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

[GS0W]

Yeah I emailed grad rec as I tried to do the VI today. They are still waiting to hear from the technical team and will communicate a new deadline shortly. Didn’t give a date so I guess we just need to continue prepping for it!

Got an email saying the new deadline is Thursday now! Goodluck

 

[Green]

Just received a vac scheme offer from Trowers & Hamlins !!!! so pleased and a long time in the making considering this is my third cycle😭😭😭 good luck to everyone

High five! It’s also my first VS and a third cycle. Good luck!

 

[AP2000]

So I took part in an inter-university commercial awareness competition recently. We were in small teams, and my teammate and I had to present back to the panel on a case study. Our presentation had multiple sections which we split amongst ourselves. They start first, I go next- all good so far. When the last section comes about they go way over the time limit of 1 min (which they had told me to strictly stick to in the preparation breakout room) and I am left with less than 30 seconds for my last section. I can only outline what I was going to talk about in a sentence before being cut off. Then there are questions from the panel- and I don't get to say a single word. They take up all the questions, including the questions regarding my part of the presentation. I unmuted myself multiple times but they took up the question nonetheless and as soon as they were done the panel member asking would say thank you and move on.

I am not shy or introverted. I am a confident speaker who has presented in high profile conferences and forums. I am also the "mother" of the group in group projects, always making sure people contribute and that work is allocated fairly- I don't try to make myself stand out over the rest of my team.

This experience made me feel so defeated, patronised, and small. The only positive part of it is that the outcome (which we found out in a few days) is assessed on a team level, and I must have done something right because I've had legal recruiters of the sponsoring firms reach out via LinkedIn.

Beside the rant, I guess the question here is: have you ever had to deal with difficult and "macho" team members like that, and how did you cope?

 

[Jessica Booker]

So I took part in an inter-university commercial awareness competition recently. We were in small teams, and my teammate and I had to present back to the panel on a case study. Our presentation had multiple sections which we split amongst ourselves. They start first, I go next- all good so far. When the last section comes about they go way over the time limit of 1 min (which they had told me to strictly stick to in the preparation breakout room) and I am left with less than 30 seconds for my last section. I can only outline what I was going to talk about in a sentence before being cut off. Then there are questions from the panel- and I don't get to say a single word. They take up all the questions, including the questions regarding my part of the presentation. I unmuted myself multiple times but they took up the question nonetheless and as soon as they were done the panel member asking would say thank you and move on.

I am not shy or introverted. I am a confident speaker who has presented in high profile conferences and forums. I am also the "mother" of the group in group projects, always making sure people contribute and that work is allocated fairly- I don't try to make myself stand out over the rest of my team.

This experience made me feel so defeated, patronised, and small. The only positive part of it is that the outcome (which we found out in a few days) is assessed on a team level, and I must have done something right because I've had legal recruiters of the sponsoring firms reach out via LinkedIn.

Beside the rant, I guess the question here is: have you ever had to deal with difficult and "macho" team members like that, and how did you cope?

Your team mate would have been scored down for that behaviour. Hopefully the feedback will make them realise this isn’t how to work in teams.

 

[su1234]

High five! It’s also my first VS and a third cycle. Good luck!

Haha it still doesn’t feel real to me! Hopefully third time lucky. Thanks you too which office have you applied for?

 

[George Maxwell]

Thank you so much, I will definitely take you guys up on that offer!! Is there anything I should currently be doing specifically, besides keeping commercially aware etc. (VS is in June and I’m a non law student). Many thanks again everyone!!

Hey @Salin,

So my advice is to remain familiar with your CV and application answers that you submitted to the firm when you applied. My supervisors were sent these ahead of me arriving and asked me about them when I started.

In addition to the above, I would take a look at the practice areas that you are due to sit in (if you have been told). I found it helpful to have an idea of the major clients and notable matters that the firm had been involved in the couple of years prior to me starting too (particularly those that included the practice area I was sitting in). This knowledge helps to contextualise a lot of what is said in meetings which makes them easier to follow. Being proactive about finding out about the firm's work will also reflect well on you too.

The last thing I would say is to think about the sort of work, clients and practice areas that genuinely interest you. For example, before my scheme at HSF I did a vacation scheme at Akin Gump, where I sat in financial restructuring. I really liked it so I wanted to learn about the sort of work that HSF does in this area, which led me to having coffee with a few people.

