TCLA Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion Thread 2024-25

[yasmars]

Hey all! First time poster here but was looking for some advice and figured this would be the best place to start.

In summary, has anyone heard of or had any experiences with Bradstone Allington and specifically their paralegal training and work experience course?

Since graduating in July, I’ve been applying for paralegal roles. Having graduated with a high 2:1 from a very strong RG, I figured it would be rather straightforward. However, despite sending out probably 80 applications since then, I’ve not landed one interview. It’s becoming really disheartening as I’m spending a long time on each application, have had friends and family read over them, and I’m just not sure where I’m going wrong.

It’s gotten to the stage where I don’t only need the job to progress my career but to support myself. If I haven’t found one by the end of the year, I anticipate that I will need to get a job in retail or hospitality, which is what I desperately want to avoid.

I’ve now stumbled upon Bradstone Allington and their paralegal course. They offer a professional certification and a 12 week work experience placement, which I figure will be helpful with both paralegal and VS applications. The reviews mostly seem good too, but I am wary about the fact that it costs £2,000. I don’t want to immediately scream “scam” but paying for work experience seems a bit off. Having said that, I am aware how saturated the paralegal market is right now and perhaps things like this are needed to break through.

Any personal experiences or advice would be much appreciated!

I would steer clear of work experiences/opportunities that you have to pay for. I've seen many people complain about these sort of companies online such as on Reddit

 

[Ram Sabaratnam]

Just wondering if people focus on why a particular firm is attractive to them (i.e. sector focus, rankings etc) when answering questions regarding why they want to attend an open day or if they have found it more successful writing about what the open day involves (case studies, networking opps etc.) specifically?

Hiya @bsh

It’s perfectly ok (actually, I’d say it’s a good idea) to mention a firm’s expertise in specific practice areas or sectors as a reason for wanting to attend their open day. When mentioning these, though, it's worth asking yourself a few questions. For example, if there is a particular practice area the firm is known for, why does that resonate with your experiences to date or your interests/career goals? Alternatively, what would you like to learn about how their lawyers approach certain sectors or complex challenges within those sectors?

If you know the open day will include activities like case studies or networking opportunities, it’s also fine to highlight these as things you’d like to experience. However, I’d suggest focusing on how these aspects will give you a deeper understanding of the firm. For instance, will engaging in a case study help you see how the firm’s lawyers collaborate to solve problems? How will networking with current trainees and associates give you better insight into the firm’s culture or the day-to-day realities of working there?

Overall, the key is to show how attending the open day will give you better insights and deepen your understanding.

 

[Ram Sabaratnam]

Hey all! First time poster here but was looking for some advice and figured this would be the best place to start.

In summary, has anyone heard of or had any experiences with Bradstone Allington and specifically their paralegal training and work experience course?

Since graduating in July, I’ve been applying for paralegal roles. Having graduated with a high 2:1 from a very strong RG, I figured it would be rather straightforward. However, despite sending out probably 80 applications since then, I’ve not landed one interview. It’s becoming really disheartening as I’m spending a long time on each application, have had friends and family read over them, and I’m just not sure where I’m going wrong.

It’s gotten to the stage where I don’t only need the job to progress my career but to support myself. If I haven’t found one by the end of the year, I anticipate that I will need to get a job in retail or hospitality, which is what I desperately want to avoid.

I’ve now stumbled upon Bradstone Allington and their paralegal course. They offer a professional certification and a 12 week work experience placement, which I figure will be helpful with both paralegal and VS applications. The reviews mostly seem good too, but I am wary about the fact that it costs £2,000. I don’t want to immediately scream “scam” but paying for work experience seems a bit off. Having said that, I am aware how saturated the paralegal market is right now and perhaps things like this are needed to break through.

Any personal experiences or advice would be much appreciated!

Hiya @Gimmeatcplease! Welcome to the forum!!!

I know entering the legal profession can be daunting, but I'd strongly advise AGAINST using services like those offered by Bradstone Allington. I learned about these schemes through @Jessica Booker who flagged concerns about similar companies, and there’s a detailed report on RollOnFriday that raised significant red flags about Bradstone in particular. These companies often charge substantial fees (in this case, £2,000) for unaccredited e-learning courses and unpaid work experience. You can find the article here for more context: RollOnFriday article link.

While it’s understandable to feel pressure to secure a paralegal role to progress your career, it’s worth exploring alternative pathways that can build valuable, transferrable skills for a legal career. Many trainees at various law firms, including myself, have come from varied professional backgrounds like teaching, government, compliance, and business development - none of these pre-law career paths require you to pay for work experience.

