General Discussion Thread 2020-21

[S87]

what is the worrying news you are reading?

furloughing staff

 

[TCLA Community Assistant]

furloughing staff

Furloughing staff is a very different consideration to recruiting people.

Article suggests 100 people are being furloughed. That could easily be people who are not working because offices are closed (eg receptionists), or people who have to shield and therefore can’t necessarily work.

I would expect most firms will be furloughing some employees

 

[S87]

Furloughing staff is a very different consideration to recruiting people.

Article suggests 100 people are being furloughed. That could easily be people who are not working because offices are closed (eg receptionists), or people who have to shield and therefore can’t necessarily work.

I would expect most firms will be furloughing some employees

Thank you for clarifying

 

[Jenna]

Do you mind asking when did you receive it?

I applied on 13 Feb and received WG on 15 April! Have not heard back post test yet.

 

[TChopeful2021]

Received a call from Dentons re postponed AC.

Was offered the choice to either partake in a virtual AC for a vac scheme this year (likely to also be virtual over the length of 3-4 days), or have my application deferred and get fast-tracked to an AC early next year.

 

[Andre]

Received a call from Dentons re postponed AC.

Was offered the choice to either partake in a virtual AC for a vac scheme this year (likely to also be virtual over the length of 3-4 days), or have my application deferred and get fast-tracked to an AC early next year.

Did you complete the first interview or is that what you mean by AC?

Edit: I just reread their application process and saw that you do the AC before the vac scheme - must have changed from last year.

I reckon they are prioritising the people for vac scheme prior to assessing people for TC post-1st interview.

 

[TChopeful2021]

Did you complete the first interview or is that what you mean by AC?

I completed the first interview early this year and I'm now referring to the actual assessment centre.

 

[Popal]

I applied on 13 Feb and received WG on 15 April! Have not heard back post test yet.

Same here but did WG back in March. Does anyone know whether Dentons sends everyone the WG or does this mean the application has been assessed and passed onto the next stage?

I agree, I imagine we won’t hear until they’ve sorted out what’s happening with the Vac schemes!

 

[Jenna]

Same here but did WG back in March. Does anyone know whether Dentons sends everyone the WG or does this mean the application has been assessed and passed onto the next stage?

I agree, I imagine we won’t hear until they’ve sorted out what’s happening with the Vac schemes!

I'm sure they review your application and if you meet their initial criteria they then progress you to the WG. Not entirely sure whether they review your WG score along with your application or whether you are automatically invited to telephone interview if you pass the benchmark though.

 

[Alice G]

Hi guys - had a few messages recently asking me a bit about the application process and my experiences with things like the Watson Glaser, vac schemes and interviews, so I just wanted to reshare the link to my 'Ask me anything' thread https://www.thecorporatelawacademy....e-trainee-at-freshfields-anything.2276/page-3

This will hopefully be a central resource for all things application-related since I have only just recently had these experiences so please ask away whilst it is still fresh in my mind! I am keen to answer on here rather than over message just because everyone can then benefit from the responses this way. There is no such thing as a silly question either

 

[TTD20]

Just received a first round interview invite for a direct TC with Withers! Does anyone have any advice for the interview? Thanks!

 

[FutureCity]

Has anyone heard back from dentons? I am reading worrying news

Haven’t heard. What is the worrying news?

 

[Alice G]

Haven’t heard. What is the worrying news?

Think it related to furloughing staff - though this is nothing to worry about necessarily as it is a measure many businesses have taken during this time

 

[FutureCity]

Think it related to furloughing staff - though this is nothing to worry about necessarily as it is a measure many businesses have taken during this time

My prediction is that most firms will go ahead with recruitment this cycle because they have already invested so much and they will eventually need trainees any way.

We may see a dip in recruitment and trainee positions open next cycle.

 

[TCLA Community Assistant]

My prediction is that most firms will go ahead with recruitment this cycle because they have already invested so much and they will eventually need trainees any way.

We may see a dip in recruitment and trainee positions open next cycle.

Doubt it will impact next cycle - by that point they will be recruiting 2023 intakes.

the only way it may impact next cycle is far fewer networking events, open days and the like. There might be some deferrals, but even then they will mainly be for 2020 and 2021 intakes - May mean there are some vacancies taken up by deferrals, but even then the numbers will be a very small fraction of the opportunities available.

 

[ShelleyEds]

@Jessica Booker
Do you think it would be appropriate to talk about Covid 19 if asked for a current news story you are following and its impact on legal firms? Struggling to think of other stories at the moment! Any other suggestions from anyone?

