me too! stressing how to complete this in the short timeframe!
4 minutes, twenty questions, 12 seconds each, I suggest making sure you have a good PC, internet connection, and a mouse (laptop trackpad/pointer slows you down).
How confident are you in your knowledge of the core LLB/PGDL subjects, including Contract, Tort, Trusts, Land, Criminal, and Public Law?
TCLA is teaming up with BPP for a free interactive event designed to refresh your fundamentals, especially for those interested in or planning to take the SQE. We'll practise multiple choice SQE questions, with prizes for the highest scoring participants!
Register Hereme too! stressing how to complete this in the short timeframe!
Don't know how easy it is to find an answer to my question, but here it goes - are there any firms that often give their paralegals opportunities to convert to TC/recruit their trainees from mostly/some of their paralegal cohort? @Jessica Booker @Ram Sabaratnam @Andrei Radu
The legal recruitment process is excruciatingly bad. I’ve also yet to secure an offer after 4 assessment centres with different firms the last 2 years.
There’s just too much bias involved in interviews that people are rejected because they weren’t ‘liked’. They shouldn’t allow partners or associates to conduct interviews anymore! It’s awful.
At the end of the day, partners have ownership in the firm and it is of material interest of them to engage in the recruiting process. Partners look for people they can see working alongside, and I've learned that their choice can be a lot more human-centred than grades / scores in an assesment. Being likeable / charismatic / enthusiastic will of course put you in much better stead. This is why it is important to find firms whose culture aligns with your character.
May be a controversial take, but fundamentally law firms are partnerships where people work very closely together, so imo it makes sense for lawyers to be involved in the recruitment process and pick whom they find likeable, because at the end of the day they will be working long hours together
Besides, if two people don’t click it’s usually mutual, so these personality-based rejections are probably just steering you towards an environment that is more suited to you! Best of luck for your remaining apps x
why don't them partners fw me i swear im always about increasing that shareholder value🤧📈💸I definitely agree that there is still a lot of bias and prejudice in city law. However, I don’t think it’s a good idea for recruitment processes to not involve partners and/or associates. I feel like since partners have an ownership stake in their firm(s), they will want to ensure the right candidates are selected. For that reason, they will want to be part of the interview and selection process of graduate recruitment. Ultimately, city law and the legal profession is driven on collaboration and teamwork, so i think being likeable matters. 🙂
I think this for a few reasons. Firstly, partners want to ensure future trainees (who will go on to become future partners), share the same values and beliefs as them (i.e., being a good cultural fit for the firm). Secondly, from a business point of view, they want the best talent. This ensures the firm continues to grow in scale, revenue and subsequently, higher PPEP. Finally, it allows partners to assess candidates’ motivations, competency and commercial awareness, all very important things trainees need. 😅
I think the important thing is that interviews should be conducted on a CV-blind basis. That way, things like unconscious bias, prejudice and potential discrimination can be avoided as much as possible. Things like rare recruitment help with this, but more needs to be done to ensure the best candidates are chosen, regardless of their ethnic, religious, educational or socioeconomic background. Unfortunately, it isn’t always the case at present. It does come down to luck and subjective judgment. 🥲
why don't them partners fw me i swear im always about increasing that shareholder value🤧📈💸
Lol same I applied to Bristol. Got highest for both intellects, and a score of 6,7,7,7! This process is so non-transparentDitto except I applied to Bristol
SPB rejection post AC. This was my last law firm application of this cycle so this one really hurt. Feeling very depleted right now. I got through to 3 ACs but failed them all. It’s only my first application cycle but the fact I failed every AC is really upsetting.
