Hi my name is Dora and Im from Panama, i wanted to know how strict are uk universities concerning your grades, for example in my country its from 0-3.00, in this case mine is 1.77 , what are the chances i have of entering universities such as Nottingham, Glasglow,Cardiff, for an International Commercial LLM?? My TOEFL SCORE WAS 613 PAPERBASED AND 5.0 IN TWE. And I have good references.

Hi Dora! Sometimes the universities tell on their websites what grades you need to have to get admission, and I think if they do that than they *mostly* also won´t accept you if you have lower grades. But on the other hand it all depends, and I totally encourage you to apply! Grades are not the only criterion. I don´t see a lot of people from Panama in the U.K. LL.M. programs, and since most schools want diversity among their students your origin will be another interesting point in your application. I say go for it! Your TOEFL score is very good, and with good references too I don´t see that you will have any difficulties. I myself will go to Glasgow this fall too, so I know that they are very helpful there and you should not hesitate to contact them if you have any questions. Good luck!!

Hi Matthias, thankyou very much for your info, it is true that they talk about second upper class honours requirements, the thing is i really don't know what that means since my country has a different grading system, i'm very interested in Glasglow, there's a program of Commercial International LLM with the univ. of Strathclyde that looks very good, I'm applying this week and I wanted to know how much time did they take to give you an answer???
Thanx
By the way are you from the Uk??

Glasgow will reply to you very fast! I sent out my application on December 15th, one week later I got a letter from them informing me that they had received my application, another 3 weeks later (approximately January 20th) I received their offer letter. So the whole thing took only one month.

When do you want to enrol?

By the way I´m from Germany!

Thats great you got accepted that fast!!! I want to start on october's LLM, but i think i'm a little late, i'll be sending some of my things this week or next.
By any chance do you have msn, if you do please contact me at sanz1@hotmail.com, maybe we could chat a little more about this.
Do you know anyone else who will be attending Glasglow??

Some universities like Oxford, King's colleges, require 630 on the paper based Toefl test so you should take a look what the universities you apply for require.

Thanx Magnuss, and yes im avoiding these universities because i think i don't want to take an english course, and thats what they do, if they accept you they do it under the condition of taking an english course. But Im interested in universities such as Durham,Nottingham, Glasglow-Strathclyde, Cardiff, and Aberdeen. If anyone has information about these Id be grateful if you contact me.

Hi Dorapanama,

It's not too late to apply. Start arranging copies of your transcripts and letters of reference now!

Your language skills seem to be sufficiently high for many UK institutions (including The University of Edinburgh) but the GPA is not immediately suggestive of the equilvalent of a 2:1 Honours undergraduate award.

A 2:1 undergraduate is equivalent to 60% and above final mark over course work and dissertation/thesis. The undergraduate honours degree would normally require three (England, Wales, NI) or four years (Scotland).

If you're interested in applying to commercial law, contact someone in the admission or postgraduate office and ask for their assistance.

Thanx C. Miller. But I have 59%... what chances do I have???

I'd not give up hope with 59%. Sometimes I can find that a student's marks are not wholly representative of their best work. I would advise that you include copies of your best work in your application and explain that you are doing so in support of your claim that you deserved a higher grade from your previous studies. The people who are considering your position will want to know that you will be able to cope at postgraduate level, so by demonstrating that you are capable AND that you are keen and enthusiastic, then you may well receive a conditional offer.

Another hint to you is to enroll on a summer course in a subject area that is related to your intended LLM. This shows how enthusiastic you are about the area you intend to study.

Also, have you thought about which area you would want to complete your LLM dissertation in? If you can show in your application that you have given a lot of thought in to the subject, then that too could overcome some negative opinions of your final grade.

I hope that some or any of this help you get the place you are looking for - best advice is not to give up!

Dora, unfortunately I don´t have MSN, but you can catch me on yahoo messenger: matthiasdamm@yahoo.com . :-) The telephone number at Glasgow university you might want to call in advance is to find here: http://www.ggsl.strath.ac.uk/courses/ . I myself won´t be in the commercial law program but in the IT & telecommunications law track though... Good luck, hope to meet you in Glasgow this fall! :-)