2020-21 Direct Training Contract Applications Discussion

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Dheepa

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  • Jan 20, 2019
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    Has anyone been unsuccessful for a VS, but then re-applied for the firm's direct TC in the same cycle and been successful with that? It would be great to speak to anyone who has :)

    Heya, I've been through this. Got rejected from W&C VS last cycle and then got past the app stage for the direct TC a couple of months later. Is there anything in particular that you needed advice on? ☺️
     

    AR3

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    Feb 3, 2021
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    Heya, I've been through this. Got rejected from W&C VS last cycle and then got past the app stage for the direct TC a couple of months later. Is there anything in particular that you needed advice on? ☺️
    Well done! That's great. I was just wondering how you went about 'improving' your application? The firm I'm thinking of reapplying to ask the same question for both the VS and TC app (not sure if it's the same for other firms or not), so any advice if you were in a similar situation would be amazing! If you do have any tips, feel free to message me privately 😊
     

    tractor12

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    Oct 6, 2019
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    Anyone who did Freshfields direct TC for the winter window- what were the questions/ requirements for the app?

    I am aware there is a cover letter but are there any additional questions?

    Thanks :)
    No additional questions. Just 850 word PS and work experience. There is a short section that asks about any awards you have received but its not necessary to write much there.
     

    Jacob Miller

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  • Feb 15, 2020
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    Recently got a TC offer and the firm have asked that I apply for the PGDL at BPP London Waterloo. I saw that on the Central Applications Board the Personal Statement has no asterisk and so appears to be optional.

    For anyone who applied for the (P)GDL after having received a TC offer, did you submit a personal statement? And if so, how long was it? I know it is a small ask, but after this application cycle I would love to not have to write another application statement for at least another twelve months...
    Same position, had my PGDL offer at Waterloo confirmed the other day. September 2021, @ me if you'll be in my intake! All I personally said in my personal statement was that I was applying with a TC and that this was where my firm wanted me to go, didn't write a proper statement per se :)
     

    castrooo

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    Sep 17, 2020
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    Heya, I've been through this. Got rejected from W&C VS last cycle and then got past the app stage for the direct TC a couple of months later. Is there anything in particular that you needed advice on? ☺️
    I am in the same boat; I applied to the spring scheme and was rejected today. I had my application checked by multiple people, including trainees at the firm, career advisors & my AS Aspire coach. I did identify a mistake I made when inserting my work experiences (I mixed up the years in which I completed one of my work experiences by inserting that the work experience took place from '2020-2019'). I wonder whether you massively changed your cover letter and the answers to the questions when you reapplied to White? I personally thought that my application was very strong and my motivations for why law and why the firm haven't changed since I applied last month. Thanks a lot for your help :)
     

    Dheepa

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  • Jan 20, 2019
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    Well done! That's great. I was just wondering how you went about 'improving' your application? The firm I'm thinking of reapplying to ask the same question for both the VS and TC app (not sure if it's the same for other firms or not), so any advice if you were in a similar situation would be amazing! If you do have any tips, feel free to message me privately 😊

    I am in the same boat; I applied to the spring scheme and was rejected today. I had my application checked by multiple people, including trainees at the firm, career advisors & my AS Aspire coach. I did identify a mistake I made when inserting my work experiences (I mixed up the years in which I completed one of my work experiences by inserting that the work experience took place from '2020-2019'). I wonder whether you massively changed your cover letter and the answers to the questions when you reapplied to White? I personally thought that my application was very strong and my motivations for why law and why the firm haven't changed since I applied last month. Thanks a lot for your help :)

    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! ☺️
     
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    AR3

    Active Member
    Feb 3, 2021
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    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! ☺️
    Thank you so much! That's really helpful :)
     
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