In my first year, I'll unashamedly admit - I was an open day and networking event regular. Any excuse to visit a firm, eat some canapes and enjoy some free drink - I was there!
Having experienced countless talks and spoken with what seemed to be an infinite amount of graduate recruitment representatives and trainees, I feel I have a good idea of what your goals should be at these events and how you can get the most out of them.
So, here are my key takeaways to ensure you can utilise these events to your advantage.
KEEP A DIARY OF YOUR ENTIRE TIME AT THE FIRM
I have capitalised this as it is the most important. I cannot stress this enough. Anyone who gives a speech, write their name down and summarise the content. If you speak to a trainee, note their names down and the conversation you had. If you engaged in a negotiation exercise, write down what you did and what you learnt. When you finish the day, go home and type it up into a document. I have docs and docs and docs of open day notes for firms.
The reason you do this is for when you are making your applications. Given that firms receive thousands of applications for a handful of jobs, you need to stand out. You do not want to be the applicant who recites what is posted on their website or on Chambers Student. If you can tie something back to a tangible experience when writing an answer, you are ahead of the game - "I want to work at X as I heard that trainees get higher levels of responsibility. This was affirmed when I attended the open day and spoke with X who mentioned working on X...." It's more compelling, it shows you have engaged with the question/competency and it also shows that you care about the firm (as you have been there before). Likewise, when speaking about a transaction, it is incredible to mention the presentation given by X partner and what you learned from it as opposed to rattling off some press release you read. A prime example is the "HSF - Inside the Headlines" event. It's gold-dust.
Start attending events ASAP
You'll soon realise that these events generally run from October - March. You want to gain as much information as possible from these events to use in your decision-making for where to apply and to substantiate your claims in your application form. So, when Clifford Chance et al close their applications in December, you don't want to be attending an open day in February. My advice is to attend as many as you can in the first year to ensure you have gained the knowledge pre-application. Further to this, open days take time and commitment to attend. Your first year at uni counts for nothing so it really is the ideal opportunity go to them.
You are not going to be offered a job on the open day.
There is no need to act smart, competitive, or engage in one-upmanship. The truth of the matter is that open days and networking events are there for you to learn a little bit more about the firm. Enjoy it. One of the most embarrassing experiences I had is when a partner had to come to our table during a negotiation exercise and tell the other "team" that they had misidentified the point of the exercise - to negotiate (as they consistently low-balled and refused to budge in an effort to show off at the end when the deal needed to be struck). It was ridiculous. Don't be that person!
Use these events to achieve your goals
There really is no need to prepare a list of fancy questions to ask in an attempt to sound smart. Use these events to achieve your own goals. You do not need to ask anyone, anything, if you do not want to. You can just soak up the atmosphere and get a feel for the firm. There is nothing wrong with that. But, the most productive events will be those for which you have a clear plan. During networking, I always wanted to ask GR a set of specific questions to my own application and to find out about the nuances of the process. I would then spend most of the time trying to get to know the trainees and ask them about life at the firm. The only questions I would ever really ask a partner would be if there was an interesting transaction/case they had worked on recently that was public that I could review as I wanted to spend my time wisely when researching firms (i.e, not reading about an obscure derivative transaction that would have probably gone over my head).
The best time to network is at the end
If you are attending networking drinks, the best time to network is at the end. Primarily, this is because most people have left and the leverage between attendees and partners/associates/trainees is much, much higher. Often, you are left with 4 firm employees to 1 or 2 attendees in each group. This way, you can ask your questions and get a response that isn't subject to the pressure of time. Earlier in the event, you will see swarms of people crowded around employees and they want to ensure everyone has an opportunity to ask a question so their responses are often shortened. Personally, I spend the first half having a drink, chatting to people at the event and simply networking. Then I'll usually see who is free to ask some questions to.
Everyone is in the same boat - Just say hi!
Everyone is in the same boat at these events. No-one knows anyone, save for those who have already met each other at previous open days (you'll be surprised how often this happens!). Be friendly and just chat with people. No-one wants to make that first move, but honestly, no-one is going to tell you to leave them alone. I have met so many people at open days who I have added on LinkedIn and consequently met at other events. It makes it so much easier when you see a friendly face at the next event!
