Law, Rights and Public Policy· Intermediate level

Three different lives sit under this heading.

Practice means qualifying as a lawyer and advising clients or appearing for them. It is the longest and most expensive route, and the professional stage is competitive in both countries.

Policy means working on the rules rather than applying them: government departments, regulators, think tanks, NGOs and international organisations. Political science, economics, public administration and development studies degrees lead here, and a law degree is not required.

Regulated support roles are real careers, not consolation prizes. In Ontario, paralegals are licensed by the law society after an accredited college programme and can handle certain matters independently. Court administration, compliance, land and estate work, and legal research all employ people without a full practising qualification.

Pick a main and a backup, and write what each demands in time and money.

Write the full sequence out. The professional stage is where people get stuck, so plan for it now.

Ghana: an LLB, either directly after senior high school at institutions that admit that way or after a first degree elsewhere; then professional training at the Ghana School of Law, entry to which involves an examination and interview stage; then call to the Bar under the General Legal Council. Places at the professional stage are limited, so a good LLB result matters for more than pride.

Canada: a bachelor's degree in any subject; the LSAT; a three-year law degree; then licensing with your provincial law society, which involves examinations and a period of supervised practice, obtained either through an articling position or, in Ontario, an equivalent practice programme. Articling positions are competitive and you apply for them while studying. Quebec's civil law system has its own professional route.

Confirm every step with the body that runs it. This is not an area where a summary is good enough.

This is the evidence that separates people who like the idea of law from people who can do it.

Keep a reading log: what you read, how long it was, what it argued, and what you disagreed with. Include things you found difficult and finished anyway.

Write three briefs of increasing difficulty. Start with something local and concrete. Move to a published judgment or a piece of legislation. Finish with an issue where you genuinely cannot decide, and write it without picking a side until the last paragraph.

Get each one edited by someone who will cut sentences. Legal writing is judged on precision, not on length or vocabulary.

Keep all three labelled as educational exercises.

A lot of this system is open to the public and students rarely look.

Where it is permitted and safe, attend a public court sitting, a district assembly or municipal council meeting, or a public hearing, and take notes on how the process actually runs. Watch how long things take and how much of it is procedure.

Read one full published judgment rather than a summary of it. Notice how much of it is facts and how little is drama.

Follow one issue in your community from start to finish and record who decided what and on what authority.

Always go with an adult's knowledge, follow the rules of the building, and do not record or photograph anyone without permission.

Compare two programmes on entry requirements, length, cost, whether there is a clinic or placement, and what the school says its graduates do.

Ask a mentor which part of the sequence surprised them, how competitive the professional stage really is, and what they would do differently. Ask them to criticise one of your briefs on reasoning rather than style.

Then plan the term: the reading you will finish, the briefs you will write, the programmes you will contact, and the date of your next review.