The partner interview is discrimination and the best way to get an offer is to have a partner like you.I definitely agree that there is still a lot of bias and prejudice in city law. However, I don’t think it’s a good idea for recruitment processes to not involve partners and/or associates. I feel like since partners have an ownership stake in their firm(s), they will want to ensure the right candidates are selected. For that reason, they will want to be part of the interview and selection process of graduate recruitment. Ultimately, city law and the legal profession is driven on collaboration and teamwork, so I think being likeable matters. 🙂
I think this for a few reasons. Firstly, partners want to ensure future trainees (who will go on to become future partners), share the same values and beliefs as them (i.e., being a good cultural fit for the firm). Secondly, from a business point of view, they want the best talent. This ensures the firm continues to grow in scale, revenue and subsequently, higher PPEP. Finally, it allows partners to assess candidates’ motivations, competency and commercial awareness, all very important things trainees need. 😅
I think the important thing is that interviews should be conducted on a CV-blind basis. That way, things like unconscious bias, prejudice and potential discrimination can be avoided as much as possible. Things like rare recruitment help with this, but more needs to be done to ensure the best candidates are chosen, regardless of their ethnic, religious, educational or socioeconomic background. Unfortunately, it isn’t always the case at present. It does come down to luck and subjective judgment. 🥲
Despite this, please do not lose faith in yourself in this process. I am positive that there is a firm out there that will recognise your value and the things you have to offer! Best of luck with the rest of this application cycle! I am sure you will get that well deserved TC soon! 🙂
It is lottery-based, but a big part of law is dealing with a wide range of personalities, and since it is a highly client-facing profession it is important to be able to make yourself appealing to different kinds of people.The partner interview is discrimination and the best way to get an offer is to have a partner like you.
It becomes a lottery based on who your interviewer is and how they perceive you. There is nothing fair or objective about it.
Keep going in with that mentality and you won't get anywhere. I'll give you a crazy thought, if you answer their questions well and try and build a rapport, they are more likely to like you! You are in control of how you are perceived.The partner interview is discrimination and the best way to get an offer is to have a partner like you.
It becomes a lottery based on who your interviewer is and how they perceive you. There is nothing fair or objective about it.
Hi @emma.d so for the first question I think your approach is the right one, in that you need to identify a potential client that has a need for legal services in one of the firm's major practice areas. Importantly, you should make sure that the firm has not represented the client in the past, as the question says you would be introducing them. Ideally, you want to get very specific in your analysis, going beyond something like "this client has a need for litigation/corporate m&a/finance advice and the firm has these departments" - as (i) basically every large company/financial institution has a general need for these services; and (ii) basically every large commercial law firm has sizeable teams in those areas. Thus, you should try to find a more specific "fit": if the firm specializes in a particular type of deal/case, or on deals/cases in a particular industry or in particular jurisdictions, you should look for a potential client who requires that specific type of expertise more than any other. Besides this, to obtain a more detailed analysis, consider integrating some of the following factors:Hi everyone, I have 2 x 400 application questions which I would like some guidance on. I am unsure of how to fill the word count and the things I should cover.
In light of our service lines, if you could introduce one client to us, who would it be and why? (max 400 words)
I have identified a specific client and how it relates to the firm through similar cases in the past but am unsure on what else to talk about.
AI is rapidly changing how law firms operate and how solicitors interact with clients. How can we embrace AI without sacrificing our value of Human First? (max 400 words)
@Andrei Radu your insight would be much appreciated as I have found your question breakdowns in the past super useful! Also, a side question Andrei do you think you will still be around on TCLA next cycle?
Unfortunately there is always a possibility that discriminatory attitudes will influence hiring at any stage of the process.The partner interview is discrimination and the best way to get an offer is to have a partner like you.
It becomes a lottery based on who your interviewer is and how they perceive you. There is nothing fair or objective about it.
Define ‘people skills’ then?Unfortunately there is always a possibility that discriminatory attitudes will influence hiring at any stage of the process.
For example, the name on your application will give away whether you are male or female and may also indicate your race. Even if your name is hidden when your application is reviewed, the type of work experience or extracurriculars you have can, for example, indicate your class background. And if we zoom out even further, structural disadvantage makes it harder for people from certain groups to even be in a position to make a competitive application to begin with.
Of course, at an interview, it's easier to spot people's race, sex, disability etc. and take a biased view, but this would be a problem even firms they didn't allow partners or associates to interview you, as you suggested, because any interviewer will have some level of bias. I'm sure every firm evaluates its processes to ensure they are as objective as possible, for example through competency or commercial interviews where candidates are given numerical scores based on the content of their responses.
