TCLA Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion Thread 2025-26

[elle woods]

i will be taking the mayer brown OA tomorrow. their deadline is 15th 11.59 pm and they operate on a rolling basis. i know someone here said that they passed the assessment but the firm stopped reviewing apps. i am quite anxious this will happen to me since i will be submitting so close to deadline. is that something i should be concerned about?

oh... I was planning on submitting my application like tomorrow LOL so I'm even later than you

 

[s123]

Does anyone know whether the Baker M amberjack test has a VI part?

 

[sinirs]

88th percentile for linklaters WG but nothing back

what's the percentile benchmark to get through to the AC

 

[elle woods]

what's the percentile benchmark to get through to the AC

Has anyone even heard from Links yet? If the percentile is higher than 88 then I am defo not making it LMAO

 

[ali-k]

anything from HSF? waiting to hear back and like them

 

[yk1906]

what's the percentile benchmark to get through to the AC

The percentile isn't the only factor, considering that WG is automatic. Someone here said they were in the 99th percentile and still got rejected...

 

[vweewcvew]

How long do you typically spend on applications? Say a typical 3 x 200 words/ cover letter application form?

I have spent two days on one application qs, but I hear people submitting a lot more within a smaller time frame!

I fear giving too much energy on one application form which might get rejected post test or something

 

[ali-k]

How long do you typically spend on applications? Say a typical 3 x 200 words/ cover letter application form?

I have spent two days on one application qs, but I hear people submitting a lot more within a smaller time frame!

I fear giving too much energy on one application form which might get rejected post test or something

depends how much i like the firm tbh, most time ive spent is maybe 5 days (not intensely just bit by bit) if its not rolling theres no rush i take my sweet time on them

 

[elle woods]

😔 looking at the amount of greyed out tabs (rejections) I have is actually lowkey depressing, I don't have many chances left...

on the bright side this means I can keep bothering CC next year if no TC this year

 

[Andrei Radu]

How long do you typically spend on applications? Say a typical 3 x 200 words/ cover letter application form?

I have spent two days on one application qs, but I hear people submitting a lot more within a smaller time frame!

I fear giving too much energy on one application form which might get rejected post test or something

I do not think there is an absolutely right or wrong answer, as the appropriate amount of time to invest in any individual application will depend on a multitude of factors such as:

1. Your research and application writing speed: depending on how much prior experience you have had with researching firms and writing applications, and depending on how much time and effort you have invested in honing those research and writing skills to perfection, you may be able to complete applications to a high standard significantly faster/slower than other people.
2. Your goals and applications strategy: if you are planning on applying to another 20-30 more firms before the end of the cycle or are planning to only apply to another 5-10 should also play an important role in how you apportion your efforts - the more applications you aim to complete, the less time you should aim to spend on every single application.
3. The specific firm and its application form: some firms are a lot easier to apply to than others - because they ask you fewer questions, because the questions are easier/more standard, because the firm is easier to research and to connect motivations to, etc.
4. Your other commitments: if you are employed, studying, or have other significant commitments taking up substantial amounts of your time, once again, that will influence the total amount of time you can invest in writing applications during the next period. This in turn should influence how much time you should feel happy with taking to complete any given application.

In my case, the most significant factor by far was the first one - as at the beginning of my last applications cycle, it was taking me 1-2 weeks to write a high-quality application, while by the end, it was taking me around half a day (maybe 5-6 hours of focused work). I would advise you to determine how much time you want to spend on average per firm by simply dividing the number of applications you want to complete by the available time, and then make adjustments depending on the aforementioned factors.

Importantly, while writing your applications you should keep in mind that:

• You should not rush any application to the extent that the end product cannot be classified as objectively high-quality, as then all your good work will likely be in vain; and
• You should not aim for perfection: you do to need to redraft the same bits again and again and again only to obtain very marginal improvements. Instead, once you feel you have achieved a high level of quality, you should simply submit and move on to the next one.

 

[Rads]

I submitted Mayer Brown on the 9th/10th and Weil on 11th, have not gotten tests, should I assume PFO?

 

[Andrei Radu]

People applying to Kirkland, could you please tell me if you're answering the open question at the end? "Is there anything else you would like to add in support of your application?"

I've just noticed this and not sure whether they are expecting an answer

I do not think they have a strong expectation to the effect that every candidate should utilise the entire word count of that section to discuss new experiences or insights - if your written answers in the other sections are really strong, I cannot imagine the firm would reject you simply because you have not found something to add here. Moreover, I certainly do not believe that recruiters would appreciate people writing about minor experiences or describing overlapping and repetitive points just for the sake of filling up this section.

