I have received feedback about not being concise in delivering my answers in interview multiple times. Does anyone have any advice in how to improve this? Thanks
-
Hey Guest, Have an interview coming up? We’ve opened new mock interview slots this week. Book here
-
TCLA Premium: Now half price (£30/month). Applications, interviews, commercial awareness + 700+ examples.Join →
TCLA Direct Training Contract Applications Discussion Thread 2025-26
- Thread starter Ram Sabaratnam
- Start date
Anyone else on the Perkins Coie call? Did they mention whether the vac scheme gives opportunities to become a LBA?
Hey I asked this question the other day, the vac scheme itself doesn’t provide the opportunity to convert/become an LBA.
+ FYI, they don’t sponsor visa either.. you must have the right to work for the LBA.
Does anyone have any insights into the Mayer Brown online test/VI? I can give insights into a few other firms. Any advice is welcome!
It took 24 hours for mine. Got it an hour ago and I got attention to detail and adaptable as my highest scoring traits and drive as lowest.
Shoosmiths second-stage online test invite for DTC. Is this automatic? Applied on deadline day.
yeah same here, i can register again so i tried and it pushed me to do the test again so i closed it, i hope they got the results because no way i am going through that again, but also lowkey freaking out because no confirmation, nothing
the email said it would take a few days to get the feedback and if they mention it in capital letters I am assuming it's soemthing many people have mentioned to them before.
So it's probably normal not have received it yet if we did it yesterday evening
Further to this, how do Shoosmiths decides who goes to the AC for a DTC? Is it via the online assessment? Or the application form? I’m confused what this all means, the email said “congratulations on reaching the second stage” but it’s just the test stage.
I got drive as my lowest scoring as well. Ngl, that stung a bit especially when that couldn’t be further from the truth and I completed my first Hyrox solo race this past weekend.
not sure how they decide but the online test is automatic, think they take both your application and online assessment into account
The test is automatic.
According to their website, they allocate a minimum score to each aspect of the application section:
Scores are allotted to your application based on your responses throughout the application form and to the competency questions. All candidates must achieve the minimum academic requirements and a minimum criteria score on the competency questions to be invited to the next stage of the process. By assessing the application in this way, we are able to look at the whole you, without focusing on simply one part of your history.
Minimum requirements of the role of a trainee solicitor at Shoosmiths, demonstrated throughout the application process, including:
- achieving a minimum score on the competency questions
- achieving a minimum overall application form score
- achieving a minimum score on the strengths-based assessment
Hello!
This is a really common piece of feedback, and something I definitely struggled with during my first couple of interviews. However, it is definitely fixable with a bit of structure and practice!
A big part of being concise is having a clear structure in your head before you start speaking. For most answers, I would try to think in a simple framework such as: point -> example -> result. You almost want to lead with your conclusion first (so that it is clear what you are discussing), rather than building up to it. For example, instead of talking around an experience and hoping the point becomes clear, I would start with the key message and then briefly support it - for example, "I developed my ability to manage competing deadlines during my internship at X, where I...".
It can also really help to limit yourself to one strong example per question. It might be that your answers become longer as you are trying to include lots of information - I can totally understand why, as it might be that a few of your experiences fit the question, but one well-explained example is almost always more effective than three rushed ones.
Additionally, I would aim for answers that are around 60-90 seconds in length. When practising, it helps to actually time yourself with a stopwatch and see how long you are taking. It can definitely feel slightly unnatural at first, but it quickly builds an internal sense of what "concise enough" sounds like, and you'll often realise when you are talking for too long.
You might also find it useful to signpost your answer as you - even something simple such as "there are two main things I took from this experience..." helps keep you focused and reassures the interviewer that your answer is structured and concise. However, I would be cautious of doing this with video interviews unless you are able to practice first, as it might be that you run out of time and are unable to make the final point you wanted to make.
Finally, I would try to avoid being afraid to stop once you have made your point. In my experience, I kept talking during interviews as the silence made me uncomfortable and I felt a need to fill it, but in interviews, clarity is much more important than filling space for the sake of it.
If you can, I would really recommend recording yourself answering some of the more common questions, as it is one of the fastest ways to spot where you are over-explaining or going off track. This is something that you can improve really quickly with practice, so try not to worry too much about it!
The more cycles I go through the longer these tests are taking. The HL one and the Ashurst one combined took me probably around 5 hours. It's getting ridiculous.
They say you should be able to compelte them in 60 mins. Maybe true for Ashurst if I dont spend too long on the ambiguous questions, but certainlyyyyyyy not for HL....
They say you should be able to compelte them in 60 mins. Maybe true for Ashurst if I dont spend too long on the ambiguous questions, but certainlyyyyyyy not for HL....
Similar threads
- Sticky
