Hi everyone!
When applying for training contracts, I found myself overwhelmed with a lot of information and have tried to put everything in one place. I used Notion to organise my research and my prep for all the different stages. I know that it differs from firm to firm, but I hope this template is useful!
www.notion.so
Research tab - I have prefilled this section with a bunch of questions which you can try to answer when doing research about your target firm, it allowed me to have a good overview of the firm's business, culture and I also kept track of any news which came out from the time I start the application process up until the interview. This is relevant to your written application and any AC/interview. The rest of the tabs are more relevant when your application has progressed to the next stage.
Group assessment - I have not used this tab extensively, but you can use it to record any tips and tricks you find useful. You can also easily replace the title by another if it is relevant to your application (eg video interview).
Commercial question - I prepared a lot for this question, I tried to have a full detailed overview of what each strong department of my target firm was doing, as well as looking into any clients and deals the firm acted on. I also researched all the services the firm offered to clients in these departments so I could really understand what clients were after.
Interview prep - This is arguably one of the most important prep you can do and really involves knowing yourself and your own strengths. I spent a lot of time thinking about the traits which my firm looks after in its trainees and have tried to find at least one example showing that strength. It was then about training myself to phrase my example to answer the question that is asked at the actual interview. Just to give an idea, I did at least 30 min of mock interview each day leading up to my AC to know I could answer the questions on my feet and in a natural way. I used the STAR method and that worked really well for me!
Questions to ask - It is always good to prepare questions for your interviewers that show you have done your research and know what you are talking about. You can start by stating a fact you have researched about the firm before asking a follow-up question for example.
When applying for training contracts, I found myself overwhelmed with a lot of information and have tried to put everything in one place. I used Notion to organise my research and my prep for all the different stages. I know that it differs from firm to firm, but I hope this template is useful!
TC application template - by Viviane B.
Feel free to customise using flaticon.com icons and Indify.co widgets! If you have any question, feel free to email me at [email protected] or on Linkedin! Be careful when changing any of the properties as it may break the whole template! Good luck! (Hint: you can also delete this...
Research tab - I have prefilled this section with a bunch of questions which you can try to answer when doing research about your target firm, it allowed me to have a good overview of the firm's business, culture and I also kept track of any news which came out from the time I start the application process up until the interview. This is relevant to your written application and any AC/interview. The rest of the tabs are more relevant when your application has progressed to the next stage.
Group assessment - I have not used this tab extensively, but you can use it to record any tips and tricks you find useful. You can also easily replace the title by another if it is relevant to your application (eg video interview).
Commercial question - I prepared a lot for this question, I tried to have a full detailed overview of what each strong department of my target firm was doing, as well as looking into any clients and deals the firm acted on. I also researched all the services the firm offered to clients in these departments so I could really understand what clients were after.
Interview prep - This is arguably one of the most important prep you can do and really involves knowing yourself and your own strengths. I spent a lot of time thinking about the traits which my firm looks after in its trainees and have tried to find at least one example showing that strength. It was then about training myself to phrase my example to answer the question that is asked at the actual interview. Just to give an idea, I did at least 30 min of mock interview each day leading up to my AC to know I could answer the questions on my feet and in a natural way. I used the STAR method and that worked really well for me!
Questions to ask - It is always good to prepare questions for your interviewers that show you have done your research and know what you are talking about. You can start by stating a fact you have researched about the firm before asking a follow-up question for example.
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