That said, if there are any motivations for your interest in the firm or commercial law that you genuinely did not have enough space to present in the other sections, or any relevant skills/experiences, I would definitely advise you to include them. This section is meant to provide you with an additional opportunity to add value to your application and impress the graduate recruiters, so you should not hold back from mentioning anything that would have this effect.

 

[Harvey Specter]

Just sat the Weil test and it defo didn’t take me 45 mins lmao I took at least 1 hr 30 mins.

Idk what to make of the feedback report. I think there’s 4 pillars, each scored out of 9.

I got 6,5,6,7 across the pillars which I think is 24 out of 36. Is this good, bad or mid?

For the numerical and verbal reasoning sections it says I scored high for both of them.​

 

[vweewcvew]

I do not think there is an absolutely right or wrong answer, as the appropriate amount of time to invest in any individual application will depend on a multitude of factors such as:

1. Your research and application writing speed: depending on how much prior experience you have had with researching firms and writing applications, and depending on how much time and effort you have invested in honing those research and writing skills to perfection, you may be able to complete applications to a high standard significantly faster/slower than other people.
2. Your goals and applications strategy: if you are planning on applying to another 20-30 more firms before the end of the cycle or are planning to only apply to another 5-10 should also play an important role in how you apportion your efforts - the more applications you aim to complete, the less time you should aim to spend on every single application.
3. The specific firm and its application form: some firms are a lot easier to apply to than others - because they ask you fewer questions, because the questions are easier/more standard, because the firm is easier to research and to connect motivations to, etc.
4. Your other commitments: if you are employed, studying, or have other significant commitments taking up substantial amounts of your time, once again, that will influence the total amount of time you can invest in writing applications during the next period. This in turn should influence how much time you should feel happy with taking to complete any given application.

In my case, the most significant factor by far was the first one - as at the beginning of my last applications cycle, it was taking me 1-2 weeks to write a high-quality application, while by the end, it was taking me around half a day (maybe 5-6 hours of focused work). I would advise you to determine how much time you want to spend on average per firm by simply dividing the number of applications you want to complete by the available time, and then make adjustments depending on the aforementioned factors.

Importantly, while writing your applications you should keep in mind that:

• You should not rush any application to the extent that the end product cannot be classified as objectively high-quality, as then all your good work will likely be in vain; and
• You should not aim for perfection: you do to need to redraft the same bits again and again and again only to obtain very marginal improvements. Instead, once you feel you have achieved a high level of quality, you should simply submit and move on to the next one.

Great info, thank you!

 

[elle woods]

Just sat the Weil test and it defo didn’t take me 45 mins lmao I took at least 1 hr 30 mins.

Idk what to make of the feedback report. I think there’s 4 pillars, each scored out of 9.

I got 6,5,6,7 across the pillars which I think is 24 out of 36. Is this good, bad or mid?

For the numerical and verbal reasoning sections it says I scored high for both of them.​

😭 was it tough? I'm not sure how to prepare for it hahah - is it like cappfinity again...

To me your scores seem pretty good! Well done on high verbal and numerical!

 

[Harvey Specter]

😭 was it tough? I'm not sure how to prepare for it hahah - is it like cappfinity again...

To me your scores seem pretty good! Well done on high verbal and numerical!

It said on the link it’s an amberjack test but yeh it’s baso an SJT. It had some maths questions and some text passages you have to extract certain information from. Then there are 4 video response questions (I’m doing them sep over zoom as an adjustment so will see how that goes). Overall it wasn’t too bad but then idk how I’ve done so there’s that to consider.​

 

[elle woods]

It said on the link it’s an amberjack test but yeh it’s baso an SJT. It had some maths questions and some text passages you have to extract certain information from. Then there are 4 video response questions (I’m doing them sep over zoom as an adjustment so will see how that goes). Overall it wasn’t too bad but then idk how I’ve done so there’s that to consider.​

😮 ooh okay thank you!! All the best with the zoom call!! At this point I'm just dying to get everything over with haha, but I legit just submitted my Weil app so let's see if I even get the test 🤣

 

[Lawlawland]

😔 looking at the amount of greyed out tabs (rejections) I have is actually lowkey depressing, I don't have many chances left...

on the bright side this means I can keep bothering CC next year if no TC this year

Elle, girl, I honestly like your vibe. I think we should be friends and trauma bond this application cycle 😂

 

[elle woods]

Elle, girl, I honestly like your vibe. I think we should be friends and trauma bond this application cycle 😂

haha thank you, you as well! yes absolutely 😂 nothing brings people closer than trauma bonding

 

[Kaz919]

Has anyone heard from Gibson post first-stage interview? When do they usually reply for second-stage/rejections?