Hi, I'm in the second year of my LLB and unfortunately didn't manage to get any vacation schemes this year. Can you apply for vacation schemes in your third year or do you have to apply for a direct TC? Secondly, if I don't get a TC at all, what do you recommend I do after graduation? I cannot self-fund the LPC so should I look for paralegal work? I've been looking at firm websites and haven't seen any paralegal roles advertised. I have good grades (2:1 in my first year) but unfortunately, I am in a non-Russel group university (UWE) as I am an international student and couldn't afford Russell group. I would ideally like to work at a city firm hopefully magic circle. Thank you!
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Confused and scared
- Thread starter aspiringm&alawyer
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You absolutely can apply for vacation schemes in your last year as well as direct TCs so do not worry!
If you don't get a TC after graduation then tbh you have the option to do what you like! Travel, paralegal work, get a part-time job whilst applying... you name it the world is kind of your oyster at that point so I wouldn't worry too much right now.
Focus on getting the best grades you can in your second year and try and attend some online events/do some online courses/virtual work experience programmes etc to help boost your applications and you won't go far wrong
Hi - I'd second @Daniel Boden above, and also note that UWE is well-regarded for Law I believe. And maybe check out Denis Viskovich and the work he has done setting up BIUCAC for non-Russell Group candidates. He believes in you for sure, eg
Denis Viskovich - Commercial awareness – creating a level playing field for non-Russell Group law schools
By not teaching law students any commercial awareness skills, some non-Russell Group law schools are impeding the chances of their students succeeding.
www.lawcareers.net
Yes, definitely look for paralegal work when you have finished but concentrate on doing your best for the exams/other assessments. Remember that the AVERAGE age to qualify is around 30, so really, this isn't an emergency yet.
By the time you graduate, the SQE will be in place (Google this if it's new to you). As a law graduate, you will have a slight head start.
Good luck and good for you for not being an irresponsible spender, keep it up!
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Dheepa
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Hi Neha,
You have nothing at all to be confused or scared about!
There are so many people on this forum who only secured TCs in their final year at university (myself included) and even more who have graduate and worked in other fields before securing TCs. It can be very difficult and anxiety inducing seeing second year students get TCs in their first round of applying but I promise you not getting a TC in your second year is completely normal and I'd venture that the people who do get a TC in their second year are the exceptional few actually. The average qualifying age of a trainee is 28 so really don't get too caught up in what you see everyone else doing and focus on the things you need to be doing for yourself.
I also heavily agree with what Daniel has said. If you don't get a TC before graduating and money is a concern then don't limit yourself to just paralegal roles. Take on any job you'd like, even if it's completely unrelated to law because it's still bound to give you a lot of transferrable skills and relevant experience to talk about in interviews. There are also a lot of legal technology and business support roles that law firms advertise for and I'd really recommend looking into those as well because that way you get a different perspective on the business as a whole.
The fact that you are didn't go to an RG university alone is also not a disadvantage. Plenty of people from non-RG universities secure TCs. I know it can be difficult to get out of your own head sometimes, but you're in a good position and again echoing what Daniel has said, if you focus on writing quality applications, getting involved with some extra-curriculars at university and boosting your work experience through internships or some of the programmes on Inside Sherpa you're going to be that much closer to securing the TC.
You got this! 💓
@Dheepa @Alison C @Daniel Boden Thank you for your reply! It is a bit hard to get out of my head and the pandemic certainly hasn't helped my stress levels. I will definitely focus on my grades and then applications for jobs with valuable transferable skills! Thank you for putting my mind at ease
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