Hi guyz, i wish to ask for your sincere and constructive advice I just got an offer to study for an llm in oil and gas law at robert gordon university aberdeen scotland. So my question which i hope the house most especially lawyers in the oil and gas industry is "how easy is it to get financially rewarding jobs, having an llm in oil and gas law in general on one part and on the other part from robert gordon university in particular)"

Anoda question is are there other countries where i could get a masters in oil and gas/energy law apart from the uk at a reduced rate, i checked some US schools that offer an llm in energy law but their fees plus living expenses for one year comes to about 6.8 million naira upwards whereas that of the Robert Gordon University is just a little above 4 million.


( many people have said i should not waste so much money going to the uk since in their opinion , the uk has nothing to offer international students in terms of gaining an international working experience since the new law in the uk is to the effect that you can no longer look for jobs upon completion of your studies but have to return to ur home country immediately you are thru.) but i contend that the uk is still cheap in comparison to the US that everyone advises i go. Anoda option is going to canada, but the course over there is for a duration of 2 years and considering that i am not getting any younger and my very limited finances is not a wise option. what do you guys think or suggest.

BTW i currently work in a law firm (not an oil and gas specialty law firm) that pays 37k a month.

Also is anybody going to aberdeen this september, have you gotten accommodation?, if i accept rgu's offer i intend to get off campus lodgings since that of the school cant fit into my tight budget.

Also can the mod please oblige my thread a space on the front page so that i can get as many comments as possible, i have just some days before i take my final decision

maybe u should try reposting under Travel and Education sections.

U might also find more lawyers under the Properties section.

At the end of the day, its your money, your choice, your career and your life.

You could look up some senior learned colleagues currently practising in that area and seek their opinions via email or chat (tete-a-tete).

Your colleagues or bosses might be able to hook you up with such bigwigs.

Since u've ruled out the online option, i assume the travel experience is a great factor.

yamakuza:

maybe u should try reposting under Travel and Education sections.

U might also find more lawyers under the Properties section.

At the end of the day, its your money, your choice, your career and your life.

You could look up some senior learned colleagues currently practising in that area and seek their opinions via email or chat (tete-a-tete).

Your colleagues or bosses might be able to hook you up with such bigwigs.

Since u've ruled out the online option, i assume the travel experience is a great factor.

Excellent!

"how easy is it to get financially rewarding jobs, having an llm in oil and gas law in general

I would assume you see many vacancies/advert requesting an LLM oil and Gas around you, thats why you are going for the course, or perhaps you know many people getting a job with this qualification

Qualified lawyer 37k, wat da Bleep is wong wit Nigeria lawfirms sef?
Back 2 ur question, brov u hav ntin 2 stay bac for, there aint no career prospects wit a job lik dat, u culd try somtin else dat pays beta, bankin, property mgt bt bliv mi wen I say u wnt find fulfillment in any oda tin.
If I wz u, I'd hop on dat plane com sept, 4get abt stayn bac in the uk, evn in beta times law was always a closed man knw man profession in d uk anyways, jst research on the practice ova der.
So mi says go 4 it, get don wit it and com bac here and earn mor. . .
My 3.2kobo(dats 2cents at N160-$1 exchange rate)

gunpoint:

Qualified lawyer 37k, wat da Bleep is wong wit Nigeria lawfirms sef?
Back 2 your question, brov u hav ntin 2 stay bac for, there aint no career prospects wit a job lik dat, u culd try somtin else dat pays beta, bankin, property mgt bt bliv mi wen I say u wnt find fulfillment in any oda tin.
If I wz u, I'd hop on dat plane com sept, 4get abt stayn bac in the uk, evn in beta times law was always a closed man knw man profession in d uk anyways, jst research on the practice ova der.
So mi says go 4 it, get don wit it and com bac here and earn mor. . .
My 3.2kobo(dats 2cents at N160-$1 exchange rate)

Aren't you the engineer dude heading for South Bank?

By the way, lots of countries also pay lousy. India and China, and Phillipines for one. Most lawyers I know started work with a job that pays like that.
It's all a function of what's available.

@OP:

I suggest you go through the SouthBank thread. You'll learn a lot.

Having just gone through it, I can answer some of your questions:

4. Accomodation: google?

3. Other places include UAE, Australiasia, Holland.

2. RGU is great for that course, wrt Nigerian recognition.

1. Most final yr law students are told to prepare for a N20k salary. N40k is good pay in Law, and from what I gather, most bosses wont bother to pay more no matter how much they make. They'll also never respect you until you establish your own practice, and then the way they address you changes.