If you are able to say at the start of your scheme, "I am particularly interested in X":
1. Your supervisor and buddy might be able to put you in touch with another lawyer who has direct experience of X; and
2. You might be given work/opportunities relating to X (which will make your VS engaging which will likely mean you do even better than otherwise!).

This post repeats some of the above, but might put things slightly differently too .

I hope that helps and is clear!

So I took part in an inter-university commercial awareness competition recently. We were in small teams, and my teammate and I had to present back to the panel on a case study. Our presentation had multiple sections which we split amongst ourselves. They start first, I go next- all good so far. When the last section comes about they go way over the time limit of 1 min (which they had told me to strictly stick to in the preparation breakout room) and I am left with less than 30 seconds for my last section. I can only outline what I was going to talk about in a sentence before being cut off. Then there are questions from the panel- and I don't get to say a single word. They take up all the questions, including the questions regarding my part of the presentation. I unmuted myself multiple times but they took up the question nonetheless and as soon as they were done the panel member asking would say thank you and move on.

I am not shy or introverted. I am a confident speaker who has presented in high profile conferences and forums. I am also the "mother" of the group in group projects, always making sure people contribute and that work is allocated fairly- I don't try to make myself stand out over the rest of my team.

This experience made me feel so defeated, patronised, and small. The only positive part of it is that the outcome (which we found out in a few days) is assessed on a team level, and I must have done something right because I've had legal recruiters of the sponsoring firms reach out via LinkedIn.

Beside the rant, I guess the question here is: have you ever had to deal with difficult and "macho" team members like that, and how did you cope?

Hey @AP2000,

I am really sorry to hear that you had this experience. It sounds like it was hugely frustrating. You do sound like you dealt with it in a professional and mature way though, which is impressive. It is not easy to work with someone like that and not allow your emotions to get the better of you.

Based on what you have said, I really don't think you should feel small or defeated. I think you dealt with an irritating and difficult situation well and you should feel proud of yourself that you were able to remain civil and calm (at least ostensibly) in a stressful situation.

I actually had a very similar experience. I actually discussed my discomfort with my partner as soon as I was able to. I mentioned that I felt uncomfortable with the way that the situation had been handled and that I would have appreciated it had they had worked with me during the assessment. This made no difference at the time as the assessment was over, but I did find it therapeutic to voice my frustrations with them. I came away feeling more sensitive to the feelings of others in groups - which ultimately is a really important insight to have. So although the competition did not go your way this time, I bet you will be a better trainee in the future having had this experience, as you will know how important it is to communicate well with those around you(!).

It also sounds like your maturity and capability did shine through given that some legal recruiters have subsequently reached out to you!

 

[James Carrabino]

Wanted to give a shoutout to @James Carrabino and @AvniD for doing a really great webinar. \Really great advice and really inspiring to hear about the direct TC route I never thought the direct TC route was as easy as you made it as most people go down the VS route.

Also well done on doing the webinar as it must have been hard for both of you and being nervous doing a webinar and you lot did a good job please can you both do another webinar together but maybe on assessment centres as your advice was so helpful and so inspiring.

Ah thank you so much @Asil Ahmad, this really means a huge amount! It was wonderful to be able to present our thoughts to all of you I think that Avni and I could be convinced by lovely feedback like this to do another one in the not-too-distant future, now that we got the initial nerves out of the way 😊

 

[Asil Ahmad]

Ah thank you so much @Asil Ahmad, this really means a huge amount! It was wonderful to be able to present our thoughts to all of you I think that Avni and I could be convinced by lovely feedback like this to do another one in the not-too-distant future, now that we got the initial nerves out of the way 😊

Look forward to it and you both should be proud of yourselves as it is not easy doing a webinar to a lot of people.

I also think doing a webinar about case study assessment centres will be a good idea for the future.

Also, thank you very much once again for the great webinar and good luck to both of you on your upcoming exams.

 

[James Carrabino]

Look forward to it and you both should be proud of yourselves as it is not easy doing a webinar to a lot of people.

I also think doing a webinar about case study assessment centres will be a good idea for the future.

Also, thank you very much once again for the great webinar and good luck to both of you on your upcoming exams.

Thanks so much once again - and the luck will be much needed on the exams!

@AvniD let's keep a webinar on case studies at ACs in the back of our minds

 

[golden99]

FOR THOSE STILL WAITING TO HEAR FROM W&C:

View attachment 4018

Is that about hearing post app or post AC?

