TCLA Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion Thread 2022-23

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IT7

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  • Jun 23, 2021
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    Does it reflect badly on you if you ask a firm for an update on a Summer Vac Scheme AC, and request them to give an outcome as soon as possible? (I would need to book international flight tickets and sort out visas if I get the vac scheme, so I would prefer knowing as early as possible! It's been only 2 weeks since the AC though, so not very long waiting time so far)
     

    Jessica Booker

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    Does it reflect badly on you if you ask a firm for an update on a Summer Vac Scheme AC, and request them to give an outcome as soon as possible? (I would need to book international flight tickets and sort out visas if I get the vac scheme, so I would prefer knowing as early as possible! It's been only 2 weeks since the AC though, so not very long waiting time so far)
    No - it is not an issue to ask for an update, especially if you have considerations like international flights to organise.

    Depending on what visa you are hoping to apply to, you may need to know ASAP as they can often take 8-12 weeks.
     
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    anxiouslawyer

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    Feb 26, 2021
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    Is there any expectation to wear makeup during a vacation scheme? I generally only wear it for balls/big events, so maybe a few times a year! I wouldn't feel comfortable wearing it every day on a VS - any thoughts @Jessica Booker ? Thanks
    I hardly wore makeup during my vac and it was fine. The more important thing is to look overall presentable.
     
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    Deleted member 11671

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    Is there any expectation to wear makeup during a vacation scheme? I generally only wear it for balls/big events, so maybe a few times a year! I wouldn't feel comfortable wearing it every day on a VS - any thoughts @Jessica Booker ? Thanks
    I didn't wear any makeup during the vac scheme and noticed that others were not wearing any either or had a light foundation on at most. Hope this helps!
     

    Zaidoz10

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    Jan 6, 2022
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    @Jessica Booker I have a final interview coming up for a summer vac scheme with a magic circle firm’s UAE office. I have recently come to know that the first week of the vac scheme conflicts with my LPC elective exams in June. All the exams are at the same time and they would take place from 12:30-3:30pm UAE time. The scheme runs from June 12 to June 23 and my exams fall on June 13,14,16 and 19. One of the days falls on a weekend so I don’t think it’ll be a problem. But the other days conflict with the regular work day. Do you think the firm will have a problem with this? Would they rescind my offer if they gave me one?
     

    Jessica Booker

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    @Jessica Booker I have a final interview coming up for a summer vac scheme with a magic circle firm’s UAE office. I have recently come to know that the first week of the vac scheme conflicts with my LPC elective exams in June. All the exams are at the same time and they would take place from 12:30-3:30pm UAE time. The scheme runs from June 12 to June 23 and my exams fall on June 13,14,16 and 19. One of the days falls on a weekend so I don’t think it’ll be a problem. But the other days conflict with the regular work day. Do you think the firm will have a problem with this? Would they rescind my offer if they gave me one?
    They won’t rescind the offer, you would just have to decline it if they need you to be available for the entire period.

    You may want to flag this up to them before your interview to see if they have any alternative dates or flexibility with the vacation scheme dates. But I would expect them to say that they wouldn’t be able to give you so much time off for the scheme where it is effectively 4 out of 10 days (and that’s assuming your exams can be done virtually).
     

    average_jo123

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    Sep 11, 2021
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    Hi @Jessica Booker does it ever reflect badly on a candidate if from a candidate's work experience you can tell that they have failed to convert VS into TCs multiple times (across several different firms)? I understand that there is a lot that goes into deciding whether to offer a candidate a TC following a VS, so sometimes it might be marginal errors or tiny slip ups across different areas in the assessment rubric which mean that the candidate falls below the benchmark of competencies that the firm is looking for, therefore causing them to lose out on the TC offer - and so sometimes converting VS to TC isn't something that is completely within the candidate's control, and there might have been other external factors which affected the candidate to perform to their best ability during the VS.

    But I was just wondering if failing to convert to TC following multiple schemes is a red flag that grad rec will pick up on in a new VS or TC application? Would it raise questions about the candidate's technical ability and competence / interpersonal skills and the way they work with others in a team?
     

    Jessica Booker

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    Hi @Jessica Booker does it ever reflect badly on a candidate if from a candidate's work experience you can tell that they have failed to convert VS into TCs multiple times (across several different firms)? I understand that there is a lot that goes into deciding whether to offer a candidate a TC following a VS, so sometimes it might be marginal errors or tiny slip ups across different areas in the assessment rubric which mean that the candidate falls below the benchmark of competencies that the firm is looking for, therefore causing them to lose out on the TC offer - and so sometimes converting VS to TC isn't something that is completely within the candidate's control, and there might have been other external factors which affected the candidate to perform to their best ability during the VS.

    But I was just wondering if failing to convert to TC following multiple schemes is a red flag that grad rec will pick up on in a new VS or TC application? Would it raise questions about the candidate's technical ability and competence / interpersonal skills and the way they work with others in a team?
    I don’t think it is a red flag as such, but like many other parts of an application, it could cause a question as to why you haven’t secured a TC. I don’t think recruiters can assume that means you haven’t got the ability to do the job though - firms will have differing views on what competence in the role is anyway, but there can be many other reasons why someone hasn’t secured a TC from a VS beyond their abilities.
     
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    lawapplicant

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    Jan 19, 2023
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    Hi @Jessica Booker does it ever reflect badly on a candidate if from a candidate's work experience you can tell that they have failed to convert VS into TCs multiple times (across several different firms)? I understand that there is a lot that goes into deciding whether to offer a candidate a TC following a VS, so sometimes it might be marginal errors or tiny slip ups across different areas in the assessment rubric which mean that the candidate falls below the benchmark of competencies that the firm is looking for, therefore causing them to lose out on the TC offer - and so sometimes converting VS to TC isn't something that is completely within the candidate's control, and there might have been other external factors which affected the candidate to perform to their best ability during the VS.

    But I was just wondering if failing to convert to TC following multiple schemes is a red flag that grad rec will pick up on in a new VS or TC application? Would it raise questions about the candidate's technical ability and competence / interpersonal skills and the way they work with others in a team?
    Just say you turned the firm down
     

    Emilia

    Esteemed Member
    Feb 19, 2023
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    For a TC application one question is "If you had one superpower, what would it be, and why?`" (60 words max). I have never done a question like this so if anyone has any guidance for the answer it would be greatly appreciated.
     

    SAA

    Star Member
    Feb 1, 2021
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    I have a final interview coming up soon with a law firm in the UAE. I was wondering how to answer commercial questions in the interview, in terms of biggest commercial trends and risks in the Middle East currently. Can someone advise about which current commercial trends they’re aware of, or where to look for this info?
     
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