TCLA Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion Thread 2024-25

[Chris Brown]

EXCLUSIVE Gen Z lawyers require ‘more handholding’, says firm

Quiet part out loud

www.rollonfriday.com

Top US firm says GenZ lawyers require 'more handholding' at work - Legal Cheek

Suggestion appeared in a job ad for Gibson Dunn

www.legalcheek.com

Guys, what are your thoughts on this? (Not trying to stir things up here, I genuinely want to hear thoughts from the lawyers of the future at these firms so please keep it friendly hehe)

My controversial opinion which I hope doesn’t lead to me getting cancelled on the forum, is that the purpose of a ‘training contract’ is to ‘train’ trainees and get them to a place of being considered competent and capable enough to become NQ junior associates. That is solely the responsibility of the partners and senior associates of a firm like Gibson Dunn. 🥲

If a firm feels that its Gen-Z trainees and junior associates ‘require more handholding’, perhaps that’s an indication of poor training on their end. Are these firms expecting people to know it all and get things done perfectly the first time around? For most people, their training contract is their first time working in a law firm and working in the city. 🥲​

 

[Jaysen]

EXCLUSIVE Gen Z lawyers require ‘more handholding’, says firm

Quiet part out loud

www.rollonfriday.com

Top US firm says GenZ lawyers require 'more handholding' at work - Legal Cheek

Suggestion appeared in a job ad for Gibson Dunn

www.legalcheek.com

Guys, what are your thoughts on this? (Not trying to stir things up here, I genuinely want to hear thoughts from the lawyers of the future at these firms so please keep it friendly hehe)

I thought it was a very backwards way to look at things. A better phrasing would be: 'we've realised that we need to do better to train junior lawyers.'

 

[Andrei Radu]

@Ram Sabaratnam @Jessica Booker @Amma Usman @Andrei Radu

Hi all, I have 3 ACs (one next week) and I’ve never done one. I’ve been preparing but I’m particularly stressed about written exercises. I won’t have time to do a mock one before next week.

I would like to ask what documents could be required as a written exercise. I know there’s a client letter, memo, but could you please tell me what else there could be? I need to prepare structure wise.

Additionally, I would like to confirm whether all written exercises must include an executive summary.

Thank you so much in advance. You guys are saving me this cycle!

Hi @gazdgazd11 I completely empathize with being stressed about written exercises, as I also did not get to do a mock one before my ACs last year. However, I have found that in practice, as long as I could keep myself focused on being very-time efficient, they were not as challenging as I thought.

As for your question about types of written exercises, firstly, there's a variety of different 'email-based' formats - mostly in which a partner/associate asks you to complete a task and you need to respond and complete it on an email. Those include in many cases client letters/memos, but can also include some substantive legal analysis tasks (but where you are given all the legal resources you need) and administrative tasks such as proofreadings and scheduling tasks. Besides these, I have also seen article-based written tasks, which tend to be longer and be more argumentative (and in many ways more alike a university essay).

I do not think you always need an executive summary, and particularly if the answer is quite short or not overly complex. The point of the executive summary is to make your answer more readable by summarizing it at the very beginning. I think you should simply make a judgement call on the day on whether that is necessary or beneficial to include.

 

[gazdgazd11]

Hi @gazdgazd11 I completely empathize with being stressed about written exercises, as I also did not get to do a mock one before my ACs last year. However, I have found that in practice, as long as I could keep myself focused on being very-time efficient, they were not as challenging as I thought.

As for your question about types of written exercises, firstly, there's a variety of different 'email-based' formats - mostly in which a partner/associate asks you to complete a task and you need to respond and complete it on an email. Those include in many cases client letters/memos, but can also include some substantive legal analysis tasks (but where you are given all the legal resources you need) and administrative tasks such as proofreadings and scheduling tasks. Besides these, I have also seen article-based written tasks, which tend to be longer and be more argumentative (and in many ways more alike a university essay).

I do not think you always need an executive summary, and particularly if the answer is quite short or not overly complex. The point of the executive summary is to make your answer more readable by summarizing it at the very beginning. I think you should simply make a judgement call on the day on whether that is necessary or beneficial to include.

Thank you very much! That’s very helpful

 

[APGCA]

Trowers SVS🥳

Congratulations🎉! Which office?

 

[emma.d]

Does anyone have any tips on how to stop thinking about an interview after you've done it 😂😂😭 it's on my mind all the time

 

[aphelion]

JONES DAY VAC SCHEME OFFER 😳

 

[Anon Lawyer]

Congratulations🎉! Which office?

Birmingham

 

[Tintin06]

Anything from MoFo, Winston, Arnold Porter?

 

[naxos2025]

Anyone heard from Gateley Birmingham office post video interview ?

 

[LawJourney101]

HL stragglers have any of you been in contact with the firm?

 

[chillipepper789]

Goodwin Spring Vac Scheme Offer !

 

[floral.tcla]

HL stragglers have any of you been in contact with the firm?

I was literally going to post about this aha. no I haven't I don't want to annoy them 😭

 

[Chris Brown]

I was literally going to post about this aha. no I haven't I don't want to annoy them 😭

I remember seeing a post a few weeks back on the forum where someone posted that during their AC, grad rec (HL) told them that AC’s were running until like mid March. I guess when that time comes, if there’s no update from HL, then email and ask. 🙂​

 

[onedayj]

Anyone knows when we would find out about the outcomes of Willkie Partner interview? after all have taken place?

 

[floral.tcla]

I remember seeing a post a few weeks back on the forum where someone posted that during their AC, grad rec (HL) told them that AC’s were running until like mid March. I guess when that time comes, if there’s no update from HL, then email and ask. 🙂​

thanks ur the goat!

 

[User5678]

why is shoosmiths doing this to me😭 put me out of my misery!!!

 

[VVV]

When contacting an academic referee what do they tend to ask beyond verifying grades? Thank you for your reply!

@Jessica Booker- Thanks in advance!

 

[legal18]

I think it can vary. I think I remember in one of Willkie’s virtual events for this cycle, which was with Gemma and a trainee, Gemma mentioned that the trainee had been called by the partner an hour after their interview with a VS offer. At the Willkie open evening, a different trainee had said to me that they got a call from Gemma a few days later. It could be different this year though. They might wait till interviews have all finished and select people in one go. Has anyone who has already done their interview heard back at all yet? 🙂🥲​

Nothing yet... the wait is killing me

 

[helloj]

Goodwin Spring Vac Scheme Offer !

Congratulations! That is amazing! Can I ask when you did the interview?