Journal article
Reviewing Honours and Distinction in 21st Century Australian Law Schools: Is the Diversity of Approaches Corroding Its Market Relevance?
Journal of the Australasian Law Academics Association, Vol.13/14, pp.29-45
2021
Abstract
In 2013 and 2020 the Legal Education Associate Deans Network (‘LEAD’) executive undertook member-only surveys that captured a snapshot of the Honours programs offered at just over half of Australian law schools. In 2021, in order to further augment the responses and in response to member interest, the LEAD executive reviewed the publicly available data from Australian university websites advertising their Bachelor of Laws and/or Juris Doctor degrees, and the respective Honours and/or Distinction options. The 2021 review shows the most common law program offered by an Australian law school to be a Bachelor of Laws with Honours (including combined programs). However, the eligibility requirements for Honours vary considerably by institution. This article discusses and contextualises the initial findings of the 2021 LEAD executive review, with the intention to: highlight the varied and often inconsistent approaches of Australian law schools to the award of Honours; provide some insight as to how this situation arose; and, finally, identify some concerns with the current scattered approach, and why more consistency may be desirable. It seeks to initiate an ongoing conversation on how to best support the demonstration of excellence by students. This exploratory article is preliminary to a proposed larger project examining the place of Honours and Distinction in the contemporary Australian law school.
Details
- Title
- Reviewing Honours and Distinction in 21st Century Australian Law Schools: Is the Diversity of Approaches Corroding Its Market Relevance?
- Authors
- Kelley Burton (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Law and SocietyJulian Laurens (Author) - University of MelbourneJudith Marychurch (Author) - University of Melbourne
- Publication details
- Journal of the Australasian Law Academics Association, Vol.13/14, pp.29-45
- Publisher
- Australasian Law Academics Association
- Organisation Unit
- School of Law and Society; University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland; Sexual Violence Research and Prevention Unit
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 99666698802621
- Output Type
- Journal article
Metrics
31 Record Views