What I wish I had known before taking the Cambridge Law Test
Fiona is currently a third year Law student at Queens’ College. Here, she outlines some thoughts and tips based on her experience of the Cambridge Law Test.
Almost all colleges will require you to sit the Cambridge Law Test (CLT), but fortunately the CLT is less daunting than it may appear. The Faculty of Law website has some basic information about the test, and some useful links to sample questions. What I will suggest are some notes and tips about the CLT that I wish I knew before sitting it.
What is the structure of the CLT?
The CLT is one hour long, but if you complete your interview outside of Cambridge this format may vary, as was the case for me. You can contact the college you applied to for more specific information, as they will be the ones arranging your CLT. In the standard CLT, there is a two-part question, based on a passage — for instance, an extract taken from a court judgment.
Previously, the CLT had a different structure, and there were three different types of questions. Just note that some out of date resources may appear in online searches.
How do part (i) and part (ii) of the question in the CLT differ?
Part (i) of the question is more of a straightforward comprehension task, asking you to explain ‘in your own words’ some aspect of the passage; part (ii) is looking for you to engage with the underlying issues in the passage, and to present clear and balanced arguments.
As part (ii) is a more complex task, I found it worthwhile to allocate more time to it than part (i), planning it in more detail. Whilst it may seem difficult to come up with arguments for part (ii) on the spot, thinking about general debates in law might help — for instance, the tension between certainty and discretion, or between individuals and the public, or between autonomy and protection.
There is no single right way to approach each part of the CLT; often what will work best is what has worked for you in past written exams. Make sure you read the passage thoroughly, keeping in mind the points that each part of the question wants you to discuss. To focus my mind, I found it helpful to read the question at the very beginning before I started reading the passage, but some people might prefer it the other way around. Do not feel the need to throw in additional legal jargon — beyond anything already in the passage — as prior knowledge of the law is not expected!
What are some potential ways to prepare for the CLT?
As no previous legal knowledge is assumed, there is no need to read up on law books or judgments for the CLT. What may be useful is continuing to read a variety of texts. For instance, I enjoy reading op-ed articles in newspapers. Personally, I have recently enjoyed reading articles like this one on hate speech law reform in Australia, and this one discussing healthcare legislation in the United States. I found that continuing to read texts like those, whilst thinking critically about the points raised by the authors, helped me to develop skills that were useful for the CLT. You will also benefit from taking full advantage of the two sample tests provided online, as even just looking over the questions and planning some responses is good preparation.
Finally, remember that the CLT is just one part of the admissions process. Good luck!
The Cambridge Law Test is an admissions assessment that prospective Law students are asked to take when they come to Cambridge for their interviews. For more information on the assessment, including sample questions and marking criteria, please see the BA Law website. For answers to specific questions, please contact the college that is handling your application.
The information in this article is considered correct at the time of publication.
