TCLA Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion Thread 2021-22 (#1)

[Rob93]

Has anyone who completed the Weil VI in mid-late December / early Jan heard back yet:

Green Tick - AC offer
Cross Mark - Rejection post-VI
Like - No news

Thank you.

My VI was 2 Jan and have heard nothing since. From posts here, lead time on AC invites after VI seems to have been 1-2 weeks but that might be different if they've got loads of applications from the last week to get through right now.

 

[Donuttime]

On this basis, if your profile hasn't been updated yet, could this be a good sign? Perhaps I'm clutching at straws 😂😂

Yes potentially.

If your app has been updated im guessing they have already re-viewed your app and the WG

 

[Jessica Booker]

Does anyone know if Covington’s deadline is 23:59 on the 13th or 14th of Jan? Find these deadlines so confusing when they don’t specify😭

It will be the date they state, and will not turn off at 23.59 the night before. It works exactly like university deadlines.

However, it might not necessarily be 23.59 that it turns off on the date they state. Some firms turn off applications at close of business on the date they stated. However, the vast majority of these processes are automated via the applicant tracking system and there the portal is most likely to be live (and therefore you will need to submit your application) by 23.59 on the date the firm states.

 

[AK001]

Has anyone heard back from Freshfields about the WG for their VS? A friend of mine got an invite for the test this morning, which I'm a bit surprised by as the deadline was less than a week ago. Not sure if they're giving out invites as they read each app or if I should expect a rejection

 

[OB]

Last year a lot of peoples portal got updated and heard nothing back. When they emailed they found out whether they had progressed or not. DLA’s system sometimes doesn’t send out emails to certain email addresses. I know last year some email addresses didn’t receive their rejection email all they got was an updated portal.

I say all of that to say, if your portal has been updated and you haven’t heard back, email grad rec. I don’t want to be negative and say you might have been rejected but if you haven’t received the email and your portal has been updated, it’s worth looking into. Last year a lot of peoples portal were updated only for them to email grad Rev and find out they have been rejected and didn’t hear back because the system made a mistake

I've emailed and they said I haven't missed anything and they're still reviewing apps so think they fixed the email issue

 

[Donuttime]

I've emailed and they said I haven't missed anything and they're still reviewing apps so think they fixed the email issue

did you email before or after your application updated on November 24th?

 

[Samir_O]

anyone still waiting to hear back from Taylor Wessing?

 

[Law2021vacschemer]

Has anyone heard back from Freshfields about the WG for their VS? A friend of mine got an invite for the test this morning, which I'm a bit surprised by as the deadline was less than a week ago. Not sure if they're giving out invites as they read each app or if I should expect a rejection

Hi I think they are getting back to people in batches- I was sent the WG on the 29th December, sat it on the 31st, and then sent an AC invite on the 6th or 7th January.

 

[emilyrose99]

HSF spring pfo, this was my first app done before I knew anything/attended any firm events so I was expecting it!
As long as you know why you were rejected/confident you grew out of that phase I think we'll all be alright

Completely agree! When did you apply?

 

[s10]

I truly hate WG, why when I practice I get 70-80% and suck when doing the real test?

Can relate to this so much. Felt like I was an absolute shoo-in at Weil since I had the right competencies and a great rapport with grad rec. Did a great practice WG too and then lost out on my dream firm because of the final WG. I am failing to understand how the WG can be an accurate measure of one's abilities and more importantly their compatibility and acumen for the firm's specific practice? Surely a psychometric test designed predominantly for one type of intelligence should be discontinued?

 

[djqb]

Can relate to this so much. Felt like I was an absolute shoo-in at Weil since I had the right competencies and a great rapport with grad rec. Did a great practice WG too and then lost out on my dream firm because of the final WG. I am failing to understand how the WG can be an accurate measure of one's abilities and more importantly their compatibility and acumen for the firm's specific practice? Surely a psychometric test designed predominantly for one type of intelligence should be discontinued?

