Vacation scheme and training contract applications

[Jaysen]

Question 1: How do I tailor my application to a law firm? Specifically, the 'Why are you applying to this firm?' question. Most law firms seem to say the same thing.
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When it came to answering this question in my first round of applications, I used language like "multi-jurisdictional" and "innovative" and "an impressive range of clients".​

Those applications were rejected.

As a word of warning, if you find yourself describing a law firm in a way that could be applied to a number of other law firms, chances are it's too generic.

I know first-hand that tailoring an application is difficult because firms – despite saying they’re all different – often describe themselves in the same way.

So here is what I then did to find out what made a firm different:

Step 1. Research

I’d copy/paste all the relevant information I found about a firm into a word document. These are the sources I used:

Starting point

• Chambers Student Guide: Useful to get a sense of what the firm is like from an internal and external perspective. It provides a useful overview of the firm, any recent developments or achievements, and an insight into the firm's biggest practice areas.
• Roll on Friday: The profiles for the ‘firm of the year’ can be a very useful – and informal – outline.
  
• Lex 100/Legal Cheek: Can be a helpful insight into the culture of the firm.

Deals/awards/strategies

• The Lawyer: Useful for profiles, recent developments within the firm and insights into a recent deal. I’d usually go back 3-4 years if I found lots of information, sometimes even more. (Note, this is less useful now as much of the content has been moved behind a paywall).
• Legal Week: You should get access to 5 free articles or the opportunity to try a free trial (14 days). Good information on deals, lateral moves, firm strategy and international plans.
• Firm’s website: The graduate page will give you a sense of what the firm is looking for in candidates. It may also discuss the training programme, secondments and the kind of work you'll be doing. The main website is useful for finding out about any awards, recent deals or new investments.

Practice areas

• Legal 500 and Chambers and Partners: Useful for an insight into a firm’s strongest practice areas and how it compares to competitors – check the top tiers.

Step 2: Condense

After compiling the information, I would split my screen with the material on one side and a fresh word document opened up on the other side (alternatively you can print out the research document). I would then condense the information in my own words.

By doing this, you’ll not only come out with a useful file containing firm-specific information, but you’ll also start to pick up themes, remember facts and really understand the firm. This will be very handy when it comes to the interview.

Step 3: Sorting into themes

I would then group the topics into themes. Some of the ways a firm may differ include:

• International reach - presence in the US/Asia/Europe/Africa
• Practice area strengths
• Culture
• Financials - Size/profits per equity partner/growth
• Important deals
• Clients
• Management structure or management change
• Partner promotions
• Leadership strategy
• Recent mergers
• Training or development
• Lateral moves and recent partnership moves
• Growth (internal and external)
• Recent profit figures
• Innovation
• Mergers
• Brand reputation
• Trainee retention
• Technology
• Alternative service delivery - offshoring/nearshoring
• Size of intake
• Competitors

Step 4: Writing your answer

By this point, I would have a better understanding of the firm. I would pick one of the themes/areas above that interested me and then write down a few sentences (there may be a couple of points here) about why it did.

Once I completed a few, I would have a sense of what makes Firm X different from Firm Y and how it sits against its competitors.

 

[Jaysen]

Question 2: I'm having trouble giving a good answer to the question "why do you want to be a commercial lawyer". I know that should be a given and I do have ideas but I just struggle to put it into words. Do you have any advice?
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I don't think you're alone in this. It's reasonably easy to give an answer to the question, just not easy to give a good one.

The best answers I read come across as genuine answers. They go beyond the typical "I am interested in law and business" by explaining why it interests them.

Sometimes it takes a bit of digging to get to that answer. If I'm speaking with someone on Skype or in person, I might ask them a series of questions to try to get to the bottom of it. In each case, I'd tell them to speak as honestly as possible (and then we can work on the appropriate phrasing later).

These questions might include:

• Why did you want to study law (if you did a law degree)? Or, why did you want to study your degree subject?
• Why commercial law instead of say, criminal law?
• Why be a lawyer instead of an investment banker?
• What type of work do you find interesting?
• What do you find motivates you?
• What matters to you in a career?
• Do you have any legal work experience? If so, what did you like? What did you dislike?

It's worth trying to answer these questions honestly rather than trying to deliver it as an interview answer. Even if money or prestige might factor into it. You then have some very raw answers, which you can link up together. It's also personal, so others won't an answer quite like yours. That's refreshing.

 

[Jaysen]

Question 3: Do you have any advice for the cover letter?​

I would usually go for a structure like this:

1. (1 paragraph) Brief introduction stating what I'm applying for (vac scheme/training contract) at X firm and what stage I'm at (e.g. third year at university).
2. (2 paragraphs) Why I'm interested in the firm (I would sometimes tie in why commercial law here too)
3. (1-2 paragraphs) My work experience, extra-curricular activities and positions of responsibility
4. (1 paragraph) I conclude with a few sentences to tie things up.

Your answer doesn't have to follow the same structure or order but you should have a structure. Try to be concise, use simple language and make it easy to read.

