2020-21 Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion

[Dheepa]

Has anyone heard back post Video Interview for Bakers yet (Spring)? I haven't seen anyone say they've had a PFO or AC

You will not hear back from Bakers about ACs until the end of Jan for the spring vac. This was the case for the previous app cycle.

 

[syw]

You will not hear back from Bakers about ACs until the end of Jan for the spring vac. This was the case for the previous app cycle.

I was told their first AC is 19th Jan and then 21st. Assuming we should find out around a week before then if they're slightly earlier this year

 

[Lisa Lowe]

My advice is to not “try” for competencies in strengths based assessments. This can actually cause contradictions in your responses which may negatively impact your test. Aiming for something that’s a “right” answer is really not the way to take these tests.

Hi Jessica,

Thank you for the advice on this - I'm just wondering do you have any tips on preparing for the test?

 

[Jessica Booker]

Exactly as you said. Mark up exercises involve spotting inconsistencies, grammatical errors, punctuation errors, spelling mistakes and even mistakes in document formatting (wrong numbering, inconsistent bullet point styles etc.) Especially for spotting inconsistencies in the actual contents, being able to actually understand the document is pretty important. I don't know what kind of document you'll be given but to prepare for mine I looked through basic contract examples online just so I could familiarise myself with their general layout. Other than that there's not much you can do to prepare actually, my best advice is to work through the document systematically and not worry too much if you run out of time (my mark up exercise at a firm was really time pressured). Focus on spotting as many mistakes as you can on the pages you do get through rather than blindly trying to get to the end of the document.

To add to this, also try to look out for things that could be ambiguous or vague and that might benefit from more precision. It’s not just spelling mistakes or errors that will be obvious from reading alone - it could be that one section refers to a deadline date of 01/03/2021 but that in another place is says 10 weeks from 01/01/2021, meaning of of the two is incorrect.

 

[WannabeSolicitor24]

Thanks for sharing. If you are happy to say, how long did they give you to complete the WG and did they send a link via an email or did you access the WG via the portal?

They actually only gave me three days to complete it, but I was ill at the time and they gave me a week and a half extension

 

[NikkiT]

Is Hogan Lovells' WG automatic or do they look at applications first?

 

[MizM]

Is Hogan Lovells' WG automatic or do they look at applications first?

Their website says something along the lines of 'do well at each stage and you will be invited to the next' - which suggests that they screen first. I could be wrong though

 

[Sekani Wraith]

Has anyone heard back post Video Interview for Bakers yet (Spring)? I haven't seen anyone say they've had a PFO or AC

We will start hearing back next week as their first AC is the week after.

 

[Ricky]

Is Hogan Lovells' WG automatic or do they look at applications first?

Automatic.Got sent WG last cycle and then rejected. Emailed to ask for WG report and they said I passed the WG but not the app.

 

[NikkiT]

Does anyone know if it would be too late to apply to Jones Day as applications are rolling and it is the day of the deadline?

 

[MizM]

Automatic.Got sent WG last cycle and then rejected. Emailed to ask for WG report and they said I passed the WG but not the app.

Ohhhh... Disregard my comment then!

 

[thirdtimelucky]

Is there a thread with video interview questions? Looking for some common questions to practice with!

 

[Ricky]

People who have completed the Weil WG and got through to VI, do you know what score you got and what percentile you were in?

 

[NikkiT]

Is there a thread with video interview questions? Looking for some common questions to practice with!

If you know the provider of the VI - you might be able to do a practice on their website

 

[IntrepidL]

Does anyone know what a mark-up exercise usually involves?

I have an assessment centre next week and they just sent me the schedule, which includes a “mark-up exercise” that wasn’t on their grad rec website, the AC invite email, or any past AC experiences on the forum, so I’m assuming it's a new addition to their assessment process. There’s no further information on what the exercise involves or what they’ll be looking for, just that it will be assessed verbally (telling the assessors what changes I made/errors I spotted).

I’ve never done a mark-up exercise before and I’m not really sure what to expect. Is it normally a legal document (like an NDA or transactional document) or non-legal document (like general articles or client emails)? Are they just looking for you to spot spelling mistakes and grammatical errors or would they also expect you to pick up on any inconsistencies in the document (for example, a clause in an NDA that contradicts what is set out earlier in the document)?

I’m completely lost here so if anyone has done one or has an idea of what they tend to involve, that would be super helpful. Any tips on ways to prep/practice would be great too!

Hi @MZ, I have done two mark-up exercises before For both, it was a contract. I would say the things to look out for would be exactly what you said - spelling mistakes and grammatical errors.

Also, ensure that the bullet points are numbered properly and consistently. If the 'definition' section of the contract has a certain word, make sure those words are also consistent throughout the contract. Good luck!!

 

[33c]

People who have completed the Weil WG and got through to VI, do you know what score you got and what percentile you were in?

I emailed grad rec for this info and they responded the same day They mentioned you have to score above the 60th percentile to progress.

 

[Legal_rawn]

For Jones Day they’ve told me that my academic reference didn’t respond so they’re giving them a further 7 days to reply to them. I do not know the person well at all but my university said to give them as a reference and that’s what we are supposed to do as it’s my academic advisor. Is it okay to send them another possible reference (dissertation supervisor) for them to contact instead?

 

[Daniel Boden]

Latham.

Fantastic firm you must be thrilled! Hope you've been able to celebrate a bit

 

[33c]

For Jones Day they’ve told me that my academic reference didn’t respond so they’re giving them a further 7 days to reply to them. I do not know the person well at all but my university said to give them as a reference and that’s what we are supposed to do as it’s my academic advisor. Is it okay to send them another possible reference (dissertation supervisor) for them to contact instead?

Hey! I thought I would have this problem when they requested my reference as my supervisor was on leave. I explained the situation and they were happy to take a different reference. Would advise doing this as jones day are rolling

 

[AS858]

For Jones Day they’ve told me that my academic reference didn’t respond so they’re giving them a further 7 days to reply to them. I do not know the person well at all but my university said to give them as a reference and that’s what we are supposed to do as it’s my academic advisor. Is it okay to send them another possible reference (dissertation supervisor) for them to contact instead?

Yes, that should be fine. I've used my dissertation supervisor for another firm too.