General Discussion Thread 2020-21

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Asmee DC

Valued Member
Future Trainee
Jan 17, 2019
105
253
Forgive me, you may have already posted this but I may have missed it! Do you mind me asking when you heard back?

I heard back yesterday, the email was actually about the training contract and how I cannot apply for one as I have been unsuccessful for the vacation scheme. Suppose thats one way to cut to the chase :D

I heard back yesterday about the vac scheme saying I was unsuccessful and just received an email about the TC (don't remember applying for one) saying the exact same thing as what @TYP mentioned.
 

TYP

Active Member
May 14, 2020
10
4
I heard back yesterday about the vac scheme saying I was unsuccessful and just received an email about the TC (don't remember applying for one) saying the exact same thing as what @TYP mentioned.

Sorry to hear that. Just to relay some information (which may or may not be accurate)

A friend of a friend (take this with a pinch of salt) who is an associate at the Birmingham office, mentioned that they may have rejected everyone as they are not keen on running a virtual scheme and August seems to also be off the table.

He was under the impression that they will look to the direct TC to recruit for 2021 and maybe delay 2022 and fill it with 2023. He was also under the impression that there was alot of disagreement with senior partners and the grad rec team due to the time it took to even interview candidates and the partners were under the impression that due to it being left so late alot of the applicants were already tied down with other firms.

Like I said; this may or may not to accurate, but I knew of a number of people who applied to the Birmingham office and who have been rejected so unless the cohort is very small then maybe this might be true to some degree. The head of grad rec has apparently also left the firm which would, MAYBE, suggest the above is not that far from the truth.
 
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Frank

Valued Member
Dec 12, 2018
120
249
Just to let you know that Jones Day has postponed their VS for this summer; details to follow shortly, but those who've been successful already will be given a place on a future VS (date tbc). Fingers crossed for everyone! The non-rotational feature was indeed problematic; but, of course, I stand by their decision given that this is what makes their TC distinct from the other firms. :)
 
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L.M.P

Star Member
Jan 24, 2019
43
40
Just to let you know that Jones Day has postponed their VS for this summer; details to follow shortly, but those who've been successful already will be given a place on a future VS (date tbc). Fingers crossed for everyone! The non-rotational feature was indeed problematic; but, of course, I stand by their decision given that this is what makes their TC distinct from the other firms. :)

I just got the same! :)
 
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S87

Legendary Member
Gold Member
Premium Member
Sep 4, 2018
1,648
2,403
Guys, for those who applied to Macfarlanes, how did you approach the question "Please give details of one area of your course which you found
particularly interesting and explain why?" 50 words max
 

Asmee DC

Valued Member
Future Trainee
Jan 17, 2019
105
253
Sorry to hear that. Just to relay some information (which may or may not be accurate)

A friend of a friend (take this with a pinch of salt) who is an associate at the Birmingham office, mentioned that they may have rejected everyone as they are not keen on running a virtual scheme and August seems to also be off the table.

He was under the impression that they will look to the direct TC to recruit for 2021 and maybe delay 2022 and fill it with 2023. He was also under the impression that there was alot of disagreement with senior partners and the grad rec team due to the time it took to even interview candidates and the partners were under the impression that due to it being left so late alot of the applicants were already tied down with other firms.

Like I said; this may or may not to accurate, but I knew of a number of people who applied to the Birmingham office and who have been rejected so unless the cohort is very small then maybe this might be true to some degree. The head of grad rec has apparently also left the firm which would, MAYBE, suggest the above is not that far from the truth.

Oh wow! Thank you for letting me know! Whether this is true or not, it's still disappointing for those who do not have offers at all and have no chance in being considered for a direct TC if the firm wishes to cancel the VS.
 
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hktr

Star Member
Junior Lawyer
Sep 10, 2019
38
61
Guys, for those who applied to Macfarlanes, how did you approach the question "Please give details of one area of your course which you found
particularly interesting and explain why?" 50 words max

I just chose something I genuinely enjoyed, but I also tried to frame it in a way that revealed something positive about me. In my case, I highlighted how and why the particular course was challenging but also why I enjoyed rising to this challenge.
 
