TCLA Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion Thread 2021-22 (#1)

[avaelle42]

anyone else not heard from HL for summer vac scheme? applied a week before deadline

 

[S87]

Anyone has any advice for the Mayer Brown test and especially their SJT test.

Focus on the verbal reasoning test part

 

[LongSufferingLawGrad]

What I got from my white and case experience (I went to the assessment centre) was very much more about you and not so much commercial based.

It was a while ago now so I don’t want to give wrong advice but from what I remember it was definitely a video interview I thought went better than others.things like About the firm, about you (competencies) but the commercial awareness is broad? Like you can talk about anything

I have to agree - the interview was very relaxed and much more about getting a feel for you!

Expect some questions on the international nature of the firm and your work experience, but be prepared to show some personality and insight into your life.

 

[vacschemesforeveryone]

anyone else not heard from HL for summer vac scheme? applied a week before deadline

only just heard back yesterday with an AC invite... don't lose hope

 

[vacschemesforeveryone]

Anyone still not heard from Freshfields post application for summer vac? I see people are getting WGs and even ACs and I’m still here waiting🥲

hey! only got WG invite earlier this week so looks like they're still sending them out

 

[Asil Ahmad]

Focus on the verbal reasoning test part

Thank you very much for this.

 

[Rob93]

Weil tryna give me a heart attack with their 'thank you for your patience we'll be in touch soon' email

 

[avaelle42]

only just heard back yesterday with an AC invite... don't lose hope

congrats! and thanks for this

 

[AspiringTrainee]

Does anyone have any tips for the BCLP AC? It would be much appreciated.

 

[George Maxwell]

Hi there! Anyone interviewed with Slaughter and May and would be able to give me some tips on how to prepare and how it went? Thank you very much
This is for vac scheme

Hi @pizzamalia,

Congratulations on your interview. Just to gain an idea of how long you have to dedicate to interview preparation, when is your interview?

I wrote a post about article-based interviews here which might be useful.

I would also check out @BK's AMA thread which has some fantastic tips.

I hope that helps!

Apologies if this has already been answered in depth. Currently working through the thread!

 

[Lastseasonwonder]

@George Maxwell @AvniD @Jessica Booker

How long should my response to classic competency questions be (tell me about a time ...) in a (virtual) interview?

EDIT: how do I go about preparing for a competency interview. What limit is there for preparing the 'tell me about a time' competency questions? How many? Confused about how to tackle competency question preparation.

 

[Beluga]

Hi, if I’m doing a virtual interview on zoom, is it acceptable to blur my background? There’s not really a way to set up in my room without a mirror and couch showing up in the back.

 

[George Maxwell]

@George Maxwell @AvniD @Jessica Booker

How long should my response to classic competency questions be (tell me about a time ...) in a (virtual) interview?

Hi @Dwight,

This is a great question.

Personally I think interview answers should always be kept as succinct as you can manage. Interviewers can always ask for more information if they wish. There is obviously a balance to strike though, as you still want to demonstrate enthusiasm and knowledge etc.

In terms of time, this really depends on the competency being asked and the example you have to illustrate your answer. A really strong/intriguing/interesting example could justify a longer answer(!), but this just depends on the situation. I am afraid I wouldn't want to pin down a particular time limit per say.

As a guide, I would say that anything beyond one minute thirty is beginning to get too long. Just from experience interviewing people, beyond this point, often candidates start repeating what they have already said, or it starts to get difficult to follow. @Jessica Booker and @Jaysen might have some interesting insights on this.

The biggest thing to remember for competency questions is structure. If you employ a clear structure, your answer will be easier to follow for your interviewers. You will also naturally (if you are anything like me) answer in a more focused way.

In terms of a specific structure, I would recommend following STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Response).

For more general guidance, check out @Jacob Miller's fantastic article on interviews (there is a section for competencies). Although he does not outline a specific time period to stick to, there are some really helpful insights there.

@James Carrabino (and others, I am sure) have differing views on this though, so take my opinion with a pinch of salt 🧂

I hope that helps though!

 

[George Maxwell]

Hi, if I’m doing a virtual interview on zoom, is it acceptable to blur my background? There’s not really a way to set up in my room without a mirror and couch showing up in the back.

Hi @Beluga,

Yes blurring a background in a zoom interview is absolutely acceptable. When I was applying I had multiple interviewers who did this!

Best of luck for when your interview comes 🙌

Happy to answer any follow-ups if you have them!

 

[aspiringlawyer123_]

Hi @Dwight,

This is a great question.

Personally I think interview answers should always be kept as succinct as you can manage. Interviewers can always ask for more information if they wish. There is obviously a balance to strike though, as you still want to demonstrate enthusiasm and knowledge etc.

In terms of time, this really depends on the competency being asked and the example you have to illustrate your answer. A really strong/intriguing/interesting example could justify a longer answer(!), but this just depends on the situation. I am afraid I wouldn't want to pin down a particular time limit per say.

