Hey
@YUKI1201,
So in my experience (as a non-law student) firms (and supervisors) tend to presume that you do not have much (if any) legal knowledge. This is firm dependent, but my supervisors were often surprised when I demonstrated any legal knowledge. I have heard of some supervisors being less forgiving and of firms who
do expect some level of legal knowledge from non-law students (e.g., K&E). All this is anecdotal.
I would really recommend Jake Schogger's Training Contract Handbook (if it isn't too late to order)! Other than that though, just knowing your CV and application very well is a great start (as your supervisor/buddy will likely be given your CV to gain an idea of your background and might ask you about it informally). Refresh your knowledge of the firm too if you can and try to do some research around the big deals involving the practice area(s) you are due to sit in as this may help to contextualise the work you do. I found that lawyers often made references to notable/significant recent deals in meetings that I sat in on.
With regards to networking,
@thirdtimelucky has just provided you with some great thoughts on this. I spoke about this a little in
this post, which you might find helpful. My advice really is to be proactive on this and to take advantage of being able to speak with lots of lawyers etc. If you can think about the areas or deals that pique your interest before your scheme (and then you mention this to your supervisor/buddy ahead of the scheme) you
might be put in touch with someone related to this.
I also agree with
@Kubed on speaking with people. Try not to ask questions for the sake of it- lean into your interest and be your authentic self. I found that lawyers appreciated that I had the confidence to be myself rather than trying to be impressive (or just being fake)
