Ghana, which is officially known as the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It shares borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and Togo in the east.
According to the 2021 census, the population of the country is nearly 31 million, it is the second-most populous country in West Africa with the capital being Accra.
This article will cover the top 10 law schools in Ghana. In order to obtain a bachelor’s degree here, you would be required to study for a minimum of four years.
If you want to go further and get higher education qualifications such as a master’s degree or a Ph.D., then an additional one to two years or a minimum of three years respectively is required.
Ghana also happens to have some notable universities such as the University of Ghana, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, and the University of Cape Coast, just to mention a few.
A law school is an institution that trains people to become lawyers. Starting a legal career on the right note in this country is to attend the best law school in Ghana.
It would be better for you and your career if you attend a law school that challenges you academically and puts you in the right position for future success. A career in law will offer you a wide range of alternatives.
However, for you to send in an application and get accepted into any of the law schools in Ghana, you would first need to obtain a first degree awarded from a recognized institution.
The word recognized means that the institution has to be recognized by the other schools that offer law degrees.
Upon the completion of your first degree, you can then apply to any of the institutions that will be mentioned below for a law degree.
Benefits of Studying Law
Studying law will teach you numerous things, including how to speak, read, write, deliberate, debate, and research. The benefits can include teaching you how to be at:
Negotiation:
When you are studying for a law degree, your negotiation skills, both written and verbal will be developed. This is because your ability to argue a point or challenge a decision successfully is pertinent in higher-level job positions.
Analysis:
Students are expected to gather data and come to conclusions based on their analysis of the facts and figures. This skill is the root of many senior business roles.
Presentation:
Having a skill like this cannot be overemphasized. The ability to communicate or pitch an idea to people or sell a product is a skill that is considered invaluable. It will be a bonus in your career and will help you get ahead.
Problem-Solving:
Whether you are a lawyer or not, the ability to find solutions to problems is considered an invaluable skill by employers. When you are undergoing a law degree program, part of the curriculum would be to teach you how to think outside the box and solve problems.
Working Under Pressure:
As a result of the nature of the course, students are made to work under pressure to meet strict deadlines and complete assignments. This gives them the ability to excel in environments that have high-pressure no matter the career.
Requirements To Study Law In Ghana
To be considered as a student for one of the law schools in Ghana, there are some requirements you would have to meet up with.
Now, remember that these requirements may sometimes vary from school to school. Here are some of the common requirements:
- Students who want to apply to one of the law schools in Ghana must have six credits (A1-C6) in English, Mathematics, and Integrated Science and three elective subjects, making an aggregate of no more than 36.
- They must have obtained a good first degree in any field of study from a recognized University. They would have to get at least a 2nd Class Lower Division or a postgraduate qualification from a recognized University.
- The students are expected to submit an official transcript of their academic records.
- This is followed by at least two referees’ reports. One must be from a former lecturer.
- The next step would be to proceed to send in an application for the Ghana school of law for professional law courses. Applicants must pass the Entrance Examination.
- You must then pass the entrance examination and a selection interview. You would have to show that you can go through the demanding full-time study.
- The students who are successful will undertake and complete the Professional Law Course. They would be enrolled as Barristers at Law and Solicitors of the Supreme Court upon completion.
The List of Law Schools in Ghana
All the institutions mentioned below are approved by the National Accreditation Board (NAB) and the General Legal Council (GLC) for Law Programmes:
Ghana School Of Law (GSL):
Ghana School of Law was founded in 1958. It is the only school in Ghana that provides training for graduates of law.
The school offers Professional Law Courses to graduates who have earned their LL.B. degree and who have passed the entrance exam.
When students complete this course, they become qualified to practice law in Ghana. Before this school was founded, lawyers in Ghana were trained overseas.
Wisconsin International University College Faculty Of Law:
Wisconsin is a suburban top-class private university that offers students a modern infrastructure, and a serene and conducive environment for living, learning, playing, and networking.
The school offers a law degree for post-first-degree applicants and is considered one of the top 10 law schools in Ghana.
Wisconsin International University College Faculty Of Law offers both a three-year and a four-year Bachelor of Laws (LL.B) program. These programs are aimed at preparing its students for their legal careers.
The career could be as a legal practitioner: solicitor, barrister, magistrate, or other court official or as a legal advisor in corporate organizations, the public or private sector, or in NGOs.
Mountcrest University College Faculty Of Law:
Mountcrest University College Faculty Of Law is another private law school that deserves to be on this list.
It offers a great teaching and learning atmosphere. The Faculty of Laws happens to be one of the first faculties that were established in the university.
This faculty adopts an approach that prepares and equips students to become the new generation of Law both in the public and the private sectors.
These students graduate with the knowledge that makes them influential and ethical human beings who will competently mix well into any and every sphere they find themselves in.
GIMPA Faculty of Law:
GIMPA Faculty of Law offers students who want to train to become lawyers, legal academics, and policymakers an ideal environment to pursue their education.
The rigorous standards help to prepare its students for a competitive and complex legal career. The faculty of law has been able to reach both domestic and international students, lawyers, policymakers, and even the general public.
It did this through seminars, policy papers, and research. GIMPA is rated one of the best law schools in Ghana.
Also, continuous assessment examinations are conducted to make sure that the development of students is monitored.
University of Ghana School Of Law:
The University of Ghana School of Law is the center of legal education in the country. It continues to lead the way in preparing students for their careers in law.
The school is one of the best law schools in Ghana. The curriculum offers interviews, law journal write-on competitions, and trial and advocacy presentations as a part of it.
