TCLA Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion Thread 2024-25

[BobThebIlly]

Damn I haven't heard anything from Paul Hastings nor SH for their summer vs. They were the only two schemes left too lol

 

[NJS]

Hi @Jessica Booker I'm looking to move roles from my current legal administrator role to paralegal, I currently work at an international firm, but I have an interview with a regional firm for a paralegal role, I'm only really wanting to move because there does not seem to be any opportunities to move up here and the travel to London is starting to really impact my finances as the pay is not good.

My question is: do you thinking moving from an international firm to a regional firm will impact my chances of securing a TC at an international firm, or am I "moving down" with a regional paralegal job? I've have secured 8 ACs over two cycles (all with international firms) with this current job, and I think having that "international" experience helped. Alternatively, I would hopefully be moving to a paralegal role, so my quality of work would ultimately improve which may make me more competitive? It's just very hard to secure a city paralegal job without real "paralegal" experience.

Hi @Jessica Booker just following up on this if its not too much trouble? Thank you!

 

[g.cl.2020344]

Damn I haven't heard anything from Paul Hastings nor SH for their summer vs. They were the only two schemes left too lol

idk if they have got back to many people. I'm still waiting post app- what's the next stage?

 

[BobThebIlly]

idk if they have got back to many people. I'm still waiting post app- what's the next stage?

I'm waiting post-app too. Next stage is a SJT and VI. Not holding out too much hope if some summer vs applicants received the test 2 weeks ago though

 

[student353]

Ofc. Nice! Congrats! I did a scheme last year with them. If u want any advice shoot me a pm.

Would you mind if I could ask for some advice as I have a scheme with them?

 

[Chris Brown]

Damn I haven't heard anything from Paul Hastings nor SH for their summer vs. They were the only two schemes left too lol

I don’t think anyone has heard back from Paul Hastings yet tbf. It has been a while since their deadline as well. I haven’t heard back at all from them post application lmao. 🥲​

 

[l789]

Elena Jalali - 7252033

Control of non-qualified staff (section 43/99 order)

www.sra.org.uk

Interesting.
LLB (first class) from KCL
A*A*A* from elite London private school

Macfarlanes paralegal. Went to AC for TC in 2023. "repeatedly accessed information that was confidential and which she knew or ought to have known she was not entitled to access, namely documents including a Business Case Study Exercise, model answers and the mark scheme, for a training contract assessment day she attended in August 2023."

I can only assume this was accessible on the intranet/network. Lied about having done this (which is really dumb, because IT knows EVERYTHING).

Subject to a S43 order meaning that she cannot work for any regulated legal business without prior permission from SRA.

Careful not to doxx myself here! I started reading this article and then saw the name and thought, gosh- that does ring a few bells!

I went to the same uni as her and same intake (although a different degree course so law with x law)

Didn’t have any tutorials with her (because I much preferred my sleep) and saw her in lectures maybe once or twice.

I’m absolutely shell shocked to see this. All my peers at kings were exceptionally talented, hardworking and brilliant, I have so much respect for those I’m still close with today. A lot of them came from privilege but they were extremely hard working and committed. I would never expect to see this from someone from my cohort and with those credentials. I just never expected this behaviour at all, it does make me think what other things has she done.

she’s now working in a finance role. If that was me, it would be back to my minimum wage supermarket job and a kiss goodbye to even the thought of a legal career.

 

[YS391]

Hey guys, Farrer & Co's graduate rec page says that in the work experience section, we should 'describe the skills acquired and explain how they could transfer into a career in law.'

Does that mean they're expecting us to include lines like, "I will apply my attention to detail to identify errors or potentially harmful clauses in contracts, safeguarding clients' interests"? after each skill we demonstrate?

Any support would be amazing!

 

[student353]

Hey guys, Farrer & Co's graduate rec page says that in the work experience section, we should 'describe the skills acquired and explain how they could transfer into a career in law.'

Does that mean they're expecting us to include lines like, "I will apply my attention to detail to identify errors or potentially harmful clauses in contracts, safeguarding clients' interests"? after each skill we demonstrate?

Any support would be amazing!

In this type of question, I always first considered what skills I thought were required in law (start mind mapping them and think about WHY they are important). With this consider your own experiences, what you gained from them and how they will support you in a career in law (correlating this with skills you think are relevant)...

for example " working within a pharmacy for example, there were many occasions in which being adaptable and resilient within a collaborative workspace was necessary to ensure efficient processing of prescriptions. This reinforced the importance of both teamwork and accountability in a working environment, as taking ownership of one’s own work and that of other members of the team allowed the practise to run effectively and ensured that whilst working at pace, the standards were always maintained through the coordinated efforts of the staff." link this back to why this experience would support you. This is what I have done and its ended with a successful vs application, PW partner interview and a careers commitment scholarship

 

[YS391]

In this type of question, I always first considered what skills I thought were required in law (start mind mapping them and think about WHY they are important). With this consider your own experiences, what you gained from them and how they will support you in a career in law (correlating this with skills you think are relevant)...

for example " working within a pharmacy for example, there were many occasions in which being adaptable and resilient within a collaborative workspace was necessary to ensure efficient processing of prescriptions. This reinforced the importance of both teamwork and accountability in a working environment, as taking ownership of one’s own work and that of other members of the team allowed the practise to run effectively and ensured that whilst working at pace, the standards were always maintained through the coordinated efforts of the staff." link this back to why this experience would support you. This is what I have done and its ended with a successful vs application, PW partner interview and a careers commitment scholarship

Ahh okay so we should link it back to how it will support us as a lawyer.

