Stephenson Harwood interview

[Jaysen]

When was your Stephenson Harwood interview?

August 2017

What was it for?

Training contract

Please describe the interview process at Stephenson Harwood.

The assessment day started with a presentation, Partner interview, written test, commercial awareness interview, office tour and lunch.

You are given the topic of your presentation in advance and will have a week to prepare for it prior to the assessment day. The Partner will ask many questions on your presentation, followed directly by a Partner interview on competencies and interests. I advice you to spend time on understanding how the topic chosen in the presentation affects the firm.

The written exercise is 1 hour 30 minutes long. It requires you to write a report based on the substantial amount of information provided. Your report then forms the basis for the next interview with a Partner where you will be asked on your rationale behind the advice you gave in the written exercise and a general discussion on the information.

What advice would you give to future applicants for the Stephenson Harwood interview?

Research the firm and make sure that you understand the firm, its culture and the clients that it works for. You will be asked how the firm is different from other firms and how it better can sell itself to its clients. To answer this in an outstanding way, I would suggest that you read the services that the firm provides and learn about the firm culture. Also, you should use the 7 days that you are given to work on your presentation in a clever way. Be creative and think outside of the box. Be concrete and talk clearly. Think carefully about how the topic that you have been given affects Stephenson Harwood. To make your written exercise smooth, make sure that you understand the firm's services quite well. This will allow you to give a more realistic advice.

 

[Jaysen]

When was your Stephenson Harwood interview?

February 2018

What was it for?

Vacation Scheme

Please describe the interview process at Stephenson Harwood.

For the vacation scheme, the process is extremely simple, since there's only one interview with a member of the HR. They do not place as much emphasis on their 'placement scheme' as other firms, so this may explain it.

The firm was truly fantastic - I loved the offices and the atmosphere. They have been working hard to improve their image and I think they are doing a great job.

What advice would you give to future applicants for the Stephenson Harwood interview?

-First round interview: as above, this is the only assessment, meaning it is the only chance candidates have to impress the firm. I was told the interview would last around 40-45 minutes but ended up lasting an hour, so I guess they are flexible if the discussion allows it. By and large, the first 30 minutes ended up being occupied by competency-based questions - these were random and varied. For example, I was asked about a time an idea I put forward was challenged, and what steps I took to defend my position/compromise where necessary. Another example was when I found a new approach to a problem, and how that approach added to solving said problem more easily. As you can see, they try the more difficult/advanced competency based questions, because they do specify more than other firms, at least in my experience, usually do.

-The remaining time was spent on a background 'check', namely a discussion of past experiences, my contributions, why I had picked them up, what I would like to do in the future and so on. The member of the recruitment team asked me what skills I had developed through these experiences and how they were 'transferable', namely how I could apply them to a legal career. She clearly diverged this into a different type of competency questions. On top of this, she touched on the answers I had given in the application form, so do brush up on these.

-I must say, nonetheless, that I felt the interview was very individually-driven. She asked these questions on the basis of my answers and the general feel she had taken from my application form. I heard others had very different interview experiences so do prepare as widely as possible, you only have one interview to prepare for here.

-I was unsuccessful because, according to the feedback, my answers to the competency questions were not as thorough and did not fully answer what was being asked. If there is anything to get out of this, is to be as thorough as possible and stop talking only when you feel you have given a well-structured, persuasive and complete answer.

 

[Jaysen]

When was your Stephenson Harwood interview?

December 2017

What was it for?

Vacation scheme

Please describe the interview process at Stephenson Harwood.

45 mins - hour interview with HR. Pretty structured set of questions, but very friendly interviewers who encourage you to do your best.

What advice would you give to future applicants for the Stephenson Harwood interview?

The questions are mostly standard why law, why commercial law specifically, why SH, a couple of competency ones, a recent SH deal you found interesting, why you picked that degree, why you picked your last career, why you want to change. Be very precise in explaining why commercial law at Stephenson Harwood, but apart from that they seemed interested to get to know you. The fact that I had met one of the HR reps at a law fair previously and had an extended chat definitely helped.