar ways so the more past papers you do the easier it will be to spot the issues in each question. You can then use the mark scheme to mark your answers or ask tutors if they can help you with feedback as @em311 has said.

And I agree with the above, try to get your exam papers back so you can see where you need to improve. You mentioned that you were confident you had scored above 60 in the exams so it could be that you thought you were hitting the right points but for some reason it didn’t translate. Seeing your past papers would probably help you get to the bottom of that.

 

[em311]

Hi! Which textbook were you using for this?

I did the GDL at Ulaw and the manuals they give you have follow up activities at the end of each chapter! These are the textbooks I'm referring too but I did also use the yourGDL guide too

 

[Alison C]

Hi Everyone,

I received my GDL grades not so long ago, and I am very sad to say, but I completely messed them up.

I got a 53 for Contract and a 57 for Public Law (part-time GDL course).

I really do not know where I went wrong, I was so confident that I would at least hit 60% or above on both modules.

Please can someone help me on increasing my grade from a mere pass to a commendation level?

Fortunately, I can retake them uncapped and I want to be able to improve them drastically.

Any help would be much appreciated - I am the first in my family to attend university and haven't been able to tell my parents my results as they would be so disappointed in me. I feel so sad at the moment.

Thanks for reading.
Ruby

Ruby, I think you are being a bit hard on yourself. I think that employers recognise that this is a tough exam. But the marks you quote, while in the 2:2 range, are not exactly 'completely messed up'. I speak as a career changer, but these exams are very formulaic, and the formula is extremely badly explained by tutors. As an ex-teacher, I have been shocked by how little support and clarity is given. There is an assumption that you will know the formula.

The best place to identify the formula is, as everyone says, the Points To Note and the worked examples in the book (printed in pale grey). They don't want the law, they want the application to the facts with a lawyer's brain. So work on changing your mindset.

I also found Your GDL, Floatnotes and the OU 'concentrate' series (textbooks and worked examples) to be very helpful. Buy them secondhand from Amazon or eBay, or find on LawTrove.

And good luck. You passed the first time, which is all decent employers care about. Some will have more stringent requirements but you might find you would struggle there anyway. Congratulations, you are on your way to becoming a lawyer and you are far more than a set of exam results.

 

[J123]

I wouldn't worry too much about getting a pass in these modules - I only passed the GDL (getting marks in the 50s for Contract and Equity) but still managed to get a TC in one of the top US firms. What I did after getting my GDL results was to really try to do better in the LPC, where I gained a distinction, which I think demonstrated to firms that my GDL results were just a one year 'blip' in my academics! I think firms will also take into account the fact that you were working for a period before exams - I certainly wouldn't have been able to manage the GDL working at the same time!

 

[PhoebeL]

Hi Ruby,
I can only echo what everyone has said already. The exam technique is really about structure. I have just completed the GDL at ULaw and we use the IRAC structure:
Issue
Relevant Law
Apply
Conclude

I too used the YourGDL notes as a starting point, but tbh whoever wrote them had just gone through the manual to pull out the paraphrasing and fit it into a structure. If, like mine, your exams will be online, I made sure I had a structure to every possible problem question outlined before the exam then i applied the relevant parts of it to the facts. My "revision" contained going through the past papers to apply this structure, which are, as someone already mentioned, very formulaic. With factual analysis I found that a lot of it came down to common sense and not being afraid to make a legitimate interpretation on the facts.

I'm happy to chat with you in more detail via PM.

 

[M1999]

Having just completed the GDL this summer, I know firsthand it can be tough! I hope some of this advice may be helpful to you:

• As you say you are unsure what went wrong, I think the best thing to do would be to talk to your tutors if you haven't already. Beyond this, try to look critically at any evidence you have at hand (i.e. mock exam scripts, compare and contrast specimen/past paper answers and your answers etc.) to determine how to improve.
• In terms of specific exam preparation, the exams are fairly formulaic and you can definitely question spot (within reason!). For me, I found it better to revise a smaller number of topics well rather than to spread myself out too thin.
• I also used the yourGDL notes as a starting point for my revision notes (I was at ULaw - I imagine there are equivalent study guides/notes for BPP if you go there). Personally, I found them great for getting the lay of the land and making sure you're familiar with key cases and concepts. I would highly recommend having a look online at these (there are samples available) to see if they would work for you.

Please feel free to DM me if you'd like to talk more. I hope things turn out fine for you!

Hi, what do you mean by question spot?

 

[hktr]

Hi, what do you mean by question spot?

For every exam, there will be about 8-12 topics or so, roughly corresponding to each workshop-lecture pair.

In each exam, you can generally count some topics as very likely to come up every year (review the past papers and how much time is devoted to them in workshops/lectures) and topics that do not come up every year. Proceed with caution of course, but I generally find that you can safely ignore at least 1-2 topics. If there was a topic you find difficult to remember the cases for, or you prefer essays to problem Qs or vice versa, or there are topics you just didn't like, you can choose which ones to strategically revise for accordingly.

Edit: This advice is based on my experiences at ULaw, but I expect BPP will be similar.

 

[Curiouserandcuriouser]

Hi Ruby,
I can only echo what everyone has said already. The exam technique is really about structure. I have just completed the GDL at ULaw and we use the IRAC structure:
Issue
Relevant Law
Apply
Conclude

I too used the YourGDL notes as a starting point, but tbh whoever wrote them had just gone through the manual to pull out the paraphrasing and fit it into a structure. If, like mine, your exams will be online, I made sure I had a structure to every possible problem question outlined before the exam then i applied the relevant parts of it to the facts. My "revision" contained going through the past papers to apply this structure, which are, as someone already mentioned, very formulaic. With factual analysis I found that a lot of it came down to common sense and not being afraid to make a legitimate interpretation on the facts.

I'm happy to chat with you in more detail via PM.

 

[zestforcats]

Hi Ruby,
I can only echo what everyone has said already. The exam technique is really about structure. I have just completed the GDL at ULaw and we use the IRAC structure:
Issue
Relevant Law
Apply
Conclude

I too used the YourGDL notes as a starting point, but tbh whoever wrote them had just gone through the manual to pull out the paraphrasing and fit it into a structure. If, like mine, your exams will be online, I made sure I had a structure to every possible problem question outlined before the exam then i applied the relevant parts of it to the facts. My "revision" contained going through the past papers to apply this structure, which are, as someone already mentioned, very formulaic. With factual analysis I found that a lot of it came down to common sense and not being afraid to make a legitimate interpretation on the facts.

I'm happy to chat with you in more detail via PM.

Hi! I am currently doing the MA Law at Law and would really love some help.