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Hi all,

Hoping I can get some guidance here as feeling a bit lost - I am considering a career change to law, but obviously given the massive commitment I would rather get some work experience first / do a vacation scheme before I fully make the leap (I have a good career at the moment with good prospects, but am thinking it is not the long term play for me). I am in my late 20s with a 1st degree from a top EU university and already living and working in London. My two questions are mainly: will law firms consider an applicant like myself, who is not a student, for a vacation scheme? Is there a way to tell which ones are open to career changers and which aren't? Also, given constraints on my annual leave, I would only be able to complete a 1 or 2 week scheme during winter. My primary motivation is to genuinely get a feel for the work first, before throwing myself into the TC application process. Any other general advice / horror stories / joyous testimonials from other career switchers also very welcome!

Thanks all

Hello, I am having trouble with a similar options- I am a recent non-law graduate and was planning on commencing the PGDL at UoL Moorgate in Sept, however after doing some more research it seems their MA Law including SQE1 prep course may seem a better option. Essentially this course is a masters that includes the SQE1, would this be a better option than doing the PGDL?? - note that I am quite set on becoming a solicitor also. Thank you

Another thing to note - from UoL’s website it seems that this MA Law with SQE1 consists of the exact same content as a PGDL with SQE1 added on. I believe this course is around £15k however will be eligible for the SF loan up to a certain amount so in my current situation will be cheaper than doing the PGDL.

Hi All,

I just had a query concerning Vac Scheme applications with my first year grades. Just a little context, for A levels I got 4A* and attend a top 10 RG university. For my first year, I averaged at 66 (with 2 firsts, 2 high 2:1s and 2 high 2:2s- one of which was contract). Whilst I am happy with a few of the modules, contract (which is clearly important for commercial law) is clearly a hindrance. Are there any firms I should probably not apply to based on these grades?

Thanks

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Apologies if this type of post comes up often, but I am looking for some advice on my current situation (which I'm sure many others have also experienced!).

I'm a career changer (approaching 30) and I am entering my last year of an accelerated LLB at a non-London based Russell Group uni. I am keen to start this next chapter of my life as a commercial solicitor in London and began applying for direct TC's this past summer, completing 12 applications in total. I have a pretty strong background, having worked in finance, strong extra-curriculars, as well as having achieved a 1st this past year. However, my educational background before this is a little complicated (I can DM information if need be). Despite all of this, I've only gotten PFO's (with some WG invites sprinkled in). I'm still waiting to hear from a few more firms but needless to say I'm panicking that I won't secure a TC for 2024.

I was wondering what my options are if this IS the case and what types of things I can now do to continue to work towards a career as a commercial solicitor. Are there still TC applications open for 2024 start? If not, is it possible to apply for 2025 TC and request an earlier start date? If I apply for vacation schemes for this winter/spring/summer is it possible to turn that into a TC for 2024? Or is it advisable to self-fund the SQE? Otherwise should I apply for paralegal roles? and if so, when?

My biggest concern is time; my partner and I want to start a family as soon as possible therefore I don't necessarily have the luxury of waiting another 2 or 3 cycles to secure a TC, or spending years paralegal-ing (like more traditional students).

I would love to hear if any of you have any advice for the above, or if anyone has been in a similar situation!

@Jessica Booker @Jaysen

Hi,

I am awaiting my GDL results (deferred) and they won't be out til October. I have plans to start the LPC this September. Do I need to have my GDL results before enroling on the LPC course?

Hey everyone!

In case you don’t already know, TCLA has a chat function for our Gold members, where TCLA Community Managers regularly monitor and respond to ongoing discussions.

If you have burning questions about drafting an urgent email to a firm, struggling with an application, waiting for an outcome, deciding between offers or anything else related to securing training contracts - you can now receive live answers to them!

For the upcoming application season, we’re introducing Virtual Office Hours where you can chat with a TCLA staff member real-time in the Gold Chat. Avni’s office hours will take place during 4pm-5pm on Monday and Jessica will be available during 7pm-8pm on Wednesdays.

Through this initiative, we are hoping to engage one-on-one with our Gold members, respond to you on an immediate basis and provide tailored support that you don't have to wait hours, days or weeks for.

We hope you find this feature useful and look forward to seeing you in our Office Hours!

Best,

Avni

Good Afternoon All,

I hope you're all having a brilliant Monday!