The WG is not a measure of one's intelligence or abilities - unfortunately it's simply a way to cut numbers so that GR can decently go through a sane number of applications

Please don't measure your own self worth/intelligence through something that's essentially a numbers cutting exercise

 

[AK001]

Hi I think they are getting back to people in batches- I was sent the WG on the 29th December, sat it on the 31st, and then sent an AC invite on the 6th or 7th January.

Hey,

Thanks for confirming that and congrats on the AC invite!

 

[Jessica Booker]

Can relate to this so much. Felt like I was an absolute shoo-in at Weil since I had the right competencies and a great rapport with grad rec. Did a great practice WG too and then lost out on my dream firm because of the final WG. I am failing to understand how the WG can be an accurate measure of one's abilities and more importantly their compatibility and acumen for the firm's specific practice? Surely a psychometric test designed predominantly for one type of intelligence should be discontinued?

Such assessments are often one of the strongest predictors for on the job performance, usually where the skills needed in the assessment are also needed day to day in the job.

They are by no means perfect - but as I keep assuming of late, recruitment is an art not a science, and therefore perfection doesn’t exist. Assessments like the WG can be one of the most accurate tools out there though, especially when they are used appropriately (eg with other assessments, with the right benchmarks, with deadlines that aren’t too short).

As they are much more likely to help with successful recruitment than relying on more subjective elements (like an application form) alone, many firms will continue to use them.

Any type of assessment is continually monitored by recruitment to see if there are any issues with it, especially with diversity concerns. The reason why applications forms change, new assessments come in or changes to the recruitment process happen, even moving from rolling to non rolling recruitment, is usually because they have assessed their recruitment data and realised something isn’t working as best as it can.

 

[Jessica Booker]

The WG is not a measure of one's intelligence or abilities - unfortunately it's simply a way to cut numbers so that GR can decently go through a sane number of applications

Please don't measure your own self worth/intelligence through something that's essentially a numbers cutting exercise

I’d challenge that - it is an assessment of someone’s abilities, although not their intelligence. It is just that it assesses a particular set of abilities closely aligned to verbal comprehension and analytical thinking. It doesn’t cover all forms of verbal comprehension or analytical thinking though.

It’s not just about cutting numbers down. If that was the case, firms would keep applications open for a week or two and would do less promotion. That’s a far more effective way of keeping application numbers down than using this form of assessment.

The WG assesses key capabilities needed for the job. It would actually be pretty dangerous to have any assessment that didn’t assess something that was required to work in the firm, as that’s only likely to lead to bad outcomes where you are filtering out people on something you don’t need.

 

[Lawfulx]

Last year a lot of peoples portal got updated and heard nothing back. When they emailed they found out whether they had progressed or not. DLA’s system sometimes doesn’t send out emails to certain email addresses. I know last year some email addresses didn’t receive their rejection email all they got was an updated portal.

I say all of that to say, if your portal has been updated and you haven’t heard back, email grad rec. I don’t want to be negative and say you might have been rejected but if you haven’t received the email and your portal has been updated, it’s worth looking into. Last year a lot of peoples portal were updated only for them to email grad Rev and find out they have been rejected and didn’t hear back because the system made a mistake

I've just emailed them to ask whether I missed any communications. 🙃

 

[GS0W]

Anyone else's CMS VI submitted with deadline 3rd Jan not been reviewed yet?

 

[LEL]

Do you ask questions at the end of a telephone interview or no?

 

[M777]

Do you ask questions at the end of a telephone interview or no?

Kind of depends on the firm, I wasn't given an opportunity to ask questions with Skadden

 

[Jessica Booker]

Do you ask questions at the end of a telephone interview or no?

Your interviewer is likely to explain at the start whether they will leave time for questions at the end. Some firms will do this, others won’t (usually because it is either tight on time or where the interviews have been outsourced).

 

[Lawfulx]

DLA grad recruitment got back to me about my updated portal. They are still reviewing applications and will let know once decisions made.