TCLA Direct Training Contract Applications Discussion Thread 2023-4

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LehmanBrothersRiskManagementIntern

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Aug 23, 2023
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I mean it would play a part if FF was rolling but its not... so i'd appreciate if they played fair and square and actually read every application they receive by the deadline
Tbh I think they didn't even read mine. Well I am just speculating. Im gonna start believing in conspiracy theories to explain the PFO 🤣
 

hannah04

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Jan 9, 2023
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I mean it would play a part if FF was rolling but its not... so i'd appreciate if they played fair and square and actually read every application they receive by the deadline
I think they do - I attended an application workshop they hosted last year and they said they every application is assigned to and read by a member of the early careers team. But given the (likely) thousands of people applying for limited spots and that it gets more competitive every year, I suppose they have a wide discretion to decide whether an application is given a yes over a no, and unfortunately, we may never know why :/
 

axelbeugre

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Sep 14, 2023
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Hi there. i was wondering if anyone could help with an answer for an interview question of why I didn't convert a VS to a TC? It's a question i am dreading but ik i should defo expect it coming my way :(

my feedback post-VS wasn't super clear/that useful, I asked but GR didn't give me a specific reason to why i wasn't offered it just that it was a very competitive year l- but i think it was because i didn't score very high in 1 out of 3 of my written pieces during the scheme. I'm not too sure how to say I've improved this though- maybe since i've started working now whereas i was at uni before so not used to writing in a 'lawyerly' way? I did feel quite out of place at the firm so now it's been a few months i think it was for the best as i don't think i would've enjoyed training there but ik that's not an ideal answer haha! Thanks! @axelbeugre
I think that you could just say the truth and explain the ways in which working now allowed you to develop your writing. Rather than focusing on the negative, I will always stress how you overcame this rejection and what you did to work on the feedback given. I personally would try to be truthful but highlight my successes and improvements since that rejection.
 

Legalstalker

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  • Oct 9, 2023
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    never made it past the app stage for every mc firms now. How? A genuine question. What are they looking for?
    Same!! every single MC firm has rejected me on application yet i've progressed further with a US firm. I have some legal experience, commercial experience, passed university with a high grade and i have a whole list of extracurriculars. What do they want?!?! my left kidney 🫘
     

    LehmanBrothersRiskManagementIntern

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    Aug 23, 2023
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    Same!! every single MC firm has rejected me on application yet i've progressed further with a US firm. I have some legal experience, commercial experience, passed university with a high grade and i have a whole list of extracurriculars. What do they want?!?! my left kidney 🫘
    Probably they want me to gain experience as a CEO of a private equity house before even sending me the WG. who knows
     

    missingh

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    Jan 14, 2022
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    I think that you could just say the truth and explain the ways in which working now allowed you to develop your writing. Rather than focusing on the negative, I will always stress how you overcame this rejection and what you did to work on the feedback given. I personally would try to be truthful but highlight my successes and improvements since that rejection.
    thank you Axel! It's a shame as generally my feedback sounded positive but unfortunately in one of my tasks i didn't refer to specific clauses in legislation enough. I did beat myself up about it for a while after but 2 hours after the pfo phone call (brutal) i had an interview for an in-house legal internship and i am working here now and i love it so really was a case of one door closing another opening! I have some good feedback from senior people in my team and a pay rise in this current role so hopefully that counts as a success? :) thank you for your input! I really appreciate it
     

    spamelinazoid

    Legendary Member
  • Dec 19, 2021
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    I don’t get it… I got an AC with FF 2 years ago and got the WG last year but I didn’t even make it past the application stage this round?? I feel like my grades have gotten significantly stronger as I’ve graduated with a first from a RG Uni since I first applied and I have more legal experience… at this point, idk what I’m doing wrong as I haven’t gotten past a single application stage this cycle. I would usually be hopeful but damn this cycle has been tough
    Same boat, I got the WG invite last year with 0 work experience the winter after graduating. My Cover Letter was really good, and I did it after attending their grad workshop for which I was selected. I used the same tips from the workshop to build up my letter this year, after also working in a commercial law firm as a paralegal for 1 year, and I didnt even get through to a WG this time.

    It is, quite literally, a lottery game. And it’s really disheartening.
     

    laby201

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    Jan 28, 2021
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    PFO from Freshfields post-app.

    I know how competitive the MC is, so not going to complain, but I just sometimes don’t understand how the decisions are made? Last year, I sent in an app an hour before the deadline, with one or two spelling mistakes, and the app was effectively a generic one not tailored to the firm that I copied from another of my applications. I got through to the WG stage.

    This year, I researched throughly and feel my app was far better, alongside paralegal experience and an achieved first-class degree, but I didn’t get past the application stage.

    I just don’t understand that. I think it makes the whole process much harder to understand when things like that happen.
     

    spamelinazoid

    Legendary Member
  • Dec 19, 2021
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    PFO from Freshfields post-app.

    I know how competitive the MC is, so not going to complain, but I just sometimes don’t understand how the decisions are made? Last year, I sent in an app an hour before the deadline, with one or two spelling mistakes, and the app was effectively a generic one not tailored to the firm that I copied from another of my applications. I got through to the WG stage.

    This year, I researched throughly and feel my app was far better, alongside paralegal experience and an achieved first-class degree, but I didn’t get past the application stage.

    I just don’t understand that. I think it makes the whole process much harder to understand when things like that happen.
    Sort of same lol, theres no logic
     
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