TCLA Direct Training Contract Applications Discussion Thread 2024-5

[HarmonyN]

Is Pinsent Masons blended assessment automatic or next stage? How many days do you have to complete it? Thanks

It's automatic, you have till the application closing date to complete it.

 

[mitali]

Hey @mitali , my colleague @Ram Sabaratnam , has made a very helpful list which includes some virtual open days: https://www.thecorporatelawacademy....ay-and-insight-scheme-deadlines-2024-25.9218/

Thank you so much! such a saviour!

 

[mitali]

It maybe that they are increasing TC numbers, or have had people drop out of these intakes (reneging offers, people not passing the SQE).

Sometimes these earlier opportunities pop up and I think they are a great way for those who can start their TC earlier to potentially get an offer. I wouldn’t say it happens a lot, but every now and then a handful of firms will recruit earlier intakes and actively recruit for them.

Hey, does this mean non-law students who have to pursue their PGDL and clear SQE can also apply?

 

[mitali]

Firstly, regarding your inability to apply for vac schemes this year: there are some firms which will cover travel costs for you, including flights. Two firms I can think of on the spot who are willing to do this are Slaughter and May and Paul, Weiss. As such, supposing there is no conflict with your term dates/other reasons why traveling is not possible for you, you could apply for vacation schemes at these firms. Something to take note of here is that not all law firms who cover travel costs advertise this policy, so it may be worth it to ask directly by sending some emails/LinkedIn messages to recruiters at the firms you are interested in.

For the second issue (your chances of securing a direct TC), I agree with @NMA's points. As long as you write a high number of high-quality applications and you know how to leverage your current experiences, you will have good enough chances to be worth applying.

For the third issue (about reapplying): different firms have different policies here. Some actively encourage reapplying, while others directly ask you not to reapply if you have not substantially improved your candidate profile. In general, there are more firms that will not mind reapplying than firms that will - especially if you first got rejected for the more competitive opportunity (the direct TC). Besides looking for any announced firm policy in FAQs, you can also try to infer whether a firm is likely to care about the fact that you got rejected once by seeing if they directly ask about this on the application form. If they ask whether you have applied in the past and at what stage you got rejected, it is more likely that they use that question to filter some applicants.

hi, do you know more of such firms who may be willing to sponsor visas alongside travel for international students willing to apply for vacation schemes?

 

[mitali]

Slaughter & May PFO, applied on the 2nd Sept.

will 10th November be too late to apply for slaughter and may?

 

[Andrei Radu]

will 10th November be too late to apply for slaughter and may?

Last year I applied at the end of October and ended up receiving a VS offer. However, my VS interview was scheduled quite late (around the end of January) and the graduate recruitment team said they were going to have interviews all the way until the end of February for people who had applied later. As such, while it would perhaps be ideal to apply earlier, the 10th of November is definitely not too late.

 

[Andrei Radu]

hi, do you know more of such firms who may be willing to sponsor visas alongside travel for international students willing to apply for vacation schemes?

So the general rule is that firms will not normally be willing to sponsor visas for vacation schemes - as from their perspective, the costs which range from 3000-5000 pounds are not justified given the duration of the work experience. Paul, Weiss and Slaughter and May do cover flights for international students, and while that might suggest they could be easier to convince to sponsor VS visas when compared to other firms, I would not make a strong inference in this regard. The only way to find out is to email/send a LinkedIn message to the graduate recruitment team to ask.

Based on a previous discussion on the forum in 2021 (which you can find here), people who spoke to graduate recruitment only identified two firms that are willing to sponsor VS visas: Macfarlanes and Mishcon de Reya. Besides that, @Jessica Booker said that sometimes firms are willing to make exceptions in the case of US/Indian/Australian nationals, but I am not sure whether this applies to anyone else.

 

[mitali]

Last year I applied at the end of October and ended up receiving a VS offer. However, my VS interview was scheduled quite late (around the end of January) and the graduate recruitment team said they were going to have interviews all the way until the end of February for people who had applied later. As such, while it would perhaps be ideal to apply earlier, the 10th of November is definitely not too late.

Thank you so much for the quick response.

 

[Andrei Radu]

I applied for HL direct TC on the 6th of October and am yet to receive a link to the Watson Glaser. I emailed grad rec on the 11th and they said that I would receive it soon, but I still haven’t. Should I email them again or just leave it? I’m just worried my application has gotten lost or something, especially as they recruit on a rolling basis. Any advice would be much appreciated!

Hey @whywhy88! If you have already emailed once, my instinct would be to wait for them to come back to you, but to be completely honest I do not know much about this kind of situation. I thought to just tag @Jessica Booker as she might be able to give you a more informed perspective on the issue.

 

[mitali]

Hi @Jessica Booker - I wondered if you could provide some insight into how best to answer the following question on Fieldfisher's application:

Describe the personal life experiences that have given you the unique perspective you would bring as a Trainee at Fieldfisher, and how this perspective will support your success. (800 characters)

Firstly, where it refers to 'personal life experiences', does this mean non-working experiences from your personal life?

Secondly, given the limited word count, how many experiences would it be appropriate to mention - is it better to mention experiences more broadly rather than go into detail on them?

Thanks in advance!

hey can you tell what the deadline for the TC is? I am unable to find!

 

[GV]

Does Clifford Chance have a video interview stage?

 

[nodustollens]

Hi, does anyone have any insights on deloitte job simulation?

 

[Maddy]

Did anyone receive a video interview link after submitting application for Kilburn & Strode?

 

[tc_hopeful]

Hi all, hope everyone's applications are going well!

For those who graduated a couple of years ago and are currently working, how would you approach the following question:

• Please outline the details of your main extra-curricular activities and leisure interests.

To be honest, I'm not entirely sure how to respond. When I was still studying I would have listed any clubs and societies I used to be involved in, but that all seems quite outdated at this point. Ever since I started at my current role, my social life has undoubtedly taken a bit of a nose-dive and I can only think of truly leisure activities (i.e. travelling, hiking, exercise etc), but I'm unsure how to demonstrate any quantifiable "achievements" from these activities?

Any thoughts would be much appreciated! Thank you

 

[LegalLordLox]

Hi, does anyone have any insights on deloitte job simulation?

Congrats! I just received the invite too!

 

[nodustollens]

Congrats! I just received the invite too!

thank you! congratulations to you too!

 

[futuretraineesolicitor]

can people who have applied to a&o s via the direct route clarify if you've got to dress professionally even while taking the SJT and not just the vi questions? Thanks.

 

[Lawyering13]

can people who have applied to a&o s via the direct route clarify if you've got to dress professionally even while taking the SJT and not just the vi questions? Thanks.

nah, not for the SJT I’m pretty sure I was in my pyjamas , I wore a nice shirt (no tie or blazer) for VI and got to AC for direct last cycle.

 

[HelpAStudentOut]

Does anyone know how long Slaughters take to respond post AC? Had mine on Thursday and forgot to ask HR for a timeline. I presume a rejection will come pretty quickly, whereas an offer would take longer as they have to contact the people I put for my references??

 

[KBanana]

Does anyone know how long Slaughters take to respond post AC? Had mine on Thursday and forgot to ask HR for a timeline. I presume a rejection will come pretty quickly, whereas an offer would take longer as they have to contact the people I put for my references??

I think the videos on Slaughters' website said 2 weeks.