Finally, some applications have both a cover letter and an application form. In that case, I would say your cover letter should only cover what you haven't discussed in your application form. For example, if you were asked "why are you applying to this firm?" and "tell me about your positions of responsibility/extracurricular activities" in your application form, then you might want to focus on why commercial law, work experience and any other skills or achievements in your cover letter.

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[Jaysen]

Question 4: Due to mitigating circumstances, my A Level grades weren't very good and I only got BCC (but I did go on to get a first at uni). I'm worried that I won't stand a chance applying to the silver circle/magic circle/US law firms?
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Well done on the first. As you have mitigating circumstances, your GCSE/A Levels shouldn’t be a stumbling block, just make sure you note it on your application form.

I would also consider speaking to graduate recruitment before you send off your applications. Often it helps if you have the opportunity to explain your situation first and they can advise you on the best steps forward.

 

[Jaysen]

Question 5: How important are uni grades at top firms? I didn't do so well in my first year, but looking at LinkedIn, I see trainees with first class grades and A* at A-Level.
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It’s a barrier, but it’s not detrimental. Grades are just one factor of many in an application. Sure, at some firms they may have more weight, but even then you should be able to make up for it if the rest of your application is good (unless they are far from what is expected).

I’d suggest avoiding LinkedIn profiles. The candidates with top grades are more likely to list them on their profile. A friend of mine got a third in his first year and starts at Linklaters in September, but he’s not going to be posting those grades on LinkedIn.

 

[Jaysen]

Question 6: Is there anything you would have done differently when it comes to the application process?
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I didn’t want to go into corporate/commercial law until late into my second year of uni so that left me with little time to prepare and very little confidence (when everyone else seemed to have completed first-year schemes/knew what they were doing etc.). It took me a long time to believe I could get into a good corporate law firm and I spent way too much time being hard on myself.

I wish I realised sooner that you can get better at applications/interviews/schemes by practice. That much like learning to play an instrument or working out, it’s going to be tough in the beginning but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible - you can get good at it like any skill. Back then, I had this idea in my head that if I performed poorly in a group exercise or an interview then that was it - I was just bad at those things, rather than thinking it was a good opportunity to learn.

And something a bit more concrete: I would have saved applications to certain firms until a bit later after I had some time to practice. That came back to bite me for a few when I couldn’t re-apply in the same cycle despite having a significantly better application. Still, I'm not sure that's always something you can plan.

 

[Jaysen]

Question 7: I'm finding it really hard to deal with rejections. Do you have any advice?
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When I first started writing applications, they weren’t very good and I got lots of rejections. I was ecstatic to get my first telephone interview only to stumble on the final question: ‘what are the advantages and disadvantages of interest rates going up?’. I was rejected a few hours later by an automated email. That sucked.

I managed to get a few interviews and assessment centres with mid-sized firms that round. I assumed they’d be easier, but I was proven wrong quickly. Ironically, my hardest ever interview – including silver circle/magic circle and US law firms – ended up being at one of these firms.

After a string of rejections, I was starting to give up hope. A few days later I received an interview invite from the last firm I’d applied to, minutes before the deadline on the 31st January. That was one I’d written off (I had realised shortly after applying that I had spelt the name of the firm wrong throughout my application form!). I’m still not sure why I got that interview.

Fast forward a bit, that interview became my first vacation scheme and my first training contract offer. Battling through more rejections helped me get my second scheme, then my third and then my fourth.

Rejection is tough. Writing an application is exhausting. It means hours of drafting, editing and proof-reading. And the more you’ve tailored your application, the more you’ve invested in a law firm. It gets worse the further you go: a rejection after an interview hurts; a rejection after a vacation scheme feels like a confirmation that you aren’t good enough.

But time spent isn’t time wasted. As you write more applications you get better. You pick up typos, revise sentences and dig deeper into your interest in law. With more interviews, you become more confident, better able to understand how firms differ and more familiar with the business world.

One of my favourite examples is a student of mine who had really poor first-year grades. He worked exceptionally hard, went to events and honed his application technique, but two years went by and he kept getting rejected without an interview. That third year was going to be his last before he packed it in.

He starts the LPC in September as a future trainee at Linklaters.

 

[Jaysen]

Question 8: How do you research a law firm's strategy?
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This was a question I recently received over email. Below is my answer.

I used to use The Lawyer to research a firm's strategy before an interview. Unfortunately, now the content is under a paywall.

As an alternative, I believe Legal Week is still offering free trials. If you can get a free trial on there, it's a fantastic resource for all the latest information about a firm. If not, you will have to stick with the firm's website. Head over to their press releases and try to filter your search queries so you can find strategic information.

 

[Jaysen]

Question 9: Can you think of anything interesting questions to ask the partner at the end of the interview?
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I used to ask two types of questions. The first would be an "intelligent-sounding" question. This would always be tailored to the firm -- typically about the law firm's strategy, after reading the legal press/their website. The second would always be a more personal question, typically about why an interviewer likes working at the firm (which is invariably always because of the people at firm).