2020-21 Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion

[LeilaScott]

Hiya, I received an offer for the winter vac yesterday evening - it was via a call from one of the associates who interviewed me. I did my AC last Wednesday. I think they are probably still giving out offers till the end of this week! Hope you receive good news soon!

Oh this is a bit worrying lol, can I ask around what time they called? I did my AC a few weeks ago so I am getting concerned

 

[whisperingrock]

Hi, I applied for a Dentons VS a month ago. Today, I logged in on Apply4Law and under the "Tests" window there seems to be a Watson Glaser test with status "assigned" and the deadline which passed yesterday, but I have never got any email regarding this nor there is anything regarding the test in the "correspondence" window on the website. Is there any point in contacting GR RE this, or is this a lost cause? I have passed the WG before, so maybe they would let me through, but for now I feel completely destroyed

Call or email! Tech issues are so common especially nowadays. In my experience, grad rec is pretty accomodating of them.

 

[Florawilliams]

It's broken into more sections, so there is some overlap with the Watson, but there's also a proof-reading section where you have to rewrite grammar/words. There's a good mock test on their website which walks you through all of it (https://practice.cappassessments.com/Vrt/VrtPage.html)

thank you! this is very helpful !! so in the mix of questions, there are exact WG style questions too? how long does the test take also? thanks

 

[Ooshmate]

Rejected for Winter VS at Linklaters post-WG test - yikes this test is the death of me

 

[Jessica Booker]

I've always wondered about this. Could there be potential situation where the partner who interviewed you just didn't shout loud enough at the meeting?

No - it would come down to the detail (they are lawyers after all).

 

[M1999]

Its not even straight after the interview. Sometimes as interviewers you are rushing between meetings and don’t get a chance to follow up with your fellow interviewers or HR (or both) until much later. I have had situations where I have interviewed with a partner and then that partner has literally left straight after the meeting to go to another country for a week and I haven’t been able to catch up with them until they were back.

It’s not common for people to get to the end of an interview and make a decision there and then.

So it isn’t as simple as those who hear back quicker have been an easier decision. There are literally hundreds of reasons why a candidate who is a straight forward yes doesn’t hear back from some time.

thanks for clarifying this Jessica!
Is it the same if it’s the GR interviewing you without any partners/associates present?

 

[Jessica Booker]

thanks for clarifying this Jessica!
Is it the same if it’s the GR interviewing you without any partners/associates present?

Yes!! Grad rec still have plenty of other things to do and sometimes just have to wait for other interviews to happen as well.

 

[Kablahc]

Hi, I applied for a Dentons VS a month ago. Today, I logged in on Apply4Law and under the "Tests" window there seems to be a Watson Glaser test with status "assigned" and the deadline which passed yesterday, but I have never got any email regarding this nor there is anything regarding the test in the "correspondence" window on the website. Is there any point in contacting GR RE this, or is this a lost cause? I have passed the WG before, so maybe they would let me through, but for now I feel completely destroyed

You know I am so glad I saw this because this made me think to log on and see the exact same has happened to me!!!!!! I've sent grad rec an email about it hopefully they'll be understanding!

 

[Sophie111]

Has anyone heard back from Travers Smith this week?

I interviewed yesterday (Tuesday) and heard back on the same day.
Don't worry about it - they are still making decisions. Grad rec said to somebody I know that they usually make decisions at the end of the week. I'm sure you will hear back soon. Good luck!

 

[Asil Ahmad]

I interviewed yesterday (Tuesday) and heard back on the same day.
Don't worry about it - they are still making decisions. Grad rec said to somebody I know that they usually make decisions at the end of the week. I'm sure you will hear back soon. Good luck!

Thank you for this and hope it was good news post interview

 

[Jaysen]

Hey guys,

Just a quick reminder if you haven't booked already:

We are running our final webinar of the month tomorrow at 6pm. You can register here. It's completely free to attend, but we have limited spaces left (as our package caps us at 1,000 registrations).

This process is too competitive to be modest. If you’re doubtful and self-deprecating, if you downplay your achievements, you leave the recruiter with no choice but to hire someone else. You need to think deeply about why you deserve a training contract, why you deserve to make it as a commercial lawyer, and why you deserve to be one of the few percent of candidates a firm may give offers to.

This session is about having the confidence to believe you can make it in this process.

It's about learning how to convince a law firm that you are worth investing in, at both the application and interview stage. You’ll learn how to convincingly sell your experiences, how to draw upon your journey and life experience, and how to think about your unique selling points as an applicant.

We'll be leading this session using real application answers and comparisons of ‘weak’ and ‘strong’ applications to a variety of law firms. This session is brought to you by the application review team at TCLA, including myself, @Jessica Booker and @Alice G.

