TCLA Direct Training Contract Applications Discussion Thread 2024-5

[LegalLordLox]

I’ve applied but not heard back yet. How about you?

Same waiting to hear back! Did you apply last year? How far did you get if so?

I got to VI last year and then fumbled one Of my responses.

 

[Rebeccal]

For those who have been asking, I heard back from Stephenson Harwood today.

 

[RonRod13]

For those who have been asking, I heard back from Stephenson Harwood today.

did you get the online test?

 

[SoonToBeTrainee]

Also got invited to an SH 30-min video interview with the Talent team

 

[Rebeccal]

did you get the online test?

No, just the application forms. Video interview. Maybe the test will be after?

 

[Tintin06]

Stephenson Harwood rejection at long last. After sending K&S open day app! Anyone else applying to that one? Or Goodwin or Weil open days?

 

[NJS]

Stephenson Harwood rejection at long last. After sending K&S open day app! Anyone else applying to that one? Or Goodwin or Weil open days?

Have you got the link for K&S cant seem to find it on their website?

 

[Tintin06]

Have you got the link for K&S cant seem to find it on their website?

I think I found it through Legal Cheek. You email them a 300 word statement to apply for the Open Day.

 

[BonanzaBih_]

Bit of a useless rant but idk how I’ve completed my LLB, passed the SQE and my LLM but am still being brutalized by the Watson Glaser and SJT’s??? This is even after paying for practice tests and getting about 80-90% on them😭😭 I actually don’t know what to do anymore

 

[Andrei Radu]

Bit of a useless rant but idk how I’ve completed my LLB, passed the SQE and my LLM but am still being brutalized by the Watson Glaser and SJT’s??? This is even after paying for practice tests and getting about 80-90% on them😭😭 I actually don’t know what to do anymore

Hi there! I completely understand your frustration - there's only so much that you can do to prepare for WG/SJTs tests. Last year I also exhausted most of the online preparation resources for these tests and my results were still inconsistent. With some firms I was scoring well into the 90h percentile, with others I was straight up rejected for not meeting the benchmark.

I know this isn't particularly helpful to hear, but I do think there is a significant luck factor to these tests - especially the SJT. A lot depends on your intuitive reasoning on the spot and on whether your intuitive thinking processes are similar to that of the people who designed each specific tests. As such, my advice would be to not lose heart and to still apply to as many firms as you can, as you are bound to pass this stage with some of them.

 

[MCL]

It's been great to see all the TC offers people have posted about in the last month (which I am very happy for!) but equally I think transparency when it's bad news is also important.

Was waiting on a firm for the last month since doing the AC in late August, heard back today and got rejected. Got to 2 final AC's this cycle and rejections from both. 1 vac scheme at a US firm the cycle before (didn't convert) and 1 vac scheme at an international equivalent to MC the cycle year (also didn't convert).

Academic background: 2.1 humanities BA and MA from a London RG.

Going into the 4th cycle with 4 final stage rejections (plus probably 100+ firms across the 3 cycles who I didn't get past the initial app/online test/video interview etc stage for). Posting this so I can look back in September 2025 when I have a TC offer and reminisce!

 

[Andrei Radu]

Hello forum, I have a question re pre-employment screening. On my application, I mistakenly inputted an incorrect GCSE grade (I put it as an A rather than B for Religious Studies) as I was doing it from memory. I now have a statement of results from my secondary school. Furthermore, having looked at my application, I can't seem to locate my A-level grades, only my AS-levels. I always, always include my A-level grades so am unsure if it is a glitch or I overlooked it whilst completing my application. In any case, I'm certain that apps will not let you progress unless you've included A-levels so it is a bit bizarre. The firm does not have any minimum A-level requirements and I have nothing to conceal as I have mitigating circumstances. Should I reach out to graduate recruitment before screening takes place? I am worried about potential repercussions although I was not purposely dishonest in my application.

Hi there! I would definitely reach out if I were you. The only times I have heard of incorrect information in the application form becoming a serious issue during pre-employment checks was either when (a) there was a very significant discrepancy between the truth and the information on the form, or when (b) the person in question was suspected of dishonesty. Since there is no serious discrepancy in your case, the only thing you should be concerned about is seeming dishonest. By reaching out before screening, you provide the graduate recruitment team with convincing evidence that this was in fact an innocent error on your part. It is extremely unlikely any firm would choose to terminate your contract for that reason.

 

[Andrei Radu]

It's been great to see all the TC offers people have posted about in the last month (which I am very happy for!) but equally I think transparency when it's bad news is also important.