This might affect the quality of advice they give you. Might. So, neutral parties are best.

To get ahead in Law, you need to specialise, and establish yourself. You are on the right path.

Apart from specialising in O&G, you will also be making contacts/connections of an intl nature essential for survival in your chosen path.

Even if you do not get better offers on your return, you should hopefully be able to hit the ground running.

Looks like its a good buy.

Dis Guy:

Excellent!

I would assume you see many vacancies/advert requesting an LLM oil and Gas around you, thats why you are going for the course, or perhaps you know many people getting a job with this qualification

funny thing is i do not know any lawyer that works in the oil and gas sector, my interest stems from my disgust at the mismanagment of our country's oil and gas resource.

yamakuza:

@OP:

I suggest you go through the SouthBank thread. You'll learn a lot.

Having just gone through it, I can answer some of your questions:

4. Accomodation: google?

3. Other places include UAE, Australiasia, Holland.

2. RGU is great for that course, wrt Nigerian recognition.

1. Most final yr law students are told to prepare for a N20k salary. N40k is good pay in Law, and from what I gather, most bosses wont bother to pay more no matter how much they make. They'll also never respect you until you establish your own practice, and then the way they address you changes.

This might affect the quality of advice they give you. Might. So, neutral parties are best.

To get ahead in Law, you need to specialise, and establish yourself. You are on the right path.

Apart from specialising in O&G, you will also be making contacts/connections of an intl nature essential for survival in your chosen path.

Even if you do not get better offers on your return, you should hopefully be able to hit the ground running.

Looks like its a good buy.

thanks for the advice. That accomodation one be like war ooo, so many choices but high prices, was hoping to get something that costs less that 50 pounds per week. Which is why i asked in the hope that someone who is in aberdeen or had studied there in the recent past mite have some useful first hand info, will kip on searching.

^ I'm sure RGU website will have links to a student forum, where you'll find housing and pairing requests.

There might also be a facebook group.

Even if rgu doesnt have, other campuses in that area might have such forum, so broaden your scope.

Wale Tınubu and Mofe Boyo, Oando whızkıds, are both lawyers. I thınk Wale Tınubu has hıs llm ın Oıl and Gas or Shıppıng or somethıng sımılar. Both guys, though frıends, were workıng ın law fırms(Wale ın hıs father's law fırm and Mofe ın Rotımı Wıllıams Chamber) when they ıdentıfıed the undertapped goldmıne ın Oıl and Gas ındustry. They came together, along wıth theır thırd Frıend, Jıte Okoloko, to go ınto small oıl and gas busıness. They dıd not look back. That was early 90's. Today, theır baby, Oando, ıs perhaps Afrıca's largest ındıgenous O&G group.

Go ahead. There should be opportunıty ın O&G when you come back, although ıt may not be as easy. Invest the money ın the programme, ıt's worth ıt. But dont forget personal development too, ıt's very ımportant beyond ın career rıse beyond certıfıcate.

All the best.

And dont 4get the people of this forum when u form your own group.

Lolz!

@OP:

What would you like to do after your masters? . . . . Work in an oil and gas industry or a law firm?

Do you intend to do your masters now to get better prospects in a law firm or are you just attracted by the prospects of becoming a specialist?

What companies in Nigeria would require the services of a Llm oil and gas holder?  What companies need those services desperately?

do you have a sponsor or do you intend to dip into your life savings?

How many years of law practice experience do you currently have?

Knowing fully well that the chances of staying and working in the UK after your masters are very slim, what's the plan B?. . . do you have strong links in Nigeria whose influence you can leverage on upon graduation?. . . .If yes, why aren't they helping you at the moment to get a better job?

Other options as mentioned in Jarus's post above is to begin a process all by yourself or jointly with friends, have you considered this?. . . .If yes, do you have enough capital for this?

Have you considered spending at most, half of the amount you intend to spend on your education, in starting up a small/medium scale law practice?

Just one more thing, OP.
don't want to dampen your enthusiasm . . . but RGU's so-called oil and gas programs are not in any way related to oil and gas.
Someone very close to me is running their MBA Oil and Gas DL program. in 3 years they didn't do a single case study related to oil and gas. It was more of British retail and hospitality industries, even airlines. Nothing related to oil and gas.
The only thing close to oil and gas on the program was the fact that a number of oil workers applied for it . . . for obvious reasons of course. But beyond that . . . no oil and gas o. It's just a subtle play on words.