I am delighted to announce that we will be hosting a free webinar on Thursday 18th August at 5:30pm: "Live Mock Interview: Learn From A Four Time Offer Holder!"

Live Mock Interview​

The first time we’ve ever run a live mock interview. And it’s a completely free webinar, open to everyone

Have you ever wanted to witness a law firm interview? To learn about the types of questions that law firms ask? To watch a candidate answer those questions in real time?

This Thursday, we’ll be joined by four time offer holder and TCLA Mock Interviewer Chloe Temmerman. She will be interviewing a candidate live, asking questions based on real law firm interviews and providing actionable feedback.

You will come away with an understanding of how to improve the delivery of your interview answers, how to prepare for the hardest law firm interview questions and how to excel in your next law firm interview.

Who is Chloe?​

Chloe graduated from the LSE with a First Class Honours in her law degree. She will be joining Kirkland & Ellis as a trainee in 2023 after completing her LPC.

Chloe received offers from four leading US law firms and had a 100% success rate post interview!

She has delivered hundreds of mock interviews, with many successful candidates going on to secure vacation scheme and training contract offers.

You will...​

• Learn the importance of adopting a clear structure in interview answers
• Gain an insight into approaching foundational interview questions, such as the "3 Whys"
• See an interview situation develop in real time
• Reflect on where your interview technique might be lacking

How to sign up?​

Simply register for free here and you will receive your Zoom link.

I have a question about interviews...​

Ask them in this thread! We'll make sure we pass them onto Chloe to discuss in the session.

We really look forward to seeing you Thursday at 5:30pm

Hi, for the Law and Business element, if one gets the answers wrong for the equations elements, do they not pick up any marks at all? Or do you still get marks for working our or explaining some processes(such as by calculating x you need to identify Y, which in this case based on facts is Z)

Thank you!

Anyone that did the MsC, help a sis out! Ulaw have not been as responsive..

Hi everyone. I was wondering if anyone had heard back from White and Case for the 2024 direct training contract applications. The deadline was July 2022 and I’d like to know if anyone has gotten an email about their application.

Does anyone know if Durham LLB lectures will be recorded this academic year? A friend of mine is studying starting this sept but their international visa might not process in time before the year starts. Would they be able to catch up by watching lecture recordings?

Asking here because the school isn't responding - probably due to high volume of emails Thanks in advance!!

Hi everyone,

I am going to be applying for vacation schemes in a couple of months and I am finding it difficult to narrow down the list of firms I could apply to. I want to work at a commercial law firm in London, and of course these are all very difficult to get vacation schemes with. I really don't want to end up with no vacation schemes at all, as this may mean I'm unsuccessful when applying for training contracts, and I don't know what I'd do then.

I thought that I could approach these applications in a similar way to the way you're advised to apply to universities: I would apply to the firms I would most like to work at, and also to a firm that isn't one of my targets but which is not as competitive to get a vacation scheme with, and which I like well enough that I wouldn't mind working there if it did end up being my only offer.

The issue with this is that I can't figure out which law firms are less competitive, if any; they all seem to be at a level of competitiveness where you're very lucky to get an offer, and there is therefore no possibility of applying to a "backup" choice that you'd be more likely to get into.

Does anyone have any advice on whether the idea of a "backup" is at all applicable to vacation scheme applications? Is there a list showing the percentage of applicants who get offers from each firm, or some way of figuring this out? I would also really appreciate any advice related to narrowing down which firms to apply to!

Thanks in advance

Hey, has anyone heard anything yet?

Hi! I hope you all are doing great! I wanted to discuss my TC application with Eversheds. I applied in June and received a reply which mentioned that they were impressed with the quality of my application.

To be precise this is the message I received :
Dear Melena

Thank you for your application to Eversheds Sutherland (International) LLP. Apologies for the delay in providing an update and thank you for your continued patience.

We have now filled our 2024 Training Contract places following our summer vacation scheme and our internal process for the location that you have applied for and therefore unfortunately won't be progressing your application. However, we were impressed with the quality of your application and would encourage you to apply again next year. We would recommend applying for the vacation scheme as this is when we have the most number of places to fill each year and this will open on 1 October later this year.

We would like to thank you for the interest you have shown in Eversheds Sutherland and hope to see you again in the future.

Kind regards

Emerging Talent Team
Eversheds Sutherland (International) LLP

I would like to know whether that comment was personally written for me or if it's just a general message sent to people who are rejected.

Does anyone know when we will hear back from Travers Direct TC applications?

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