Was waiting on a firm for the last month since doing the AC in late August, heard back today and got rejected. Got to 2 final AC's this cycle and rejections from both. 1 vac scheme at a US firm the cycle before (didn't convert) and 1 vac scheme at an international equivalent to MC the cycle year (also didn't convert).

Academic background: 2.1 humanities BA and MA from a London RG.

Going into the 4th cycle with 4 final stage rejections (plus probably 100+ firms across the 3 cycles who I didn't get past the initial app/online test/video interview etc stage for). Posting this so I can look back in September 2025 when I have a TC offer and reminisce!

I completely agree with you that posting about the bad news is as valuable as posting about the success stories. When I was facing straight rejections in all my applications in my first cycle, one of the most disheartening experiences was perceiving myself as uniquely unworthy, as I was seeing every day so many other people post about their success on platforms like LinkedIn. After I discovered this forum and seeing how many other people were facing the same struggles as I was, getting over my rejections started hurting me less and I found renewed strength to keep pushing forward.

As such, I wanted to thank you for sharing this news with the community. I have faced multiple rejections before as well, but I've never come quite as close to success as you did, so I can only imagine how frustrating that must be. You've probably heard this many times already, but the very fact that you reached so far in the application process is testament to your abilities. Success in a vac scheme or AC depends on so many factors beyond your control that you cannot perceive this as your fault or failing. Know that you have everything you need to succeed and that you will get that TC this year - and that once you do, it will feel all that better after all the struggles you have overcome.

 

[Tintin06]

Why so much emphasis on grades? Law firms are business, not universities. I know it's a "data point". Still, endless questions about exam marks. Is law not just a business? Is it really that academic? It seems you just apply rules. The work is easy, unlike WG. It feels like a gate-kept profession. Grades are surely not that relevant. I know Partners who got 2.2s.

 

[Jessica Booker]

Why so much emphasis on grades? Law firms are business, not universities. I know it's a "data point". Still, endless questions about exam marks. Is law not just a business? Is it really that academic? It seems you just apply rules. The work is easy, unlike WG. It feels like a gate-kept profession. Grades are surely not that relevant. I know Partners who got 2.2s.

Part of it is down to the correlation of passing the SQE/LPC if you have higher grades.

Some of the recruitment reviews I have done have also shown a correlation between academic performance and on the job performance (not always the case, but have seen it enough to understand why firms would pay close attention to grades).

 

[desperateTCseeker1998]

No, just the application forms. Video interview. Maybe the test will be after?

Same, it's thrown me off a bit lol was expecting a test first! Have you managed to schedule yours yet?

 

[Andrei Radu]

Why so much emphasis on grades? Law firms are business, not universities. I know it's a "data point". Still, endless questions about exam marks. Is law not just a business? Is it really that academic? It seems you just apply rules. The work is easy, unlike WG. It feels like a gate-kept profession. Grades are surely not that relevant. I know Partners who got 2.2s.

I think it's in big part just a supply-demand issue: there has been an exponential increase in the number of applicants, but there hasn't been a anything close to a proportional increase in the number of places available at top firms. When firms are getting 50 or 100 applicants per spot, they have to filter candidates one way or another. Grades or WG scores are just a very easy way to do so, as looking at scores come with an apparent "objectivity" that is not as present in a more holistic and multifaceted assessment.

I'd also say this happens because law is unfortunately a very prestige-driven industry. Clients who pay high fees want to be represented by prestigious firms - firm prestige is apparently very relevant at the negotiating table, sometimes more so that the actual arguments levied by each side's counsel. To create and maintain a perception of high prestige which attracts high-paying clients, firms want to show themselves as incredibly selective, by recruiting the students with the highest grades from the 'best' universities.

I agree that in practice law is a not a very accessible profession, but I do not think any one firm gate keeps it intentionally. Because of the culture of prestige which has evolved over the centuries in the legal market, firms do not have much choice in pursuing prestige-focused recruitment strategy.

 

[Rebeccal]

Same, it's thrown me off a bit lol was expecting a test first! Have you managed to schedule yours yet?

I got my link to the interview at 5:30 yesterday. I imagine they'll send the rest out on Monday.

This is my first interview (albeit only the video version). I am going in blind!

 

[Tintin06]

I got my link to the interview at 5:30 yesterday. I imagine they'll send the rest out on Monday.

This is my first interview (albeit only the video version). I am going in blind!

Plenty of YouTube videos on these.

 

[AGRACHEL]

Could anybody who has completed the PWC application give me some tips for what to include in the skills section of my PwC application? I am quite confused as I have never come across this before.