If you are a premium member, you can access a recording of all of our previous webinars here: https://classes.thecorporatelawacademy.com/p/tcla-webinar-series/?preview=logged_out

 

[Andrew M]

Just submitted my third application for this cycle - I'm really struggling to find the time between my studies! I think I am going to have to reduce the number of applications I had intended to submit...

 

[OB]

Has anyone heard back from BCLP yet?

Not yet!

 

[hunter]

Hey does anyone know if Latham & Watkins email or call with the outcome of a vac scheme AC?

 

[Kablahc]

WG invite from Dentons! They apologised for the glitch and re-sent me an invite with a new deadline

 

[LS12]

Just submitted my third application for this cycle - I'm really struggling to find the time between my studies! I think I am going to have to reduce the number of applications I had intended to submit...

Three is really good, try not to put too much pressure on yourself, remember you only need ONE successful application. So three really good applications put you in an amazing place to get that offer! I've been struggling with applications too, but I have found some really helpful tools. (note I'm not a uni student anymore so this is just general advice)

I have a word document where I insert all my summaries of my work experiences with their varying word counts. This means that I have a basic framework when I'm filling out the forms for TC/VS applications.

Also, I got this advice from someone on this platform but it's super helpful. They suggested researching in the week and writing applications at the weekends. I've been researching Monday to Friday like 45minutes to an hour every day and then collated this information to sit and write my applications over the week.

Thirdly, don't be afraid to ask others to read your applications. Sometimes you will be sat stressing for hours and then a third-party perspective really helps.

I have a template with all the firms I want to apply to, the dates of their deadlines, and whether applications are rolling or not. In this, I jot down information about any events I've managed to fit in etc. Having this information in one place really helps me and colour coding where I have completed applications gives me a sense of achievement.

Mostly I would just say be patient. LinkedIn can make us feel like getting a TC offer during university is necessary or we'll fail forever. THIS IS NOT TRUE. a friend told me that the average age for someone to get a TC offer is 25. you have plenty of time and there is a whole world outside of getting that TC. Whilst receiving the offer would be amazing it's not the end of the world if it doesn't happen this year. Your priorities should be trying to get the 2:1 (most firms require this) preserving your mental health and remembering we're still in the middle of the pandemic and nothing is normal right now. Three applications submitted is a massive accomplishment. Well done.

 

[Andrew M]

Three is really good, try not to put too much pressure on yourself, remember you only need ONE successful application. So three really good applications put you in an amazing place to get that offer! I've been struggling with applications too, but I have found some really helpful tools. (note I'm not a uni student anymore so this is just general advice)

I have a word document where I insert all my summaries of my work experiences with their varying word counts. This means that I have a basic framework when I'm filling out the forms for TC/VS applications.

Also, I got this advice from someone on this platform but it's super helpful. They suggested researching in the week and writing applications at the weekends. I've been researching Monday to Friday like 45minutes to an hour every day and then collated this information to sit and write my applications over the week.

Thirdly, don't be afraid to ask others to read your applications. Sometimes you will be sat stressing for hours and then a third-party perspective really helps.

I have a template with all the firms I want to apply to, the dates of their deadlines, and whether applications are rolling or not. In this, I jot down information about any events I've managed to fit in etc. Having this information in one place really helps me and colour coding where I have completed applications gives me a sense of achievement.

Mostly I would just say be patient. LinkedIn can make us feel like getting a TC offer during university is necessary or we'll fail forever. THIS IS NOT TRUE. a friend told me that the average age for someone to get a TC offer is 25. you have plenty of time and there is a whole world outside of getting that TC. Whilst receiving the offer would be amazing it's not the end of the world if it doesn't happen this year. Your priorities should be trying to get the 2:1 (most firms require this) preserving your mental health and remembering we're still in the middle of the pandemic and nothing is normal right now. Three applications submitted is a massive accomplishment. Well done.

Thanks for responding! I am really happy with my applications I have submitted. I've had them checked over by a couple of connections and they say they're great - I can't really afford to pay for a premium service (no offence TCLA). Whether I get through to the next stage in the application process is a whole other story. I do feel like luck seems to play a pretty big role. Especially when applying for regional offices which only take on a handful of trainees and therefore interview less applicants...

My aim is to get at least two more submitted by Christmas. It just sucks that the deadlines coincide with my assessment deadlines!

Also, I'm actually 30 (mature student). Which is why I'm feeling the time-pressure probably more than I would if I was 20!

 

[LeilaScott]

Anything from Ashurst Post-AC today?

 

[castrooo]

WG invite from Dentons! They apologised for the glitch and re-sent me an invite with a new deadline

Is this for the summer vacation scheme? and does Dentons review the application before sending out the WG? Thanks!

 

[202023r]

Anything from Ashurst Post-AC today?

Nope