TCLA Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion Thread 2024-25

[Andrei Radu]

Anyone have any tips on key areas to discuss for Freshfields personal statement. Am thinking of focusing on (1) cross-border expertise with focus on success in US market, (2) cross-functionality of corporate and litigation practices, and (3) uniqueness of training programme?

Hi @DulyDiligent! Just to add to @Ram Sabaratnam's great response, I think (1) and (3) are great, especially if you provide further analysis like Ram suggested. I think (2) can work as well, but you will have to be careful as to how you draft this as a USP, because there are other firms who arguably have this cross-functionality as well.

Regarding tips as to what else you could include, I would discuss Freshfields' leading corporate M&A credentials. In 2023 Freshfields was ranked above all the other magic circle firms in terms of both average deal value and total deal value. It is also arguably the leading firm for European M&A, topping most of the deal rankings.

 

[B101]

Hey @B101 and first of all huge congratulations, this is an amazing achievement 🥳! I don't have any W&C specific tips, but I thought it might be useful to quote here a post I made about my interview preparation method:

This is extremely helpful, thank you so much!

 

[Anonymous3444543]

Hi there, yes I did. Did you progress to the video interview stage? If yes do you have any tips on how to prepare.

I found the questions to be very basic questions in my opinion. Don’t overthink it

 

[bangarangbass39]

Two birds, one stone, one disillusioned and disheartened vac scheme applicant.

Brief update on my app cycle experience so far.

Rejected by those Two Birds from London today. Weren't a big fan of my chat evidently. Perhaps I was punching a bit much considering I didn't meet their "standards" (ABB instead of AAB).

Tried to set up a date with a bobby (CPS Paralegal Officer) also rejected me. In the meeting stage, I tend to get nervous and waffle, which I guess turned them off. Their friend (Paralegal assistant) seems quite nice, however. I'm sure we could have a nice time.

Banter aside, pretty disappointed by the CPS outcome. I'd drop all of my Commercial law apps for a public law position. It's so jarring because NONE of the services allow non-law grads w/o the PGDL to apply. It makes no sense why they are so behind the market. Every commercial firm accepts non-law students w/o PGDL and only requires that they complete the SQE (which they fund!) This means unless I self-fund, I can't apply for the direct trainee scheme. Arguably not beneficial for socially mobile backgrounds - I'm black and from a low socio-economic household.

A wise man once said, "I know you're sad, but listen...Two birds, one sky, just forget it"

 

[Apple]

Anyone heard anything from Cleary and Hogan Lovells post-WG WVS, Slaughter's TC, JD SVS? Also, if W&C has yet to send a VI and people have completed them and received invitation to AC, should I assume PFO?

You know you’ve been on here too long when you understand all the acronymish😭

Imagine reading this as someone with no interest in commercial law, its literally gibberish ahahah.

 

[Tintin06]

Holding myself accountable (one more application):

CC* ✅📝
HSF ✅📝❌
NRF ✅📝❌
Weil ✅
Akin ✅
Sidley ✅
Orrick ✅
Willkie ✅🎥❌
Cooley ✅
Latham ✅
Milbank ✅
Dechert ✅
Kirkland ✅
Skadden ✅
Goodwin ✅
Covington ✅
Linklaters* ✅📝
Freshfields ✅
Paul, Weiss ✅
Slaughters* ✅❌
Gibson Dunn ✅
Macfarlanes* ✅📝
White & Case ✅
Morgan Lewis ✅
Hogan Lovells* ✅
Cleary Gottlieb ✅
A&O Shearman ✅📝❌
Vinson & Elkins ✅
Arnold & Porter ✅
King & Spalding* ✅
Morrison Foerster ✅

Key: ✅ = application submitted; 📝 = test received; 🎥 = video interview; ❌ = rejection.

*Training Contract applications

 

[legalxp2]

Does anyone know about Goldman Legal.

They run a summer analyst internship for 10 weeks but not sure how it works
Do they give you a training contract? Do they help you qualify or do you just do paralegal work

It is merely an in-house role, and does not guarantee a grad role. The analyst position itself to my understanding qualifies as SQE qualifying experience but the programme does not sponsor or give time off to complete the SQE.

 

[bella98]

Two birds, one stone, one disillusioned and disheartened vac scheme applicant.

Brief update on my app cycle experience so far.

Rejected by those Two Birds from London today. Weren't a big fan of my chat evidently. Perhaps I was punching a bit much considering I didn't meet their "standards" (ABB instead of AAB).

Tried to set up a date with a bobby (CPS Paralegal Officer) also rejected me. In the meeting stage, I tend to get nervous and waffle, which I guess turned them off. Their friend (Paralegal assistant) seems quite nice, however. I'm sure we could have a nice time.

Banter aside, pretty disappointed by the CPS outcome. I'd drop all of my Commercial law apps for a public law position. It's so jarring because NONE of the services allow non-law grads w/o the PGDL to apply. It makes no sense why they are so behind the market. Every commercial firm accepts non-law students w/o PGDL and only requires that they complete the SQE (which they fund!) This means unless I self-fund, I can't apply for the direct trainee scheme. Arguably not beneficial for socially mobile backgrounds - I'm black and from a low socio-economic household.

A wise man once said, "I know you're sad, but listen...Two birds, one sky, just forget it"

If it helps, I passed the interview for the paralegal officer position back in May, but I've been stuck on the reserve list ever since, with no sign of a job in sight 😭

 

[a1024]

Hello!
Has anyone done the virtual interview for DLA Piper?