As a guide, I would say that anything beyond one minute thirty is beginning to get too long. Just from experience interviewing people, beyond this point, often candidates start repeating what they have already said, or it starts to get difficult to follow. @Jessica Booker and @Jaysen might have some interesting insights on this.

The biggest thing to remember for competency questions is structure. If you employ a clear structure, your answer will be easier to follow for your interviewers. You will also naturally (if you are anything like me) answer in a more focused way.

In terms of a specific structure, I would recommend following STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Response).

For more general guidance, check out @Jacob Miller's fantastic article on interviews (there is a section for competencies). Although he does not outline a specific time period to stick to, there are some really helpful insights there.

@James Carrabino (and others, I am sure) have differing views on this though, so take my opinion with a pinch of salt 🧂

I hope that helps though!

You say 1.30 for competencies - but what about questions like why commercial law/why us? Because for why us, you may want to have 3 points or so to get across but you have to for each point cover the firms strength in this area and your personal experience/why you’re interested in it.

With this in mind how long would you say is too long for these two key questions?

 

[George Maxwell]

You say 1.30 for competencies - but what about questions like why commercial law/why us? Because for why us, you may want to have 3 points or so to get across but you have to for each point cover the firms strength in this area and your personal experience/why you’re interested in it.

With this in mind how long would you say is too long for these two key questions?

Hi @gracelaw_,

It is really difficult to nail down a specific time limit in the abstract. The one minute thirty seconds I suggested in my post above was intended just to be a rough guide. Different people have different interviewing styles, so this really is an opinion. There are no absolute right answers on how long answers should be in interviews. There are always going to be exceptions etc.

However, generally speaking, even for the three whys, I tried to keep my answer short and to the point. This is obviously easier said than done. Part of my reasoning for doing this was because I do/did not think that past this time I could or often would add much value to my answers.

Incidentally too, I think that one thoroughly developed point is much better than several undeveloped ones. This is partly because often interviewers lose focus if an answer is too long (in my experience anyway!). Also for me it felt unnatural to list lots of reasons, so I wouldn't try to cover every single reason why I wanted to become a commercial lawyer, but instead I focused on one or two points.

In a few interviews, I even caveated my answers by saying something like, "I want to keep my answer relatively succinct, so I am very happy to develop any of the points I mention if you would like me to". This ensures that you are being sensitive to the limited time that you have with your interviewers, are able to communicate clearly and are enthusiastic/willing to provide further information in case anything is unclear.

Also, as I outlined in my answer to @Dwight, it depends on the question being asked and the relative strength of the answer/examples you are providing. If each of your reasons are well linked, are objectively strong and are likely to hold the interest of your interviewers, you can absolutely run over this (arbitrary) time limit!

I hope that clears up any confusion that I might have caused Grace!

 

[Aspiringsolicitordm12]

Hi! Just got a VI for Latham’s first year scheme. Because this is my first one, does anyone have any advice about Latham or VI in general?

 

[George Maxwell]

Hi! Just got a VI for Latham’s first year scheme. Because this is my first one, does anyone have any advice about Latham or VI in general?

Hi @d.mccann12,

Congratulations! Welcome to the forum too. Myself and @AvniD, in addition to @Jessica Booker and @James Carrabino are always happy to help where we can!

I would check out this post for some general tips on VIs.

Do reach out if I/we can help with this or anything else after you've checked out the link above 😊

 

[AvniD]

@George Maxwell @AvniD @Jessica Booker

How long should my response to classic competency questions be (tell me about a time ...) in a (virtual) interview?

EDIT: how do I go about preparing for a competency interview. What limit is there for preparing the 'tell me about a time' competency questions? How many? Confused about how to tackle competency question preparation.

My answer for how long this can be in a virtual interview differs from an actual interview scenario, the reason being that it's harder to pick up on social cues about how your answer is being perceived in a virtual interview as you're generally looking into the camera while you're speaking. With this in mind, keeping it to a minute or so should be good.

Although, my greatest tip would be to instead focus on making sure that your answers are sufficiently detailed by not going too far into the nitty gritties and at the same time ensuring that your answer isn't sparse either. Doing so will not only keep you within the timeframe you'd like to limit yourself to but will also ensure that you're keeping your interviewers engaged.

The structure I'd recommend to use while prepping for your competency questions is either STAR or briefly state the competency ➡️ walk the interviewer through your actions/thought process that demonstrated your competency ➡️ elaborate on the impact of you applying/developing this competency.

 

[George Maxwell]

HSF AC!!! It's my first ever AC so would really appreciate any tips if anyone has any 😅

Hey @ee300,

Amazing news. That's awesome to hear that you have been progressed to interview with HSF. They are a fantastic firm, although I am a little biased! 🙌

This post might be helpful for an insight into HSF's interviews and how to prepare (particularly the scenario-based interview). I would also make sure that you are hot on your legal terminology ahead of the interview, even as a non-law student. If you have Jake Schogger's Commercial Law Handbook, I would take a look through the section on this.

I hope that helps! Very happy to answer any follow-ups as always!