No more self-pity: Let's do this (Plz give me a TC)

[LillyandSilver]

Intro:
Hello, I'm Lilly. I joined the TCLA at the start of this round of applications and in my head, I was going to have a TC before the cycle was over. I realise now that I was a little bit delusional but I'm a law student, so it comes with the territory.

I realise that it is rather late in the day to be posting this, but idk I didn't feel like I had anything to post about until now and have decided to share my story in case people ever feel like they aren't going to get anything either. Also, I am slacking on my applications at the moment and need something to get me back on track. I do not think for a moment I'm going to be the next legal influencer of the decade but here's to hoping.

Plans for the thread.

• I think I also want to use this thread to share some of the tricks I have learnt. I know my strengths and my weaknesses.
• All the feedback I have ever gotten has said that I interview very well, it is often why after the app stage I can make it to the end. It was why I originally thought to become a barrister.
• I have developed a few hacks throughout my time for this which I thought I would share.
• Throughout this journey, I know that I need to develop my written skills. My downfall has always been the written tests. I'm a slow writer and I like to redraft things or else they are riddled with errors. My feedback confirms it.
• So I hope to share any tips I learn along the way as well.

A bit about me (sans some pesky details).

• I am a master's student at an RG uni. I studied law for my undergrad and got ok grades. It's nothing special but what can you do about it?
• I wanted to go to The Bar up until the end of my third year when I failed to get any mini-pupillages.
• I made two applications at the end of my third year for training contracts. Got offered one and made it to the AC stage for another.
• I ultimately couldn't accept the TC offer. I know this sounds awful but it didn't have a department in the area I was interested in, it was a small firm which would have required me to self-fund the SQE which I couldn't afford and would have required that I take the SQE part-time alongside my masters. It also wouldn't let me defer a year. I have wrestled with this decision over the last few months, thinking about whether this was the right one. I think it was, especially after the mess that happened with the SQE 1 this year but at the same time I really want a job.
• This year I have fully committed to the solicitor route and have picked out a few firms I like the look of.
• I try and only apply to firms where I know they have done at least one famous case in the area of law I am interested in.

Applications:
I have so far made 8 applications
A mix of TC and Vac Scheme. It appears that once I get past the written application I make it to the end and I have more success on the direct TC route where the firm does not have a VS. I put this down to my exhaustive firm research.

I have decided that some of these firms are very niche and it would be very easy to discover who I am from them. So I have assigned them aliases from Suits in italics.

1. Russel Cooke Direct TC - PFO
2. Wakefield Cady TC - PFO post-final stage.
3. Boodle Hatfield VS - PFO (training contract still pending)
4. PMC VS - PFO
5. Bratten Gould TC - PFO post-final interview.
6. Farrer and Co VS - PFO
7. Mills and Reeve VS - PFO
8. Irwin Mitchell - VS - OFFER

Pending:

Wedlake Bell TC: Zero chance of getting this lol.
Withers TC - Not Submitted
Rand Caldor Zane TC - Pending
Pearson Hardman VS - Pending (made a spelling mistake on the application and have cried about it).
Darby International TC - Not submitted.

 

[LillyandSilver]

I'm in my boutique era. 💅
I am expanding my application to smaller specialist firms.
There is method to this madness, I am less likely to have to do those online assessments which I am very bad at. The only time I succeed is when I pick the opposite of how I would actually act.
Stay tuned for another round of applications. Although I might run out of Suits aliases so i'm going to have to get creative with other legal shows.

 

[LillyandSilver]

I really hope the places that I've applied to will let me, secondments I've realised the office I have applied to doesn't do a seat in the area I really want.

 

[LillyandSilver]

I lied about being in my boutique era I just submitted a very rushed application to Wedlake Bell. Don't ask me why I decided it was a good idea. While I was doing it I also realised there is a spelling mistake in the CV of an application I sent in ages ago and am waiting to hear back from. I really wanted that one so this has ruined my entire day. It was a stellar application apart from that so I really am about to cry.