Hi, did you complete it? What kind of questions were asked and how long did they give for preparation and speaking?

 

[a1024]

Okay I just received a virtual interview invite from DLA Piper but there is no details about what how the interview is structured. Anyone who has the VI what was it like?

hey, did you complete it? what kind of questions were asked and how long did they give for preparation and speaking?

 

[helloj]

On my Cover Letter for White & Case I mentioned that I was applying for the Spring Vacation Scheme however on the choice of options for my preferred scheme I somehow put Winter first and then Spring as my second option. Do you think I should email them stating my preference for the Spring scheme or will my application be acknowledged for the Spring over Winter Scheme anyway?

 

[helloj]

hey, did you complete it? what kind of questions were asked and how long did they give for preparation and speaking?

I completed it and passed! You have around 2-3 minutes to prep and 2 minutes to give a response. There are three questions one around alignment with values and two competency based questions about how you have showcased a certain skill through previous experiences!

 

[Bread]

Does anyone know whether the Goodwin open day applications are rolling? Can't find anything about it on their website but it says the deadline is October 31st, is it worth a shot? Ty x

 

[legally.brown]

Hi all I applied to BCLP last night and have not received the test yet. Do they send it manually? or does it just take time to come through?

 

[Ram Sabaratnam]

@Andrei Radu or @Ram Sabaratnam

Can I ask if there's something similar to this but for VIs instead of AC interviews?

Hiya @Aspiringsolicitor01

I had meant to send you this response yesterday - my apologies for the delay in getting this to you!

Just wanted to built on what @Jessica Booker said. Many firms' video interviews tend to ask similar questions to those in TCLA's interview question bank. The key is to practice answering these questions in a clear and concise way, making sure you can fit your responses within the typical 1 minute 30 seconds to 2 minutes that most VIs allow.

One tool I found really useful for practicing is this page by ULaw: https://go.shortlister.com/marketplace/universityoflaw. It simulates video interviews done by various law firms, which can help you get used to the format and timing constraints. I used it myself before doing VIs for different firms, and it was a great way to prepare by recreating a realistic interview environment. Alternatively, you can also record yourself on your phone or laptop. This helps you refine your answers and get comfortable speaking on camera.

Best of luck!

 

[neena12]

How was the Simmons AC for anyone who’s done it ?

 

[James Wakefield]

Hi all I applied to BCLP last night and have not received the test yet. Do they send it manually? or does it just take time to come through?

It’s automatic but I think it’s likely they don’t send them out at weekends. I applied on a Friday and got the test on a Monday.

 

[Aspiringsolicitor01]

Dunno about you guys but I’m glad for the weekend. I’m still prepping for tests and applications but I’m glad I don’t have the stress of wondering if I’ll hear anything back from anyone during the day 😅

 

[a1024]

I completed it and passed! You have around 2-3 minutes to prep and 2 minutes to give a response. There are three questions one around alignment with values and two competency based questions about how you have showcased a certain skill through previous experiences!

congratulations! did you get invited to the AC? would you mind telling me what questions they asked if you remember?

 

[MayaM0921]

Hi @MayaM0921 and thanks for the kind words ! To firstly deal with the structure of the 'Why you?' answer, I think what you want is something like this:

1. Give a high level summary of what your answer will be, something like 'There are three reasons why you should offer me a place: my critical thinking skills, my organizational skills, and my teamwork abilities, all of which are essential for a trainee solicitor'.
2. Take the first skill/ability/attribute that you mentioned, and explain to the firm how an experience or achievement of yours demonstrates it. Use the STAR structure when walking the interviewer through the experience.
3. Explain how the skill/ability/attribute is relevant for the job of a trainee solicitor.
4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 for the other skills/abilities/attributes.
5. Conclude by once again giving a short summary of what your answer has been, something like 'So, to conclude, my experiences demonstrate I possess excellent critical thinking, organizational and teamwork skills, and this makes me an ideal fit for the job'.

As for the second part of your question (regarding what skills/examples to pick) I think you have to be strategic in balancing both trying to have the most convincing possible 'why me' answer and in not boxing yourself in a position where you will be forced to repeat yourself. My strategy was to first come up with the best possible answer I could for the 'Why the firm' question, then the best possible answer for the 'Why the firm' question, then the best possible answer to the 'Why commercial law', and only then draft my 'Why you?' answer. This was because I found that only a few of my experiences and achievements, could be connected to firm USPs, slightly more could be connected to my why commercial reasoning, but a lot of them could be used for showcasing a relevant skill or attribute.

Beyond that, in drafting my 'Why you' answer I would just use the most impressive leftover experiences, and maybe reference one or two of the experiences in the 'Why commercial law' or 'Why firm' answers if particularly impressive. While you could still be asked a competency question in the interview that forces you to be repetitive, there's no way to eliminate that risk, as there's no way of predicting what competency you will be asked about. However, I wouldn't worry too much about it. Firstly, the interviewers know candidates will not have an unlimited list of experiences to leverage, and will definitely not mind repeating one if you also consider it and discuss it from a different angle. Secondly, while this was something I worried about a lot before my interviews (as at least compared to some of my peers, my CV was not as full) in practice it was not a situation I often found myself in. If anything, the opposite happened more, in that I would not get to speak about more than 2-3 experiences and sometimes I would finish the interview without having mentioned some of my most impressive achievements.

Thank you so much! This is so helpful and I will slowly digest it : )