Vacation Placement Student Review

I found the insight really interesting, because there is a good mixture of social events and you are given quite a lot of responsibility. Instead of working on closed matters I managed to help with live deals and so was completing the type of work that a trainee might do.

My trainee buddies made me feel very welcome and at ease. I was introduced to the whole floor by my supervisor, doing a tour of the department. Because I was working on live matters I felt like my work was being valued, and I worked as a team with the trainees in order to complete tasks.

I received an induction booklet which had a lot of guidance and support, as well as regular emails from graduate recruitment and the trainees, which detailed what events were coming up and generally kept us in the loop. Whenever I had a query I was able to seek assistance from my team.

My skills have improved significantly as a result of the insight. For example I feel more organised and confident, and I adapted quickly to the demands of working life. I have learned so much information about life as a commercial solicitor and this is great as it allows me to make informed choices about my future career.

The insight was structured well, with both networking sessions and social events included on our calendars. There was also the opportunity to get involved with events that were occurring within your department, so I went on a department social as well. Other students went rock-climbing and there was also meetings that you could attend.

The general atmosphere was quite relaxed and friendly. At no point did I start to feel stressed or overwhelmed by the workload, and the trainees are so fantastic with their roles that I felt no question was too silly. Furthermore, the senior staff members were happy to make time for you in order to talk, which I really respected. For example my head of department took a whole 40 minutes out of his day just to listen to my questions.

The trainees spent hours every day setting me tasks, reviewing my work and discussing general life in the firm which I liked. As such I feel I developed greatly over the two weeks, and was able to reflect and receive constructive criticism at every possible stage. It showed me that the firm likes to invest in its people.

We were encouraged to speak with as many people as possible, and I tried to do just that. As such I feel like I have a very good insight into what life is like in a full time role at the firm. The insight was not dressed up to be something it isn't, it gave a full and frank insight into normal working life.

The culture of the firm is very important, and so we received a lot of information about it. We also had access to the firm's intranet and I found this had an enormous amount of useful information that I used to further get to know the firm's culture. Finally I noticed that people tend to adopt the values of the firm.

The content was incredibly valuable, as a result of the insight I feel I know a lot more about the different departments and which seats I might undertake on a future training contract. The insight also helped me to understand what a long term career at the firm might look like.

There were many opportunities to meet other employees of the firm, and if you are interested in a specific department it is so easy to get into contact with someone. Everybody is very approachable so organising a coffee in order to get to know their type of work is both fun and simple.

The networking events provided breakfast, tea and coffee to us which was nice, as well as the opportunity to meet people from different departments. The social was also very good and the food there was great, with a whole buffet and free drinks given to us. Finally the food at the induction was also very good.

We learned about the responsible business initiatives that employees can get involved with. We also learned about the different sport activities that the firm runs. For example they run football sessions, netball sessions and also hockey sessions in the summer. Finally there are opportunities to go to networking events in order to connect with different people.

I would definitely recommend this insight to a friend. It has given me knowledge of how my future career path might be, and has improved my skills and general confidence. In addition, it has been a very fun experience, working on interesting and intellectually stimulating tasks, whilst meeting a variety of genuinely friendly people.