Winter Vacation Scheme Intern Review

I really enjoyed my time here, everyone was so supportive and welcoming and the work was really interesting too.

Everybody was so welcoming and supportive. People were always open to have a chat or answer any questions.

We received a lot of guidance on the firm's practice areas, general admin, commercial issues as such and the recruitment process from different people throughout the scheme.

I think the skills I developed over the course of the two weeks will be very useful going forward, particularly as the scheme has confirmed my desire to pursue a career in commercial law.

The structure of the scheme was really well thought-out. We started off with an induction and general intro to the firm. Throughout the week we then had presentations from people in the different practice groups and socials like going to the theatre and dinner.

Overall, it was a really good experience and the atmosphere matched that. Everyone at the firm and on the scheme was great which made it a really comfortable environment - you could tell everyone was excited to be there. Because everything was well structured and we always had someone to go to if we had questions or concerns, the atmosphere was really good.

As mentioned, we had sessions on the different practice groups which really helped me develop my knowledge of areas I had little experience with previously. We also had catch-ups with our trainee buddies and graduate recruitment to make sure everything was going well.

The scheme gave me a really good understanding of what it might be like to be a trainee at the firm. The fact that different groups were introduced to us meant that we got an insight beyond the practice area we were sat in. Beyond that, presentations from different people and meeting people at socials gave me a good overall idea of the sort of work trainees here do.

It was really useful to actually experience the cutlure of the firm first hand. Being here for two weeks and working within that culture was really valuable in doing that. Interacting with people all the way from trainees to partners also really highlighted the supportive culture of the firm.

The scheme really helped cement my desire to pursue a career in commercial law because it gave me practical experience and took my understanding beyond the theoretical. Additionally, sitting in a practice area that I had previously found interesting but had no experience in was really useful because it allowed me to supplement that hypothetical interest with concrete experience.

We were paid on a weekly basis.

We had opportunities to network and meet people essentially every day. There were presentations and social events planned where we were introduced to different people. But everyone in my practice area also introduced themselves to me throughout the course of the scheme and people also just chatted at lunch or when getting coffee.

We had a variety of socials scheduled throughout the two weeks. These were a really good way of getting to know the other people on the scheme as well as the international clerks that were on a scheme that ran concurrently. All of the events were really fun and the atmosphere was always very nice.

We had presentations about opportunities like pro-bono initiatives and learning and development opportunities throughout the weeks and trainees spoke to us a lot about their experiences with these.

I had a really good time and learned a lot in a well supported environment so I would absolutely recommend the scheme to a friend.