General Discussion Thread 2020-21

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W

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May 12, 2019
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If we are hit by a recession, do you think paralegals/legal assistants will be the first to be let go? How did law firms respond in 2008?

Not really. Some firms will fare better than others. Also if you’re a paralegal in restructuring/corporate matters, I would reckon you’ll be needed quite heavily during these times. Re 2008, not entirely sure how law firms responded but I think there were less trainee intakes or incoming trainees who had to start later etc.
 
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S87

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Guys, i have a question.

I am currently applying to Bakers and I am not understanding why the website states that I wrote 251 words whereas MS Office shows only 250 words?
I am freaking out!!
 

Jessica Booker

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If we are hit by a recession, do you think paralegals/legal assistants will be the first to be let go? How did law firms respond in 2008?

Not necessarily - they still need people to do the administration. Plus they are generally cheaper than trainees/qualified lawyers.
 
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Jessica Booker

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Guys, i have a question.

I am currently applying to Bakers and I am not understanding why the website states that I wrote 251 words whereas MS Office shows only 250 words?
I am freaking out!!

There is no point freaking out about something like this - just change a sentence so it is 250 words on the system.

MS Office will not recognise certain words or inputs, while an application system will.

I will bet money now it is one of the following
  • Paragraph break being read as a "word"
  • Bullet point
  • Hyphenated word
 
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Demna87

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Aug 23, 2018
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Guys, i have a question.

I am currently applying to Bakers and I am not understanding why the website states that I wrote 251 words whereas MS Office shows only 250 words?
I am freaking out!!
I had a similar thing happen where the word count of my answers was much lower on the form than in word. I think there might be something up with the way that they count up characters on the form.
The form does automatically cut your answer off if you have too many words, so I just made sure to double check all of my answers in the preview section before I submitted - if you do that you'll be good !
 
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NickMcK

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Nov 16, 2019
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Guys, i have a question.

I am currently applying to Bakers and I am not understanding why the website states that I wrote 251 words whereas MS Office shows only 250 words?
I am freaking out!!

This is usually down to a recruiter's website counting words in a different way to MS Office. On a website this can also be down to things such as the website counting formatting as words. It varies from website to website.

Try copy-pasting your text into Notepad as this strips out any formatting carried over from Word. Then transfer it to the website. If you are still a word or two over the maximum then try 1) adjusting your paragraph spacing and see if that helps or 2) re-draft a sentence to get you under the word count.

You are only one word over so no need to panic.

You can also usually see a preview of your whole application on the last page before you submit. You can look at this at any time and this is a good tool to help you edit these longer questions or spot where things haven't copied over correctly.
 
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S87

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Sep 4, 2018
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There is no point freaking out about something like this - just change a sentence so it is 250 words on the system.

MS Office will not recognise certain words or inputs, while an application system will.

I will bet money now it is one of the following
  • Paragraph break being read as a "word"
  • Bullet point
  • Hyphenated word
Yes I have an hyphenated word..sigh!!
 
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Camilla

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  • May 16, 2019
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    Anyone heard from Mishcon post-VI/Gibson Dunn post-app? Not hopeful but would like to know what's going on

    I was supposed to attend the case study interview at Mishcon on Monday but it has been postponed and I have not had any further updates yet. I wouldn't take silence as bad news, I suspect they are just really busy trying to juggle things around/come up with a new system.
     

    syw

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  • May 29, 2019
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    Hi all, i've just been invited for a watson glaser test at BM. I've attempted WG tests before but really suck at them despite practising :( How long do you normally practice for? Any obvious online resources would also be v v helpful!
     
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    Camilla

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  • May 16, 2019
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    Hi all, i've just been invited for a watson glaser test at BM. I've attempted WG tests before but really suck at them despite practising :( How long do you normally practice for? Any obvious online resources would also be v v helpful!

    I got a paid subscription for Assessment Day and Job Test Prep and did every test 5 times minimum.

    Free resources include:
    • The Watson Glaser on Clifford Chance's website.
    • The practise Watson Glaser on the Pearson Talentlens website.
    These are actually pretty good replicas of the real thing and they don't tell you the right answer so you can keep practising and trying to improve your score. If you have a week to complete it that should be enough time. Practise as much as you can.

    Good luck!
     

    D

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    Future Trainee
    Sep 11, 2018
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    Hi all, i've just been invited for a watson glaser test at BM. I've attempted WG tests before but really suck at them despite practising :( How long do you normally practice for? Any obvious online resources would also be v v helpful!

    To build on the above mentioned by @Camilla, If you are a university student, often your careers service will have subscriptions to website that allows you to access the paid material that has been mentioned! This was never explained to me by anyone at uni, however, when I asked I was pleasantly surprised!

    Also, I highly advise practising in the free material you can get online that links to the central database. Last year, for first-year schemes and open days, I probably sat 8 or 9 WG's. By the end, I'd seen the same questions multiple times and I was able to process them more effectively. You'll really get to know about the French Ski Resort, and the Milk Experiment!
     
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