TCLA Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion Thread 2024-25

[heyhola]

Hey! Does anyone have any advice for Bird and CMS VIs? Many thanks

 

[Amma Usman]

Hey! Does anyone have any advice for Bird and CMS VIs? Many thanks

Hey @CarolineC ,

For VI’s generally, I’d say it’s worth preparing for the general questions. For example, some firms tend to sway towards the common ‘why us..why you.. why commercial law.. recent commercial issue that’s interested you that’ll affect our work/clients’. So, it’s worth having answers prepped for that. However, avoid memorising things as this could make one tense and may sound too unnatural.

As 2Birds is tech/IP focused and CMS is tax/real estate focused, I also recommend having a dabble on any recent developments in those industries and find a way to weave those in. Also, if the firm has been making any interesting moves in those industries that resonate with you, it‘s definitely worth weaving in too.

In terms of soft preparation, I recommend coming to the VI in a formal suit - just as you would in an in-person interview. This adds to the clientele nature of the role.

Finally, I can‘t go without referencing @Andrei Radu ’s beautiful guide to interviews ; https://www.thecorporatelawacademy....de-for-competency-interview-preparation.9380/

 

[marisachr]

@TrainingContract2024 , I know some firms have a silent rule where if you apply two weeks before the deadline if rolling, then that should be fine. However, differs between firms. If you feel unsure about your chances of being allocated to spring due to the proximity of the closing date, then summer is a sensible option to take.

I thought the HSF vac scheme was non-rolling? Both summer and spring have the same closing date as well.

 

[Amma Usman]

I thought the HSF vac scheme was non-rolling? Both summer and spring have the same closing date as well.

Hey @marisachr , yes it’s non-rolling for HSF. Apologies for not clarifying - this is a strategy I apply to firms that are rolling. As HSF is non-rolling, I see no harm in applying for either spring/summer, since the deadline date is the same.

 

[Tom smith]

Hi, just wondering how long we should be speaking for in an interview when answering just one question e.g. why this firm? or why commercial law?

 

[affidavid]

Do law firms look unfavourably on non-law GRADUATES who apply, as opposed to final year non-law students? I was rejected from Bird and Bird post application questions but before the WG test or VI. I got to the K&E AC last year with less experience but slightly better answers to their commercial awareness/ firm specific qs. I'm quite surprised I was so flat out rejected by BB is this likely down to
- being a graduated non-law student currently doing a mix of random shift work and a full-time but non-law related short course currently?
- slightly worse answers to their questions?
- applying mid november to a rolling recruitment system which began in septmber?
- not having gone to a BB open/insight day (I went to a KE one before applying)

 

[billyonthespeeddial]

How long did they take to tell you after the interview?

One day

 

[elizabethkate]

HSF test benchmark met - surprised as my feedback said I wasn’t great at anything but one area.

how long did it take to hear back from HSF post report? I got the report instantly. is that a bad sign

 

[James Wakefield]

I’ve applied to Eversheds Sutherland and noticed the form asked you to submit evidence of your degree module grades alongside your application. However, there was nowhere to upload a transcript.

Has anyone else encountered this problem, and is it worth an email to their Early Talent Team? Thanks!

 

[TCLA Community Assistant]

Hi, just wondering how long we should be speaking for in an interview when answering just one question e.g. why this firm? or why commercial law?

There really isn't an answer to this unfortunately - for some people it may be less than 60 seconds, for somone else it may be over 4 minutes.

If an interview is an hour long, you will actually only be interviewed for about 40 minutes of the hour (need time to settle in, intros, time for you to ask questions at the end etc), and then you have to factor in the time they ask the questions. They will more than likely ask around 10 or more questions and so you can easily see how individual interview questions can be roughly 2-3 minutes long.

 

[BonanzaBih_]

Taylor Wessing Written Assessment Invite!!

 

[3000to1shoteverytime]

I’ve applied to Eversheds Sutherland and noticed the form asked you to submit evidence of your degree module grades alongside your application. However, there was nowhere to upload a transcript.

Has anyone else encountered this problem, and is it worth an email to their Early Talent Team? Thanks!

Go back into allgradhires after submission and you can add it as additional information

 

[aether]

Anything from DLA yet? I’m assuming they’ll send something out if there’s an AC next week?

