TCLA Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion Thread 2025-26

[arbitrationfan]

Also just a word of advice for all those who will be receiving the Mishcon interview- keep more than the recommended 30-45 minutes aside. Took me over 2 hours! Questions are tailored to your own personal experiences so just make sure you know your employment history/extra curricular activities really well

When did you apply and when did you get the invite? Applied for Spring VS at the start of October and been radio silence so far.

 

[SamiyaJ]

Their application portal is horrible to navigate. Whenever I've completed an application for a firm which uses Candid, they're listed there, but when I applied I did so through the cvmail portal on their website. You got an email from recruitment@cvmail for the assessment? Worried there might be some technical issue for my application not going through lol.

Yup from recruitment@cvmail. They need to sort out all these issues as it’s making me prefer my arch nemesis much more aka Watson Glaser

 

[SamiyaJ]

When did you apply and when did you get the invite? Applied for Spring VS at the start of October and been radio silence so far.

I applied on 29 Sept (opening day) and received invite on 23 Oct

 

[johnsmith]

Their application portal is horrible to navigate. Whenever I've completed an application for a firm which uses Candid, they're listed there, but when I applied I did so through the cvmail portal on their website. You got an email from recruitment@cvmail for the assessment? Worried there might be some technical issue for my application not going through lol.

My VS application doesn’t have their company name against it on CVMail - had me questioning if I even applied!

I’ve yet to receive the assessment yet.

 

[student101!]

Hi guys! I applied to Cleary Gottlieb yesterday - as it is rolling and the deadline for the Vac Scheme is on 31 Oct, I wanted to ask if anyone has applied recently and heard back, or whether this was a lost shot. Thanks

 

[Donna Paulsen]

6, 4, 7 on simmons blended assessment :/

Hey, keep in mind they also weigh the numerical, verbal and video interview equally (according to another comment)! How did you do on those?

I also got a 4 in one of the success areas which I was pretty bummed about. I found it hard to strike a balance between all three areas. I think maybe I just came across as too independent, which probably bumped up my self management score but lowered my people skills score unfortunately.

P.S. 6 and 7 are great scores, and even the 4 is not catastrophic, it’s much better than getting 1 (that’s what I’m telling myself haha)

 

[Jennifer2003]

Invite to Bird and Bird STEM open day! I didn’t realise however that it’s on my birthday but I’m still gonna go 😭

 

[Jennifer2003]

Got 8,7,7 on Simmons test but I think I blew the video interviews - could scores make up for the interview or do we think the interview counts more?

 

[AngelB]

Hey, keep in mind they also weigh the numerical, verbal and video interview equally (according to another comment)! How did you do on those?

I also got a 4 in one of the success areas which I was pretty bummed about. I found it hard to strike a balance between all three areas. I think maybe I just came across as too independent, which probably bumped up my self management score but lowered my people skills score unfortunately.

P.S. 6 and 7 are great scores, and even the 4 is not catastrophic, it’s much better than getting 1 (that’s what I’m telling myself haha)

I got average on the numerical and verbal, did pretty good on the video interviews I thought! I’m expecting a PFO though, amberjack tests are just not my style

 

[johnsmith]

Got 8,7,7 on Simmons test but I think I blew the video interviews - could scores make up for the interview or do we think the interview counts more?

Great score - go you!

 

[johnnysins]

Anybody else faced random disconnections in the middle of the white & case VI? Hopefully my responses were eventually submitted properly

 

[futuretraineeincoming]

Has anyone else had their PW interview? I felt mine went terribly

I still have not heard back from my WVS application! What was it like?

 

[futuretraineeincoming]

Last minute applying to W&C open day. If it says tomorrow as the deadline will that be until 11.59pm 😅

 

[elizabethkate]

My VS application doesn’t have their company name against it on CVMail - had me questioning if I even applied!

I’ve yet to receive the assessment yet.

yeah i have the same but don’t wanna apply again and risk looking stupid

 

[STEM Student]

I'm still waiting to receive the second online assessment for Freshfields summer VS. Should I be worried?

 

[kCbr]

Has anyone heard back from Linklaters about the Winter Vacation Scheme? My application status shows on hold...

 

[Abbie Whitlock]

Last minute applying to W&C open day. If it says tomorrow as the deadline will that be until 11.59pm 😅

Hello!

This is usually the case - however, some firms do close their applications at times such as 5pm, so I’d try to submit it as early as possible!

 

[futuretraineeincoming]

Hello!

This is usually the case - however, some firms do close their applications at times such as 5pm, so I’d try to submit it as early as possible!

Thank you!

 

[WeGotThis!]

Did anyone receive an email confirmation after the VI at W&C?

 

[silonthesofa]

Hey!

That’s a really good question - I’ve found that when a firm doesn’t ask separate “why law, why us, why you” questions, the key is to make your cover letter flow naturally while still touching on those areas.

You don’t need to include a full example for every point - I would focus on depth over breadth. For instance, choose one or two aspects of the firm’s work (e.g. a specific deal, client sector, or initiative) and explain why they genuinely interest you and how they align with your experiences and goals. This shows thoughtful engagement without overwhelming the cover letter with too many points.

When it comes to discussing your skills, I would avoid using the full STAR structure since it can make the letter feel too long. I would instead weave your examples into short, integrated sentences that connect your points seamlessly - e.g. “Through my time at [X], I developed strong attention to detail, which I applied when…”. This is essentially a very short STAR example contained within one sentence!

I’d think of your cover letter as a concise narrative that ties together your motivations with how your skill set makes you a good fit. It will definitely be tricky to include it all within a page, but by making sure all of your points are concise and add value, you should cover everything!

I hope that helps

Hi Abbie,

Thank you so much for your reply!

So would you say I shouldn't mention any deals in the cover letter though? Again, if I had a separate question to expand on it further, I for sure wouldn't because it can be a bit tedious to read, but I'm afraid that without examples, statements that I make about the firm may come off a bit hollow or superficial. Along the lines of your work in life sciences is really interesting, without giving an example of what's interesting or being able to exemplify why.