Jarus:

Wale Tınubu and Mofe Boyo, Oando whızkıds, are both lawyers. I thınk Wale Tınubu has hıs llm ın Oıl and Gas or Shıppıng or somethıng sımılar. Both guys, though frıends, were workıng ın law fırms(Wale ın hıs father's law fırm and Mofe ın Rotımı Wıllıams Chamber) when they ıdentıfıed the undertapped goldmıne ın Oıl and Gas ındustry. They came together, along wıth theır thırd Frıend, Jıte Okoloko, to go ınto small oıl and gas busıness. They dıd not look back. That was early 90's. Today, theır baby, Oando, ıs perhaps Afrıca's largest ındıgenous O&G group.

Go ahead. There should be opportunıty ın O&G when you come back, although ıt may not be as easy. Invest the money ın the programme, ıt's worth ıt. But dont forget personal development too, ıt's very ımportant beyond ın career rıse beyond certıfıcate.

All the best.

Jarus thanks for the advice, did not know the above abt wale tinubu and co.

violent:

@OP:

What would you like to do after your masters? . . . . Work in an oil and gas industry or a law firm?

Do you intend to do your masters now to get better prospects in a law firm or are you just attracted by the prospects of becoming a specialist?

What companies in Nigeria would require the services of a Llm oil and gas holder?  What companies need those services desperately?

do you have a sponsor or do you intend to dip into your life savings?

How many years of law practice experience do you currently have?

Knowing fully well that the chances of staying and working in the UK after your masters are very slim, what's the plan B?. . . do you have strong links in Nigeria whose influence you can leverage on upon graduation?. . . .If yes, why aren't they helping you at the moment to get a better job?

Other options as mentioned in Jarus's post above is to begin a process all by yourself or jointly with friends, have you considered this?. . . .If yes, do you have enough capital for this?

Have you considered spending at most, half of the amount you intend to spend on your education, in starting up a small/medium scale law practice?

My initial plan is to work in the oil and gas industry and then return to law practice after some years.

I believe, though without proof that, that the services of an oil and gas lawyer will be required in E&P firms, oil services companies, and also law firms that handle briefs on behalf of these firms. Though i must confess that i am not sure if such services are desperately required.

I am being sponsored by family, i dont have such funds

Just a little under two years experience as a lawyer

I must confess that i have no links that i can leverage, as you pointed out if i had any such links i would have used them to secure a plum job.

i have not considered a collaboration of such as regards the oil industry, i believe that to do such one needs to have at least an average knowledge of the workings of the oil and gas industry, anoda reason that prompted my decision to apply for the course.

In all honesty, i had considered setting up shop with a couple of friends but i must confess that as weird as it sounds its easier to get money to go abroad to study than to be entrusted with even 1/3 of such funds to start ur own practice.

Aare 1:

Jarus thanks for the advice, did not know the above abt wale tinubu and co.
My initial plan is to work in the oil and gas industry and then return to law practice after some years.

I believe, though without proof that, that the services of an oil and gas lawyer will be required in E&P firms, oil services companies, and also law firms that handle briefs on behalf of these firms. Though i must confess that i am not sure if such services are desperately required.

I am being sponsored by family, i dont have such funds

Just a little under two years experience as a lawyer

I must confess that i have no links that i can leverage, as you pointed out if i had any such links i would have used them to secure a plum job.

i have not considered a collaboration of such as regards the oil industry, i believe that to do such one needs to have at least an average knowledge of the workings of the oil and gas industry, anoda reason that prompted my decision to apply for the course.

In all honesty, i had considered setting up shop with a couple of friends but i must confess that as weird as it sounds its easier to get money to go abroad to study than to be entrusted with even 1/3 of such funds to start your own practice.

You know, truth be told, it's not a bad thing to go back to school.
But just know one thing. You will have to come back home and practice in Nigeria. You may or may not be lucky to secure an oil and gas job. But you should separate your expectations from reality.
An LLM is always a good thing, whatever it is called, but it's not going to be a one-to-one mapping, i.e. LLM in RGU = Oil and Gas Job.
You might even come back and have to join one of those 40k practices.
But give it a shot, whatever you feel like doing.

My initial plan is to work in the oil and gas industry and then return to law practice after some years.

I believe, though without proof that, that the services of an oil and gas lawyer will be required in E&P firms, oil services companies, and also law firms that handle briefs on behalf of these firms. Though i must confess that i am not sure if such services are desperately required.

