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Does anyone know is there a minimum threshold (of how many questions to answer correctly) in order to pass a Reasoning/Psychometric test?

Hi all!

Is anyone starting their PGDL this September? Thought I'd start a little thread for support. I haven't confirmed my place yet as I'm still figuring out whether to accept the on campus place or online.

Anyone who made it to HSF's AC? If successful, how long did it take to get a response back?

My friend has written the petition below for increased student finance for the next academic year. She needs five signatures for the petition to go live. I would really appreciate it if people would sign as a 2.8% increase in finance next year puts a lot of people, including me, in a scary position.

Increase the Maintenance Loan and Master's Loan by 10.1% for 2023/24

From April 2023, both benefits and the state pension will increase by 10.1% - in line with inflation. In contrast, SFE has only increased the maintenance loan provision and the postgraduate loan by 2.8%. This is estimated by Save the Student to leave students £1500 worse off a year.

With housing, food and bills all costing the average student significantly more, one in four students has taken on new debt to fix the widening chasm between their income and expenses. Whilst the government has dedicated additional funds to hardship funding, universities are overwhelmed with demand for support (see https://www.theguardian.com/educati...tudent-hardship-funds-in-face-of-soaring-need). Survival should not be the sole focus at university.

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Click this link to sign the petition:
https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/634042/sponsors/new?token=pbdRYDryDd0meymGNp5P

Hi all,

I was just wondering if anyone knew the latest date that you can start the SQE LLM if you have a TC commencing in 2025? Does this largely vary across firms?

I don't even have a TC yet but just planning ahead for if (fingers crossed) I am able to get one would really love to take a year out if possible. Thanks in advance for any input.

Hello, I am unsure if my chances of getting a TC with a SC or city law firm in London is out of the question.

I will complete my GDL this year and it is most likely that I will graduate with a low or mid 2:1.

However, I did graduate with a 1st in civil engineering from a RG university and have over 10 years' experience in construction litigation/arbitration. I am currently working as an engineering consultant assisting on live projects or disputes.

I have researched a lot of law firms, and while some do state that they want a strong 2:1, most say minimum requirement is 2:1.

That said, do you think my potential low 2:1 will be frowned upon by the recruiter and be passed over by other candidates with better law grades.

This thread is for the general discussion of the Article British Business Bank's goal to become the UK's sovereign wealth fund. Please add to the discussion here.

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This thread is for the general discussion of the Article Mini Series: Business of Law Firms - ABSs yet to overtake law firm profitability. Please add to the discussion here.

Hi all, I don't post very often and honestly this post is quite difficult for me - apologies for the negativities in this post!

I am feeling so demotivated recently and it's really affecting my confidence. This is my second cycle, although there have been huge improvements compared to my first cycle, I still can't help but feel so hopeless in the process of securing a TC. Last year I did not get past the app stage at all, I did not even get test invites (if non-automatic). But this year I made it past a few first-stage screenings and managed to secure two ACs. I know this is very positive and suggests improvements in my applications, but I completed my first AC two weeks ago and don't think it went well. I have not heard back yet but I am fairly certain it's gonna be a PFO. I have my second AC on Friday but am just currently feeling so discouraged and finding it hard to focus on prepping for that AC. I feel like I worked so hard to finally get past the app stage but am now stuck at the AC stage. I know I shouldn't compare but seeing so many people on this forum just absolutely nailing every interview makes me doubt if I am smart enough to do this... A TC just seems so out of reach, I don't really know how to find motivation anymore but at the same time I feel like I have to pull myself back up, as my other AC is in a few days.

I would really appreciate any advice. I know most people with TCs have received a lot of rejections, but I still can't help but feel discouraged. Again I am very sorry for the negativities in this post - I just really needed to rant. Thank you for reading and for any advice!

Hi everyone,

I'm a second year student at UCL doing a humanities subject, and I'm slightly worried about some of my module grades. My first year average was a first, with some high firsts but also a 59. This year I had a rough term 1, albeit with some mitigating circumstances, ending up with one 57 and a 65 average. I have strong A-Levels and decent results in essay competitions. My concern, then, is being auto-rejected on VCs for those two 2.2 marks. Top firms have so many applicants that this sounds at least plausible to me.

Do you think I should be worried in general? And do any firms spring to mind that may auto-reject on these grounds?

Thanks!

Hi guys! Does anybody have any tips re. AC at Freshfields - re. the written exercise, types of questions at the general and commercial awareness interview, etc.? Any insight will be useful!

Hi all,

I'm a UK student coming towards the end of the third year of my Law degree at Cambridge; I'm predicted to be on the borderline between a high 2:1 and a First. Ultimately, I'm looking to work towards getting a TC at a commercial law firm in London.
Unfortunately, I haven't got any training contracts lined up - none of my applications this year were successful, and the sum total of my legal work experience is a two-week vacation scheme at Sidley Austin last year.

I've been considering my options following graduation, and there are a couple of questions which come to mind (on which I'd really appreciate whatever advice anyone has!)

1. Do you think it's worth self-funding the SQE/LPC, or would it be better getting work experience (as, say, a paralegal), and then using that to get a TC through which I won't have to fund the SQE/LPC? I'm not entirely sure whether being a paralegal (without first doing the SQE/LPC) would be viable given my relative lack of work experience; on the flipside, I'm not sure whether doing the SQE/LPC really progresses me that far along the road to a TC - I suppose what I'm trying to ask is what do you think would be the most productive way to spend the year post-graduation (i.e. what course of action do you think is least likely to result in a wasted year?) - would self-funding the SQE/LPC basically just be spending a lot of money for something with not much added value?

