TCLA Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion Thread 2024-25

[Apple]

Has anybody actually received a PFO post AC from White & Case? Or is everybody still just waiting for an answer/received offers?

 

[adomz]

Has anybody actually received a PFO post AC from White & Case? Or is everybody still just waiting for an answer/received offers?

Nothing received yet! I did see two or three people on this thread who said they had received offers last thursday/friday. Obvs not everybody who receives an offer will be on here of course. Idk if there's still hope atp...sigh (buy hey, maybe they did their ACs at the earliest date)

 

[RSK]

Has anybody actually received a PFO post AC from White & Case? Or is everybody still just waiting for an answer/received offers?

Still waiting - did my AC nearly two weeks ago now!

 

[Apple]

Still waiting - did my AC nearly two weeks ago now!

im at 3 weeks... they havent even responded to my email asking when we would hear back.

 

[jobhuntwarrior]

Applying for Hogan Lovells direct TC and currently struggling with this one question: tell us about any open days and events that you have attended in the legal sector (250 words).

It's been 2 years since I've graduated from uni and since I've started working, I've never had the chance to attend any more recent events. The last law firm open day/event i've gone to was in my second year of uni.

What exactly is the firm looking from this question? Meaningful reflection of the events?But what exactly can I write about -- please may I get some pointers?

Also because my attendance at these events were so long ago, are they still considered relevant?

 

[DulyDiligent]

do kirkland and White & Case Open Days have fast track?
also anyone else not been sent HL WG for summer - applied a week or so ago

 

[RSK]

im at 3 weeks... they havent even responded to my email asking when we would hear back.

someone mentioned that grad recruitment had told them last week to expect an update end of last week/ this week, so fingers crossed!

 

[Amma Usman]

In up to 600 words, please outline up to three significant challenges that you think all law firms will face over the next 5 years. You should draw on your current awareness and commercial awareness to answer this question.
Would breaking this down into subheadings be a good idea?

Hey @cleojwilliams , subheadings may not be necessary, particularly because most application softwares won‘t allow you to put things in bold or underlined. The best approach easily applicable to allhires, vantage, and the likes is to have (1) an introductory paragraph of just a sentence or two stating the three things you‘ll cover. (2) three subsequent paragraphs, with each one covering a point.

 

[patternteddybear]

Just finished my application to the AG placement and completed the online assessment ✅

 

[studentdelaw786]

Davis Polk Insight Day PFO

4 Open Day applications and 4 PFOs in this cycle.

This particular one hurts cos of the time invested and that I had genuine reasons to want to work at the firm.

Does anyone with particular insight to DPW know if I can apply for the VS this cycle after the rejection, or should I look elsewhere?

 

[Amma Usman]

@Amma Usman

Hey Amma, I came across your post on the Forum about the Dentons VS question, ‘Describe how you think the innovative developments taking place in the legal industry will change the role of a commercial lawyer at Dentons. Please outline your research and reference the sources you used to inform your opinion.’ (250 words)


When I was drafting my skeleton, I thought I could make more than one point. Now, as I write down my answer, I can honestly only discuss one development and give two or three good points on how it changes commercial lawyers' roles at Dentons.


I would be grateful for any opinion you have on this.

Hey @dekz28 , good question. Sometimes, less is more. You can cover only a point but those three expansion points are what could take it to the next level and give you a solid response. However, I recommend choosing two points, as opposed to only one. This ensures that you are demonstrating an awareness of how not just one area impacts the role of a lawyer. The question also asks for developments, indicating that more than one area should be included. 250 words doesn’t seem like a lot, but with conciseness, it’s more than enough to write a great answer.

 

[Amjaya]

Just finished my application to the AG placement and completed the online assessment ✅

How did you find the assessment? I have heard its harder than the watson

 

[Unknowncabbage]

Applying for Hogan Lovells direct TC and currently struggling with this one question: tell us about any open days and events that you have attended in the legal sector (250 words).

It's been 2 years since I've graduated from uni and since I've started working, I've never had the chance to attend any more recent events. The last law firm open day/event i've gone to was in my second year of uni.

What exactly is the firm looking from this question? Meaningful reflection of the events?But what exactly can I write about -- please may I get some pointers?

Also because my attendance at these events were so long ago, are they still considered relevant?

It's looking to assess your motivations for a career in commercial law. These don't have to be in-person insight days, first-year schemes or vacation schemes but what events have you been attending? have they been virtual insight days, have you attended legal cheek events, have you done any workshops etc etc

 

[gazdgazd11]

@Jessica Booker @Jaysen @Andrei Radu @Shahana

Hi team,

I hope you’re well. I’ve reached out to both Shahana and Jessica about upgrading my bronze subscription to gold, but I haven’t yet received an update. I understand you’re likely handling a high volume of requests, but I wanted to confirm a few details before making any additional purchases.

