The College of Law speaks with a recent Practical Legal Training Graduate

We interviewed a recent PLT graduate, Moshe Ross,  to find out about his experience at the College of Law.

Undergraduate studies: Graduated in 2009 from the University of Melbourne with BE(Chem)(Hons)/LLB(Hons).

PLT Study Mode: Part-time (8 months, online)

Q1. When did you complete your Practical Legal Training?

September 2010.

Q2. What are you doing now since graduating from the College?

Working full-time at a law firm.

Q3. Was your time at The College of Law what you thought it would be?

I really enjoyed my time at the College. The tutorials were interesting and the work load was manageable and much more practical (and enjoyable) than uni. It really taught me how to ‘be a lawyer’.

Q4. How did you find the lecturers at the College? 

Being an online course, questions had to be either phoned in, or emailed. Whichever mode one chose, the students all agreed that the lecturers were extremely nice and helpful. They took the time to make sure that everyone’s questions were answered and everyone knew that the lecturers could be approached at literally any time.

Q5. Were the onsite weeks at the College campus useful?

The onsite weeks at the College were great fun. They consisted mostly of group exercises and role playing. Not only did it encourage team work and group collaboration, but it was always beneficial to see how different people approached the same problem. The onsite weeks definitely build confidence and even the most shy of people at the beginning of the course loved getting up and role playing in front of the whole group by the end!

Q6. What did you find most valuable about your Practical Legal Training studies at the College? 

I thought that the role playing exercises were most valuable at the College. Because I did not participate in many mooting competitions at uni, the College was my first exposure to ‘practical lawyering’. The lecturers were really good and picked up the relevant weak points in people’s presentations. The lecturers then showed everyone how to improve their presentation and legal approach. These kinds of skills are truly priceless in a job.

Q7. What skills have you been able to put into practice in the real world that you learnt at the College? 

One of the skills that I learnt at the College which I have put into practice countless times in my job is drafting. The drafting skills I learned during the course, coupled with the various papers in the reading books that are provided by the college, are extremely useful when one finds themselves in legal practice. Even details such as correctly describing a party in a legal document can be tricky and can make all the difference between a good and bad piece of work.

Q8. When deciding who to do your PLT with, what made you choose the College of Law? 

While I was in uni, the overwhelming majority of my friends who had already finished and were already working had either already finished, or were in the middle of, the College of Law PLT course. They all recommended that I also do the College of Law course and I have not looked back since. I also knew that a lot of top- and mid-tier firms choose the College of Law course for their graduates.

Q9. What would you say to current final year students who are deciding where to do their PLT?

GO THE COLLEGE!