My name is Diego Merry del Val and I have been studying this year a LLM course in Maritime Law at Southampton University. The reasons why I decided to study the course at this university were confirmed: the high quality of the lectures and tutorials impressed me very much. The lectures were given by lecturers who are leaders in their fields and this balanced the fact that some of the lecturers were attended by a high number of students. The tutorials were also important, both as a review of the lecture and as a chance to discuss the matters in more depth. The LLM allows students to select the areas where they have the largest interests, not being restricted to a short number of modules. I picked the modules more related with Shipping law (ie Admiralty Law, Carriage of Goods by Sea, International Trade and Marine Insurance), but there are many other modules of great interest. Finally, the University also imparts very interesting seminars by the Institute of Maritime Law on matters related with the course and which are offered by relevant presenters coming from large companies and institutions worldwide. Southampton University is one of the most relevant universities in what refers to maritime studies and this is felt through all along. We managed to set up a sizable group from the class and fix a meeting on Tuesdays at the Stag’s to chill out and bond. This was a great opportunity to make friends as well as discussing the different issues concerning the LLM.
Southampton has an interesting old quarter which is interesting to know more of its history. The museum which struck me the most was the Solent Sky museum, which, although not very large, offers the visitor the experience of the heritage of the city with respect to the development of aviation, including the Schenider Trophy which was essential for the development of the Rolls Royce Merlin Engine and the Spitzfire. The city is lively and has many nice places to eat out and sightsee.
The Isle of Wight is very near to Southampton and offers a wide range of activities and sights to go to during the day. In particular the visit to Osbourne House (including its gardens), which was where Queen Victoria resided usually when not at London, and Carisbrooke Castle are sights I would recommend to see. The opportunity to cross the ferry with bicycle offers a great myriad of excursions into this beautiful island. Also, Southampton is near Portsmouth, where its Historic Dockyard is very fine to see. The possibility of seeing it by boat passing near warcraft of the British navy is equally nice! The museum and the HMS Victory offer an insight into the personality of Lord H. Nelson. In conclusion, it has been a great experience, which I recommend to all who are considering courses in that area, whether in science, economy or law, to consider this university. The weather is more agreeable to a person coming from a southern latitude thanks to its location.