If I purchase the application review pack, will I be able to submit my applications directly for review, or will this also require approval similar to the gold subscription upgrade? I’d like to ensure that I’ll be able to proceed with reviews smoothly, especially as I’m a bit concerned by the delay in processing my subscription upgrade.

Thank you for your help, and I look forward to hearing from you soon

 

[Ram Sabaratnam]

If you are scoring 25/40 in waston glaser tests is this okay? or should you practice more?

Hiya @Amjaya

I would keep practicing if possible. Though it’s worth noting that the benchmark for each firm can vary, you want to get closer to about 35/40. Regular practice, reflecting on the answers you get wrong, and an understanding of the type of reasoning demanded by each section will help improve your score over the long run. Best of luck!

 

[Amma Usman]

In no more than 500 words, please tell us about your extra-curricular activities, positions of responsibility and an achievement of importance which you are most proud of.
How will these experiences help you excel as a Clifford Chance lawyer?
How closely intertwined to CC should our answer be? How much of our interest in specific practice areas, legal tech be embedded in our answer? Or is this question mainly focused on your extracurriculars and how this would help you as a trainee?

Hey @stargazed. Your answer doesn’t need to be linked to the firm’s practice areas. It will be beneficial to link it to your skills and competencies instead. You would have already touched about your passion for the firm’s work in other questions, so it may not be necessary here. For example, if you juggled multiple positions of responsibility, you could link it to your ability to juggle client commitments as a lawyer, or something else within that spec. A search via the firm’s website on the key competencies they look for/their values, will help you adequately tailor your answer to the firm.

 

[patternteddybear]

How did you find the assessment? I have heard its harder than the watson

It’s really difficult, but trusted my gut and went with what seemed right. Definitely do the practice questions that they provide access to beforehand

 

[Ram Sabaratnam]

Applying for Hogan Lovells direct TC and currently struggling with this one question: tell us about any open days and events that you have attended in the legal sector (250 words).

It's been 2 years since I've graduated from uni and since I've started working, I've never had the chance to attend any more recent events. The last law firm open day/event i've gone to was in my second year of uni.

What exactly is the firm looking from this question? Meaningful reflection of the events?But what exactly can I write about -- please may I get some pointers?

Also because my attendance at these events were so long ago, are they still considered relevant?

Hi @jobhuntwarrior

Absolutely, you should feel free to mention these events! It might seem like they were a while ago, but that really doesn’t matter. The question doesn’t limit how far back you can go, so it’s perfectly fine to include all the relevant events you’ve attended. There’s also no need to mention specific dates. I would just focus on the experiences themselves. When approaching this question in my own applications, I tried to lend my answer sufficient structure. For instance, I typically separated my paragraphs by discussing:

1. General open days that helped me build a broader understanding of commercial law. These experiences deepened my interest in specific aspects of the field.
2. Sector-specific events, which introduced me to particular industries and gave me insights into what makes them unique and exciting.
3. Diversity-focused insight days, where I gained valuable perspectives on inclusion and representation within firms, which resonated with me.

Again, no need to worry about dates. Just focus on the insights you gained and how they developed your interest in and understanding of the profession. Hope this helps, and best of luck with your application! 😊

 

[Hskajab]

Nothing received yet! I did see two or three people on this thread who said they had received offers last thursday/friday. Obvs not everybody who receives an offer will be on here of course. Idk if there's still hope atp...sigh (buy hey, maybe they did their ACs at the earliest date)

I had my ac on the 4th november and they said they'd get back to us end of last week or this week - so would wait till the end of the week. I know some people on here received wvs offers a while back and then last week so they may just be doing it in batches

 

[Amma Usman]

Who are Travers Smith's competitors? I see they are very well-balanced and traverse (all pun intended) many practice areas, should I be referring to their practice area/sector competitors or overall competitors?

Hey @Izzy1026. An overall-competitor approach may not be the most appropriate as this will be virtually every law firm with a presence in the regional/ international market. Rather, as you suggested, it’ll be great to include competitors within the same practice-area specification. However, even this may be too generic.

Let me give you an example:

Travers has a good private equity specialty. However, so does Latham and Kirkland. Digging deep, you’ll see that TS has a specialty in mid-market PE deals. Thus, in answering the question, you would compare TS with similar firms that work on mid-market PE deals as well. This will ensure that you hit the nail on the market similarities between firms, enabling you to fashion a response that properly conveys an understanding of the sectoral specialties between firms.