The school also offers a highly qualified and experienced faculty that prepares students for their legal careers.
Upon completion, students would be required to take bar tests to show their understanding of what they have learned.
UCC Faculty Of Law:
UCC Faculty of Law was established in 2011. In 2013, accreditation was granted to the faculty by the National Accreditation Board.
The faculty has a mission to produce law graduates who have the knowledge, competence, and skills to practice as lawyers in Ghana and outside Ghana.
More importantly, they are taught negotiation skills, these are the skills they would use in debating an issue or in contesting a decision.
At the end of the program, the students should be able to work in various areas of law, find cases that support their arguments, and engage in legal advocacy, legal research, and general work.
Knust Faculty Of Law:
Knust Faculty Of Law is the second law school to be established in Ghana. It provides training in law and also makes its graduates fulfill the needs of the country as graduates of law.
The school also helps its students sharpen their analytical skills, they are taught how to collect data and come to conclusions based on facts and statistics.
It is also among the best law schools in Ghana and offers law education for WASSCE applicants and post-first-degree applicants.
Central University College Faculty Of Law:
Central University College Faculty Of Law offers an interdisciplinary academic field that is devoted to the examination and analysis of the rules.
Upon graduation from this program, a student can sit and take the professional bar certification program at the Ghana School of Law.
The school also offers a faculty that is well-organized for Ghana’s legal profession. Students get to do, but I also have to firsthand what their vocations require, which motivates them to put in the work.
Zenith University College Faculty Of Law:
Zenith University College Faculty of Law offers a bachelor of law degree program in affiliation with Cape Coast University.
The program offers students the opportunity to gain a strong awareness of the different dimensions of Law. Upon the completion of the program, students are awarded law certificates and transcripts from the University of Cape Coast.
Also, this law school offers two modules of law education, both leading to an LL.B.. They offer both a local law degree and one by the University of London.
Kings University College Faculty Of Law:
Kings University College Faculty Of Law offers both a four-year LL.B. program for Ghanaian and Nigerian Students who want to be able to practice law in either Ghana or Nigeria.
It also offers a three-year LL.B. program for those who already have a first degree in a different field.
The curriculum gives students a dynamic, responsive, broad, and engaging range of knowledge that they would need in the world.
The students in this law school go through internships with institutions that are law-focused and law firms. This is part of their commitment to making sure that the students receive a complete experience and grounding in legal education.
The Faculty of Law, Governance, and International Relations in this institution, wishes to provide the students with not only a law degree that shows they have the knowledge but also the experience to back it up.
They do this by giving the students real-life circumstances that are related to their careers. This knowledge and experience will help them form sound judgments and develop different means of arguing points and communicating their ideas.
Ghana Institute Of Advanced Legal Studies (GIALS):
Ghana Institute of Advanced Legal Studies was founded in 2006. This institution has the mission to further the development of humans by increasing access to quality legal education, training, and research.
This law school develops a program of research, consultancy, and teaching that focuses on social, economic, and sustainable development.
It works with universities, the legal profession, industry, civil society organizations, and the community, to achieve this goal.
Students of this institution get to be a part of all these whilst going through the education and training they need to serve as legal practitioners.
UPSA Law School:
UPSA Law School prepares its students for the ups and downs of a law career in the real world. The curriculum combines the teaching and learning of the law with a module that is world-class and rooted in critical thinking.
The UPSA Law School implements a large network of collaboration and partnerships with other law schools around the world.
The students here get to enjoy a healthy and vibrant life on campus that is mixed perfectly with an engaging intellectual community.
All these make the school a highly competitive one with many applications being sent in every academic year.
Lancaster University Ghana Faculty Of Law:
Lancaster University Ghana Faculty Of Law allows students to gain an awareness of the different dimensions of Law, such as the social, political, cultural, and historical dimensions.
Some of these modules cover technical legal courses, while others go to explore the relationship between the law, development, and society.
The school combines both innovative teaching techniques and traditional methods of highly experienced lecturers, all for the benefit of the students.
Throughout the course, different skills will be developed in you. These skills will end up becoming vital in giving presentations, public speaking, teamwork, and also in research and writing.
The law program commenced in 2014 and since then, it has been giving students one of the best education in law.
The Lancaster University Law school, Ghana is also one of the best law schools in Ghana, exactly why it is on our list.
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How Many Years Does It Take To Study Law In Ghana?
Becoming a lawyer in Ghana would take a total of six years for most students who have WASSCE.
But if you take into consideration those who already have a first degree and also want to study law, it could take two, three, or four years to complete.
Of course, all these depend on the university you choose to get the law degree.
What Is The Highest Degree Of Law?
The highest degree of law is the Doctor of Juridical Science degree. It is considered the highest level of a law degree and is mostly designed for professionals who would want to gain an advanced legal education. This degree can be earned after earning a J.D. and an LL.M. degree.
What Do You Have To Do To Become A Lawyer?
For you to become a lawyer, you would have to:
- Complete the minimum educational requirement to get admission into a law school, which is a bachelor’s degree program.
- Pass the admission test of the law school.
- Complete the educational requirement in law school.
- Earn a Juris Doctor degree.
- Pass the Bar Examination.
- Move your career forward.
Is Law School Hard?
There are two ways this question can be answered, but we will choose the straightforward path.
Absolutely. Law school is hard.
There are only a few educational experiences that can this one, both in the work required of you and the amount of stress you will most definitely face.
But of course, at the end of it all, how hard law school is for you will be dependent on how well-suited you are for it.