Winter Vacation Scheme Review

Loved it. I was given important work to do almost from day one, which may seem daunting to some, but my supervisor was fantastic: she nudged me in the right direction and encouraged questions but clearly wasn't 'nannying' me. The working atmosphere in the firm is super and there's a great level of camraderie amongst colleagues.

After just 2 weeks I felt completely at home. Colleagues regularly came to check on how things were (admittedly often to see if I could do more work!) but this was two-way. They made it abundantly clear that if I had any problems I could drop by their office and talk through it.

The open door policy at the firm is embraced by everyone and it's great to know that there's always someone who is able to answer a question. My supervisor made it clear that if I needed any help I could ask.

Busy during day-time - although Linklaters had an enormous range of events planned for us almost every evening. When we weren't piling off to a bar on our own initiative we were taken to a cocktail-mixing class; Sketch; bars; restaurants and Christmas parties. There was a fabulous balance for me - I was extremely busy 9-6.30/7 until we headed off to an event. Work hard, play hard is very much the ethos!

I wouldn't go so far as to say 'I was running the show' but as an undergraduate in a non-law degree I was given a staggering amount of responsibility. I felt that my work was valued, relevant and interesting. What more can you ask for?

The large amount of work necessitated a lot of planning and organisation which was helpful during finals, but has become an absolute necessity now I am doing the GDL. Being able to allocate tasks, estimate deadlines and arrange my life around them has meant I'm ahead on nearly all my work and much more relaxed and confident about my work as a whole.

Again 'fun never stopped' is perhaps too far! Linklaters is an extremely well-run and streamlined commercial law firm, so 'fun' is probably not the right word! There was, however, an extremely good working atmosphere: everyone knows there's lots of work to be done and there's a certain amount of solidarity to be gained by knowing that everyone around you is working hard too. There's certainly a sense that 'we're all in it together, so let's pull for the team!' When I say this I don't mean that everyone felt the need to drag themselves through, it was a much more positive, friendly and supportive outlook. It certainly felt like I was very much part of 'the team'. I found the whole place very conducive to work and I found myself enjoying the work and not even noticing the time. So whilst it wasn't 'fun', it was certainly a very, very positive office atmosphere.

Linklaters Graduate Recruitment do an unbelievably good job. Everything came together utterly seamlessly, I never had an idle moment or a time when I thought 'This isn't for me'. Quite the opposite in fact: the vac scheme confirmed every reason I had for wanting to work at Linklaters.

Regular talks by senior staff, excellent support staff and a very good mentoring system. The mentors attended almost all our evening nights out/parties and were there simply as support - they didn't report to anyone and gave useful advice on the 'soft skills' needed to survive as a trainee. I still meet up with my mentor for entirely casual lunches and we regularly email. I think that having a friend at the firm already will be a huge benefit when I join.

Got a job! They also told me the answer on the day of the interview (at about 9PM), which was extremely impressive. In the meantime I have turned down other firms who took up to a month to get back to me...

There was a very diverse group of vac schemers and generally someone had always organised something, so there were always things to do.

It's the City. It's going to be expensive! Then again, much of this is offset by the £300 a week living costs we were paid for the vac scheme.

I've put 8 because whilst the actual nightlife around Linklaters was limited, there's a HUGE amount a short walk, bus or tube away, so it seemed unfair to penalise the firm based on that. There are plenty of bars nearby anyway.

Lots of societies, sports clubs and the free gym. If you have a reasonable idea they're willing to consider it and may even allocate a budget, which is brilliant. Pro Bono was a big part and I did a day's work at a community centre as part of the Litigation Department's Christmas scheme.