 

[s10]

So I took part in an inter-university commercial awareness competition recently. We were in small teams, and my teammate and I had to present back to the panel on a case study. Our presentation had multiple sections which we split amongst ourselves. They start first, I go next- all good so far. When the last section comes about they go way over the time limit of 1 min (which they had told me to strictly stick to in the preparation breakout room) and I am left with less than 30 seconds for my last section. I can only outline what I was going to talk about in a sentence before being cut off. Then there are questions from the panel- and I don't get to say a single word. They take up all the questions, including the questions regarding my part of the presentation. I unmuted myself multiple times but they took up the question nonetheless and as soon as they were done the panel member asking would say thank you and move on.

I am not shy or introverted. I am a confident speaker who has presented in high profile conferences and forums. I am also the "mother" of the group in group projects, always making sure people contribute and that work is allocated fairly- I don't try to make myself stand out over the rest of my team.

This experience made me feel so defeated, patronised, and small. The only positive part of it is that the outcome (which we found out in a few days) is assessed on a team level, and I must have done something right because I've had legal recruiters of the sponsoring firms reach out via LinkedIn.

Beside the rant, I guess the question here is: have you ever had to deal with difficult and "macho" team members like that, and how did you cope?

It will be super helpful to remember that while this type of behaviour might have made them feel and seem capable in the short run, this behaviour is hardly rewarded in a professional setting. These competitions arent just an opportunity to fill out your resume, but very substantive opportunities to develop your transferrable and professional skills. So I guess one silver lining you can take away is that you have learned what to expect from some types of people and maybe even diffuse those type of situations. P.S - the next time grad rec asks you "tell us about a time you worked with a difficult reason" at least you have a very valid and pertinent example to work with 😅

 

[GXA123]

Did people find the virtual internships helpful when doing real Vac Schemes?

 

[ssolicitorz]

Is that about hearing post app or post AC?

I emailed about post VI- but I assume this is applying to everyone

 

[letmeintolaw]

Does anyone know how much weight WBD attach to the online game test? My report was not good

 

[John Travoni]

Does anyone know how much weight WBD attach to the online game test? My report was not good

What were your strengths and weaknesses?

 

[James Carrabino]

View attachment 4013

Can somebody clarify what this means? Can I apply for White & Case's direct TC after being rejected for their VS a couple months ago? (i.e., applying for the TC in the same cycle after being rejected from the VS).

I would e-mail them to clarify, as the wording here is a bit unclear and last year they definitely allowed candidates to apply for a direct TC in the same recruitment cycle that they were unsuccessful for VS. They only did not allow candidates to reapply who had reached the interview stage.

 

[letmeintolaw]

I am making one of my final applications however on the date that the interviews would be held if my application were to get through, I will be doing a vacation scheme. Is there any way around this? Should I email the firm and explain before sending my application or will the dates be non-negotiable

 

[George Maxwell]

My biggest takeway

The main takeaways were that they explained the difference in the level of commercial awareness required for interviews at direct TC application than at VS interview.

Another takeaway that I was shocked about was the thing about work experience and that someone with no legal work experience got a TC through the direct TC route. Also, the session was really informal and interactive which I loved.

Thank you for sharing this @Asil Ahmad! I will be looking out for the recording when it is released 💪

Had a feedback call after an unsuccessful post-AC. However, I found the feedback to be super encouraging. The interviewers said I was more than capable of doing the role and that I showed a strong understanding of the firm and showed enthusiasm for embarking on a career in law. It was my first ever interview so I am really proud of myself, although it's not the outcome I wanted, the feedback has made me want to try even harder!

Hey @Nicole15,

What a fantastic attitude to have! It sounds like you smashed your first interview and it is credit to you that you are focusing on the positives in a situation like this. Awesome stuff 🚀

 

[Jessica Booker]

I am making one of my final applications however on the date that the interviews would be held if my application were to get through, I will be doing a vacation scheme. Is there any way around this? Should I email the firm and explain before sending my application or will the dates be non-negotiable

I’d wait until you know whether you are selected for interview or not, and then see if the firm has flexibility. Your vacation scheme firm may also be more flexible than you think and may be able to give you a couple of hours/half day off to attend an interview (this is actually quite common, and as long as you make the time up for the rest of the week, it typically is not an issue unless you have an assessment with the VS firm at the same time).

 

[S87]

Hi @Jessica Booker,
I am getting in touch with a number of firms to explain my mitigating circumstances and how they impacted on my grades. Because I want a direct answer how can I be bold without sounding rude?
thank you 🙏