 

[James Wakefield]

Go back into allgradhires after submission and you can add it as additional information

Thanks, but the additional information section is just a textbox it seems, and I can’t upload anything to it.

 

[bella98]

Taylor Wessing Written Assessment Invite!!

Omgg congrats!!!!🤩🤩 is this for the spring or summer scheme?

 

[TCLA Community Assistant]

*TCLA in December*

We want to flag this now so people have plenty of notice and can plan application reviews, 1-2-1 calls, and general support over December.

The TCLA office will be closed from Monday 23 December 2024 through to Wednesday 1 January 2025.

Therefore the last date for application review submissions before the Christmas office closure is 19 December 2024 at 4.00pm. As we expect there to be a pre-Christmas rush, any applications submitted on 19 December may be returned on Monday 23 December.

You will not be able to submit applications between 4.01pm on Thursday 19 December until 10.00am on Thursday 2 January due to the office being closed. Other services like mock interviews and written exercises will also not be available during this period.

Please take this into consideration when planning not only your application reviews, but also any 1-2-1 calls and if you think you may need any additional services like mock interviews.

I expect the 18/19/20 December and the 2/3/5/6 of January to be very busy times for the team, so please consider this when thinking about the support you will need.

I will be on WhatsApp and the forums over the Christmas/New Year period for general support usually provided by these methods.

Any questions regarding this, please let me know.

 

[Ricky]

I asked W&C if this was the case and they confirmed:

"If you have not heard back with a update on your application, this is because we are still considering your application for spring and summer as you also stated these schemes as preferences."

 

[safari3]

Do law firms look unfavourably on non-law GRADUATES who apply, as opposed to final year non-law students? I was rejected from Bird and Bird post application questions but before the WG test or VI. I got to the K&E AC last year with less experience but slightly better answers to their commercial awareness/ firm specific qs. I'm quite surprised I was so flat out rejected by BB is this likely down to
- being a graduated non-law student currently doing a mix of random shift work and a full-time but non-law related short course currently?
- slightly worse answers to their questions?
- applying mid november to a rolling recruitment system which began in septmber?
- not having gone to a BB open/insight day (I went to a KE one before applying)

Hi (non-law graduate progressed to VI)
Sorry to hear you got rejected post app. I understand how frustrating that can be. To answer your questions:
- B&B are super open to non-law, particularly if you are STEM (which I am not), so I don’t think that could be a reason;
- I attended an insight day with them prior to submitting my app and they did mention that they are very picky at the application stage. I think this is because they only require a 2:1 grade overall (not too fussed with academics), so weigh the content of the written answers very heavily. They would’ve marked your answers against the firm’s competencies which are available on the early careers hub;
- They also mentioned to apply before the beginning of Nov to ensure your app gets screened, so that may be where you fell short, but even then I can’t confirm if that was the case this year. For reference, I applied towards the end of Oct.

Hopefully this gives you a bit more clarity. Again, I am very sorry about the outcome and wish you the best in your other applications

 

[SamiyaJ]

*TCLA in December*

We want to flag this now so people have plenty of notice and can plan application reviews, 1-2-1 calls, and general support over December.

The TCLA office will be closed from Monday 23 December 2024 through to Wednesday 1 January 2025.

Therefore the last date for application review submissions before the Christmas office closure is 19 December 2024 at 4.00pm. As we expect there to be a pre-Christmas rush, any applications submitted on 19 December may be returned on Monday 23 December.

You will not be able to submit applications between 4.01pm on Thursday 19 December until 10.00am on Thursday 2 January due to the office being closed. Other services like mock interviews and written exercises will also not be available during this period.

Please take this into consideration when planning not only your application reviews, but also any 1-2-1 calls and if you think you may need any additional services like mock interviews.

I expect the 18/19/20 December and the 2/3/5/6 of January to be very busy times for the team, so please consider this when thinking about the support you will need.

I will be on WhatsApp and the forums over the Christmas/New Year period for general support usually provided by these methods.

Any questions regarding this, please let me know.

Thanks for the heads up Jessica. Also thanking you and the team for all the support!

 

[BonanzaBih_]

Omgg congrats!!!!🤩🤩 is this for the spring or summer scheme?

Thank you and for Spring!