Vacation Scheme Student Review

The vacation scheme was a great insight into Stephenson Harwood. I was able to experience a commercial litigation seat and a corporate seat for one week each, which taught me a lot about both contentious and non contentious work at the firm. I enjoyed getting to know the people at the firm the most, everybody was so welcoming and happy to speak to you about anything or give you advice. Grad Recruitment organised talks every day on different practice areas at the firm, as well as a talk on innovation and the LPC by BPP. This gave me a level of exposure to the firm far beyond my expectations.

I was surprised by how much responsibility I was given during the vacation scheme. I was given a wide variety of tasks to do as well, such as undertaking research, filing out employment forms, and writing memos for my supervisor. My two supervisors were also very willing to explain the work they were doing themselves to help me better understand the specific work their team does.

The level of support was excellent. We were given a full introduction to the firm on day one, helping us set up our desks, understanding the firm's tech and being introduced to the trainees. We were also allocated a buddy and supervisor to guide us through our work during each week. We also had a talk on each practice area of the firm per day with opportunities to ask partners questions about their work as well.

The level of exposure I received to the work Stephenson Harwood undertakes will make a huge difference to my studies and career. I was able to strengthen skills needed as a trainee, such as organisational, analytical and team work skills. The firm's talks and events organised have also given me a much better sense of commercial awareness and understanding of what a commercial legal career entails.

The vacation scheme was very well structured. We were given a schedule on the first day, with talks organised on each day. There were also regular lunches and evening events organised for us, as well as a workshop to help prepare for the assessment day and develop our presentation and negotiation skills.

Graduate Recruitment made us feel welcomed and supported from the very beginning. The vac schemers all got along with each other well and the trainees went out of their way to get to know us too. Overall Stephenson Harwood's culture really stood out to me most during my insight. The people at the firm were all so friendly and supportive and I got a real sense of how inclusive and non-hierarchical this firm is through these two weeks.

The firm really went out of its way to help us prepare for the life as a trainee through regular talks with partners in each practice area, lunches with trainees and by assigning us a buddy and supervisor. A workshop was also arranged to develop our presentation, negotiation and team work skills which proved to be really useful for the assessment day too.

Spending two weeks in different seats was a great way for me to better understand what the firm does on a daily basis and what types of tasks trainees undertake. I was able to experience a contentious and non-contentious seat as well which helped me understand the difference in transactional lawyers' and litigators' work at Stephenson Harwood too.

The culture really shone through during my vacation scheme. I felt welcomed from the start of the vacation scheme and was offered great opportunities to speak to trainees, partners and support staff at the firm. Speaking to a such a wide range of people gave me a real sense of how inclusive and friendly the firm's culture truly is.

The schedule was well organised to give us room for doing work in each seat with our supervisor whilst also engaging in regular talks and events organised to get a better understanding of the firm. This high level of exposure to both undertaking the regular tasks of trainees and learning about the firm's practice areas confirmed to me my interest in commercial law.

Stephenson Harwood paid us well during the vacation scheme and the firm's cafeteria has a nicely subsidised café and lunch menu as well. The firm also organised multiple lunches and drinks events for us. During the HR interview prior to the vacation scheme, I was also offered travel reimbursements.

There were multiple opportunities for networking and meeting other employees at the firm. Grad Recruitment had arranged lunches, drinks and talks for us with partners and trainees at the firm to meet them in both formal and informal circumstances. This gave us a much better understanding of the firm as well as the culture and people who work at Stephenson Harwood.

The networking event and social events were very well organised. We had two drinks organised and plenty of networking opportunities through lunches and talks at the firm.

I found out about the wide range of activities employees can get involved in outside of work and was even encouraged to participate in them. There are plenty of pro bono and CSR opportunities with organisations like the Whitechapel Mission. The firm also has plenty of sports teams, from tag rugby to netball and football, that trainees can get involved in.

I would highly recommend this vacation scheme to a friend as it was such an enjoyable experience!