Hi
@em311,
As always, I think
@Jessica Booker has broken this down really nicely in her post.
I would just add that as an interviewer, unless a firm's practice in London is extremely narrow and specialised, I would be concerned that, unless an applicant had previous experience of that area, too great a focus on a specific area might seem naive (purely because, from what I have been told, actually practicing and studying/researching an area of law are two very different things). It is important to show that you are open-minded as for the majority of firms you will have at least three other rotations during your TC.
So my advice would be, for application purposes, you may wish to speak about one area (as with limited word count you can only talk about so much with any development/depth). However, if you progress to interview, be ready for the Partner/your interviewer to probe you about your interest(s) in other areas (along the lines of, "You seem very focused on X in your application. How would you feel if you were sat in Y for 6 months?". In the vast majority of cases, just be willing to demonstrate that although you may have an inkling of an overarching interest in a particular practice area, this may change and that you are open-minded.
Hope that is helpful
.
Hi
@Hele25,
Not a stupid question at all! Personally, I always wore a full suit and tie (with smart shoes). I know others on the forum will only dress smartly from the waist upwards, wearing a tracksuit etc. However, I was concerned that I might need to get up in the interview for something unexpected (such as the door swinging open unexpectedly etc.).
I always wore a tie for both in-person and virtual interviews. Of course, some interviewers will find this unnecessary. However, it is better to be safe than sorry on these things. I had interviewers who were dressed very casually (in a t-shirt, for example), but others who were dressed in a suit and tie. I never wanted to be underdressed for an interview, so I would always dress up to be safe!