I am being sponsored by family, i dont have such funds

Just a little under two years experience as a lawyer

I must confess that i have no links that i can leverage, as you pointed out if i had any such links i would have used them to secure a plum job.

i have not considered a collaboration of such as regards the oil industry, i believe that to do such one needs to have at least an average knowledge of the workings of the oil and gas industry, anoda reason that prompted my decision to apply for the course.

In all honesty, i had considered setting up shop with a couple of friends but i must confess that as weird as it sounds its easier to get money to go abroad to study than to be entrusted with even 1/3 of such funds to start your own practice.

If your family is willing to foot your bill without breaking a sweat, then by all means, GO FOR IT!!!!. . as I don't see much prospects in your current job. You should however learn to manage your expectations carefully as there are chances that you might not get the dream job you've always hoped for in the oil and gas industry!. . .if in a case such situation arises, (which in many cases it does), you should have a plan B handy!

Your expectations should be such that you are only looking forward to gaining the knowledge and professional status that comes with your masters degree and that you are willing to pay any price in terms of expenses and loss of current earnings, to gain that status. . . If this is not the primary reason for your Masters degree, i'd advise you to reconsider your motivations carefully!

If however you are open to starting your own shop, i'd advise that you look into personal injury claims; Quite frankly, i feel this is an area that has not been well explored by young lawyers to build a solid brand name (which is a requisite for success in the industry) for themselves.

If you own a small shop where you offer "no wins, no pay" services, without doubt before the end of the year, amidst several daily human right abuse going on in the country, you are likely to have a few dozen cases going on for you!
From my observations, only a minor percentage of victims ever bother to obtain justice anywhere, especially when government officials are involved. All you simply need to do is to set up a website and offer free consultation to anyone who thinks he/she's a victim, and then you sue on their behalf assuring them that you will only charge if the case is decided in your favor!

For instance, recently, Lagos state "deported" a few individuals from Lagos! which is contrary to the code that supports the freedom of movement of Nigerians within Nigeria. All you have to do as a personal claims lawyer is to obtain consent from a few of the individuals involved and then sue Lagos state government for millions on their behalf!. . .If you don't win the case, you would ve lost your time and effort and you wouldn't get paid by your clients, but if you do win the case, not only will your name be splattered across all known media, you are assured of getting PAID!!!!

^^
You made a lot of sense there.
But Nigerians don't want to go to all that trouble. They want a job in oil and gas.
Everybody thinks that way in Nigeria, like life was some kind of lottery, and all you needed to do was buy a ticket.

Very ınnovatıve ıdea there, Vıolent.

So whıle the unanımous opınıon here seems for you to go ıf the cost ıs not wıll be of great stress to you/your famıly, prepare to manage your expectatıons and have plan B ın place from now.

violent:

If your family is willing to foot your bill without breaking a sweat, then by all means, GO FOR IT!!!!. . as I don't see much prospects in your current job. You should however learn to manage your expectations carefully as there are chances that you might not get the dream job you've always hoped for in the oil and gas industry!. . .if in a case such situation arises, (which in many cases it does), you should have a plan B handy!

Your expectations should be such that you are only looking forward to gaining the knowledge and professional status that comes with your masters degree and that you are willing to pay any price in terms of expenses and loss of current earnings, to gain that status. . . If this is not the primary reason for your Masters degree, i'd advise you to reconsider your motivations carefully!

If however you are open to starting your own shop, i'd advise that you look into personal injury claims; Quite frankly, i feel this is an area that has not been well explored by young lawyers to build a solid brand name (which is a requisite for success in the industry) for themselves.

If you own a small shop where you offer "no wins, no pay" services, without doubt before the end of the year, amidst several daily human right abuse going on in the country, you are likely to have a few dozen cases going on for you!
From my observations, only a minor percentage of victims ever bother to obtain justice anywhere, especially when government officials are involved. All you simply need to do is to set up a website and offer free consultation to anyone who thinks he/she's a victim, and then you sue on their behalf assuring them that you will only charge if the case is decided in your favor!

For instance, recently, Lagos state "deported" a few individuals from Lagos! which is contrary to the code that supports the freedom of movement of Nigerians within Nigeria. All you have to do as a personal claims lawyer is to obtain consent from a few of the individuals involved and then sue Lagos state government for millions on their behalf!. . .If you don't win the case, you would ve lost your time and effort and you wouldn't get paid by your clients, but if you do win the case, not only will your name be splattered across all known media, you are assured of getting PAID!!!!

very wonderful suggesstions, I can assure you that there are many lawyers that are interested in personal injury claims, the fact that you dont read about all of them in the papers doesn't mean they dont exist. Its however unfortunate that our justice system is so sluggish that you discover that some of this cases have not ended 3-4 years after the suit was filed, then factor in the fact that u mght not be called to argue your case before the court of appeal a whole year after the appeal was filed, should give you a fair idea of how frustrating for both lawyers and litigants our court system can be. I know a lot of lawyers who unfortunately believe in sueing first and then asking questions later so trust me when i say there are many lawyers who are looking for the next victim to represent, but 3-4 years down the line, most litigants are frustrated and end up opting out of the suitsand deciding to seek justice from God.

