Ask A Graduate Recruiter Anything!

[Law1099]

Hi Jessica,
In your experience, has GR been accommodating in resetting your VI if there was a technical error? I have emailed them despite completing the rest of the questions, however they have not yet got back to me. The deadline for my VI is today: and the email says it cannot be extended past this time. I’m not really sure what to do because my VI had a question missed out because of a technical error.

 

[futuretraineesolicitor]

@Jessica Booker hope you are fine. Throughout your career, what according to you has been the best use of a name-drop of an Associate/Partner in an application form?

Thank You.

 

[Alice G]

@Jessica Booker hope you are fine. Throughout your career, what according to you has been the best use of a name-drop of an Associate/Partner in an application form?

Thank You.

just wanted to weigh in on this myself - name-dropping should only really be done, in my opinion, where you have something substantive to say following a conversation you have had with that person or if there is something about that person very specifically which links back to your motivations or one of the application questions. Name-dropping should be avoided if being done for the sake of it - it does not impress really, it is more of a contextual detail because giving someone's name merely helps the recruiter to have some proof that you have engaged with the firm when supporting what you are saying and they can perhaps verify with the individual what you are claiming.

 

[Z1234]

Hi Jessica,

Do you have any tips on what to write/avoid for this question:
Please give us an example of when you have learned from a mistake. What was the mistake you made, and what did you learn from it?

I know the emphasis will be on what I learnt from it but I'm not sure what's appropriate. Should I avoid big mistakes or ones relating to academics and steer towards smaller one in an extracurricular activity?

Thanks.

 

[Jessica Booker]

Hi Jessica,
In your experience, has GR been accommodating in resetting your VI if there was a technical error? I have emailed them despite completing the rest of the questions, however they have not yet got back to me. The deadline for my VI is today: and the email says it cannot be extended past this time. I’m not really sure what to do because my VI had a question missed out because of a technical error.

Yes - generally for technical errors outside of the candidates control, they will be rest and a deadline is extended because of it.

 

[Jessica Booker]

@Jessica Booker hope you are fine. Throughout your career, what according to you has been the best use of a name-drop of an Associate/Partner in an application form?

Thank You.

There really isnt one in my frank opinion. The application form is about you not the associate or partner. It's fine to name drop in the way Alice has suggested, but I don't think there is a “best” approach as its a pretty bland/predictable things to do one an application in any format.

 

[Jessica Booker]

Hi Jessica,

Do you have any tips on what to write/avoid for this question:
Please give us an example of when you have learned from a mistake. What was the mistake you made, and what did you learn from it?

I know the emphasis will be on what I learnt from it but I'm not sure what's appropriate. Should I avoid big mistakes or ones relating to academics and steer towards smaller one in an extracurricular activity?

Thanks.

I don't think it's a case of missing big mistakes or one from academia. You are ultimately going to fail as a trainee/solicitor many times over and you have got to show your resilience and adaptability in those situations.

My advice is to use the examples that you know have made you a better/stronger/more skilled person. It really doesn't matter what it is, it's all about showing what you have learnt and developed from that experience

 

[NSinger]

Hi Jessica, I was wondering if we are allowed to disclose information about ourselves during the interview, for example if you are of a particular cultural background and it relates to something in the interview can you mention that? Or is it not allowed for confidentiality reasons?

 

[Kopperskjold]

Hi @Jessica Booker, hope you're well! Quick question: would you avoid the word "furthermore"? I think it may sound too academic but I always struggle to find synonyms of 'additionally' or 'in addition'. I was also wondering about your opinion of 'moreover'?

Thanks so much!

 

[Jessica Booker]

Hi Jessica, I was wondering if we are allowed to disclose information about ourselves during the interview, for example if you are of a particular cultural background and it relates to something in the interview can you mention that? Or is it not allowed for confidentiality reasons?

if you want to disclose any information that would relate to a personal characteristic, whether that’s gender, race, religion, age, sexuality, disability, socio-economic background, marital status, whether you have kids or not etc, that is completely up to you.

It’s not an issue to do so, but it’s just a very personal thing and completely up to you whether you do or not. There’s no confidentiality issues as you would be the one to raise/discuss it.

 

[Jessica Booker]

Hi @Jessica Booker, hope you're well! Quick question: would you avoid the word "furthermore"? I think it may sound too academic but I always struggle to find synonyms of 'additionally' or 'in addition'. I was also wondering about your opinion of 'moreover'?

Thanks so much!

