TCLA Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion Thread 2025-26

[maylawwww]

milbank ac !
relatedly- when vac schemes clash what are firms’ general response for moving to a scheme later in the year? I know this will vary firm to firm but does anyone have any idea?

 

[Assessment Account]

Hi,

For Sidley Austin's work experience section, it only allows a maximum of four work experiences to be filled. I wonder if it’s better to list all four legal work experiences, or is it more recommended to fill in the four most recent or substantial work experiences?

In most cases, it is best to prioritise your four most relevant and substantial legal experiences, rather than simply the four most recent roles. This means selecting experiences that best demonstrate:

exposure to high-quality legal work;
responsibility, analytical skills, or client interaction; and
alignment with Sidley’s practice areas or international profile.

If your most recent roles are also your strongest, then recency and relevance will naturally coincide. However, if an older role was materially more substantive or better evidences your suitability for Sidley, it is entirely appropriate to include it instead of a more recent but lighter-touch experience.

I'd also add one non-legal experience if it was particularly interesting or carries several transferable skills.

In short: quality, relevance, and impact should guide your selection, not chronology alone.

Hope this helps!

 

[1stCycleApplicant]

Congrats! For spring or summer?

Spring. Traditional Track.

 

[Amgrad]

Spring. Traditional Track.

I applied for summer, Lev finance track, fingers crossed

 

[Assessment Account]

If your written application was successful in the last cycle and the questions are the same, can you submit same application but with a few changes?

Yes, you can submit an application that is largely similar if the questions are unchanged, but I'd recommend making meaningful updates rather than resubmitting it verbatim.

Firms expect returning applicants to demonstrate reflection and progression since the last cycle. At a minimum, you should:

• refine answers for clarity and concision;
• update examples to reflect any new experience, skills, or responsibilities; and
• sharpen your commercial and firm-specific reasoning where possible.

That being said, most firms (to my knowledge) don't keep your application on file and therefore are unlikely to catch you out if you do copy and paste last year's answer

Hope this helps!

 

[londonlawyer]

Does anyone know if Paul Hastings VS leads to a TC? I feel like I remember reading somewhere that you still have to apply separately if you attend their VS...

 

[Harvey Specter]

Thank you for confirming for us Harvey!! Hope your VI went well!!

Tbh it was awful lmao. That’s gotta be a straight up automatic PFO. I was nervous asf but idk how they are gna assess the responses. 😬​

 

[abhuzaifa02]

Bakers VI - any insights would be much appreciated 🙏 🙏

Hi @Sharkfin

My advice is not specific to Bakers video interview (VI) however, you may find it helpful for VIs more generally.

By way of context, I struggled a lot with VIs and it was probably the stage that I found the most difficult to overcome (even more than assessment centres).

For me, improving in VIs came down to three key things:

• Create a question bank – Create a list of questions including situational, competency, and motivational and practise these regularly. This will allow you to develop confidence in speaking about your personal/ work experiences. This will also prepare you for VIs for almost every firm and also assist you in preparing for assessment centres.
• Focus on delivery – VIs are timed so there is only so much you can talk about. What will set you apart is being clear, natural, and structured in your response. Do not memorise answers (I made this mistake). Rather, get comfortable talking about your experiences in different ways. The more naturally it comes out, the more easily your personality will shine.
• Practice, practice, practice – Leading on from point [2], it is uncomfortable and awkward speaking to a screen. To overcome this, simply open your camera and just start recording yourself answering questions. Watch these back and note where you can improve. This is probably the one step that helped me the most.

Hope the above helps and good luck with your Bakers VI. 👍

 

[spongebob]

I applied for summer, Lev finance track, fingers crossed

When did you do your second stage assessment?

 

[DavidJC]

I thought Milbank was non-rolling, grats to the AC invitees! 🥳

 

[Amgrad]

When did you do your second stage assessment?

1st 24/10, 2nd 30/10

 

[abhuzaifa02]

congrats!! Me too!! Looking for any insights

Hi @futuretraineeihope

Feel free to have a look at the below link for advice in relation to VIs more generally – it may be useful for your Bakers VI.

TCLA Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion Thread 2025-26

milbank ac ! relatedly- when vac schemes clash what are firms’ general response for moving to a scheme later in the year? I know this will vary firm to firm but does anyone have any idea?

www.thecorporatelawacademy.com

Good luck! 👍

 

[elle woods]

Tbh it was awful lmao. That’s gotta be a straight up automatic PFO. I was nervous asf but idk how they are gna assess the responses. 😬​

😭😭 noo don’t say that I’m sure it’ll be okay

 

[Dannie]

Has anyone heard from Cleary after applying post Nov 10? Like a WG or PFO

 

[Trophy]

I did Milbank stage 1 assessment 19 days ago with no stage 2 invite aha very irritated.

 

[abhuzaifa02]

Anyone else here able to get top-notch work experiences outside all these vac schemes? I managed to basically get in everywhere else like in house in bigtech/fintechs etc but I haven't been able to get a single vac scheme... wondering if that's something that's maybe off putting to law firms?

Hi @LawAspirer

I definitely do not think that the work experiences you have listed is off putting to law firms.

During my vacation scheme, I met candidates with experiences ranging from simple retail roles (like myself) to work experiences in tech start-ups, banks and other large corporations. Therefore, I believe it is very unlikely that your work experiences itself is preventing you from getting a vacation scheme.

Instead, I would reflect upon how you are potentially framing your experiences throughout your applications and interviews. Are you properly tailoring your experiences to your interest for each firm and commercial law more widely? Are you correctly using your experiences to demonstrate alignment with the skills required of a trainee solicitor at a particular firm?

A simple shift in the way you sell your experience can genuinely take you from receiving rejections to receiving a yes.

Feel free to reach out via DM - hope the above helps!

 

[Bree]

Did HL stage 1, feel like I bombed it, anyone knows how long they take?

 

[futuretraineeihope]

Hi @futuretraineeihope

Feel free to have a look at the below link for advice in relation to VIs more generally – may be useful for your Bakers VI.

TCLA Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion Thread 2025-26

milbank ac ! relatedly- when vac schemes clash what are firms’ general response for moving to a scheme later in the year? I know this will vary firm to firm but does anyone have any idea?

www.thecorporatelawacademy.com

Good luck! 👍

Thanks sm!!!

 

[ananyasalecha]

milbank ac !
relatedly- when vac schemes clash what are firms’ general response for moving to a scheme later in the year? I know this will vary firm to firm but does anyone have any idea?

summer or spring?

 

[spongebob]

I did Milbank stage 1 assessment 19 days ago with no stage 2 invite aha very irritated.

Same heree