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

[TCLA Community Assistant]

for the 'why the firm' section in my cover letter for e.g. NRF, what sorts of things are typically looked upon well to write about (are references to high profile deals looked at favourably)? thanks!

Deal dropping only works if it is relevant to you and your application. In short, if you are deal dropping to try and impress in the cover letter - don’t do it. If it is tangible evidence that has influenced your motivation, then deal drop but explain why that is the case.

 

[gg332dd]

Is there a trick to answering questions like "What are your main spare time interests?" -- am I supposed to talk about how my skills relate back to the qualities the firm is looking for? My spare time interests don't really involve any 'position of responsibility or anything like that, e.g I was going to talk about art/painting but it doesn't make me very sellable

 

[TCLA Community Assistant]

Is there a trick to answering questions like "What are your main spare time interests?" -- am I supposed to talk about how my skills relate back to the qualities the firm is looking for? My spare time interests don't really involve any 'position of responsibility or anything like that, e.g I was going to talk about art/painting but it doesn't make me very sellable

There is no need to link it back to skills the firm is looking for - they would have asked this if it was something they wanted.

Do you have any extra curricular activities outside of art/painting?

 

[gg332dd]

There is no need to link it back to skills the firm is looking for - they would have asked this if it was something they wanted.

Do you have any extra curricular activities outside of art/painting?

I used to volunteer at this charity twice a week but now work full time so no longer doing this, so not sure if appropriate to mention it. Other than that, I do some bouldering, hiking etc. -- but its nothing sellable like being a team captain haha

 

[TCLA Community Assistant]

I used to volunteer at this charity twice a week but now work full time so no longer doing this, so not sure if appropriate to mention it. Other than that, I do some bouldering, hiking etc. -- but its nothing sellable like being a team captain haha

Yes - that should be mentioned. It doesn’t need to be a team captain - just any evidence of effort/time/energy dedicated to matters that you will not just benefit from ware things to include.

 

[gg332dd]

Yes - that should be mentioned. It doesn’t need to be a team captain - just any evidence of effort/time/energy dedicated to matters that you will not just benefit from ware things to include.

Okay that makes sense, thanks so much Jessica!

 

[KSI]

OMG did anyone else apply to Taylor Wessing? I am panicking because I am just logging into the application portal and saw the status on my app which says 'Invited to GBA' however I searched everywhere and saw no email or any communications whatsoever from Grad rec regarding any invitation to this. Should I email Grad rec?

 

[Phoenix for all]

Clyde AC!!

Clyde AC! Does anyone have any tips?

Hey I have an AC with Clyde this week. The confirmation email said we should have access to the TopScore system 72h in advance but I still haven't received the login...wonder if you have received a TopScore login yet?

 

[James Carrabino]

Does anybody have advice for how to do better on the assumptions and inferences part of the WG? The internet is giving me general advice for the whole test but i think these two sections specifically I struggle with.

I have given some of my thoughts on this in this thread: https://www.thecorporatelawacademy.com/forum/threads/watson-glaser-hints-and-tips.4328/

I agree that the inferences part of the WG can be quite ambiguous at times! Practice is really the key to feeling more comfortable with the Watson Glaser test.

 

[ZaraB]

OMG did anyone else apply to Taylor Wessing? I am panicking because I am just logging into the application portal and saw the status on my app which says 'Invited to GBA' however I searched everywhere and saw no email or any communications whatsoever from Grad rec regarding any invitation to this. Should I email Grad rec?

Hiya! You should have gotten an email from the test provider - last year when i applied i remember i didn’t get a confirmation from grad rec but i did get a link from the test provider forwarded to my email

 

[John Travoni]

@Jessica Booker I could really use your help on this question.
How would you answer this question -Based on an activity that you do everyday, what technological advances would you add to it make it more efficient?

I’m really stuck on this one. Any help would be really appreciated.

 

[ELaw2021]

I've read that Simmons & Simmons' AC includes an inbox exercise, case study exercise and competency interview. Am I correct in thinking this suggests there won't be the typical why Simmons, why law, etc. questions?

 

[TCLA Community Assistant]

I've read that Simmons & Simmons' AC includes an inbox exercise, case study exercise and competency interview. Am I correct in thinking this suggests there won't be the typical why Simmons, why law, etc. questions?

A competency interview could include those type of questions.

 

[TCLA Community Assistant]

@Jessica Booker I could really use your help on this question.
How would you answer this question -Based on an activity that you do everyday, what technological advances would you add to it make it more efficient?

I’m really stuck on this one. Any help would be really appreciated.

I wouldn’t overthink the question. It’s just trying to assess your innovative thinking without you having to have a previous example/evidence of this.

Just think of any activity people do day to day and think about how that could be improved (saves time or energy/makes something more enjoyable etc) with the use of technology. I’d just check there isn’t something already in the market that is your idea.

 

[OreoShake]

OMG did anyone else apply to Taylor Wessing? I am panicking because I am just logging into the application portal and saw the status on my app which says 'Invited to GBA' however I searched everywhere and saw no email or any communications whatsoever from Grad rec regarding any invitation to this. Should I email Grad rec?

I just checked my portal and it says the same thing. And I've never received an email... maybe I should email grad rec tomorrow morning.