At the end of the day, though, law is fundamentally a people business, and firms want to hire people who work well with others and can get on with clients. Sometimes someone gets a bad interviewer who makes it impossible to build a rapport with them, and that's the interviewer's fault. But if someone is consistently failing to build a rapport with interviewers, this suggests a need to brush up on people skills. Given that most people can develop people skills with practice, and that these skills are essential to the career, I would argue it's not discrimination to reject someone who lacks such skills.
Hi @summerk27 I think this will depend on word count limits and the general expectations you think the firm has for the profile, but normally it will just be a short description containing educational background, significant achievements, career interests, and one-two extracurriculars/hobbies. I have quoted bellow posts form @Ram Sabaratnam and @Jessica Booker on this issue, and also one where I give one of my own VS profile as an example.@Ram Sabaratnam @jessicabooker @Amma Usman @Andrei Radu Could you please provide some tips on completing a candidate profile ahead of a vacation scheme. What sort of things would you put in Work experience, Interests and activities section?
Hiya @KBanana
Not a silly question at all. In my experience, the structure of your bio will usually depend on how formal the firm expects it to be and whether they've provided specific instructions. For example, during my vacation schemes, some firms included clear prompts in their emails, asking us to mention specific details such as university attended, interesting facts about ourselves, or even our favourite movie or hobby. If the tone is intended to be more casual or friendly, you might want to introduce yourself in the first person, saying something along the lines of: "Hi! I'm Ram, a recent LLB graduate from UCL. I was born and raised in Canada, and in my spare time, I really enjoy pro bono volunteer work at my university's legal clinic, travelling, and visiting museums and galleries."
If the bio is expected to be more formal or professional, I find that writing it in the third person usually is helpful. In that case, I'd say something like: "Ram Sabaratnam is a recent LLB graduate from University College London. In his spare time, he enjoys writing for the Justice Gap and volunteering at his university’s refugee law clinic." It may be worth clarifying with graduate recruitment team directly, just to make sure you write the bio in a way that matches the firm's expectations. You can just confirm with them how formal the tone should be and if there is any particular word count they have in mind.
Hope that helps!
Has the firm given you an example or any guidance on how to write it? A lot of firms do so that your writing is going to be fairly consistent with other vacation scheme students. If they have given this to you, then always follow their structure and guidance first.
If they haven't provided anything to you, then something like the following length would be appropriate:
Jess studied Economics and Social Studies at the University of Manchester, graduating with a first-class honours in 2004. Since then, she has worked in the Early Careers sector for a range of companies across the legal, professional services, investment and FMCG sectors. Before her career, Jess was a Chef, working in various pubs and also as a Chalet host in the French Alps. She continues to love both cooking and skiing, as well as trying to keep up with her hyperactive dog, Dennis. Jess looks forward to understanding more about the firm's clients during the vacation scheme, as well as learning more about the firm's diversity initiatives.
It might be that they want you to write in the first person though - I have just written in the third person due to habit!
Ultimately try to include:
- Key and relevant facts about your background
- 1 or 2 key achievements (I included my degree classification)
- Something about your interests - what you do outside of work/study
- Something interesting about you - maybe something more unique (why I always throw in the fact I was a chef)
- If you feel comfortable doing so, something slightly light-hearted or that could be a conversation starter (why I reference my dog. Dennis!).
- Adding some kind of reference as to what you hope to gain by attending the scheme
I do not have much to add to what @Jessica Booker said here, just thought to give you an example of a bio I wrote which the firm said was good:
Andrei is a second-year law student at University College London. He has developed an interest in commercial law through his studies, having been awarded the Simon Wallace Memorial Prize for the highest Year 1 grade in Contract Law. He went on to complete a one-month legal internship at DLA Piper, an experience which confirmed his desire to become a solicitor.
Besides law, Andrei has a passion for philosophy. In 2022, he represented Romania in the International Philosophy Olympiad was awarded an honorary mention. In his free time, he also enjoys watching football – his favourite team is FC Barcelona.