Vacation scheme for international students with no graduate visa

[paulzhou99]

Hey everyone!

I just graduated from UCL a while back. Due to certain circumstances beynd my control, I was unable to apply for the graduate visa to replace my student visa on time. I understand that this might be an issue in applying for vacation schemes. Would employers still be willing to consider me for VS schemes? And if not, is there a way for me to make up for this disadvantage?

Best,
Paul

 

[axelbeugre]

Hey everyone!

I just graduated from UCL a while back. Due to certain circumstances beynd my control, I was unable to apply for the graduate visa to replace my student visa on time. I understand that this might be an issue in applying for vacation schemes. Would employers still be willing to consider me for VS schemes? And if not, is there a way for me to make up for this disadvantage?

Best,
Paul

Hey @paulzhou99, I am so sorry for your situation and being an international student myself I can understand the struggle with visa and vacation scheme applications. Unfortunately, I am afraid law firms will not allow you to do any vacation schemes if you do not have a student visa or a right to work in the UK. I found that they are pretty strict about that. What some firms might do, if they really like you, is to move you to a direct training contract process so you might have a chance with that. I would say that this might be more common with firms who recruit a substantial amount of people from their direct training contract application like white & case, weil or dentons. What I would do is to reach out to graduate recruitment of the firms you are interested in and make sure to make them aware of the situation.
Good luck with everything !

 

[Jessica Booker]

Hey everyone!

I just graduated from UCL a while back. Due to certain circumstances beynd my control, I was unable to apply for the graduate visa to replace my student visa on time. I understand that this might be an issue in applying for vacation schemes. Would employers still be willing to consider me for VS schemes? And if not, is there a way for me to make up for this disadvantage?

Best,
Paul

You may want to check to see whether you are eligible for any other form of visa, like a youth mobility visa or a high potential individual visa, as this will give you the right to work in the U.K. for a period of time.