TCLA Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion Thread 2024-25

[sophieclaire24]

Did anyone else find the Taylor Wessing online assessment horrible?!

 

[0livia.pope]

The fieldfisher test is meant to be less than 5mins long! How lovely

 

[0livia.pope]

Any bird & bird ACs?

 

[Uch21]

is it too late to apply to HSF's spring vac scheme scheme? should I apply for summer?

The deadline is Dec 1 for both of them and they are non-rolling so you can apply for any one you want.

 

[Unknowncabbage]

Do Mayer Brown provide a feedback report for the online test, if so, how long did it take for you to receive it?

 

[billyonthespeeddial]

Jones Day AC

 

[sooae]

Jones Day AC
Congrats!
Is this for the spring/summer vac?

 

[Legalitaly]

Hi! I just got an AC for A&O Shearman’s direct tc! Any insights? Literally begging 🙏

 

[billyonthespeeddial]

Hi @sooae I can't reply to the post because it doesn't have body text but it's for the spring scheme

 

[ashwright]

So I just did an A/C and successfully passed (with a lot of support from here)

I will be honest, the thing to remember is that they are a person and they want you to succeed, they aren't trying to trick you or trip you up, they honestly just want the best for you. I tend to find all they are looking for is whether you can build rapport with them, are friendly and approachable and understand how you react can impact a conversation.

I find it helps to be polite, professional but talk to them as normal humans - they may be the top of their field but they are also human, kind, friendly and want to have a discussion with you - my two cents. In my field I would talk to my C.E.O the same as a graduate - friendly, polite and respectfully but also as a human.

I always found small talk before getting into the interview helped. It not only calms you down but it’s assures the interviewer that you‘re comfortable speaking to a those with a range of experience.

For example In an interview I was asked how my journey was to the office. I spoke about the central line being hot and crowded. I was also asked where I lived as they could also relate to the tube nightmares. From this I took the opportunity to say where I lived and where I’d love to move to which one of the partners already lived in this area! We mutually bonded over crazy housing prices as well as interest rates which fed into me being commercially aware. Small talk like this really set the tone of the interview and my nerves slowly went away. hopefully this was helpful although long haha x

Thank you guys - I really appreciate both of your replies. Humanising the interviewer is really good advice. I am definitely guilty of idolising whoever is interviewing me - making the most of small talk + building rapport are things I will definitely do going forward. Thank you for your kindness and transparency. You guys are legends 😊 🫶

 

[asplawyer100]

Has anyone else just received a feedback report for the Mayer Brown online assessments (situational strengths and verbal reasoning)? I just received mine and in terms of verbal reasoning, I scored either 'average' or 'above average' on all 5 of the elements they tested. I can't tell if this is a good result or not? Did anyone get below average on anything? Is 'above average' the best score you can get, or is there something above this? Also, what is your 'peer group' - other people who took the Mayer Brown assessment?

 

[ashwright]

Just to add to some of the great responses forum members have already given you, I think it is natural to have some anxiety ahead of an interview. To properly manage it, I would firstly remind myself that just by being in that room I have been selected in the top 5% of candidates or better, which must mean I have what it takes to succeed and that I only need to be able to properly show it. Secondly, I would focus on simply having the best possible performance, as if I truly did my best, I knew I would have nothing to regret. Changing my focus from a very outcome-oriented one helped me feel a lot more in control of the situation.

Finally, while this might sound a bit weird, I purposefully slept for only 6 hours, around 2 hours less than I normally do. I have found that at 6 hours of sleep, with a cup of strong coffee I am able to function at 99% of my ability whilst significantly reducing my anxiety. Being slightly sleep deprived in this way meant I simply did not have the energy to overthink very word and sentence I was saying. This meant I could just naturally express what I was thinking about any question and to seem a lot more confident while doing it. However, this strategy was very particular to my circumstances and I would not advise you to use it unless you have had previous experiences with performing well while sleeping less than usual.