Thanks so much, really appreciate it!

 

[aphelion]

Can't believe it will take Mishcon 6 weeks to come back with AC results 😭😭😭

 

[trainee4u]

she’s now working in a finance role. If that was me, it would be back to my minimum wage supermarket job and a kiss goodbye to even the thought of a legal career.

she's taken down her linkedin, which was up when I checked earlier.

it appeared that she was out of work for a few months. in this kind of scenario she might well not have disclosed the circumstances of her departure to her new employers, who might not be too impressed!

 

[Jessica Booker]

Please can I remind people to keep things civil and avoid speculation, especially in conversations regarding a named individual.

Just as we wouldn’t expect judgement and negative comments within our community, it is not appropriate to direct the same behaviours to someone just because they are in the legal press.

 

[Miss Chocolate]

Can't believe it will take Mishcon 6 weeks to come back with AC results 😭😭😭

When you were choosing your AC date, what was the last date available?

 

[Chris Brown]

I wouldn’t say “most” firms at lenient on resits. There are enough out there that do not allow resits and will rescind offers - whether they then clawback money is another matter though.

Do you know of any city law firms that do allow people to retake SQE 1 and/or 2 if they don’t pass it the first time? 🥲

Also, why do firms clawback money they give as a grant? How are people expected to pay the money back? 🫤​

 

[Jessica Booker]

Do you know of any city law firms that do allow people to retake SQE 1 and/or 2 if they don’t pass it the first time? 🥲

Also, why do firms clawback money they give as a grant? How are people expected to pay the money back? 🫤​

I don’t have a list of these details to be able to comment on who does or doesn’t. Just based on the number of conversations I have about this topic, it’s not rare. I think a lot of it can come down to discretion rather than a hard policy too.

Some firms will just see it as appropriate to get the money back from someone, especially given the size of the money invested. I don’t necessarily agree with it, but I can understand why they 1) have the policy and 2) utilise it. It could be very costly to be seen as a firm who is generous and doesn’t reclaw money - this is not just about people failing the SQE but also people reneging TC offers or leaving their TC part way through.

Some firms have these terms that mean you could still be paying back some money if you leave upon qualification. It isn’t unknown that you have to get to 1-2 years PQE before you don’t have to pay something back.

I have never heard of a firm trying to clawback all the money immediately though. That’s unrealistic and, IMO, try dangerous in terms on the impact it could have on the individual and their families mental health.

I responded to Chris Lee’s post - years ago I did a clawback that was over £30k and the individual was paying it back over about 7-8 at around £300 a month. That was agreed with the individual based on what they thought they could afford.

 

[BuddyingLawyer744]

after a string of rejections I have decided to self-fund the PGDL/MA Law conversion course next year. Can anybody advise on the structure of these courses at ULaw in London? If I am to land vac schemes in the winter/spring/summer break how would that line up with the class schedules? Half the reason I could not apply to more winter vac schemes this year was because they clashed with uni.

 

[VacSchemer]

Has Pinsent Masons gotten back to anyone regarding their direct TC?

 

[legallyells]

after a string of rejections I have decided to self-fund the PGDL/MA Law conversion course next year. Can anybody advise on the structure of these courses at ULaw in London? If I am to land vac schemes in the winter/spring/summer break how would that line up with the class schedules? Half the reason I could not apply to more winter vac schemes this year was because they clashed with uni.

ive self funded the MA Law at Moorgate ULaw, alongside this i’ve obtained a vac scheme and final interviews and got distinctions in my exams, whilst working part time 2 days a week. the first semester is much more manageable in terms of work load, i did 1-2 applications a week by focussing on them every evening. you only have classes two days a week, with two two-hour tutorials on each of those days, meaning the rest of the week is reading prep, consolidating notes from class and time for applications. i know some of my classmates got winter vs and they fell in the winter break before exams with 3 weeks (ish) left to revise. spring vs fall in the easter break with two weeks left to revise (depending on firm ofc). ive never known of anyone here missing class at ULaw for a vs, except for interviews. also if you ever cant make a class, you can reschedule and join another class for that weeks works to ensure nothing is missed! it’s an intense year but very possible and rewarding - id recommend! feel free to pm me for more specifics!

 

[trainee4u]

after a string of rejections I have decided to self-fund the PGDL/MA Law conversion course next year. Can anybody advise on the structure of these courses at ULaw in London? If I am to land vac schemes in the winter/spring/summer break how would that line up with the class schedules? Half the reason I could not apply to more winter vac schemes this year was because they clashed with uni.

the classes are done every day for different students over a whole week. So for example if you've a class scheduled for Monday you can apply to switch (for that week) to Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday or Friday, but not to a different week.

If you miss a whole week and are self-funding there are no formal consequences - just a need to catch up/self study.