TCLA Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion Thread 2024-25

[TortillaTC]

I can’t believe I’m writing this but I managed to convert my 2nd VS into a TC offer! In addition, I converted both of my DTC ACs into TC offers, meaning I now hold 4 US firm TC offers! 😅

At the beginning of this application cycle, I did not think I had what it takes to secure a single TC, mainly because I come from a lower socio-economic, working-class background. 🥲

To anybody who comes from a background like mine, I hope me sharing my journey over these past 6-7 months on the forum, has inspired and encouraged you to chase your dreams! 😅

I will be posting a breakdown of my entire cycle as well as some useful tips I learned along the way shortly. I now have the very difficult decision to make of choosing which TC offer to accept. 🫠

Thank you to everyone on this forum for all the support and guidance, I appreciate you! I also want to thank @Amma Usman, @Andrei Radu and @Ram Sabaratnam for their insights! 🐐​

That’s truly inspiring and very well deserved!! Enjoy the fruit of your hard work and choose well, not that you can go wrong from here

 

[zonnonomo]

I can’t believe I’m writing this but I managed to convert my 2nd VS into a TC offer! In addition, I converted both of my DTC ACs into TC offers, meaning I now hold 4 US firm TC offers! 😅

At the beginning of this application cycle, I did not think I had what it takes to secure a single TC, mainly because I come from a lower socio-economic, working-class background. 🥲

To anybody who comes from a background like mine, I hope me sharing my journey over these past 6-7 months on the forum, has inspired and encouraged you to chase your dreams! 😅

I will be posting a breakdown of my entire cycle as well as some useful tips I learned along the way shortly. I now have the very difficult decision to make of choosing which TC offer to accept. 🫠

Thank you to everyone on this forum for all the support and guidance, I appreciate you! I also want to thank @Amma Usman, @Andrei Radu and @Ram Sabaratnam for their insights! 🐐​

YES!!!!!!! mythical chris knocks it out of the park yet again

 

[Amma Usman]

I am an international student that graduated from uni in London in 2023. Following graduation, I secured a Tier 4 Graduate Visa, which would allow me to work in the UK without sponsorship. However, I had no job lined up and moved back to my home country and secured a job there. I just got the graduate visa so that I would be able to secure vac schemes and attend them without any sort of restrictions. 2yrs later and still no vac scheme, and my grad visa is due to expire in nov 2025.

Since I have worked a full-time job at an international firm for the past 9 months, I'm in a much better position to apply for paralegal roles, but am now faced with the issue of my expiring visa. I will also not be able to apply for vac schemes this cycle as i wouldnt be able to attend any as I would not have a valid visa.
Has anyone faced a similar experience, and managed to secure a direct TC? That seems to be my only option to get a sponsored visa. Or, does anyone know of firms that sponsor visas for paralegals? I havent seem to come across this much tbh

Any advice anyone might have would be much appreciated!

Hi! Thanks so much for sharing your situation - I really empathise, as I know how hard the process can be given these considerations.

You're absolutely right that most paralegal roles aren’t eligible for visa sponsorship. I think that this is mainly due to salary thresholds, as many paralegal roles fall short of this, especially in smaller firms. Another issue is employer reluctance. Employers may often be hesitant to sponsor for short-term or junior roles like paralegal positions because of the administrative burden and costs involved, especially when they have domestic candidates available.

That said, there are exceptions. A few larger firms, may consider sponsorship for paralegal roles, especially where the role is long-term or the candidate has exceptional experience. However, these are the exception, not the norm - and often, the candidate was already known to the firm.

So you’re right to start thinking about direct training contract applications as your most realistic route. It might be worth targeting firms known to sponsor international applicants. You can check their graduate recruitment pages and look for statements like “we sponsor international applicants” or “we accept applications from those requiring visa sponsorship.” You could also consider applying this cycle (though I appreciate many firms have closed their applications by now, there should probably be a few open), even if your visa expires in November 2025. Since many firms recruit one to two years in advance, a training contract offer could be timed to begin around or just after that expiry. Reaching out directly to recruitment teams to clarify their sponsorship policies for paralegal roles could help as well.

In the meantime, you might want to consider legal operations or compliance roles, which sometimes have more flexibility around sponsorship. Lastly, don’t underestimate your nine months at an international firm - that’s very valuable experience. You can frame it as evidence that you're already working at the standard required of a TC candidate.

You’re not alone in this. Others have walked this path and made it through with a direct TC offer. It’s tougher, but not impossible, and you’re clearly already doing your research and putting in the work.

