hey, also do you mind telling what kind of question do they generally ask? is it competency or commercial awareness? thank you!
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TCLA Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion Thread 2024-25
- Thread starter Jessica Booker
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not yet. afaik it usually takes them 3 weeks to get back during peak application season.
- Sep 7, 2024
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Hey there @tcla02 ,
I totally get where you‘re coming from. Things like this happen, so I wouldn’t worry too much about it.
Let me give you an example;
During one of my VIs in the past for a first year scheme, I completely froze. I was lost on what to say. I accidentally ended my answer with the word “Omo”. This is basically a Nigerian slang that means.. “I am speechless”. I didn’t get invited to the AC after this. However, I used it as a learning opportunity to avoid using filler words in my sentences. This helped me improve my subsequent performance for VIs and I started getting more interview offers during the VS application cycle.
Regardless, please bear in mind that ending your VI with “so yeah” doesn’t automatically mean a rejection. I would just say to be mindful moving forward, but don’t beat yourself up about this - at the end of the day, we’re only human and mistakes like this happen. Just take a look at the example I gave you from my own personal experience. The point I’m trying to make is that…I felt like giving up after that minor VI slip up. If I had, I would not be where I am today.
Jessica Booker
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I would only continue applying if you would renege the existing VS offer to accept a potential new one. There is no point applying to firms if you are not going to accept an offer from them.
Firms will only be interested in the VS you have completed and the TC offers you have and even then it’s not going to be a major bit of evidence to leverage TC offers - you will have to meet the firm’s criteria for the TC first and foremost.
Jessica Booker
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There is likely to be an “other” option somewhere in the list, and so I would select that.
Shakespeare PFO.
Don't really know how to feel about this one as they did not ask any question on the form...
Don't really know how to feel about this one as they did not ask any question on the form...
I'm sorry to hear this. Is this post app? When did you apply? I'm still waiting to hear back
Yes this is post app. I applied on the 25th of November.I'm sorry to hear this. Is this post app? When did you apply? I'm still waiting to hear back
- Sep 7, 2024
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Hello @KBanana ,
My general approach to this question, “which other firms have you applied to“, is to, as you suggested, focus on the work. However, it is not enough to list how each firm you have applied to excels in each of them. Indeed, many firms will excel in similar practices, particularly if they have strong established client bases across multiple markets and geographic areas. 200 words is also not a lot, so perhaps focus on 1-2 practices as this will enable you to go into the differences of each firm‘s work scope. I also think it’s worth noting here that sometimes, these differences may not be so clear - and that’s fine. For example, all those 3 firms may have strong finance practices. Firm A may have a strong market position of advising on buy-side PE deals; Firm B may excel in advising asset managers on high-end acquisitions; Firm C (which you are applying to, may excel in both, as well as..say… sustainable investing within M&A deals. There was something @Andrei Radu once said on this which really resonated with me. He said that when looking at a law firm’s competitors and trying to think of a reason which draws you to the firm you are applying to more, it is important to look at the reasons conjunctively and not disjunctively. It made me realise that the reasons for each firm on their own may apply generally across the broad spectrum of City law firms. However, when talked about together, for a firm which excels in all those areas, you can show strong demonstrated interest. For more context, I have quoted his post below:
Andrei’s Post:
“ As Amma pointed out, it is very rare to find out anything unique about a firm's practice at a broad level, so you need to find a more specific and niche subpart to tie your reasoning too. However, even that can be quite difficult to find. Intuitively, you have already attempted to do so, by going beyond ascertaining "practice area strength" and looking into three more specific parts of the practice: (a) client focus, (b) industry focus, and (c) market focus. You have done well to have identified where Latham sits in the market in each, but you have found that none makes the firm truly unique, as there are rivals for each market segment even in these more niche categories. Nonetheless, the information you have gathered, taken as a whole, does make Latham unique.While if you were to take any of (a) or (b) or (c) separately it would have not sufficed, if you explain that what motivates you to train at Latham is that the lev fin team has (a) and (b) and (c), then it will - for none of the identified firms is great for both large-cap and mid-market deals and also has the same market focus as Latham. Sure, you will need to use some extra word count to explain why you want all these three aspects in your ideal leveraged finance team (besides also explaining your general interest in the practice) but that should not be that difficult to achieve - you probably already have some motivation you can tie to each individual point.