 

[TCLA Community Assistant]

@Jessica Booker
Do you think it would be appropriate to talk about Covid 19 if asked for a current news story you are following and its impact on legal firms? Struggling to think of other stories at the moment! Any other suggestions from anyone?

you can’t talk about Covid generally. It is impacting everything and so it is too big a story to cover in an interview or application. If you do, you will just talk about things very generically, in a predictable/bland/one dimensional way because of the limit you have in time/word counts.

what you should do is find a story that interests you - it could be a particular industry, a particular region/country, a particular impact on law, a particular commodity etc.

I am not really commercially minded, but if it was me coming out of uni, I’d probably pick something like the hospitality industry (because I worked in it), or possible even the oil industry (as my Dad worked in it so I understood it more than others). I might choose something about Data/data Protection, as I had worked in the summer in a marketing department and had to understand this on some level. I might focus on a particular business I had worked for (I worked for a major Brewery/pub chain). I might do something about the tourist industry as I am a keen traveller, or football as I am a massive football fan.

I’d basically play to my strengths or my interests but I would think about whether that story is relevant to the firm I am applying to. The football story would be irrelevant unless the firm has a good sports practice, the oil industry story would be more relevant if the firm is known to work with key oil companies.

If that was now, I’d then explain how Covid-19 is impacting that particular “story”.

 

[Alice G]

On the subject of commercial topics, the virtual interviews we are running for premium members deep-dive into different commercial topics and we are selecting new topics each month so this might be a good way to prepare for these kinds of questions and might offer some inspiration.

 

[D95]

This is going to be slightly off-topic, but... does anybody else find it very hard to focus on applications right now?

Personally, even though I work from home there's not much time that I can use to write applications (I am taking a cheeky coffee break right now) - not only I am actually loaded at work (okay, that I am grateful for - so many of my friends got laid off/furloughed that I really appreciate having a steady job) but also whenever I have some spare time, I cannot bring myself to be productive, TC application wise. It especially sucks since in a few months time it will be 2 years since I graduated from university, so I feel the pressure of getting a TC but equally whenever I try to type answers to app questions, I end up staring blankly at my laptop screen. I do a lot of yoga, I watch The Office (again), I call my grandparents every day, I actually cook a lot - but I physically can't sit down and write applications.

I really cannot find motivation to get on the TC application process.

But if in some (distant) future I will be asked during the interview to say how I spent quarantine, I will be able to proudly say "I learned to do splits again and I also baked some banana bread".

 

[Frank]

This is going to be slightly off-topic, but... does anybody else find it very hard to focus on applications right now?

Personally, even though I work from home there's not much time that I can use to write applications (I am taking a cheeky coffee break right now) - not only I am actually loaded at work (okay, that I am grateful for - so many of my friends got laid off/furloughed that I really appreciate having a steady job) but also whenever I have some spare time, I cannot bring myself to be productive, TC application wise. It especially sucks since in a few months time it will be 2 years since I graduated from university, so I feel the pressure of getting a TC but equally whenever I try to type answers to app questions, I end up staring blankly at my laptop screen. I do a lot of yoga, I watch The Office (again), I call my grandparents every day, I actually cook a lot - but I physically can't sit down and write applications.

I really cannot find motivation to get on the TC application process.

But if in some (distant) future I will be asked during the interview to say how I spent quarantine, I will be able to proudly say "I learned to do splits again and I also baked some banana bread".

Dominika, right now it's incredibly difficult to get a job. Don't despair about that. Focus on the essential first, which is to make yourself more employable.

When it comes to coronavirus, I genuinely agree with you. The way I approach the situation is to accept it and move forward. The more I get crossed, the more I realise that the problem is with me. We can't change anything; the main thing is how to use this time as efficient as possible. The reality is that the time we have right now can be used in a very productive manner. I'm personally preparing for job competitions, following courses on Macroeconomics, analysing fiscal/monetary policies, applying for looking for jobs in Europe and doing FR/IT classes (though currently am doing a traineeship at the EU and read law at uni). Yes, it sucks that I'm doing teleworking; yes, it sucks that I'm supposed to enjoy my time in Brussels; yes, it sucks that I want to go out with friends - but what can I do?

My advice is to enjoy yourself, finds new hobbies. I lived in Rome for a few months.; having lots of spare time now, I can finally cook things I didn't have time for in Italy. When I can be productive, I work as much as I can. When I don't, I try to avoid procrastinating. We're all on the same boat. Take it easy, but don't neglect your priorities. Easy to say but sometimes difficult to do. Hugs from Belgium