 

[Amma Usman]

I can’t believe I’m writing this but I managed to convert my 2nd VS into a TC offer! In addition, I converted both of my DTC ACs into TC offers, meaning I now hold 4 US firm TC offers! 😅

At the beginning of this application cycle, I did not think I had what it takes to secure a single TC, mainly because I come from a lower socio-economic, working-class background. 🥲

To anybody who comes from a background like mine, I hope me sharing my journey over these past 6-7 months on the forum, has inspired and encouraged you to chase your dreams! 😅

I will be posting a breakdown of my entire cycle as well as some useful tips I learned along the way shortly. I now have the very difficult decision to make of choosing which TC offer to accept. 🫠

Thank you to everyone on this forum for all the support and guidance, I appreciate you! I also want to thank @Amma Usman, @Andrei Radu and @Ram Sabaratnam for their insights! 🐐​

Huge congratulations Chris! Very well deserved

 

[EA95]

I can’t believe I’m writing this but I managed to convert my 2nd VS into a TC offer! In addition, I converted both of my DTC ACs into TC offers, meaning I now hold 4 US firm TC offers! 😅

At the beginning of this application cycle, I did not think I had what it takes to secure a single TC, mainly because I come from a lower socio-economic, working-class background. 🥲

To anybody who comes from a background like mine, I hope me sharing my journey over these past 6-7 months on the forum, has inspired and encouraged you to chase your dreams! 😅

I will be posting a breakdown of my entire cycle as well as some useful tips I learned along the way shortly. I now have the very difficult decision to make of choosing which TC offer to accept. 🫠

Thank you to everyone on this forum for all the support and guidance, I appreciate you! I also want to thank @Amma Usman, @Andrei Radu and @Ram Sabaratnam for their insights! 🐐​

Congratulations man, really inspiring.

 

[EA95]

I have a bit of a dilemma here guys, I have received an assessment as part of the DTC for a firm, and it includes a video interview. I am normally horrible with all types of assessments, but the video assessment is something I feel I’m extremely rubbish at. Can anyone give me pointers in how to succeed at them?

 

[rlw123]

Hi all has anyone been on a reserve list for a direct TC? Was wondering how likely it is to come off that list and get a spot for a TC

 

[trainee4u]

I have a bit of a dilemma here guys, I have received an assessment as part of the DTC for a firm, and it includes a video interview. I am normally horrible with all types of assessments, but the video assessment is something I feel I’m extremely rubbish at. Can anyone give me pointers in how to succeed at them?

I don't think there's too much you can do in the short term if you really suck, but you can definitely improve in the longer term.

I am in the same boat - I've been told that my interviews, both video and in person, are terrible (paraphrasing slightly). There's something to be done - practise with AI, say (i think you can use vanilla ChatGPT or there are commercial tools), which will improve your skills.

Apart from that there is STAR, which is the standard way of answering interview questions.

In addition, there are different standard questions you can practise before the time - why do you want to work here, what makes us different from our competitors. There's potentially a question about a commercial awareness issue affecting their clients which you could prepare for. Also things like "how do you work in a team", but obviously diminishing returns the more questions you prepare as beyond the "what attracts you about this role" (which is like a 70-80% chance), the others won't necessarily come up.

 

[SamiyaJ]

Anyone who does well on the WG, can you please PM me? Thank you!

 

[Chris Brown]

Huge congratulations!! That’s incredible news and v well deserved

That’s truly inspiring and very well deserved!! Enjoy the fruit of your hard work and choose well, not that you can go wrong from here

YES!!!!!!! mythical chris knocks it out of the park yet again

Huge congratulations Chris! Very well deserved

Congratulations man, really inspiring.

Thank you guys for your kind words! It means a lot to me genuinely! 😅​

 

[otw2atc]

Received a call from a partner today offering me a TC at my dream firm 🥹

I’m a career changer and my advice to anyone still waiting: don’t give up, keep going and never forget it all pays off in the end. Best of luck to you all.

 

[tinkerbell89]

Did anyone complete the Pinsent Masons (Dubai) AC for their gateway programme?

hi, how long did it take for you to hear back after their online blended assessment?