Does anyone else have any top tips or views on the above? If so, I'll edit the post and amend accordingly
Having experienced countless talks and spoken with what seemed to be an infinite amount of graduate recruitment representatives and trainees, I feel I have a good idea of what your goals should be at these events and how you can get the most out of them.
So, here are my key takeaways to ensure you can utilise these events to your advantage.
KEEP A DIARY OF YOUR ENTIRE TIME AT THE FIRM
I have capitalised this as it is the most important. I cannot stress this enough. Anyone who gives a speech, write their name down and summarise the content. If you speak to a trainee, note their names down and the conversation you had. If you engaged in a negotiation exercise, write down what you did and what you learnt. When you finish the day, go home and type it up into a document. I have docs and docs and docs of open day notes for firms.
The reason you do this is for when you are making your applications. Given that firms receive thousands of applications for a handful of jobs, you need to stand out. You do not want to be the applicant who recites what is posted on their website or on Chambers Student. If you can tie something back to a tangible experience when writing an answer, you are ahead of the game - "I want to work at X as I heard that trainees get higher levels of responsibility. This was affirmed when I attended the open day and spoke with X who mentioned working on X...." It's more compelling, it shows you have engaged with the question/competency and it also shows that you care about the firm (as you have been there before). Likewise, when speaking about a transaction, it is incredible to mention the presentation given by X partner and what you learned from it as opposed to rattling off some press release you read. A prime example is the "HSF - Inside the Headlines" event. It's gold-dust.
Start attending events ASAP
You'll soon realise that these events generally run from October - March. You want to gain as much information as possible from these events to use in your decision-making for where to apply and to substantiate your claims in your application form. So, when Clifford Chance et al close their applications in December, you don't want to be attending an open day in February. My advice is to attend as many as you can in the first year to ensure you have gained the knowledge pre-application. Further to this, open days take time and commitment to attend. Your first year at uni counts for nothing so it really is the ideal opportunity go to them.
You are not going to be offered a job on the open day.
There is no need to act smart, competitive, or engage in one-upmanship. The truth of the matter is that open days and networking events are there for you to learn a little bit more about the firm. Enjoy it. One of the most embarrassing experiences I had is when a partner had to come to our table during a negotiation exercise and tell the other "team" that they had misidentified the point of the exercise - to negotiate (as they consistently low-balled and refused to budge in an effort to show off at the end when the deal needed to be struck). It was ridiculous. Don't be that person!
Use these events to achieve your goals
There really is no need to prepare a list of fancy questions to ask in an attempt to sound smart. Use these events to achieve your own goals. You do not need to ask anyone, anything, if you do not want to. You can just soak up the atmosphere and get a feel for the firm. There is nothing wrong with that. But, the most productive events will be those for which you have a clear plan. During networking, I always wanted to ask GR a set of specific questions to my own application and to find out about the nuances of the process. I would then spend most of the time trying to get to know the trainees and ask them about life at the firm. The only questions I would ever really ask a partner would be if there was an interesting transaction/case they had worked on recently that was public that I could review as I wanted to spend my time wisely when researching firms (i.e, not reading about an obscure derivative transaction that would have probably gone over my head).
The best time to network is at the end
If you are attending networking drinks, the best time to network is at the end. Primarily, this is because most people have left and the leverage between attendees and partners/associates/trainees is much, much higher. Often, you are left with 4 firm employees to 1 or 2 attendees in each group. This way, you can ask your questions and get a response that isn't subject to the pressure of time. Earlier in the event, you will see swarms of people crowded around employees and they want to ensure everyone has an opportunity to ask a question so their responses are often shortened. Personally, I spend the first half having a drink, chatting to people at the event and simply networking. Then I'll usually see who is free to ask some questions to.
Everyone is in the same boat - Just say hi!
Everyone is in the same boat at these events. No-one knows anyone, save for those who have already met each other at previous open days (you'll be surprised how often this happens!). Be friendly and just chat with people. No-one wants to make that first move, but honestly, no-one is going to tell you to leave them alone. I have met so many people at open days who I have added on LinkedIn and consequently met at other events. It makes it so much easier when you see a friendly face at the next event!
Does anyone else have any top tips or views on the above? If so, I'll edit the post and amend accordingly
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