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tamara

New Member
Dec 1, 2018
3
0
Sorry to hear that. Just to relay some information (which may or may not be accurate)

A friend of a friend (take this with a pinch of salt) who is an associate at the Birmingham office, mentioned that they may have rejected everyone as they are not keen on running a virtual scheme and August seems to also be off the table.

He was under the impression that they will look to the direct TC to recruit for 2021 and maybe delay 2022 and fill it with 2023. He was also under the impression that there was alot of disagreement with senior partners and the grad rec team due to the time it took to even interview candidates and the partners were under the impression that due to it being left so late alot of the applicants were already tied down with other firms.

Like I said; this may or may not to accurate, but I knew of a number of people who applied to the Birmingham office and who have been rejected so unless the cohort is very small then maybe this might be true to some degree. The head of grad rec has apparently also left the firm which would, MAYBE, suggest the above is not that far from the truth.


does this apply for all offices or just Birmingham?
 

TYP

Active Member
May 14, 2020
10
4
Oh wow! Thank you for letting me know! Whether this is true or not, it's still disappointing for those who do not have offers at all and have no chance in being considered for a direct TC if the firm wishes to cancel the VS.

Hey, no problem. I seem to suspect this is probably true as I know 8 people who did the AC and all got rejected, no one on this forum has heard good news either, so unless they had a huge AC it does seem strange indeed. I do think its unfair as so many people would have spent considerable time preparing and the email was rather unpleasant. Firms tend to atleast call whereas Trowers seems to suggest that we can ask for feedback if we so wish, but a friend has been waiting for 2 weeks to even get a reply to their request so I wouldnt hold my breath.

does this apply for all offices or just Birmingham?

Hi. The associate is at Birmingham. But like I said I would take it with a pinch of salt. However, the more you look into the more it does ring true. Unless someone gets an offer which does not seem to be the case at any office, it would be safe to assume this might be a firm wide issue.

Just to add to my original post above; as I had a few PMs, I literally have no way of knowing whether the associate is lying, I dont know him personally and it was just information which I thought would be helpful as it may help people if they are stuck feeling like they were not competent enough. A large part does to a large degree add up and side with the story. I also dont see any reason why the individual would lie as it would not gain him anything.
 
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Zayn

Active Member
  • Nov 13, 2019
    17
    2
    Sorry to hear that. Just to relay some information (which may or may not be accurate)

    A friend of a friend (take this with a pinch of salt) who is an associate at the Birmingham office, mentioned that they may have rejected everyone as they are not keen on running a virtual scheme and August seems to also be off the table.

    He was under the impression that they will look to the direct TC to recruit for 2021 and maybe delay 2022 and fill it with 2023. He was also under the impression that there was alot of disagreement with senior partners and the grad rec team due to the time it took to even interview candidates and the partners were under the impression that due to it being left so late alot of the applicants were already tied down with other firms.

    Like I said; this may or may not to accurate, but I knew of a number of people who applied to the Birmingham office and who have been rejected so unless the cohort is very small then maybe this might be true to some degree. The head of grad rec has apparently also left the firm which would, MAYBE, suggest the above is not that far from the truth.
    This sounds so depressing!
     

    Zayn

    Active Member
  • Nov 13, 2019
    17
    2
    Hey, no problem. I seem to suspect this is probably true as I know 8 people who did the AC and all got rejected, no one on this forum has heard good news either, so unless they had a huge AC it does seem strange indeed. I do think its unfair as so many people would have spent considerable time preparing and the email was rather unpleasant. Firms tend to atleast call whereas Trowers seems to suggest that we can ask for feedback if we so wish, but a friend has been waiting for 2 weeks to even get a reply to their request so I wouldnt hold my breath.



    Hi. The associate is at Birmingham. But like I said I would take it with a pinch of salt. However, the more you look into the more it does ring true. Unless someone gets an offer which does not seem to be the case at any office, it would be safe to assume this might be a firm wide issue.

    Just to add to my original post above; as I had a few PMs, I literally have no way of knowing whether the associate is lying, I dont know him personally and it was just information which I thought would be helpful as it may help people if they are stuck feeling like they were not competent enough. A large part does to a large degree add up and side with the story. I also dont see any reason why the individual would lie as it would not gain him anything.
    One of my friend has been offered VS from the Birmingham office yesterday. However, it's subject to Covid 19 situation and could be pushed back to August.
     
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