I completely understand how daunting this process can be, but you’re not alone, and there are many ways to strengthen your applications without resorting to costly (and in this case questionable) schemes. Please do reach out if you’d like advice on your applications. Wishing you the best of luck!

 

[Jessica Booker]

Hey all! First time poster here but was looking for some advice and figured this would be the best place to start.

In summary, has anyone heard of or had any experiences with Bradstone Allington and specifically their paralegal training and work experience course?

Since graduating in July, I’ve been applying for paralegal roles. Having graduated with a high 2:1 from a very strong RG, I figured it would be rather straightforward. However, despite sending out probably 80 applications since then, I’ve not landed one interview. It’s becoming really disheartening as I’m spending a long time on each application, have had friends and family read over them, and I’m just not sure where I’m going wrong.

It’s gotten to the stage where I don’t only need the job to progress my career but to support myself. If I haven’t found one by the end of the year, I anticipate that I will need to get a job in retail or hospitality, which is what I desperately want to avoid.

I’ve now stumbled upon Bradstone Allington and their paralegal course. They offer a professional certification and a 12 week work experience placement, which I figure will be helpful with both paralegal and VS applications. The reviews mostly seem good too, but I am wary about the fact that it costs £2,000. I don’t want to immediately scream “scam” but paying for work experience seems a bit off. Having said that, I am aware how saturated the paralegal market is right now and perhaps things like this are needed to break through.

Any personal experiences or advice would be much appreciated!

**Please avoid any of these companies - Bradstone Allington, Morgan Quays, Burlington Row, Hampton Cross - they are all connected in one way or another**

No one I know in the legal profession would value these qualifications via these companies. Same goes for their HR and Accountancy/Finance courses.

The courses are just basic e-learning courses that do not have any formal qualifications attached to them. You would be better off finding free e-learning content or if you wanted a formal qualification, finding a recognised educational institution that provides a formal qualification (this will say something like Level 3, Level 4, Level 5, Level 6 or Level 7). But even then you don't need formal qualifications to be a paralegal.

The major red flags of these companies are:

• They never provide any details of who their trainers are
• They never detail the employers they are placing people with
• Their employees on LinkedIn never have any connection to or experience within the industries these programmes sit within
• Many of their reviews are likely to be fake - its very easy to pay someone a couple of dollars to write a glowing review for a service they have never accessed.

And this is before we even get on to the question around how ethical it is to encourage people to work for free for 3 months on the basis that it will make them more employable.

Reddit and RollonFriday have been clear in how they feel about these companies:

EXCLUSIVE Company charges aspiring lawyers £1,995 for ‘paralegal training’

'I lost my time and my money'

www.rollonfriday.com

https://www.reddit.com/r/uklaw/comments/1g6d0pp

https://www.reddit.com/r/uklaw/comments/1gk0rw6

https://www.reddit.com/r/uklaw/comments/1g9cm6f

I also looked into these companies earlier in the year and posted about them here: https://www.thecorporatelawacademy....ns-discussion-thread-2023-24.8037/post-180166

They also like to threaten people like me who speak out about how ethical their companies are, often threatening we will be taken to court for defamation (when they clearly don't even know what defamation is). They are ridiculously unethical on a number of levels, including getting bots to flood Reddit forums with positive reviews or requests to ban Reddit forum users/remove content that speaks badly of them.

There is a reason everyone I know speaks so badly of them, and its because we think their business model is completely unethical.

 

[Ram Sabaratnam]

Has anybody else not heard from CMS since filling in the application? Thinking it’s a PFO.

Hiya @Aspiringsolicitor01


Don't be too worried just yet! It's unclear whether CMS review applications on a rolling basis or not. The FAQ section on their website currently states that they try to "process your application and move you through the stages as soon as possible. In certain instances, we will hold assessment days before the deadline." I also remember receiving my Watson Glaser and video interview well before the deadline last year. For now, I'd focus on drafting other strong applications that you can get out. Best of luck with your other applications!

 

[Amma Usman]

Hey again @Audric_T. Just to build on my last response, I believe it will be particularly helpful to also have a glossary of key terms applicable to the financial/legal worlds. It’s a strategy that personally helped me track my commercial awareness a couple of years back. I will make a thread on this tomorrow and make the post .)

Hey @Audric_T , I’ve attached the link to the glossary of terms below. Have a lovely weekend!