2. What do you think is the better option between the SQE and the LPC? I know there's been a lot of criticism levelled at the SQE; I'm not sure what the trade-off is between, on one hand, the relatively tried-and-tested nature of the LPC (combined with the potentially conservative attitudes of some people making hiring decisions at law firms), and on the other, the fact that the LPC is gradually being phased out, and so the SQE may well become the increasingly better option over the next few years (I believe that @Jessica Booker has placed at a lot of emphasis on the latter!), perhaps leaving the LPC to become more and more obsolete in the eyes of law firms.

Any advice would be really gratefully appreciated - thank you so much!

Hi all.

I have been success in reaching the final stage of the TC process and I've been invited to a partner interview with Fieldfisher.

I have been told the interview with focus on:
Self-awareness
Integrity
Analytical skills
Communication skills
Questions designed around Fieldfisher values
And scenario based commercial questions

They advised me to review my application so I am prepared to talk about my attributes and strengths.

Fieldfisher are huge on Tech, Medical negligence, Cyber stuff and Life Science so I have been reading about things in this area.

I am a bit intimidated because I come from a personal injury background so being commercially aware isn't my strong point. Aside from:

1. Preparing questions from the 250 TCLA TC page
2. Reading news in the areas aforementioned above
3. Reading about the solicitors code of conduct
4. Researching the firm (like each department and what they do)

How can I prepare for commercial based scenario questions? I've never done something like that before, so I'm nervous.

Thank you!

anyone still waiting to hear back from mishcon after the video interview?

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Hello all!
I wanted to ask if anyone here has had any experience with applying to Kingsley Napley's summer work experience opportunity. I know this post is a bit late and I'm cutting it a bit close seeing as the deadline for applications is in 2 days, but I wanted to see if I could get any last-minute advice or tips to write up a strong application.

I also wanted to ask if anyone has any advice for approaching questions that inquire about cases that the firm has done and the relevancy of an current issue to the firm. Any and all help would be appreciated!

Thank you so much

Hello,

Have any of you enrolled in the online MA Law (SQE1) with the University of Law? If so, what are your thoughts on the course?

I would like to add that I am aware of the fact that completing a qualifying law degree or a conversion law course is no longer a regulatory requirement by the SRA. However, some firms still expect trainees to have completed a qualifying law degree or a law conversion course prior to taking the SQE.

Thanks.

For anybody that's completed a seat in Project Finance as part of a vacation scheme, would they have any tips on areas of law to brush up on, prior to my Spring scheme?

I am going over contract law, bit by bit, refreshing my memory. Any other suggestions would be welcome!

How soon after the VI/ how much before the AC evaluation, do you get to know the result?

Did anyone else face any serious technical difficulties during the application and VI this year?

I recently took the baker mckenzie VI which I think went above average well. I was able to answer all qs but got cut off at the end by the timer and couldn't follow star in all qs. However, I think there is a glitch in their system because I received an email stating application accepted and for a duplicate application right after i submitted my video interview. They were sweet enough to immediately respond and say my application was still under process. Did anyone else face this?

How long after the VI/ how soon before the AC do u get to know?

Those who are lpc grads and are law/gdl grads that have done the SQE 2 exams or are currently doing the prep course (particularly at Uni of Law), how have you found the course in general in terms of difficulty?

And is worth doing the full SQE course due to legal knowledge needed from the core areas that the scenarios for the SQE2 exam are based on (I.e. Criminal, Land, Wills etc) despite being exempt or is the SQE 2 prep course just needed?

And are there any revisions guides like lpc buddy or law answered that you can get for the SQE?

Haven’t seen much feedback out there re SQE 2 so any advice would be much appreciated.

Hi everyone!

My name is Natasha - I am a Product Lead at TCLA and future trainee.

With the assessment centre season in full swing and with you wanting to prepare for group exercises and case studies, we want you to practice using your analysis skills, develop your commercial awareness and build on one another’s ideas (like you would do in a group exercise).

To develop this set of skills, we have picked a BBC article regarding how Bard AI has struggled to compete with ChatGPT (which you can find by clicking this hyperlink: Google's Bard AI bot mistake wipes $100bn off shares - BBC News). Given how current the topic of AI such as ChatGPT is at the moment (and with many of us having played around with ChatGPT!), we chose this article to help you develop more knowledge about this trend as it may be asked or you may wish to discuss it at interview.

I encourage you to give it a go even if you find this exercise tricky (this sort of practice is what will ultimately help you improve and feel more at ease with these kinds of questions).

To help you, we have set out 4 questions for you to answer, which should act as a framework for your response.

1. Summarise the article in 2 sentences (this is a useful skill to practice, as many case study interviews or interviews surrounding an article begin by asking you to summarise the key points).

2. Can you think of any other companies that have been trying to catch up with ChatGPT?

3. What could be the advantages and disadvantages of ChatGPT?

4. From a legal standpoint, what practice areas might be affected by this trend? How might law firms be able to advise clients in light of this trend?

The aim of this exercise is to help broaden and develop your ability to examine a real-life commercial trend from both a legal and commercial perspective and be able to present and articulate your analysis.

Here’s the twist: in this exercise, you will work together and build on one another’s ideas. In your responses, provide a reflection on the comment of one of the other contributors to this forum thread. (Please note, the first poster does not need to do this).

As a TCLA community, we can learn so much from one another and practice exchanging our ideas with one another. Receptiveness to and the ability to build on others' ideas is a key skill recruiters look for during the interview and group exercise.

Everyone who participates to this thread will receive personalised feedback regarding their response from a member of the TCLA team by next week

Looking forward to reading everyone’s thoughts!