TCLA Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion Thread 2025-26

[studentWp1]

Just received Browne Jacobson telephone interview invite; Saturday morning, nice.

which office was this?

 

[LH4]

Browne Jacobson TI for London office
Didn’t expect email on a Saturday

 

[emily12]

Anyone have tips for Browne Jacobson TI/any TI ? How can they gather anything from a 15 minute telephone interview

 

[studentWp1]

does anyone know if the Browne Jacobson phone calls invites are in batches or all at once?

 

[saltpepper]

Hey! I have an AC for Clifford Chance SPARK, and I was wondering if anyone has any insights. I would really appreciate any tips or suggestions on how to prepare. Thank you

 

[CharlieandLola]

Hi @Abbie Whitlock, I have a written task coming up that I believe will be about summarising a dispute. I was just wondering if you had any tips on how to think of what next steps to suggest and if there are any next steps that you would always suggest putting in! I was also wondering in terms of next steps if they should be short and to the point or if you should explain the reasoning for them, even if you might have already covered it in the key issues part.

Any help would be massively appreciated!

 

[badmintonflyinginsect]

Will W&C be making further rounds of offers for VS?

 

[alanshore]

anyone got any advice for cms pre-recorded interview?

 

[summersun]

I think the general consensus is that offers have gone out but like last year they can’t tell us until like next week

Was just curious bc people started reacting that they’d gotten guildford offers only yesterday and no one has positively indicated anything about London—that coupled w the post from Monday by grad rec about making offers “soon” —not sure it’s over yet

Just saw a post on Linkedin of someone getting a CRS VS for London so don't want to be pessimistic but I think offers have gone out...

 

[Diana54]

Will W&C be making further rounds of offers for VS?

My friend had her interview very recently so I am sure more offers will be coming

 

[EfficientBag123]

Are CMS sending VIs in batches?

 

[soph107048]

Is anyone still waiting on W&C post WE? I know some people did it last week so wondering if anyone who has done it in march heard back/is still waiting

 

[rjn]

Does anyone know which firms take on more candidates from Direct TC applications?

Additionally, if we've secured a summer vac scheme, would it be ok to list this in a direct TC work experience section as 'incoming vac scheme intern', or would it not be recommended?

 

[Raquelle's Legal Drama]

My friend had her interview very recently so I am sure more offers will be coming

was this for spring? or are they done with spring now and all the people that are waiting are summer?

 

[Diana54]

was this for spring? or are they done with spring now and all the people that are waiting are summer?

Summer was her first choice.

 

[Ancika]

For the people who had a DTC AC with Hogan Lovells last year, which month did you get the invite ? Also, did the case study part become a group exercise?

 

[amb303]

Just saw a post on Linkedin of someone getting a CRS VS for London so don't want to be pessimistic but I think offers have gone out...

Yeah I would guess some of us are about to be on the reserve list

 

[Applicant3728299643]

Does anyone know how long the interview period for Travers Smith is? I haven’t received either a pfo or interview invite, so I’m wondering whether they just haven’t got around to calling me to interview yet? I’m slightly confused, so any insight would be super helpful!

 

[alanshore]

Are CMS sending VIs in batches?

Don't think so. Everyone I know got it at different times. Could be wrong though.

 

[TCComingSoon]

Hi!

Congratulations on the AC invite! I definitely wouldn't assume that you won't convert it, and it can often go much better than expected!

I have quoted a few posts below on case studies, interviews, and group exercises - I hope they are useful!

For a partner interview, I would suggest preparing bullet points rather than scripted answers. For example, have 2-3 clear points for questions like "Why this firm?", but don't memorise specific wording. You could practice your answer at home so that you have a clear idea of what you want to say, but leave room for flexibility so that you can adapt your answer if needed.

Aside from the typical motivational questions, I have previously had questions on the following in partner interviews:

1. CV or application questions (so make sure to read back over your original application!)
2. Competency questions (e.g. "tell us about a time when...")
3. Commercial awareness questions (e.g. a news story and why it matters to the firm and its clients)

In my experience, you will rarely be asked extremely technical questions in a partner interview (such as definitions of specific financial structures) unless the interview is explicitly described as technical. They are usually more interested in how you think about and analyse commercial issues - for example, how a specific commercial issue will impact the firm and its main clients.

Good luck with the AC!!

Thank you @Abbie Whitlock this is really helpful. Thank you for tagging those previous posts they are really helpful.