TCLA Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion Thread 2024-25

[Jessica Booker]

Interesting, I wonder if that puts off law firms from moving to GSAs or if the 95% is sorted regardless

I don't think this is the issue as effectively the GSAs are funded from the apprenticeship levy (which is why it cannot be paid back). The levy is effectively a tax on employers as they can only spend it on apprenticeship training, otherwise it goes to waste (well just goes to the government if not used).

I think the reluctance of GSAs is more firms are worried about how they manage capacity and giving 20% of time off dedicated to the academic part of the apprenticeship and needing blocks of time off for assessments.

Its not really an issue in my opinion - the investment banks and accountancy firms manage it very well and typically with much higher numbers of people.

 

[Jessica Booker]

does anyone struggle to get referees for applications?

none of my tutors at university were very helpful when it came to this (had some bad experiences and just stopped asking) , and now that I am a graduate I just think its difficult

for applications some specify having an academic referee, what do people do in this instance?

You can just give your faculty's admin office. It does not need to be someone who vouches for you personally - the reference just needs to verify your grades.

 

[Jessica Booker]

I have a paralegal interview soon and I’m not sure how to prepare for it. This is my first one. Does anyone have any advice? Would really appreciate it!

@Jessica Booker @Ram Sabaratnam @Andrei Radu @Amma Usman

Read the job description carefully and look for the skills or qualities they are saying are important to the role. These are likely to be the basis of the competency questions you are asked.

Be prepared to summarise your journey (academic and employment to date) - summary is important here, you need to pick out the most relevant and important details rather than explain everything.

Also be prepared to be able to explain more why this specific job appeals to you. Paralegal jobs are less likely to focus on why the firm (although this could come up) but focus more on why you want to work in that specific department/team, doing that particular type of work.

 

[futuretrainee!]

Quick WG Assumption Q:

For humankind to survive, it must colonise other planets.
Assumption - There will be a time when the Earth can no longer sustain human life.

Am I right in saying that an assumption has been made here?

The only thing I can think of against this is that Earth may very well sustain human life, but not be sufficient. Then again, that would mean that it technically cannot sustain human life, and therefore, the assumption is made.

Also, if I were to invert this: There will be a time when the Earth can sustain human life, then the proposed statement becomes redundant, which should logically indicate that there is an assumption, no?

3.30 am yk, I hate these damn tests.

I would say you are correct. The way I see this text is where the assumption must be strictly true for the statement to hold.

Therefore, for the statement "There will be a time when the Earth can no longer sustain human life." an assumption has been made that Earth would not be able to sustain human life in perpetuity, i.e., if it could, there would be no reason to colonise other planets. In other words, given that human life is definitely not going to support human life forever, it *must* colonise other planets to ensure survival.

 

[Maddy]

Anyone heard back from Ropes & Gray's PE transaction paralegal position?

 

[johnnn821]

Whats going on with WBD? Has anyone tried emailing? Its quite frustrating that they said we would hear back by the 7th of March and they still havent provided outcomes.

 

[James Wakefield]

Whats going on with WBD? Has anyone tried emailing? Its quite frustrating that they said we would hear back by the 7th of March and they still havent provided outcomes.

I think they’ve got back to people with TIs. It’s probably a PFO at this point but they might not send these out for a while.

 

[Maddy]

I think they’ve got back to people with TIs. It’s probably a PFO at this point but they might not send these out for a while.

Wasn't it only for Leeds office or did anyone receive Ti's for London office?

 

[TCpleasex]

Is there any way (alongside practice tests) that one can prepare for an Amberjack test? I've never done one of these before so don't really know how to adequately prepare. Any tips would be appreciated!

Unpopular opinion, however, I genuinely prefer (and kinda enjoy) doing Amberjack. Every firm is different with their pillars & what they are looking for, however, I will try give some tips that help me.

One thing I think trips people up is inconsistency. I know you have probably read this a tonne of times but when you are answering the SJT type questions answer honestly with what you would do not what you think the firm is looking for. Adding to that though & it might contradict what I just said but look at what the firm’s values are. If they are super into teamwork then they will put more emphasis on those answers or if they are looking for you to work independently then they will be looking for more taking initiative based answers. It is about finding the balance.

A major thing though is if you say that you prioritise say attention to detail over time it takes you to get stuff done, there will be answers that might trip you up to look contradictory. Choose one & roll with it. I know you want to say you can do both, that’s what I tried to do at first but then your answers will look more like you are trying to answer what the firm wants rather than you as a person.

The main thing with the SJT parts is consistency basically.

Also, if a firm is super innovative they will be looking for people open to accept innovative ways of working - just something else to keep in mind.

Re the maths sections, my main advice would be have a pen & paper next to you. It sounds so simple but the maths q’s can be wordy so having a place you can really break it down will help.

Re the verbal sections, to me these seem to align a lot with WG style qs where you have a chunk of text & you need to read what it says without personal interpretation & external knowledge. When I’m doing these qs I put on my WG hat (which isn’t very good) & look at it from a more frank perspective. What exactly is the question & are those words/information provided?

I really hope this will help a little. I know these tests are a pain, however, once you have the right mindset & know what these tests are testing for then you will do well. I used to hate them & my scores this year haven’t been any lower then 7s in the pillars & high in numerical & verbal!!

Good luck!!

 

[A worried graduate]

I don't think this is the issue as effectively the GSAs are funded from the apprenticeship levy (which is why it cannot be paid back). The levy is effectively a tax on employers as they can only spend it on apprenticeship training, otherwise it goes to waste (well just goes to the government if not used).

I think the reluctance of GSAs is more firms are worried about how they manage capacity and giving 20% of time off dedicated to the academic part of the apprenticeship and needing blocks of time off for assessments.

