Urgent - Go to Exeter for Law or take a gap year

[LawbeginnerSeptember2025]

Hi,

I am a student who has just finished their A levels and is due to start at the University of Exeter in September 2025. My intention career wise is to become an intellectual property lawyer in Australia, as I lived there for some time. I’m debating taking a gap year and reapplying due to job prospects and ability to get a training contact. Can anyone with accurate insight or experience give me an idea of the likelihood of me getting a training contract at this university if I’m putting the utmost effort into my studies, societies, work experience etc.

My ACHIEVED A level grades are:
A* - Welsh Baccalaureate
A* - Criminology
A - Biology
A - English Literature

And my GCSE grades are:
English Language - A (8)
Physics - A
Chemistry - A
Engineering- A
Religious Studies - A
Business Studies- A
Maths (Higher) - B (7)
Biology - B

I like the city of Exeter and the campus and would very much like to start law next month but my understanding of what to apply for in my first year and of insight schemes, vacation schemes, training contact and what to do in my first year are very limited. Would I be better suited taking a gap year and applying to Oxford while increasing my understanding of what I’d have to do in my first year?

Thank you for your time and consideration an advice or general information would be highly appreciated.

 

[Jaysen]

Welcome to the forum!

Exeter is a great university. If you're thinking about taking a gap year just to understand more about the process, I wouldn't worry too much. Most people don't learn about vacation schemes and training contracts until at least their first year at university, if not a lot later. This guide should give you an early starting point.

It looks like you secured excellent grades at GCSE and A Level. This is more than enough to get a training contract at any of the most competitive law firms. I'd keep in mind that university is a fairly big jump (alongside starting a new degree and often living away from family for the first time), so it is okay to prioritise adjusting to university without falling behind on the law firm process. I'd focus on making sure you keep up the great momentum with your grades in your first year.

Once you join, a good place to start is to join your law society, where they will arrange events from law firms to introduce you to the profession. You'll then be able to learn a lot more about when to apply for first year schemes. You can see many of them last year closed a fair bit later in the year here.

 

[LawbeginnerSeptember2025]

Welcome to the forum!

Exeter is a great university. If you're thinking about taking a gap year just to understand more about the process, I wouldn't worry too much. Most people don't learn about vacation schemes and training contracts until at least their first year at university, if not a lot later. This guide should give you an early starting point.

It looks like you secured excellent grades at GCSE and A Level. This is more than enough to get a training contract at any of the most competitive law firms. I'd keep in mind that university is a fairly big jump (alongside starting a new degree and often living away from family for the first time), so it is okay to prioritise adjusting to university without falling behind on the law firm process. I'd focus on making sure you keep up the great momentum with your grades in your first year.

Once you join, a good place to start is to join your law society, where they will arrange events from law firms to introduce you to the profession. You'll then be able to learn a lot more about when to apply for first year schemes. You can see many of them last year closed a fair bit later in the year here.

Hi thank you so much for you reply the information is very useful. Do you know where I can find a list for the first year schemes for this year? Also what sort of stuff would I need to do / add for a higher chance of getting into a first year scheme as I’m unsure how they work and how competitive they are. For example I’ve done work with a barrister at the welsh parliament and at a legal clinic for employment and benefit law, is that sort of thing relevant to include? Any general information anyone can give me would be much appreciated thanks. Also any advice of what to do before the start of my course next month, which would be especially useful from anyone who has studied or is studying law at Exeter. Does anyone have any advice of what specifically is needed to get a first each year, as in what can be done specifically to separate from getting a 2:1 versus a first. Thank you for your time and consideration.

 

[User138756]

Hi! There is an actively updated thread on the forum with a list of all the firms that have opened their first year schemes / open days this year, which you can find here https://www.thecorporatelawacademy....ay-and-insight-scheme-deadlines-2025-26.9737/. As with all law schemes, first year schemes can be highly competitive - this notwithstanding, you are in a very strong position with your academic profile and your work experience.

Your legal work experience is highly relevant and definitely something to include in your applications! Typically, an application form will have a section for work experience, where you list your experiences along with a description of your role. My advice for this would be to link all the tasks that you completed to a specific skill that the firm are looking for (such as teamwork, organisation and time management - these will usually be listed on their website).

In terms of studying Law, or at Exeter, I am afraid that I can't help as I am a non-law student. However, as Jaysen has highlighted, it is a big transition from A-Level studies to university that can often take time to adjust to. I would definitely suggest prioritising your academic work over the law firm application process to begin with. I personally was unaware of first year schemes in my first year, meaning I did not complete any, but was still able to successfully apply to vacation schemes the following year.

Nonetheless, if you do have some spare time, there are a few things that you can do or think about that I think would help you with the application process. The first would be to look into the role of a commercial lawyer, specifically a trainee. There are lots of useful online resources to help with this - some firms provide blogs or videos, and there are posts on forms such as these, as well as vlogs on YouTube posted by trainees. It is important to understand what the job entails so that you are able to effectively link the relevant skills in your applications and explain your motivation.

Following on from this, it would be useful to think about your motivations for law, or specifically, commercial law. This is often a question where people come unstuck due to vague answers, and is probably the most frequently asked question either on application forms or in interviews. This needs to be something personal to you!

I hope this helps, and best of luck with your first year.