But we all have our areas of interest, the era of lawyers being jack of all trade has passed and specialization in the legal profession is fast gaining ground, thus while some lawyers may be interested in personal injury claims or fundamental human rights enforcement, some are interested in commercial law, some divorce etc. At the end of the day, it comes down to the area of interest of the individual lawyer. While i want to get "PAID", i think having a job in an area that you love or have an interest is more important, I have discovered that i enjoy briefs of a corporate & commercial nature and of recent developed a knack to no more about the laws that govern the exploitation of our country's natural resource hence my choice of an llm in oil and gas law.

very wonderful suggesstions, I can assure you that there are many lawyers that are interested in personal injury claims, the fact that you dont read about all of them in the papers doesn't mean they dont exist. Its however unfortunate that our justice system is so sluggish that you discover that some of this cases have not ended 3-4 years after the suit was filed, then factor in the fact that u mght not be called to argue your case before the court of appeal a whole year after the appeal was filed, should give you a fair idea of how frustrating for both lawyers and litigants our court system can be. I know a lot of lawyers who unfortunately believe in sueing first and then asking questions later so trust me when i say there are many lawyers who are looking for the next victim to represent, but 3-4 years down the line, most litigants are frustrated and end up opting out of the suitsand deciding to seek justice from God.

True words!

Interesting thread

I am impressed that you have decided to leave your  job no matter the stipend paid, to take this leap of faith so that you can enjoy that anticipated career growth that we all desire.However,I would like to include a word of caution whilst asking you certain vital questions

1. Make sure that you do what are passionate about and makes you happy. Once, these two things are in sync. Money will come. In a more succinct sense-PEPPER GO RED!

2. I have read with wide amazement certain suggestions put forward using spurious analogies (albeit good ones I must admit). Hence, one question comes to mind-Have you contacted any Nigerians at RGU? I know for sure that there is a huge Nigeria presence in Aberdeen especially amongst the student populace, that will be able to give you 'first hand' information.(Facebook is a good place to start, just use the relevant search criteria and am sure you will get some  positive head start, also try LinkedIn)

3. Regarding your choice of school, you will enjoy what I call 'location advantage' because; RGU is based in Aberdeen-the capital of Europe's petroleum industry. Thus, you can make use of this opportunity to develop the required networks amongst the right students and alumni.

4.Also, I would like to add a 'mild note of caution' here-the era of automatic employment after studying abroad is fast diminishing in Nigeria so you really have to be sure that you are doing this for the right reasons(I guess only you can provide a sincere answer to this).

5. RGU is a good school in terms of regional ranking and in certain core courses, however they are not yet there in terms of global ranking and if you really want to make your mark fast in your industry, perhaps, you need to consider a top ranked school? USA or Canada maybe?

6. What are your plans after school? Do you want to get back to Nigeria and into paid employment or set up your own practice? Whichever way, you need to have a mind map of what your post LLM plan is and put that into the ‘scheme of things’. This is vital because, I have seen ambitious graduates travel abroad and lose sight of the goal at hand.

7. If you intend to start your own practice, you need to create a niche for yourself (i.e. identify a new service in the legal profession that will be required and build a brand-your own brand around it) A NLer passed some comments about personal injury claims; this is an untapped area but is there a market for it in Nigeria? I know for sure that employee compensation benefits and work related personal injury claims are 'hot' areas here in America and UK, but what about Nigeria?
8. Have you considered scholarship options at your school of choice? I do know that most schools offer part of full scholarships on tuition fees and living expenses. I suggest that you find out if there are any opportunities for this and make the best of it.
9. Also, bear in mind that, there have been significant changes to the Tier 4 student UK visa. For example students coming in from September 2011 will no longer be permitted to work whilst on study and the PSW (post study work) permit will be phased finally in April 2012. I doubt if you will be done with you study be then. This has two implications-(a) you cannot work as a student thus, the ability to augment your expenses or even make a little extra to recoup what you intend to spend,is  zero (b) you will be required to return to Nigeria after your study, thus, the chances of staying back at least for two years to work and get some ‘international exposure’  is very slim.
BEST OF LUCK!

