Vac Scheme Review

Not the fault of graduate recruitment at all, the firm just wasn't for me!

Graduate recruitment put in a huge effort. I particularly liked that they gave us feedback from our assessment centre, and made an effort to get to know us on a personal level. This helped me relax during the scheme. I also enjoyed the fact that we were able to ask questions of the Senior Partner, which eroded hierarchy. Fee earners were very very busy which meant that I did often feel a bit forgotten about while in my seat.

My trainee buddy was great and I felt like I could have open conversations about the tasks with her. However, I was in an office on my own for most of the scheme so didn't feel that I had much access to guidance or support from my supervisor. It felt like she was too busy to deal with me, and I wasn't given feedback on any of the tasks that I completed.

I was able to use skills which I developed during my degree and develop a deeper knowledge of both a range of different practice areas and how the firm is using innovation. The tasks I was given were not always trainee-level, but the information I was provided with was very helpful.

The insight was very well structured with lots of interesting talks and opportunities to chat with people throughout the firm. Everything was scheduled into a calendar which we had access to on our computers, which made it easier to keep track of events and schedule work around them.

The atmosphere was great during the insight. Everyone on the scheme was really friendly, and I was able to bond with the group really well even though it was a relatively short scheme.

The lack of feedback and nature of some of the tasks I was given was slightly disappointing. The talks we were given were really informative, and the trainees were very friendly and helpful in discussing their practice areas with me and talking through matters that they were working on. My supervisor didn't really explain tasks to me and I felt quite uncomfortable asking questions because she made it clear she didn't really have time for them.

I was able to talk to a lot of different people during the scheme. Having coffees with both trainees and associates was encouraged, and they were really open to sharing their experiences at the firm. I gained most of my understanding through my trainee buddy, who took time to explain her workload to me, and the types of tasks she tended to perform. I just wish I had been able to do more of those, as I sometimes felt that the department was struggling to find things for me to do, and making up tasks which didn't actually contribute to real matters.

I felt like the firm didn't have much of a hierarchy, which was nice. Though I didn't get much of an opportunity to speak to partners, the one I had a long conversation with was very friendly and quite casual.

I already knew that I wanted to pursue a career in this field. It wasn't necessarily the actual work on the scheme that I did, but the discussions with trainees and observation of their work which made me certain that I would enjoy commercial law.

Paid very well!

There were, but there were often a lot of vac scheme students speaking to each partner, so it was difficult to get an opportunity to ask questions or go in depth on matters.

The socials were really good! I had a really fun time and got to know the vac scheme cohort very well. Felt that the firm really invested a lot in the social opportunities.

I got this information informally from my trainee buddy. There are plenty of people to ask if you want to know about more structured events/clubs that the firm runs.

A lot of members of my cohort felt very supported on their schemes and did trainee level work. This was not my experience, and I feel like the extent to which I was isolated in the department undermined the 'friendliness' of the rest of the firm. There were lots of great things about this insight (the socials, and the informative presentations) but I feel your experience very much depends upon which department you sit in/which supervisor you get.