Bar Professional Training Course
The Bar Professional Training Course ( BPTC ), known as the Bar Vocational Course ( BVC ) until 2010 , is a practice-based postgraduate law degree in England and Wales . The BVC serves as the transition from purely theoretical legal training in the LL.B. to practice in court. It is a necessary condition to be admitted to the bar in England and Wales.
The full-time study lasts one year, it can also be completed as part-time study in two years. The courses are regulated by the Bar Council .
The BPTC is not an LL.M. and no master's degree . The difference between the BPTC and the LL.M. lies in the fact that the latter is an academic degree while the BPTC prepares the graduate for practice.
The BPTC is the traditional preparation for court activity in England and Wales. The Legal Practice Course (LPC) , which is also offered postgraduate, prepares students for office work in a law firm . This also results in the traditional division of labor between the solicitor working in the law firm and the barrister working in court.
The training of an English barrister typically includes three years of full-time study leading to a Bachelor's degree (LL.B.) and one year of full-time study under the BPTC. This is followed by a year of training as a "pupil" with an approved barrister (the corresponding counterpart in training as a solicitor is a two-year "traineeship"), followed by approval as a barrister.