Help with writing a cover letter for a non-law student

[CharlieP]

Hi everyone, I am a second-year non-law (PPE) student, and I am looking for help with writing vac scheme applications, specifically questions relating to Why law?

Now, the struggle I am having with this question is that my interest in a career in law only properly developed in September, so I do not have much relevant history with law. I know that this is not too major of an issue, and I know mentally why I want to work in law; however, I am struggling with putting these thoughts onto paper. I am curious what other people in my situation have put to show why law and any advice in general of ways to phrase my interest would be much appreciated.

Any help would be much appreciated.

 

[J53]

I was in the same situation as you last year and I think the best advice I can give is to get yourself involved in law, I don't just mean shadowing whoever or hanging out with some family friend but try and get involved in the actual work if you can.

One of the main points of feedback from my unsuccessful MC interview last year was that I did not show anywhere near as much passion for law as I did my extra curriculars. I had done a bit of work experience in law (mostly shadowing contacts) but I couldn't naturally articulate why law, the reasons I gave looked solid written down, but my tonality was stilted and looking back I did not believe what I was saying and my interviewers could tell. Having done my GDL for the last few months, and really enjoyed the content and the problem solving that makes up the bulk of the course, I reckon I can now answer that question authentically and thus much better as I can showcase a genuine love for it.

My advice would be to get hands on with law in any way possible. Even if that is finding past papers online, skimming the relevant law, and solving problem questions, that would cover a lot of the skills that every lawyer has and you can see whether you truly enjoy it.

Any questions let me know.

 

[axelbeugre]

I was in the same situation as you last year and I think the best advice I can give is to get yourself involved in law, I don't just mean shadowing whoever or hanging out with some family friend but try and get involved in the actual work if you can.

One of the main points of feedback from my unsuccessful MC interview last year was that I did not show anywhere near as much passion for law as I did my extra curriculars. I had done a bit of work experience in law (mostly shadowing contacts) but I couldn't naturally articulate why law, the reasons I gave looked solid written down, but my tonality was stilted and looking back I did not believe what I was saying and my interviewers could tell. Having done my GDL for the last few months, and really enjoyed the content and the problem solving that makes up the bulk of the course, I reckon I can now answer that question authentically and thus much better as I can showcase a genuine love for it.

My advice would be to get hands on with law in any way possible. Even if that is finding past papers online, skimming the relevant law, and solving problem questions, that would cover a lot of the skills that every lawyer has and you can see whether you truly enjoy it.

Any questions let me know.

Those are great advice @jameshdrew, thanks for sharing, I am sure they will be useful to many!

 

[axelbeugre]

Hi everyone, I am a second-year non-law (PPE) student, and I am looking for help with writing vac scheme applications, specifically questions relating to Why law?

Now, the struggle I am having with this question is that my interest in a career in law only properly developed in September, so I do not have much relevant history with law. I know that this is not too major of an issue, and I know mentally why I want to work in law; however, I am struggling with putting these thoughts onto paper. I am curious what other people in my situation have put to show why law and any advice in general of ways to phrase my interest would be much appreciated.

Any help would be much appreciated.

As a non-law student myself when I was applying last year I found it really hard to explain my interest in the law and make it come off as genuine. However, I found out that expressing your real reasoning as to why you want to become a lawyer is what works best. I usually said this: ''I want to become a commercial lawyer because I want to empower businesses and help them achieve their goals. In 2017, I helped my mother set up her social impact enterprise that educates children about the cultures and traditions of African countries, operating in both Ivory Coast and Italy. Through researching the Italian and Ivorian legal systems’ approaches to contract law, specifically stakeholder agreements, I witnessed first-hand how the law affects individuals and businesses''. A lot of law firms were very impressed by this genuine answer and during interviews it was so nice to just talk about the real reason, so maybe try to find your true reason and express that.

I hope my example helps (it used to be the start of my why law answer for every application) and good luck with the process.

 

[prospectiveswitcher]

Non-law grad who is a career changer here - best advice is just be honest and genuine. It doesn't have to be a moving, passionate diatribe, which is the angle a lot of people seem to go for. I had experiences where I'd worked on projects alongside lawyers/with a legal basis to these projects, and I just said I quite enjoyed these and the work they entailed. I was never really queried on this and had a few successful interviews.