Careers › Law

How to become a Lawyer (Attorney / Advocate)

Advises on and argues the law - in court, in business or in government.

What does a Lawyer (Attorney / Advocate) actually do?

More about this career

Attorneys handle contracts, conveyancing, litigation preparation and client-facing legal work directly; advocates specialise in arguing cases in court and are usually briefed by an attorney rather than hired directly by the public. Both routes need an LLB, then articles (for attorneys) or pupillage (for advocates) before you can practise independently.

Where this degree can take you

  • Corporate/Commercial Lawyer
  • Prosecutor (NPA)
  • In-House Legal Advisor
  • Human Rights Lawyer

This is our general description of the role and related jobs, not from an official source – it’s here to give you a fuller picture, not as a careers-counselling guarantee.

Not from an official source

Subjects that usually help

  • English (strong)
  • History (helpful)

This is our general guidance about which school subjects suit this career. It is not an admission requirement and not from an official source – the real requirements are on the degrees below.

Not from an official source

Where to check this yourself

What the degrees we’ve captured actually ask for

  • Mathematics – asked for by 7 of 11 degrees
  • Mathematical Literacy – asked for by 4 of 11 degrees
  • Accounting – asked for by 1 of 11 degrees

Counted from the requirements below (an “or” alternative counts for each subject named). Each degree links to the page it came from.

Degrees that lead here

11 degrees at 7 universities. More are added as we verify them.

Rhodes University

LLB

Law · 4 years

Rhodes points 45 points

  • English: level 5 if it is your Home Language, level 6 if it is your First Additional Language
  • Mathematics: level 4 (50% or more) OR Mathematical Literacy: level 5 (60% or more)
  • Life Orientation: level 4 (50% or more)

Rhodes points of 40-44 are considered at the Dean’s discretion; 45 or more receives a provisional offer. We show 45 as the qualifying number so that "you qualify" means exactly that - but you are still worth an application from 40. Rhodes has no Engineering and no MBChB. The NBT is recommended, not required. Life Orientation is not scored, but you need at least 50% in it.

Source: View the official page (ru.ac.za) (opens the official page) · 2027 intake

Stellenbosch University

Selection programme

LLB (4-year)

Law · 4 years

Stellenbosch aggregate 70 %

  • English: 60% if it is your Home Language, 70% if it is your First Additional Language
  • NBT – The NBT AQL must be written before 31 July.

Every Stellenbosch programme is a selection programme. The figures shown are the published minimum requirements - the actual selection threshold is usually higher. Selection is 80% school results and 20% NBT. About 120 places. Afrikaans Home Language at 60% or First Additional at 70% is also accepted.

Source: View the official page (files.su.ac.za) (opens the official page) · 2027 intake

Selection programme

BCom (Law)

Law · 3 years

Stellenbosch aggregate 70 %

  • Mathematics: 60%
  • NBT – The NBT AQL and MAT are required.

Every Stellenbosch programme is a selection programme. The figures shown are the published minimum requirements - the actual selection threshold is usually higher. About 80 places.

Source: View the official page (files.su.ac.za) (opens the official page) · 2027 intake

Selection programme

BAccLLB

Law · 5 years

Stellenbosch aggregate 80 %

  • Mathematics: 70% OR Mathematics: 60% AND Accounting: 70%

Every Stellenbosch programme is a selection programme. The figures shown are the published minimum requirements - the actual selection threshold is usually higher. About 35 places.

Source: View the official page (files.su.ac.za) (opens the official page) · 2027 intake

University of Johannesburg

Partly verified

LLB

Law · 4 years

UJ APS 31 points

  • English: level 5 if it is your Home Language, level 5 if it is your First Additional Language
  • Additional language – An additional language at level 4.
  • Mathematics: level 3 (40% or more) OR Mathematical Literacy: level 4 (50% or more)

APS 31 applies if you take Mathematics; APS 32 is required if you take Mathematical Literacy. This figure was read from the search-engine index of the official UJ programme page rather than from the full page, and UJ’s 2027 prospectus PDF could not be fetched. Confirm it on the UJ page before you rely on it.

Source: View the official page (uj.ac.za) (opens the official page)

University of KwaZulu-Natal

From an older document

LLB

Law & Management Studies · 4 years

UKZN APS 32 points out of 48

  • English: level 5 if it is your Home Language, level 6 if it is your First Additional Language
  • Mathematics: level 3 (40% or more) OR Mathematical Literacy: level 5 (60% or more)
  • Life Orientation: level 4 (50% or more)

The published APS range is 48-32. This comes from the Study@UKZN 2026 brochure, the most recent official source we could find. UKZN had not published a 2027 table when we checked, so treat these as 2026 figures pending a 2027 update. Applications go through the CAO.

Source: View the official page (studyatukzn.ukzn.ac.za) (opens the official page)

University of Pretoria

University of the Western Cape

Not fully verified

LLB (4-year)

Law · 4 years

UWC weighted points 37 points out of 65

  • Subject minimums – UWC’s per-subject minimums for LLB could not be read - the programme page did not render for our research pass.

UWC counts seven subjects (English, an additional language, Mathematics or Mathematical Literacy, Life Orientation and your three best others) with English and Mathematics weighted most, for a total out of 65. The points total shown is what UWC publishes; its subject-by-subject minimums for this programme could not be read, so check them with UWC. Scoring rule: https://www.uwc.ac.za/admission-point-score-calculator/south-african-aps-calculator

Source: View the official page (law.uwc.ac.za) (opens the official page)

Not fully verified

BCom (Law)

Law

UWC weighted points 30 points out of 65

  • Subject minimums – UWC’s per-subject minimums for this programme could not be read.

UWC counts seven subjects (English, an additional language, Mathematics or Mathematical Literacy, Life Orientation and your three best others) with English and Mathematics weighted most, for a total out of 65. The points total shown is what UWC publishes; its subject-by-subject minimums for this programme could not be read, so check them with UWC. Scoring rule: https://www.uwc.ac.za/admission-point-score-calculator/south-african-aps-calculator

Source: View the official page (law.uwc.ac.za) (opens the official page)

University of the Witwatersrand

From an older document

BCom with Law

Commerce, Law & Management · 3 years

Wits APS 43 points

  • English: level 5 if it is your Home Language, level 5 if it is your First Additional Language
  • Mathematics: level 5 (60% or more)

This figure comes from the Wits schools-liaison Grade 12 guide, which is headed for 2026 entry. We have not yet found a 2027 course-finder page confirming it, so treat it as the most recent official figure rather than a confirmed 2027 one.

Source: View the official page (wits.ac.za) (opens the official page) · 2027 intake

From an older document

LLB (4-year stream)

Commerce, Law & Management · 4 years

Wits APS 46 points

  • English: level 6 if it is your Home Language, level 6 if it is your First Additional Language
  • Mathematics: level 4 (50% or more) OR Mathematical Literacy: level 6 (70% or more)

This figure comes from the Wits schools-liaison Grade 12 guide, which is headed for 2026 entry. We have not yet found a 2027 course-finder page confirming it, so treat it as the most recent official figure rather than a confirmed 2027 one.

Source: View the official page (wits.ac.za) (opens the official page) · 2027 intake

Are your marks enough?

Put your subjects in once and we’ll check them against every degree above – scored each university’s own way.

What do I qualify for?