 

[Innocent]

I can’t believe I’m writing this but I managed to convert my 2nd VS into a TC offer! In addition, I converted both of my DTC ACs into TC offers, meaning I now hold 4 US firm TC offers! 😅

At the beginning of this application cycle, I did not think I had what it takes to secure a single TC, mainly because I come from a lower socio-economic, working-class background. 🥲

To anybody who comes from a background like mine, I hope me sharing my journey over these past 6-7 months on the forum, has inspired and encouraged you to chase your dreams! 😅

I will be posting a breakdown of my entire cycle as well as some useful tips I learned along the way shortly. I now have the very difficult decision to make of choosing which TC offer to accept. 🫠

Thank you to everyone on this forum for all the support and guidance, I appreciate you! I also want to thank @Amma Usman, @Andrei Radu and @Ram Sabaratnam for their insights! 🐐​

Hi Chris, congratulations. I find your story really inspiring. How do I DM you to learn how you approached the cycle that's coming to an end? Mine was a failure.

 

[Jaysen]

I can’t believe I’m writing this but I managed to convert my 2nd VS into a TC offer! In addition, I converted both of my DTC ACs into TC offers, meaning I now hold 4 US firm TC offers! 😅

At the beginning of this application cycle, I did not think I had what it takes to secure a single TC, mainly because I come from a lower socio-economic, working-class background. 🥲

To anybody who comes from a background like mine, I hope me sharing my journey over these past 6-7 months on the forum, has inspired and encouraged you to chase your dreams! 😅

I will be posting a breakdown of my entire cycle as well as some useful tips I learned along the way shortly. I now have the very difficult decision to make of choosing which TC offer to accept. 🫠

Thank you to everyone on this forum for all the support and guidance, I appreciate you! I also want to thank @Amma Usman, @Andrei Radu and @Ram Sabaratnam for their insights! 🐐​

This is amazing. Well done you!

 

[Jaysen]

I had the news a little while back now but I am so happy to share that I've secured a training contract! ✨ For so long, this felt so far out of reach for me. I'm not embarrassed to say it's taken me 7 cycles of applications to get here. I really hope that sharing this gives other members out there some hope to keep going and keep chasing their dreams. Big thanks for all the support on this forum and to everyone who has answered all my silly questions! The journey to securing a TC can be a very lonely one but I've really appreciated how friendly so many of the TCLA members have been to me.

 

[Jaysen]

I have a bit of a dilemma here guys, I have received an assessment as part of the DTC for a firm, and it includes a video interview. I am normally horrible with all types of assessments, but the video assessment is something I feel I’m extremely rubbish at. Can anyone give me pointers in how to succeed at them?

With video interviews, I find the best way to get better is to practise. Ideally, you want to get as many reps in as you can of answering questions under timed conditions, until the countdown/question type doesn't really phase you.

Have you tried our video interview simulator?

@Amma Usman has just added about 100 new questions & tips to this.

 

[VC]

Hi, do firms call you for rejections after a VC or do they send out an email?

 

[legallyblonde7542]

Hi, do firms call you for rejections after a VC or do they send out an email?

Usually email

 

[trainee4u]

I've also been sent the invite! It's delivered by a platform called 'Saville Assessment Oasys' and if you go on their website they do have a couple of practice questions- not many but it gives you a feel for them

I received some feedback from this - apparently I scored 99th percentile, and beyond the time limit, which is 3 minutes for 4 questions, there is actually a speed score - I scored 8/10.

This implies that beyond getting all the questions correct, which I must assume I did, it's also a good idea to answer the questions quickly.

 

[trainee4u]

I got feedback from a firm on my interview performance, which I found helpful - it was essentially two key points: for the "use your experience" type of question it is essential to be specific and use STAR. Talking too generally is a fail.

Secondly for most of the other questions it was necessary to be much more analytical.

For example, the question was "how does a law firm make money?".

I said a law firm makes money by billing out time and needs to ensure that its lawyers have work, that there's traditionally a 3x billing approach, that law firms are businesses with a sales function driven by partners.

This is fine, but needed more thought - e.g., the specific firm traditionally dealt with landed gentry but identifies new opportunities in the market with international clients, tech entrepreneurs, etc opening up new offices, etc. and then the relationships between those offices. Also things like relationships between departments - private wealth work can lead to employment and IP work from the same client. Similarly there are lots of costs for a firm that don't generate revenue, e.g., HR, providing perks to lawyers, offering free lunches to get people into the office, but they are necessary expenditure.

Similarly "how would you approach dealing with 100 documents to review in 2 hours given that no-one can help you" - bad answer: "I'd just do it". Better answer - look at the structure of the document, are they all the same apart from key clauses? Are there tables of contents, can you use things like ctrl+f to help expedite the process; you'd use AI but how?

Also "a client complains" - weak answer: apologise, make it right. Better answer: check first. Client is often wrong.

"You've finished a task but then get told it needs to be redone due to a client request and also have lots of other deadlines. Weak answer: "Just do it, i love work me". Better answer: identify how you actually prioritise and respond to changing priorities.