Finally, I wanted to mention that this applies at a broader level for writing a great 'Why the firm' answer. For instance, say you did not want to spend so much word count on just a leveraged finance motivation. Say you went ahead with a simple 'Latham has exceptional expertise in high-end lev fin work' reason for why the firm. That would indeed not suffice for specificity, as this point would equally apply to firms like Kirkland, Paul, Weiss and Milbank. However, that does not mean this added no value. This reason excludes the vast majority of other firms. Now, if you can supplement this first motivation with another one or two that excludes the few firms reason 1 equally applies to, taken as a whole your 'Why the firm' reasoning will apply to no other as well as to Latham. Examples of unique selling points of Latham that differentiate it from rivals with very strong PE/lev fin practices include: strong contentious teams and a more full service London offering, an increasingly strong corporate M&A team, exceptional capital markets expertise, and arguably a more collaborative firm-wide culture. The point to remember is that you should try to make use of reasons conjunctively rather than disjunctively. Think of 'why firm' reasons as 'firm selection criteria': your only job is to make sure no other firm scores as well in all of those criteria, not that no other firm scores as well in any specific criterion. “
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- Sep 7, 2024
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@KBanana, with regards your second question, inflation is not a bad topic to talk about. It may be viewed as quite generic certainly, but this doesn’t mean you can’t nail the answer if you choose it. I have certainly used the topic of inflation many times during interviews and gotten offers. The way you talk about it is the most important thing. For example, what is it? Sounds funny, but starting off by expressly giving context on what it is and why it’s so important to warrant a commercial discussion on. Next, how does it impact businesses - at the end of the day, these are the law firms clients. Secondly, another high scoring point often forgotten is to remember that the law firm itself, is a business. So, this applies to it as well. If the law firm doesn’t handle the challenges associated with inflation well, it can fail as a business, possibly run into insolvency, as well as experience a host of other issues. Third, how does this inflationary pressure influence the work of the law firm. What law firm practices will see more/less work coming in and why? Well the corporate practice is one. Inflation means rising prices, so when things are more expensive, it becomes harder to invest or expand. Thus, their clients may engage in less mergers and acquisitions. Similarly, the taxation practice would start advising more on strategies clients can implement to minimise cash outflow and make the most of their existing revenue stream. Now, link this back to X law firm. Do they have strong tax and corporate practices? Do these form the bulk of their revenue? If so, how can it stay afloat/leverage their strength? Perhaps through leveraging their other practice areas, or gaining expertise in still advising in these practice areas but from a different niche. There’s so much to talk about in inflation, so you have the potential to write a great answer - just remember to tailor it to the specific firm. Another thing is to quote stats if you can. By how much did the rate of inflation go up? What are people/economists saying about this, and do you agree with them? Be careful to not engage in a political discussion here though, unless prompted.
Quick question for anyone who done Latham's vac scheme VI before, do you guys also have a video exercise round before the actual question round? I am doing one now and as soon as i saw the start question button, i panicked a bit because i thought it just went straight to the question without me noticing. Also, can i prepare the question before I record the video? Just to make sure
- Sep 7, 2024
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Hi again @KBanana . Just following up on your last post. Trainee size, in my opinion, is a stronger point to talk about than DEI initiatives. Many firms will have similar DEI initiatives. However, you will be able to link intake size more adequately to your preferences and experiences. For example, if in a small cohort, you could say something about receiving higher responsibility early on. Though, this is also not specific enough. To elevate your answer, you could address the question of why that size specifically appeals? How do you know that size is for you? Can you give an example of how you thrived in a similar environment? This will ensure that you are specific on your true motivations. Further, you could also schedule quick coffee chats with future/current lawyers to gain more insight on how this small intake structure has enabled them to thrive in their roles. This could be referenced in an application as there’s no better way to know how something works like by speaking to those that have directly experienced it.
Did anyone else get the spring VS email from Cooley?
Update: I absolutely f my VI because the timed video question caught me off guard a little bit and i used up a good 40 second to think about how I would answer when it was recording🫠😭. Bye bye
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