Thank you so much, Andrei! I really appreciate your thoughts. Focusing on performing to your best ability sounds like a really good way of framing things. Like you say, it's a helpful way of putting things into context - things which are in your control (your performance) and things which aren't. Thank you for sharing - I will definitely be thinking in that way going forward.
Also - thank you so much for the coffee tip! I have since tried doing it and I felt a lot less antsy/neurotic than I would have done otherwise!
Thank you again - I really appreciate your kindness and thoughtfulness

 

[ashwright]

Hey @ashwright ,

This is a very good question for sure. I had the same thoughts, and I suspect everyone that has gone through the process/is going through it, will have similar inquiries.

It certainly feels interesting at first. At my first partner interview, I was really scared.. I thought woah, these people are literally ruling the city! What do I say? What‘s right to say? Truth is, we make it more complicated than it is. At the core, they are people just like us. If you take away the internal thoughts and let loose, you will find that you can have amazing conversations where you’re able to share your thoughts on a topic, and even gain knowledge from them. Partners are more approachable than candidates think. So, enjoy the process and you will find that it becomes less daunting with time.

The key? Confidence…

It certainly took me a while to build this, but the more interactions you have, the more natural it becomes.

Thank you so much, Amma! Thinking of it as enjoyable learning experience (even regardless of the outcome) is a really lovely positive spin on things. I will definitely be using this to re-frame any nerves. I remember listening to a science podcast some years ago which talked about how it's sometimes helpful to reframe adrenaline from fear as adrenaline from excitement! I will definitely being re-framing the situation as an exciting one going forward - thank you so, so much for sharing that perspective! 😊

 

[Unknowncabbage]

Has anyone else just received a feedback report for the Mayer Brown online assessments (situational strengths and verbal reasoning)? I just received mine and in terms of verbal reasoning, I scored either 'average' or 'above average' on all 5 of the elements they tested. I can't tell if this is a good result or not? Did anyone get below average on anything? Is 'above average' the best score you can get, or is there something above this? Also, what is your 'peer group' - other people who took the Mayer Brown assessment?

How long after taking the test did you get the feedback report?

 

[asplawyer100]

How long after taking the test did you get the feedback report?

I took the test a couple of days ago and just got the report.

 

[Unknowncabbage]

I took the test a couple of days ago and just got the report.

Ok thank you

 

[Amma Usman]

Hi! I just got an AC for A&O Shearman’s direct tc! Any insights? Literally begging 🙏

Yay! Great news! I’ve included a few tips below. It’s a mix of technical and soft tips, and I believe both are equally important for success;

• Relax the night before. I don’t recommend preparing hefty content the day before as it tends to stir one‘s nerves up before the assessment.
• Research on how to ace the key components of the AC. Usually, this tends to be motivational, competency, and situational interviews, as well as commercial awareness interviews (CA). CA should be weaved in at any of the other interview types I mentioned, as it‘s a skill that should be highlighted naturally. Law firms value this heavily, as you can imagine. Lawyers in the commercial world are business advisors as well as legal advisors. Notice how the commerce part comes first in the term ‘commercial lawyer’ ?
• As a transactional focused law firm, I suspect the case study to be a corporate one. I also know this has been the case at A&O in the past. However, I am not completely certain about this. On tips to prepare for corporate case studies, see the two links below;

(NEW) Corporate Case Study Analysis

Hi everyone! I hope you’re all having a wonderful Sunday. As we get closer to more interviews and assessment centres (AC’s) I thought it would be helpful to include a new fictitious Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) case study analysis. Hope you enjoy the read, and feel free to pop any questions...

www.thecorporatelawacademy.com

Mock M&A Case Study: Analysis

Hello everyone! I hope you’re all having a fantastic day. We’re entering the season of assessment centres (ACs) at law firms, and a hot topic for many of these ACs is Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A)! So, in this thread, I’ll be guiding you through a short fictitious M&A case study and highlighting...

