Yup so I changed my app massively when I applied for the direct TC and I'd always recommend changing your application even when applying in a different cycle so you can demonstrate to the firm how you've grown since the rejection.
I've just had a quick look at both my apps and I'd say one of the key changes I made was in relation to trying to demonstrate more commercial awareness within the app itself. So when I reference the firm's growth strategy I tried to tie it into how this would affect the demand for work in certain regions and practice areas and what that would mean for the kind of work I wanted to get involved in as a trainee.
The other tip I got from a trainee is that it's best to ensure you aren't repeating yourself in the cover letter and the extra-curricular activities question. So when you draft your response to the "why you" part of the CL and are linking skills to your experiences, make sure you don't repeat those experiences in the extra-curriculars question later. I didn't necessarily have the most experiences to draw upon so what I did was I focused the bulk of my "why you" response on one pretty heavy role I took on at uni and then mentioned everything else I did at uni plus some additional casual hobbies I had in the separate question. Also another small tip, try to think of a time you've been entrepreneurial and find a way to drop that in because their promotional material on LinkedIn etc mentions the word a lot when describing what they look for in a trainee.
I also used the "What other events have you attended" question to really drive home how much I wanted to work there - ended up making reference to every single event I'd been to with them over the course of three years at uni (they were my favourite firm for a long time so I attended one too many events haha) and really made sure to delve into the conversations I had with people there that made me want to work with them. I still mentioned other events I attended with different firms, but I feel like it maybe made some difference that I'd clearly interacted with them a lot (especially since with a direct TC app you want to show the firm you already know they're the right fit for you without the VS trial period)
I hope that gives you guys some ideas on how you can improve your app! I think it's great that you've had your app reviewed and know where to improve
@castrooo and
@AbbieR3 I'd recommend you do the same if possible so you can get a better insight into some other things you can change! ☺️