100 Key Financial and Legal Terms

Hey all! In this thread, I’ve included a list of 100 terms I believe are essential to building that commercial awareness. I’ve made a 50/50 split, covering financial and legal terms. Feel free to add any more terms and definitions you feel are essential ! ;) 50 Financial Terms 1. Asset...

www.thecorporatelawacademy.com

 

[FutureTraineeMaybe]

When you have raised X amount of money for something and mention it on your application , would firms ask for proof of this/ what proof would they ask for?
I was going to mention an amount I raised as a proudest achievement question answer but am unsure of what kind of proof law firms usually ask for.
@Jessica Booker if you could provide any advice on this, it would be much appreciated!

 

[Ram Sabaratnam]

When you have raised X amount of money for something and mention it on your application , would firms ask for proof of this/ what proof would they ask for?
I was going to mention an amount I raised as a proudest achievement question answer but am unsure of what kind of proof law firms usually ask for.
@Jessica Booker if you could provide any advice on this, it would be much appreciated!

Hiya @AGRACHEL

When mentioning any fundraising activities I participated in, law firms haven't typically asked me for proof of this. That said, it's important to ensure you can confidently and convincingly explain how your efforts contributed to the result you're mentioning (in this case, the amount you raised). Focus on highlighting your role, the challenges you faced, and the impact of your actions when answering any competence question where you are mentioning a sum of funds that you raised. Best of luck with your application!

 

[Ram Sabaratnam]

for the work experience section, should you make explicit links to skills and/or certain functions relevant to a career in commercial law? e.g i did this, developing x skill, which is relevant to commercial law…

Heya @tarty23 You can definitely mention the skills you’ve developed, but it’s not necessary to explicitly state that they’re “relevant to commercial law.” Instead, focus on describing what you did and how it helped you develop specific skills or knowledge.

Rather than simply stating that you developed skills like “strong written communication” or “teamwork,” try to illustrate this by showing how your tasks or responsibilities helped you build the skills you're trying to highlight. For example, talk about the tasks you routinely handled (and briefly how you went about them), challenges you overcame, or any goals or targets you helped achieve. This approach allows the reader to see your skills in context.

 

[Tintin06]

I would steer clear of work experiences/opportunities that you have to pay for. I've seen many people complain about these sort of companies online such as on Reddit

Also paralegal training that is paid. That sounds pretty exploitative to me. No need to pay to work.

 

[FutureTraineeMaybe]

Hiya @AGRACHEL

When mentioning any fundraising activities I participated in, law firms haven't typically asked me for proof of this. That said, it's important to ensure you can confidently and convincingly explain how your efforts contributed to the result you're mentioning (in this case, the amount you raised). Focus on highlighting your role, the challenges you faced, and the impact of your actions when answering any competence question where you are mentioning a sum of funds that you raised. Best of luck with your application!

Thank you so much!!

 

[jojo23]

Do we have to attach a CV and cover letter to the Taylor Wessing vac scheme application or just answer the questions in the form? Apologies if this has been asked a thousand times already..

 

[ashwright]

Did anyone hear back from Bakers for their General Open day? It’s now 2 days later than the latest they said they’d reply by.. it’s meant to be next Thursday!

 

[Balaton123]

Did anyone hear back from Bakers for their General Open day? It’s now 2 days later than the latest they said they’d reply by.. it’s meant to be next Thursday!

I heard back yesterday if that helps!

 

[jta227]

They’re non rolling you won’t get a rejection unless you failed the WG. Reading firm websites are a useful tool.

Their website doesn't specify whether they are rolling or non-rolling: in fact they say you may get invited to assessment centre before the deadline which implies they are rolling.

 

[Unknowncabbage]

Their website doesn't specify whether they are rolling or non-rolling: in fact they say you may get invited to assessment centre before the deadline which implies they are rolling.

They are non-rolling.

 

[navigatinglegal]

Hi.

I have an ac coming up and I know there is a bit on crisis management in the interview. does anyone know where or how I can prepare for this?

Many thanks

 

[jta227]

They are non-rolling.

You're right, I've just found this https://www.instagram.com/cmslaw.careers/p/DADRXjDIPyE
Not sure why they've said they'd do assessment centres before the deadline in that case, I guess just for efficiency's sake and they'd not actually give out offers before the assessment centres are all done?

 

[member3804]

Won't let me click submit details

is there a solution to this or should I email?

 

[Jessica Booker]

When you have raised X amount of money for something and mention it on your application , would firms ask for proof of this/ what proof would they ask for?
I was going to mention an amount I raised as a proudest achievement question answer but am unsure of what kind of proof law firms usually ask for.
@Jessica Booker if you could provide any advice on this, it would be much appreciated!

You wouldn’t have to prove this level of detail at any point.