www.thecorporatelawacademy.com

• Confidence. I appreciate this may sound a bit flowery, but if you’re confident on your abilities to excel at the AC, it will reflect in the responses you give. You didn’t get the AC by chance, they saw potential in you. All that’s left to do now is to calm yourself and showcase those abilities.
• Know your motivations. When I was applying, I fell into the trap of only knowing what I put in my application form. As you can imagine, this is very bad as your motivations for why law, or why X firm, shouldn’t be solely contained in 300 words or less. I took time out to understand what was driving me and why. This solid understanding made communicating those passions at length in an interview very easy. So, understand these drivers of yours. On this, avoid talking about personal experiences too much. By personal, I mean attributing your passion for Big Law to rather generic things like a person, or the international reach, etc. Focus on being specific to your experiences. For example, started a business or worked in one? Done legal work experience? Why the business side of law, and not family or immigration? Literally differentiating between the various forms of law in the interview to say ‘I liked this cause.. I didn’t like this cause..’, helps craft a solid answer. Basically.. show your journey. Nobody woke up one day and decided to go into the profession - there would be drivers. Some will be more specific and professional than others, so focus on those.
• Presentation. This is a given, but coming in professionally dressed in a smart suit goes a long way. At the end of the day, it’s a clientele role.

Again, very well done on getting to this stage. I’m sure you’ll ace it!

 

[Amma Usman]

Thank you so much, Amma! Thinking of it as enjoyable learning experience (even regardless of the outcome) is a really lovely positive spin on things. I will definitely be using this to re-frame any nerves. I remember listening to a science podcast some years ago which talked about how it's sometimes helpful to reframe adrenaline from fear as adrenaline from excitement! I will definitely being re-framing the situation as an exciting one going forward - thank you so, so much for sharing that perspective! 😊

@ashwright , wow - I must say, that is certainly another great way to look at it. I think you’ve shared a really important life lesson to everyone in this forum by saying that - it certainly touched me. Let’s all look at adrenaline from an EXCITEMENT perspective, and not from an anxious one…

 

[studentdelaw786]

Has anyone else just received a feedback report for the Mayer Brown online assessments (situational strengths and verbal reasoning)? I just received mine and in terms of verbal reasoning, I scored either 'average' or 'above average' on all 5 of the elements they tested. I can't tell if this is a good result or not? Did anyone get below average on anything? Is 'above average' the best score you can get, or is there something above this? Also, what is your 'peer group' - other people who took the Mayer Brown assessment?

i did this and got the same result. those same rankings progressed me to the Job Simulation earlier this year for the Direct TC, so i hope it’s a similar result for you this time.

As for the grading of the same, I would love to understand this too.

 

[Amma Usman]

Hi - I had a question in regards to talking about deals on applications. If the firm is international, is it okay to mention cases from another country, especially if the firm has a one global firm approach? Or is it better to focus on a deal that involves the office you are applying to? Thank you so much.

Hi @Star Light , @Jessica Booker had already perfectly explained this so I don’t have anything to add.

I have some tips from a more general perspective on deal dropping. It’s important to be mindful on how you include deals in your applications. I’d be weary of falling into the trap of dropping deals in applications just for the sake of them, unless they specifically relate to, or back up a strong interest in the firm’s work. Many firm’s would have worked on similar deals, so ensure that the deals relate to something of specific importance to you as an individual. For example, was it a landmark deal? What was so ‘landmark’ about it in the industry that resonated with you? If the deal is not typical to what’s seen in other firms, is it in a niche? Why does that niche appeal to you? Why would working on similar deals appeal to you?

Here are two examples from my own experience - they are fictitious, but the overall concepts remain when naming deals.

Ex. 1: ABC Law working on the acquisition of GHY by YUP really appealed to me. This represents the high calibre of deals I would love to get involved in whilst training. This again, is solidified by the firm‘s Band 1 Chambers ranking in Corporate M&A and Private Equity.

Ex. 2: ABC Law working on the energy transition in Africa really appealed to me. Particularly, the firm‘s work on the development of the central power frames in the Somalian region stood out, having been named the largest project financing deal in Africa then. As a Somalian, where inconsistent power supply was one of the bane‘s to my existence growing up, I am keen to support Africa’s energy development as a UK-qualified lawyer.

As you can see, the second example is backed up by specific interest. Similarly, when talking about the international reach of the deal, talk about the London office‘s involvement and why that specific deal appealed.