TCLA Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion Thread 2024-25

[BonanzaBih_]

hi, do you have any tips for the online assessment? How did you prepare? X

Hey I just used the test platform the firm gives you access to and did all the questions multiple times haha

 

[suhana]

Hi @Jessica Booker and anyone who can help!

I had a quick query regarding one of the questions in my application. The question reads:

“Please detail all your positions of responsibility, including title, date, and a brief description. Please separate each position with a bullet point - 500 words.”

For some reason, I find myself repeating a lot of my work experience.

I’m currently holding a society position and also held one last year, which I plan to mention. However, since the word count is quite high, I wanted to ask if volunteering, such as pro bono work, could come under "positions of responsibility." Additionally, I’m a campus ambassador for a law firm, but I feel that role leans more towards work experience rather than a position of responsibility, especially since it’s a paid role. I’m a bit confused because I typically categorise pro bono work and my campus ambassador experience as work experience. Do you have any tips on what else could be included under positions of responsibility without repeating my work experience?

Another issue I had was with the formatting of the bullet points. I wanted to clarify whether I’m supposed to write the description and my responsibilities in bullet points (similar to a CV), or if they expect each experience to be listed as a bullet point with the description written in prose.

I’d really appreciate some insight on this.

 

[Star Light]

Is the deadline for CMS training contract on a rolling basis? I was thinking of applying for the insight programme (vs) instead which the deadline is January. I don't have legal work experience apart from volunteering at a legal advice clinic. Besides that, I have run a family restaurant since my second year of university. Would really appreciate any advice.

 

[jta227]

Does anyone know if there are any firms with a strict zero-typo policy? 😭I spent weeks on an app, attended firm events etc, had it reviewed by multiple people, SPENT TWO DAYS PROOFREADING ( not continuously obviously but at random points) - stupidly made a last-minute change in the work experience section which caused my automatic keyboard to change the word to my last name ( I forgot it was on) - it obviously doesn't fit in the sentence and its capitalised so there's no chance graduate recruitment will miss it. It's so disheartening - I've been applying for so long and it just seems to be going nowhere because I keep making stupid little errors which is obviously my own fault but ouch.😟.

I mean, there's probably at least 1 firm with a no-typo policy (which would assume that they noticed it and I doubt they notice every typo) but honestly even at MC level plenty of successful applications have 1 typo. I think I heard something to that effect from Jessica too. If the typo is really noticeable, they might not be best pleased but if the application is great I don't think they would dead it on arrival just for that. After sending my [top city firm name redacted] application I noticed a huge typo (i.e. it's so noticeable that if in the assessment centre they have a copy of my answers in front of them in interview they'll immediately notice it when they get there which scares me) in one of the long-form answers that I don't know how I missed. They still invited me to take their WG (not automatic, comes after app reading) and after that invited me to the next stage. All is not lost!

Also if you do get rejected you'll never know how much of it was because of that typo vs something else so I think you shouldn't dwell on it and just try not to make the same mistake again. Could also get other people to proof-read it (I don't really have anyone IRL that can do this which sucks for me but if you do you should make use of them!)

 

[jta227]

I just did the HSF test and the report feedback is literally the exact opposite of everything I clicked?? Is this a bug or something, fairly sure I didn't contradict myself between answers as well...

 

[kokoprep]

Hi - Has anyone who submitted CMS application last week around 28, 29th of November heard back with the WG test invite? Please reply if you have with when you applied and when you heard back. Thank you so much!

 

[EK_27]

Hi - Has anyone who submitted CMS application last week around 28, 29th of November heard back with the WG test invite? Please reply if you have with when you applied and when you heard back. Thank you so much!

The test is not automatic so you may expect to wait at least a week if they have a number of applications. Hope you hear back soon.

 

[tomsmitg]

Hi, how long did it take people to hear back after BCLP first stage interview ?

 

[marisachr]

Withers test invite! 🤝

 

[robynwalterssssss]

From my experience, it was a pretty standard Watson Glaser test!! I scored averagely and made it to the next round!

Hey there! Sorry just came across your comment - I completed the DLA watson glaser just now and also got average results from the feedback report (2 sections where further exploration section and 1 section was a strength to leverage) just wondering if yours was the same or better/worse?? sorry rogue question just trying to reassure myself because I don’t know if that is a good result for DLA!

 

[g.cl.2020344]

When grad recruitment looks at application do they look at them in order of when they were submitted like the first-last

 

[SoonToBeTrainee]

I think it’s more likely they don’t than do.

Batches of applications will most likely get assigned to different members of GR, so they won’t be reviewing applications in linear order of when people applied

 

[g.cl.2020344]

I think it’s more likely they don’t than do.

Batches of applications will most likely get assigned to different members of GR, so they won’t be reviewing applications in linear order of when people applied

Ah gotcha thank you!

 

[g.cl.2020344]

And then some people will naturally be quicker than others at reviewing?!

 

[Jessica Booker]

When grad recruitment looks at application do they look at them in order of when they were submitted like the first-last

There can be a whole range of approaches firms take, some quite tactical and others sometimes quite random. It’s really difficult to know a firm’s approach without them telling them.

 

[AS24]

Hiya @AS24

Great question! Building on what @Andrei Radu mentioned, I can confirm that CRS does take on more trainees in its London office compared to other locations and that trainees in London often have access to a wider range of seat options (which is worth considering when thinking about the kind of work you'd like to experience during your training contract). If you're applying to the London office, it might be helpful to reflect on why this location/office stands out to you, particularly in terms of the practice areas it is known for.

Regarding DEI initiatives, while it's hard to say definitively whether the London office offers more DEI projects compared to other offices, I did get the impression that the London is actively involved with organisations like Aspiring Solicitors. I was also particularly impressed by the number of pro bono matters that London trainees are able to get involved in. If you get the chance, I’d recommend reaching out to current trainees or attending any CRS events to get more insights into what’s available in the London office. I remember doing so when I applied and found many of them to be lovely and very approachable. They were also quite helpful in terms of allowing me to understand the seat selection process and ongoing DEI efforts at the firm. Hope that helps, and good luck with your application!

Hi @Ram Sabaratnam,

Thank you so much for your detailed response.

 

[AS24]

Perhaps @Amma Usman or @Ram Sabaratnam will know more, but having had a quick look on their website and some other publications with applications information, I could not find any precise figures regarding the distribution of the TC offers across offices. All I could find is that CRS will offer around 25 TCs in London, Guildford and Cheltenham. I would suspect that the reason the firm does not publish more data is that the number of TCs offered by each office is not fixed, but varies depending on their changing needs and market conditions.

All that being said, I would still suspect that generally London gives the most TC offers and also has the most D&I projects - for most firms, London simply is the biggest and most profitable UK market. For a firm with a large private wealth practice like CRS, I would assume that is even more so the case, as a lot of HNWIs reside in London.

@Andrei Radu ,thank you so much for your response,

 

[desperateTCseeker1998]

if anyone knows which firms are hiring for 2026 this cycle (or are known to let you move forwards) I would appreciate the shared knowledge

 

[AI212121]

if anyone knows which firms are hiring for 2026 this cycle (or are known to let you move forwards) I would appreciate the shared knowledge

paul weiss is recruiting some trainees to start in 2026

 

[jojo23]

Hi guys I have 2 random questions-
Would it be particularly bad to reuse part of your 'Why commercial law' answer in your 'Why this firm in particular' answer?

When answering why firm x in particular, could you draw comparisons between firms you've attended an open day for and why you're drawn to this form more.. or something like that?