Just a couple of points.

There's no way living expenses in the US is more expensive than the UK. Not in this life.

Secondly, if you can go the US or Canada route, go for it. Two years will fly and you are done. I'm no fan of one way thinking. If you go to the UK, your only prospect is Nigeria unless everything lines up perfectly, which is very rare. In Canada, you have the prospect of either working in Canada or moving back to Nigeria. It's a little tougher in the US but no where near the UK. The choice is yours but if I were in your shoes, UK will never be on my list. Thank me later!

BTW, there are a few universities that have given (and are giving) full scholarships to LLM candidates from Nigeria. The first black student to ever win the governor general's award in Canada is my friend. He completed his PhD in Law in 2002 making him also bag the award for completing his PhD program in record time. So many other Nigerians have come in for their LLM on scholarships and have completed their two year programs and moved on to better things. The other day, I ran into a dude who just completed his LLM program. He was earning the same 30k salary in some Eastern Nigerian town; he told me that he woke up one day and decided to apply to different universities in Canada by writing proposals. He got a full grant and he's done with his program now. So I'd encourage you to look at North American universities; you may just suprise yourself. Even if you do not get a grant, your prospects in North America are better than the UK. Good luck.

UK UK UK
1. The question is not Uk but how u are going to move forward. If u get full or part funding its ok.
2. Dont even allow that £150 salary in Nigeria be a friction. I'm sure u are not considering that.
3. If u know what u are looking for, complete your studies where u have scholarship and prepare yourself to move to the area where your degree is needed. it sounds cheap but u can study in uk and not necessarily look for post study work in the uk.its not even possible anymore.
4. Lets plan for nigeria and come back. NIGERIA WILL BE GREAT AGAIN
5.

i currentt live in Essex and have just completed my masters in Subsea Engineering from Robert Gordon Uni, i might be able to hook u up with some of my guys that actually live and work in aberdeen but your attitude will determine if they can tolerate you or not, email me on alorasea@msn.com for more details. or better still, send me you bb pin so we can communicate better

guy dont waste ur time
seach out lawyers who finished llb abroad in linkd and mail em
they will give u better advice
what u need is advice from those who have done it, and a solid relationship with such people so u avoid their mistakes

uk masters tend to be almost worthless in the job market
you might consider short courses in prestigious unis abroad,
doing 3 short courses a year in a specialized area at a renown university will be much better than a degree at those "we only want ur money" universities in the uk
dude
just my 50cents man

@ poster

Can't this program be done online, without you having to move to Aberdeen? A good friend of mine just finished her masters program online. She was successful and flew to the US for her convocation,results and certificate.

The on-line program eliminated a lot of the expenses you are worried about. The school fees wasn't small but it was better when compared to what she would have paid if she moved to the US, gotten hostel accommodation and all.

All she needed was 24/7 internet access and power supply. Luckily for her she lives in area where power supply is superb and she was able to pull it off despite her demanding job that keeps her on the move (i.e travelling from one nation to the other).

You should consider an online masters program that won't have you catching fever about a whole lot of expenses. Am bleeding about what you earn right now you should also consider getting a job outside of that damn profession called law. It's not worth it man.

@Poster, am struggling to see your problem. To my own thinking you've got no problem.

I am a product of RGU (Aberdeen Business School) though not law but MSc Purchasing and Supply Chain Mgt DISTANCE LEARNING.

Keep your current job and do your programme by DISTANCE LEARNING. Same course content, same Certificate, same class with on-campus students, but you may want the international social and cultural experience so do well to come over. Aberdeen is a great city and RGU is voted the best modern University and highly in terms of job prospect for graduands in the UK. The school offers an excellent career advice for students. Cost?

The student Union is helpful with accommodation, but you could always find cheaper accommodation by sharing with fellow students off campus. And creative ways also to earn money to support your studies. RGU LLM Oil and Gas not having Oil and Gas content in its modules? Haba! Work?

Come over first. You will cross that bridge when you get there. Whats your opportunity cost? 35k? You are not in a great job at the moment so the only way is up. You will never know the possibilities until you make that move. Job after graduation?

Have you graduated? There are a whole lot of uncontrollable variables that may happen before you graduate that may impinge on your life's chances so please do well to take one day at a time. Goodluck. Stay Blessed.

I like this thread. Has alot of intelligent responses. Glad the kids r not on it.