 

[John Doe]

Hi guys,

I am applying to Reed Smith and there is only one question "Please provide us with any additional information that you would like to share about yourself, including your main activities or interests outside of study or work-life and for example any awards or personal achievements"

I was wondering if you would include also your qualities and skills for example "My entrepreneurial attitude and social activism have been instrumental to create commercial awareness workshops for my BAME colleagues and start working on my music/legal start-up etc.."

Thank you for your help.

Hello, not sure if someone else has replied to you? I'm by no means a professional but I have the impression that this Q as with many other strengths-based Qs tends to focus more on you as a person, i.e. your character which is demonstrable through your non-academic commitments. So workshops and start-ups are a great place to start, though I'd make sure to emphasise that these are not just a one-off. I'd also make sure that I'm presenting myself as widely as possible, not just dwelling on one specific quality.

You can think about other long-term commitments like language learning, sports, ECAs, and positions of responsibility if applicable.

Personally, I'm still learning to do strengths-based Qs/personal interests Qs because there is probably no one definite way to answering them and they are all quite personal. I'd also like to invite others to comment as well if there are resources/guides on these types of questions or if you have ideas about how to approach etc.!

 

[S87]

Hello, not sure if someone else has replied to you? I'm by no means a professional but I have the impression that this Q as with many other strengths-based Qs tends to focus more on you as a person, i.e. your character which is demonstrable through your non-academic commitments. So workshops and start-ups are a great place to start, though I'd make sure to emphasise that these are not just a one-off. I'd also make sure that I'm presenting myself as widely as possible, not just dwelling on one specific quality.

You can think about other long-term commitments like language learning, sports, ECAs, and positions of responsibility if applicable.

Personally, I'm still learning to do strengths-based Qs/personal interests Qs because there is probably no one definite way of answering them and they are all quite personal. I'd also like to invite others to comment as well if there are resources/guides on these types of questions or if you have ideas about how to approach etc.!

Thank you very much for your help.

I actually changed my whole approach to this question and included as much as possible to show my full personality through my achievements and interests.

 

[James Carrabino]

Does anyone have any success stories of people with poor A levels securing TCs? I got ABC and all my other academics are strong (gcses, undergrad and postgrad) but I still feel like they hold me back - advice????

I've heard stories of people with A Levels lower than that securing TCs at great firms. With some firms it may well hold you back, but many recruit holistically and mitigating circumstances will be taken into account, along with the fact that candidates will make up for lower grades with strong experiences elsewhere. Firms are increasingly considering applications as a whole and it is much less common nowadays that an application will be immediately rejected due to grades.

Also, I would think that academic performance at university is significantly more important than A Levels. A Levels are a long time ago for most candidates and they come at a difficult time developmentally for many people - in the US where I did my undergrad, a candidate will never be asked about their school performance in any application (except their initial university application). This is partly because there are no standardised exams such as A Levels in the US but there is also a sense that by that point it has become irrelevant.

Obviously a lot of law firms in the UK do ask for A Levels but you are not way off the AAB/ABB guidelines set by many firms so I think that if you can show how you are able to make up for your grades with other experiences, you should have as good a chance as anyone.

I would also make the comment that it is hard to know whether your A Levels are really holding you back - I received many a post-app rejection despite having high A Level grades. Definitely don't give up just because you receive some rejections and assume its down to A Levels! You can't change your A Levels now so instead take the approach that you are going to constantly re-assess how to improve every other aspect of your application. I am sure that with perseverance (it's not easy for anyone) you will start finding success

 

[James Carrabino]

I've read that Simmons & Simmons' AC includes an inbox exercise, case study exercise and competency interview. Am I correct in thinking this suggests there won't be the typical why Simmons, why law, etc. questions?

I think the 'why law', 'why commercial law' and 'why this firm' questions are fair game in absolutely any interview. What you won't expect to find here is a commercial interview, a case study interview, an article interview, a presentation, or an interview that really digs in really deep to your motivations (eg why solicitor not barrister or banker etc). I hope that helps

 

[James Carrabino]

Hi guys,

I am applying to Reed Smith and there is only one question "Please provide us with any additional information that you would like to share about yourself, including your main activities or interests outside of study or work-life and for example any awards or personal achievements"

I was wondering if you would include also your qualities and skills for example "My entrepreneurial attitude and social activism have been instrumental to create commercial awareness workshops for my BAME colleagues and start working on my music/legal start-up etc.."

Thank you for your help.

Those sound to me like great examples for the question at hand!

Now let's reconsider how you would frame them in your answer to make them as impactful as possible First of all, what is a music/legal start-up or do you have two start-ups? This needs an explanation as it sounds awesome (especially to me given my own musical background) but I have no idea what it entails at the moment! Your commercial awareness workshops for BAME colleagues also sound excellent, but the reader of your application won't know what exactly you did, what the workshops were about, whether anyone attended etc.

Furthermore, your start-ups and the workshops seem to be completely unrelated topics so I would not try and mention them in the same sentence. You won't be able to anyway once you elaborate on each one to really highlight how you were involved and why they are so impressive.

I know you were just giving an example here and that you will spend ample time polishing your answer before submitting, but having read a range of TCLA members' applications myself as a member of the application review team, I have seen many applications that try to cram too much information into the word count and end up not explaining the relevant points adequately.

I hope that this is a useful insight into how to approach application answers!