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

[S87]

Travers Smith are known for this.

Travers tends to fill the spaces through VS.

 

[GXA123]

here’s what I have so far. going to keep looking, send a bunch of emails out, and update the list accordingly:


Yes
Macfarlanes
Farrer & Co
Linklaters
NRF
Slaughter & May

No
Addleshaw Goddard
Allen & Overy
Baker McKenzie
Clyde & Co
Dechert
Hogan Lovells
Shearman & Sterling

Unclear
Dentons
Ropes & Gray
V&E
Weil

wow you are amazing!

also Boodle Hatfield allows for 2 apps

 

[James Carrabino]

'tell us a bit about yourself' 250 words. I'm unsure how to approach this, does the firm want me adopt a competency-style answer and be like 'I am commercially aware because xyz' or do they want me to talk about my personal interests?

Haha usually I got this in an interview so 250 words is a bit tight - maybe I took the wrong approach but I would always treat it as a very broad motivational question and go through how my life interests/experiences have led up to me making this application!

 

[Law2022]

Anyone eligible to start a TC this year - L&W has just opened Direct TC for 2022 & 23

 

[squidsalmons]

Has anyone done an interview for Boodle Hatfield?

I know someone who has! did you get an interview?

 

[squidsalmons]

Does anyone have any tips for the Boodle Hatfield VS interview?

congrats! when did you hear back?

 

[GXA123]

Anyone eligible to start a TC this year - L&W has just opened Direct TC for 2022 & 23

Also do u know if we can reapply if we’ve been rejected for a vs?

 

[antisocial applicant]

Haha usually I got this in an interview so 250 words is a bit tight - maybe I took the wrong approach but I would always treat it as a very broad motivational question and go through how my life interests/experiences have led up to me making this application!

Thanks James!

 

[Law2022]

Also do u know if we can reapply if we’ve been rejected for a vs?

I am not sure, sorry. Best to email grad rec

 

[Lucy124]

congrats! when did you hear back?

A few days ago!

 

[James Carrabino]

With law firms that hold two stage interviews - is the first stage purely to progress to the next or at the end of the two interviews, will your performance be considered holistically? for example if someone did much much better in their first interview and not as well in the second, will that be taken into account or will a VS offer be made only based on the second interview?
@Jessica Booker - perhaps you could give some insight?? thank you!

I think usually the second interview (for those who progress) will be considered primarily in isolation. I know some firms where they look back at notes from an earlier interview if a candidate is on the borderline.

 

[CF12345]

Is it acceptable to ask again for feedback a month following the AC?

 

[letmeintolaw]

Final interviews for OC and Mills & Reeve !!!!!!!! Can't believe it

 

[allthingslegaltech]

R&G's Thrive Assessment has actually put me on the floor - they've somehow managed to make my brain feel physically exhausted 😂

 

[ap28]

I really struggle with answering application/interview questions regarding teamwork (Such as' Please provide us with an example of when you have worked within a team to achieve a positive outcome. What were your goals and what challenges did you face? ')
Can anyone give me a structure on how to answer this, an example, or anything like that? I have a lot of work experience which involved team work but I've never known how to best approach emphasising it.

 

[Jessica Booker]

Is it acceptable to ask again for feedback a month following the AC?

Yes, definitely acceptable.

 

[allthingslegaltech]

I really struggle with answering application/interview questions regarding teamwork (Such as' Please provide us with an example of when you have worked within a team to achieve a positive outcome. What were your goals and what challenges did you face? ')
Can anyone give me a structure on how to answer this, an example, or anything like that? I have a lot of work experience which involved team work but I've never known how to best approach emphasising it.

The STAR approach can be useful - Situation, Task, Action, Result. So first you would provide some context as to how the example came about. Second, you describe the task, essentially the end goal you were trying to achieve. Third, the action you specifically took within the team and how you went about it. And finally, what the overall result was and linking it back to how you contributed.

I'm sure others can jump in and offer more suggestions but that's generally how I go about it.

 

[Jessica Booker]

With law firms that hold two stage interviews - is the first stage purely to progress to the next or at the end of the two interviews, will your performance be considered holistically? for example if someone did much much better in their first interview and not as well in the second, will that be taken into account or will a VS offer be made only based on the second interview?
@Jessica Booker - perhaps you could give some insight?? thank you!

Overall, I would expect you would need a strong performance in the second round stages. If there was a heavy weighting on the previous round, then it is likely they wouldn’t need the second round assessment.

However, I think if you fall down in a particular competency/strength (but have a strong performance elsewhere) that the firm is assessing, and that has also been assessed in the previous round, then they may look at previous assessments to see if there is enough similar evidence elsewhere to compensate for something specific (rather than a performance overall).

 

[James Carrabino]

Does anyone have any advice on choosing vac scheme departments? I will of course choose what I find interesting and want to experience, but can anyone give any further recommendations?

Does anyone have any guidance for choosing a VS seat?

First of all, congratulations @LEL and @thirdtimelucky on securing vacation schemes! It is an exciting position to be in where you are about to experience the inner workings of a commercial law firm for the first time

I have seen some great suggestions on this topic and I think that the first thing to consider is whether you will have the opportunity to explore multiple seats throughout your time on the scheme or if you only get to explore one. If you have the opportunity to sit in multiple departments, then I would definitely take the recommendations that some users have given to sit in contrasting departments - perhaps one corporate seat and one disputes or advisory seat.

When making this decision myself, for example, I knew that I was really interested in trying competition/antitrust because a lot of the regulatory side of competition law is related to politics and international relations which I really enjoyed studying at uni. At the same time, I did not know enough about what being a competition lawyer entailed so if I had only had the choice of a single seat, I probably would have gone for one of the firm's bigger departments - corporate or litigation. At this firm, I ended up sitting in two seats - Private Equity and Competition, so I got the best of both worlds. Competition proved to be as interesting as I thought it was, partly because the team had its own clients and was not purely a support team, which may have also impacted my decision making.

I think personally that you cannot go wrong with a corporate seat at any commercial firm as you will gain exposure to a lot of the clients and work that drives the firm as a business! You will often have the chance to liaise with members from supporting teams and you will likely sit alongside plenty of other candidates for your seat to be well-structured enough that the firm is able to accurately assess you.

If you are really into disputes, then by all means choose that as your single seat and if you are interested in another more specialised area then I would be more inclined to choose it if it is an area where the firm specialises. As another user advised, it is good to get a sense of what the firm's specialisms and compulsory seats are so that you can have an accurate understanding of what it would be like to work at the firm in question when you come to choosing whether to train there

 

[Jooooopp7]

I think usually the second interview (for those who progress) will be considered primarily in isolation. I know some firms where they look back at notes from an earlier interview if a candidate is on the borderline.

Overall, I would expect you would need a strong performance in the second round stages. If there was a heavy weighting on the previous round, then it is likely they wouldn’t need the second round assessment.

However, I think if you fall down in a particular competency/strength (but have a strong performance elsewhere) that the firm is assessing, and that has also been assessed in the previous round, then they may look at previous assessments to see if there is enough similar evidence elsewhere to compensate for something specific (rather than a performance overall).

Thank you both for your help!