Its not really an issue in my opinion - the investment banks and accountancy firms manage it very well and typically with much higher numbers of people.

Will the GSA replace the TC at larger firms then perhaps?

 

[g.cl.2020344]

Wasn't it only for Leeds office or did anyone receive Ti's for London office?

think it was only for the Leeds office, I've just emailed them

 

[Legallywhatever]

Unpopular opinion, however, I genuinely prefer (and kinda enjoy) doing Amberjack. Every firm is different with their pillars & what they are looking for, however, I will try give some tips that help me.

One thing I think trips people up is inconsistency. I know you have probably read this a tonne of times but when you are answering the SJT type questions answer honestly with what you would do not what you think the firm is looking for. Adding to that though & it might contradict what I just said but look at what the firm’s values are. If they are super into teamwork then they will put more emphasis on those answers or if they are looking for you to work independently then they will be looking for more taking initiative based answers. It is about finding the balance.

A major thing though is if you say that you prioritise say attention to detail over time it takes you to get stuff done, there will be answers that might trip you up to look contradictory. Choose one & roll with it. I know you want to say you can do both, that’s what I tried to do at first but then your answers will look more like you are trying to answer what the firm wants rather than you as a person.

The main thing with the SJT parts is consistency basically.

Also, if a firm is super innovative they will be looking for people open to accept innovative ways of working - just something else to keep in mind.

Re the maths sections, my main advice would be have a pen & paper next to you. It sounds so simple but the maths q’s can be wordy so having a place you can really break it down will help.

Re the verbal sections, to me these seem to align a lot with WG style qs where you have a chunk of text & you need to read what it says without personal interpretation & external knowledge. When I’m doing these qs I put on my WG hat (which isn’t very good) & look at it from a more frank perspective. What exactly is the question & are those words/information provided?

I really hope this will help a little. I know these tests are a pain, however, once you have the right mindset & know what these tests are testing for then you will do well. I used to hate them & my scores this year haven’t been any lower then 7s in the pillars & high in numerical & verbal!!

Good luck!!

Wow! Thank you so much for your detailed reply!!

This might sound silly, but consistency is something that goes completely over my head with SJT. Like you said, I am definitely a person who will try to show that I can do it all, but trying to showcase that in SJTs may not be the best course of action; consistency and balance is the safest bet!

Really appreciate your tips!

 

[Wannabe_Lawyer]

With a gold member application review submission, are you supposed to get an email confirmation? I haven't gotten one, just thought I'd check.

 

[Jessica Booker]

Will the GSA replace the TC at larger firms then perhaps?

They would have possibly done, but the government is now looking to change apprenticeship funding for Level 7 (degree and graduate level apprenticeships) across all sectors which would stop firms being able to fund this level of apprenticeships through the levy and that effectively they would have to pay the funds themselves (https://feweek.co.uk/all-level-7-apprenticeships-will-be-axed-skills-minister-suggests/)

The changes have not been confirmed yet though but the legal sector is not happy about this as it effectively also puts pressure of them to not take on degree level (e.g. school leavers) into the 6-7 year programmes, something many law firms have put a lot of time and effort into creating and embedding in the past couple of years.

 

[Jessica Booker]

With a gold member application review submission, are you supposed to get an email confirmation? I haven't gotten one, just thought I'd check.

You usually get one later in the day. We wait for the 4pm deadline and then send confirmations out to everyone (e.g. they are not automated).

 

[Wannabe_Lawyer]

You usually get one later in the day. We wait for the 4pm deadline and then send confirmations out to everyone (e.g. they are not automated).

Thanks Jessica!

 

[TCpleasex]

Wow! Thank you so much for your detailed reply!!

This might sound silly, but consistency is something that goes completely over my head with SJT. Like you said, I am definitely a person who will try to show that I can do it all, but trying to showcase that in SJTs may not be the best course of action; consistency and balance is the safest bet!

Really appreciate your tips!

Not silly at all, I was the exact same!! I had the mindset that I didn’t want them to think I was sacrificing one aspect for the other but it was a webinar with grad recruitment at a firm last year that changed my whole mindset to it.

I’m not sure if anything is coming up webinar-wise but something I found it really helpful just listening to some grad recruitment answering questions - especially those firms that have SJT/amberjack.

I am by no means an expert, however, if you have any qs I’m happy to answer them 😊

 

[FoxStella]

I have a spring vacation scheme coming up, does anyone have advice on what I should be preparing in advance?

It seems like its heavily assessed, with group projects, a written task and another partner interview, but not sure what I should be focusing on in prep work!

 

[ad.]

Hey guys, ahead of my vac scheme at Goodwin I would really appreciate any good advice for maximising my chance of converting it into a TC. (For context the VS is a week long.)

My background is non-law and I have never done a vac scheme before so I would be going in blind in a sense. I'm also open to investing in any paid services that anyone would personally recommend.

I selected a few seat preferences but I haven't gotten any confirmation as to where I would be sitting. I know that there will be a written exercise task and a group assessment but that's basically all the info I have.

Separately, but quite randomly, I have been looking to reactivate my premium LinkedIn because I have ran out of personalised invites to send to Trainees at the firm but it's either £30 a month of £180 for a year. Is it worth the investment or should I seek alternative methods such as trying to email for a discount of leaving it altogether?

Hi! In terms of paid services, I would personally recommend the TCLA Accelerator Programme. There's actually a webinar about converting VS with TCLA future trainees tonight at 6pm – I think it might be recorded and accessible even if you sign up to TCLA Accelerator later.

 

[User5678]

think it was only for the Leeds office, I've just emailed them

Thank you for this! Please could you keep us updated in case they reply?