TCLA Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion Thread 2021-22 (#1)

[Rob93]

Anyone know if A&O give any kind of feedback on their SJT?

 

[Jessica Booker]

Hi everyone!

which law firms pay for the LPC retrospectively? if anyone came across any.

Thanks.

The other thing to mention is it might be worthwhile checking with firms where many are transitioning to the SQE and so may no longer see the value in reimbursing the LPC when they are just going to get you to do the SQE anyway.

 

[jd3447]

If we were to invite you to interview what is the issue that you would most like to talk about? And why? This can be a non-legal issue that you would happily discuss with your friends and should be something you genuinely feel passionate about. (300 words max)* ^How are people approaching this question for Mishcon de Reya's application and what kind of topics are you discussing? Would appreciate some examples as I really can't think of anything

I was on the VS and got a TC. I wrote about the new calorie labelling legislation- the impact that I thought this would have socially and economically etc including mental health impacts. Even though it was about legislation i didn’t discuss anything legal, though I did address it from a business perspective. I made sure I chose something that I could link to my personal experiences (volunteering work that I’d done for eating disorder charities etc), and something that I had a genuinely strong opinion on and knew facts about, because as predicted it made up a huge amount of my final interview. At the open day they actually said to us that the more niche your topic is the better, because if you know more about it than the partners you’ll arguably be in a much stronger position at interview!!! I think that definitely worked in my favour personally.

 

[corinium]

This might be a silly question but with the Ashurst VS application, for the question about yourself, your skills, achievements etc (750 words) - should I also mention grades and specific work I did in those modules? Or is it just for co-curriculars etc? thanks!

 

[Badawy]

This might be a silly question but with the Ashurst VS application, for the question about yourself, your skills, achievements etc (750 words) - should I also mention grades and specific work I did in those modules? Or is it just for co-curriculars etc? thanks!

Im assuming they already have a section for you to fill out your grades - in that case, you are right.

you could mention a grade that is exceptionally high / you view as an outstanding achievement. But for the most part I think it’s better to mention extra curriculars / volunteering / hobbies that are unique to you (makes for a more interesting read!)

 

[GXA123]

Hello everyone!

Just wanted to double check is DLA Piper only asking for a CV or a CV and a cover letter?

 

[LEL]

Hello everyone!

Just wanted to double check is DLA Piper only asking for a CV or a CV and a cover letter?

From what I've just seen, they only have a CV and this question in the 'About You' section:

Which business news story has interested you the most in the last 12 months and why? (Maximum 1500 characters / approximately 250 words)

 

[John Travoni]

Does anyone know what BCLP’s application questions are?

 

[OB]

Does anyone know what BCLP’s application questions are?

Please detail any academic awards, positions of responsibilities and/or any interests or hobbies outside of academics and work experience (please list in bullet points).Max 300 words

What do you find attractive about Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner's sectors/departments and which area(s) are you interested in having exposure to in your Training Contract any why? Max 500 words

In your first 3 months as a trainee at BCLP, who would you seek to build relationships with, and what strategies would you implement to ensure that these relationships are long lasting? Max 300 words

Imagine you are a trainee at BCLP and you have been working on a task for an associate in the Finance department. The associate is away and a partner in the department urgently wants a summary note of the research to send to a client, and has asked you to send it to them by tomorrow morning. How would you react? Max 300 words

 

[Jessica Booker]

This might be a silly question but with the Ashurst VS application, for the question about yourself, your skills, achievements etc (750 words) - should I also mention grades and specific work I did in those modules? Or is it just for co-curriculars etc? thanks!

I personally wouldn’t go into modules as it’s not really relevant, and your grades will be elsewhere on your form

 

[hopefullawyer101]

For A&O winter vac scheme question 'Please describe the key learnings/skills you’ve gained through work experience, positions of responsibility, personal experience or extracurricular activities. (250 words),' I am struggling to fit my experiences/skills in. How many skills have people focused on?

 

[hopefullawyer101]

@Jessica Booker For A&O winter vac scheme question 'Please describe the key learnings/skills you’ve gained through work experience, positions of responsibility, personal experience or extracurricular activities. (250 words),' should we focus on a few experiences and what we did/ skills learnt or should it be more of a short paragraph on a greater number of skills?

 

[hopefullawyer101]

Anyone know if A&O give any kind of feedback on their SJT?

Hey how did you approach the skills question? How much did you write for each experience?

 

[Nnu]

hi! has anyone had an interview with Radcliffes leBrasseur?
would appreciate some idea of what it's going to be like!

 

[Rob93]

Hey how did you approach the skills question? How much did you write for each experience?

I chopped it up into four or five skills that I briefly described and demonstrated, then carried those over to how I'd apply them to challenges I'd expect to encounter as a trainee. For work experience the length varied - I've had a lot of jobs and put more emphasis on some and less on others.

 

[John Travoni]

I chopped it up into four or five skills that I briefly described and demonstrated, then carried those over to how I'd apply them to challenges I'd expect to encounter as a trainee. For work experience the length varied - I've had a lot of jobs and put more emphasis on some and less on others.

For 250, that does seem like a lot of skills to speak about and not a lot of words to go into detail with.
I think it’s better to choose 2/3 skills but go more into detail with them because the question is quite specific.

 

[Rob93]

For 250, that does seem like a lot of skills to speak about and not a lot of words to go into detail with.
I think it’s better to choose 2/3 skills but go more into detail with them because the question is quite specific.

Possibly. I took the view that the limited word count was gesturing towards concise communication and fairly sparse details but of course I may have been well off the mark.

 

[ochenz511]

Hi everyone, I'm just wondering if I encounter a 'Introduce us to a topic you know about and explain why it interests you' question, do they only accept or would greatly desire a response around a legal topic? As background — I am a non-law student.

 

[Jessica Booker]

Hi everyone, I'm just wondering if I encounter a 'Introduce us to a topic you know about and explain why it interests you' question, do they only accept or would greatly desire a response around a legal topic? As background — I am a non-law student.

These questions are typically wanting you to chose a topic that interests you - it doesn't have to be related to law at all, and more times than not the stronger answers aren't trying to anticipate what they THINK the firm wants to see, they just answer it honestly on a topic they are truly interested in.

 

[O]

Hi everyone, I am currently working on DLA's application, and although they don't require a cover letter I submitted one last time and made it to the AC. So thought I'd submit one again. I wanted to ask how long a cover letter should be? Mine is about 800 words or 2 pages long with 1.5 line spacing. I've structured it as why law, why dla, why me/how I took the ac feedback positively on board and improved.