Often it’s not actually needed, but it’s ok to use it sparingly. Most people end up overusing it though which makes their writing more repetitive.

Ask yourself whether the furthermore or additionally truly adds anything to your writing - many times it won’t.

 

[Kopperskjold]

Often it’s not actually needed, but it’s ok to use it sparingly. Most people end up overusing it though which makes their writing more repetitive.

Ask yourself whether the furthermore or additionally truly adds anything to your writing - many times it won’t.

Yeah no I completely agree, and actually many times I end up deleting the word. However, sometimes the change of sentence sounds too abrupt without them, so I was wondering if it was ok for those situations.

Many thanks!

 

[Numerius Negidius]

Hi Jessica, I'm working on an application with the question "Tell us about you (both the good and the not so good)."

Should I focus on one strength and one weakness and give two detailed examples, or is it better if I highlight several strengths and give more cursory examples? The tone of the question (e.g. "the good and the not so good") also seems a bit lighter, so I'm not sure how to approach this.

 

[hopefullawyer123]

Hi @Jessica Booker I hope you are keeping well!
I am currently answering a 'why us' question on an application. I want to focus on the firm's expertise in M&A. The firm won an award for M&A in 2016. This is the most recent award I can find under this area. The firm itself mentions this award on its website under the M&A section. Is 2016 too long ago to mention?

 

[WannabeSolicitor24]

Hi Jessica, I'm working on an application with the question "Tell us about you (both the good and the not so good)."

Should I focus on one strength and one weakness and give two detailed examples, or is it better if I highlight several strengths and give more cursory examples? The tone of the question (e.g. "the good and the not so good") also seems a bit lighter, so I'm not sure how to approach this.

I went with two strengths and one weakness - and described those with an example

 

[Jessica Booker]

Hi Jessica, I'm working on an application with the question "Tell us about you (both the good and the not so good)."

Should I focus on one strength and one weakness and give two detailed examples, or is it better if I highlight several strengths and give more cursory examples? The tone of the question (e.g. "the good and the not so good") also seems a bit lighter, so I'm not sure how to approach this.

I think this requires more than one example of each. You could talk about a range of things across both. This is just ensuring you are self aware to know what your strengths are and maybe what requires you to have more focus/discipline/consideration/time to get things done. The “not so good” doesn’t necessarily highlight things that are bad, just things that might take more energy from you.

 

[Jessica Booker]

Hi @Jessica Booker I hope you are keeping well!
I am currently answering a 'why us' question on an application. I want to focus on the firm's expertise in M&A. The firm won an award for M&A in 2016. This is the most recent award I can find under this area. The firm itself mentions this award on its website under the M&A section. Is 2016 too long ago to mention?

I honestly just don’t see the relevance of the award. By the time you join it will be 7 years old. I think there is better evidence than an award (to be frank) - could be the work, the type of clients, the chambers ranking (or similar rating systems), the growth of the department, how much revenue it brings in etc etc.

I always find awards a little naive but that’s because I know they aren’t really awarded on purely a merit based approach.

I can tell you now, clients don’t go to a firm just because they won an award!

 

[B1806]

Hi again Jessica, and thanks again for taking the time to answer our questions!

On this forum, I previously asked whether it was a good idea to accept a vac scheme I had secured before I know about the outcome of an application with a preferred firm. I was told to accept the offer and renege if necessary, but I'd appreciate your take on this. Furthermore, do you think it would be all right for me to just call the HR person at the firm whose response I'm awaiting and ask them what the outcome was?

Thanks!

 

[Jessica Booker]

Hi again Jessica, and thanks again for taking the time to answer our questions!

On this forum, I previously asked whether it was a good idea to accept a vac scheme I had secured before I know about the outcome of an application with a preferred firm. I was told to accept the offer and renege if necessary, but I'd appreciate your take on this. Furthermore, do you think it would be all right for me to just call the HR person at the firm whose response I'm awaiting and ask them what the outcome was?

Thanks!

Yes - you can accept and then renege. Just be mindful you probably won’t be in the best position to be considered for a future training contract with the firm you renege on though.

As long as you are not being super impatient and following up very soon after your interview, it is also fine to contact HR and ask for an update on whether they have decided on your application.

 

[B1806]

Yes - you can accept and then renege. Just be mindful you probably won’t be in the best position to be considered for a future training contract with the firm you renege on though.

Thank you! How common is something like this and would it put me at a major disadvantage? Are they fairly used to this happening or will it be severely frowned upon?