The first year of law at UNIGE

The first year of law at the University of Geneva, called 'First series', lays the foundations essential to all the legal studies to come. It totals 60 ECTS credits and is organized over deux semestres.

This year combines lectures, to acquire the theoretical foundations, and working sessions in groups, where active participation is essential. The goal is to familiarize you with the different branches of law, to develop your skills in reading and analyzing legal texts, as well than in writing and argumentation.

The workload is quite heavy. The programme provides for 19 hours of classes and exercises per week, and you are expected to devote an equivalent time to personal preparation and work regular, i.e. about 38 hours of work per week in total. Despite this workload significant, with organization and consistency, you can succeed in this first year.

There are no exams in the January–February session. The first exams take place in the May–June session. However, three subjects offer optional continuous assessment during the January–February session. I strongly advise you to take it. It is an excellent way to get familiar with the exam format and, above all, if the mark you get is better than the one from the May–June exam, it counts for a third of the final mark.

The programme is designed to give you an overview of Swiss law, while allowing you to discover its historical and theoretical foundations. This combination helps you build a a solid and structured understanding of law from the very beginning of your studies.

The first year of law at the University of Geneva covers seven compulsory subjects. Here is the list of cours, clique dessus pour voir leur description.

Most law courses take place at Uni Mail, the largest building of the University of Geneva and one of the largest university campuses in Switzerland. Located not far from the city center, Uni Mail is a a dynamic student living space that brings together several faculties, including the law faculty.

With its vast lecture halls, its many seminar rooms, its modern library on two floors and its open work spaces, Uni Mail offers an ideal setting to study. You will find there also several cafeterias, relaxation areas and meeting places between students. It is a building where you will spend a lot of time: whether to attend your courses, revise with friends or simply have a coffee between two sessions.

The first-year exams are in principle written and last two hours. They cover the six main subjects studied during the year. All exams must compulsorily be presented after two semesters, but you can choose to:

In law, you'll have to adapt your working method compared with what you did in high school, because the organization of the classes changes radically. Each student has their own way of learning and it is important to find the method that suits you best. You can draw inspiration from techniques that have worked well for students in previous years, but keep in mind that some methods that seem poorly suited at first can ultimately be very useful to you.

Quelques conseils :

Preparing the working sessions in advance is essential: re-reading the lecture content, identifying the points that cause you trouble and preparing questions will let you take an active part, understand better and apply the notions during the exercises.

Readings and annotating the statutes: it is very important to do the readings before the lectures and to take the time to annotate your statute books. Personally, I used:

These little habits will make revision enormously easier for you and let you save precious time during the preparation for exams and practical cases.

To note on the recordings: all the lectures and tutorials are recorded, which is a real plus for going back over notions you did not fully grasp. These recordings are generally available for two weeks on Mediaserver. Even so, it remains important that you attend the lectures and tutorials actively, because nothing replaces taking part and interacting with the professors and the teaching assistants.

My weekdays often started around 8 a.m. at the university. Depending on the schedule, I went directly to class if a lecture or a work session was planned, or else I went at the library to work.

I then took a 1h break at midday to catch my breath a bit, eat with friends and unwind. This break is really important to recharge your batteries and your energy, and stay focused the afternoon.

In the afternoon, I went back either to lectures or to the library. These moments of personal work were used to apply the "D" method, review the courses, complete my flashcards or my summaries, or prepare the work sessions. If you use these gaps between hours effectively the classes, you will be able to free up time more quickly for other activities or simply to rest.

My days generally ended around 7 p.m., after completing the lectures and the work personal. For my part, I tried to do sport 3 to 4 times a week, which helped me keep a good balance between studies and personal life.

Remember that this is one personal example of a typical day. Sometimes I would finish later, or still have to put in personal study at home, and so not have much time for myself.

To reassure you, this routine may seem heavy at first, but you will get used to it quickly, especially if you respect the breaks and plan your working hours well. The first weeks, it is normal to finish earlier or to not yet find your perfect rhythm, but it will come with time! Do not get discouraged!

At the weekend the days are a bit shorter, don't worry! The library is open from 9am to 6pm (instead of 8am–10pm on weekdays), so you can sleep in a little, which really does you good after a busy week.

I generally tried to be at the university by 10:00, so as to start my 'D's first thing in the morning. I made the effort to go to the university, because I really do not perform well at home. Some choose to get up earlier, it is up to you. Personally, I am not at all a person a morning person so I appreciated this little change of pace because it does the morale good.

I tried to be efficient to finish my tasks as quickly as possible, so that I could give myself some time at the end in the afternoon to see my friends, rest, do sport, etc., it is important!

If your schedule is not too busy, you can even give yourself a little day off on Sunday, or at least prepare your “D-1” from home to have a little more flexibility.

A little tip, use these days to calmly review your lectures, complete your flashcards or your summaries, and catch up on your little gaps. The weekend is ideal to make progress without pressure and take a little perspective on the subject.

So during the holidays, or rather the revision periods, above all you need a bit of discipline in your work, and that is the whole difficulty. Since the days are no longer structured by classes, it is easy to lose your rhythm and end up with significant gaps as soon as classes resume classes. I strongly advise you to follow a realistic, even slightly demanding, revision schedule in order to keep a certain positive pressure on your shoulders.

During the holidays, my days were generally a little shorter than during the weeks of courses. I arrived at the library around the same time, but according to my schedule and my motivation, I did either full days or half-days, in order to stay effective without me surcharger.

Once I had finished the tasks planned on my revision schedule, I devoted my time to solving practical cases. The idea is to go over the practical cases already seen, in order to be really efficient with the solving method and become operational at searching in the laws, the books etc. It is one of the best ways to consolidate your knowledge, gain speed, and efficiency, and to prepare you concretely for the exams.

The answer really depends on you and how you feel. You will have to assess yourself objectively and ask whether you need it. You should take a day or two of rest if you feel you are running on empty, or if you know you will not last the coming weeks without that little break. Rest is essential to keep your energy up and stay effective.

But if you feel good, if you are confident in your way of working and if you are progressing correctly in your revision, you can even allow yourself to take a full week of rest to wander to other occupations or even go travelling. Be careful however not to be too greedy and to keep a good balance, so that the return to revision goes smoothly.

Otherwise, if you have the energy and the morale, you can use this little bonus to get a bit further ahead. It can only do you good and put you in the best conditions for the return to lectures!

Keeping your motivation during the first year of law is essential. Here are a few tips to help you stay on track:

During this first year, some courses will give you more trouble than others. In my experience, the three courses that stand out the most are:

Many students underestimate this course, even though it is the foundation of all the other subjects.

Of course, the courses I found most interesting won't necessarily be the same for you. The important thing is to stay curious and open, because you might be surprised by a course you thought boring at first, but which will eventually become one of your favourites! Here are two courses that I particularly enjoyed:

I would do real work on myself to stop procrastinating. Letting the backlog build up means you'll have to put in twice as much effort to catch everything up. Being diligent and organised from the start really makes all the difference. I would also manage my personal life better. It's important to take breaks to rest, go out or travel, but you have to be careful not to overdo it. I had a tendency to let myself go too easily and that reduced the time available for work. Finding the right balance is essential for you to succeed while preserving your morale.