Hi
Sorry if this is long winded - but hopefully with the background you can best understand my prob & give some much needed advise.....
I am very confused right now, I obtained a Third class degree from university of london - had a few leave of absences and a host of personal issues going on. Instead of pulling out and re starting I stupidly continued and ended up graduating with a crap useless III class degree in Development Economics and Linguistics

Anyway that was a few years ago and I have been working in low level finance role (good pay but rubbish role )- and am finding it really difficult to progress without a good degree - this is hard especially as I still have the ambitious drive and am so desperate to move forward but am feeling stuck.

I had always thought about doing a convesrison (before i graduated) and due to my extenuating circumstances may be able to get on a LLM qualifying law degree within University of London - I would ideally like to follow this with a Human rights/ economic law, justice & development Masters, as this is the field that I would love to work in .

My questions/problems are that I am now 29 and time is ticking - will completeing an LLM be pointless with my third class degree - would i still be automatically in the 'no pile' for many firms ? would i be better off doing an LLB and starting fresh and then progressing to a masters after that?
am I too old to be beginning this journey now esp. on a part time evening basis? are there any other options available that I am not aware of?

Really grateful for any advice that anyone has - I have messed up and really just need advice on how to remedy this and move forward in a way that both time and money is invested wisely

Thanks

I doubt that LLM will add any value to you as people will go back to your original degree. Might be better to do a LLB and then concentrating on an area of law less popular with younger applicants while still being very well paid such as tax. There your age and experience might be an advantage. Then you might be able to secure a position with the Inland Revenue and progress from there...

thank's for the reply - but can I ask why would / does my age rule me out for int. Human rights law? why would this in your opinion be for younger applicants? Am asking because I def' don't want to work in tax or commercial law & if these would be the only viable options I feel that I would be wasting time.
Many thanks

1. Because Human rights law is a more popular field for high quality graduates to get into, hence, more competition
2. Because only top law firms really make a play in this sector and with your academics you are unlikely to get a job there, let's be realistic. They will only take people from the top 10 law schools, if not only top 5. I am not sure you have a realistic chance to be admitted to a top 5 law school, I am sorry...
3. Because other places where you can utilise your skills (immigration service, high street solicitors, citizens advice bureau etc) do not pay well at all (20-30K before tax, I believe) and as a 29-year old with a steady income it will be a too hard pill to swallow. Obviously, when you a bright eyed 21-year old the above mentioned salary is great. But there is a huge difference between 21 and 29

This is likely to sound bizarre but it might just work for you...
Why do not you try to do either MBA with concentration on developing countries or LLM/MSc in places in SOAS, Reading etc...If you can get good work references and "beef up" your work experience you might be able just get in and then get a job in Green Peace, Amnesty International or similar...LLM in SOAS with Chinese might do the trick...You seemed to be a linguist...Get the papers from your doctors confirming that you were sick and from your professors confirming that if you were not sick you would have been the best thing since sliced bread....You might be able to get a fairly decently paid Amnesty job on the economics side and then to move to the legal side from there. Maybe they will pay for your law conversion if you are any good

ok , great honesty is what I need right now - I have one last question regards to relevancy I did my 1st degree Lse and will be able to do llb @ birkbeck - I am now of saner mind compared to my years of mess, if I therefore was able to graduate near top will this not erase my 1st degree or in this industry am I already tainted regardless ?
Thanks again

Many years ago I was at the LSE as well...To be frank, your earlier grades will "follow" you for a long time. If you were fine grades-wise before, Birbick would have been fine. In your circumstances I would have picked something else - "less part-timish".
There is one more thing you can try...you never know, world works in a mysterious ways. Arrange a meeting with the LLM admission person at the LSE. Tell him/her your life story and how you can trying to get your life sorted and how you can be a good inspiration to others. People in this country love a good struggle for better future story. Maybe LSE will take you back and give you the second chance?
You never know
Good luck...

I am currently learning japanese @ soas [ don't know how relevant this is] - and yes I was thinking or staying on the development side and have documented evidence @ university - AI was something I had pondered over & doing a masters in int. Security - def' can't afford an MBA but yes that could be a route! Although Chinese isn't really an option now - def' something to think about
thankyou

Did not mean to say that you have to learn Chinese LOL :-)
What I was trying to say that in order for anyone to get a prestigious well paid job one of the two things need to apply:
1. You background is as common and "trouble free" as flowers in spring time. Basically you are from a middle class family, went to a good school, then good uni, got decent grades, have an internship under your belt - basically as middle of the road as possible
2. Your background is very unusual and catchy - you had a trouble childhood and then turned your life around, you worked as a fire fighter or a volunteer and then decided to do something else...Basically Stephen Fry-style....He was nearly in prison and then Cambridge...
I think you have a good chance to follow his footsteps...Just learn to "sell" your troubled story for what its worth

veryconfused, it would be interesting to know more about your career aims - when you say working in human rights etc, what do you mean? The obsession with firsts and 2:1s is rather local to the UK and specific to law firms, and outside that world it may well be that a prospective employer might be content that you have a relevant degree, solid work experience and language skills. Maybe there are other ways you could get into your chosen field than to first qualify? Qualifying clearly would take several years away from what you really want to do.