Vacation Schemer Review

The vacation scheme was a two-week programme where I spent each week in one department of the firm. For me, my two weeks were in Dispute Resolution and Banking respectively. Day-to-day duties include real-life tasks that were sent to me by my supervisors and trainee buddies and they also provide feedback on the tasks that I completed. Apparently, I have had the opportunity to network with and develop a very strong relationship with supervisors and trainee buddies that I worked with. We were also given the opportunity to network with people in other departments on numerous occasions so that we can have a border picture on how it is like to work in the firm.

Yes, I have learnt quite a lot of new skills. This includes practical skills including skills to carry out a legal and draft the research, as well as developing my technical knowledge and ability to carry out different legal works like filling in different kinds of application forms to the court and term sheets. I also got the opportunity to develop my existing skills. This includes conversations with other lawyers on the way we deal with stress and time management, as well as chances to improve out communication ability by communicating with other lawyers on a day-to-day basis.

It was a good opportunity to understand all about the business and potential roles available. For the business part, there are presentations on what the firm has been doing, and we were given opportunities to ask questions during these presentations. Also, we can also raise questions that we have got to people who we are working with and people are always willing to help. For the roles available, there was a specific session dedicated to introducing the structure of the training contract which hugely boost our understanding of the programme.

The culture was very lovely and friendly and everyone was so kind. I have a feeling that people do genuinely care about you and want to help you to improve and be a better person. I can always ask questions or ask for feedback and people are always willing to provide an answer or feedback. The general atmosphere is also very nice. Compare to the general perception of the legal industry which might be perceived to be a very serious and burnout one, Dentons is much more "human" and relaxed and is indeed an enjoyable place to work in.

To a huge extent. I got everything I want from the vacation scheme. I got to know what it is really like to work as a solicitor, I got to know what it is really like to work in Dentons as a firm, I got to boost my knowledge in the legal sector and enhance my practical skills, and I even got to develop a huge network of lawyers and make friends with other fellow vacation schemers. The scheme has really been a very enjoyable experience.

Yes

I would say just to be yourself. Dentons is looking for people who are different and diverse, and everyone got things that they have but might not be seen by other individuals. So my advice is just to be yourself and let your personality shine through. Let the firm be aware of you as a person and the special point that set you apart from the mass and you would be able to appeal to the firm. So I guess being yourself is the best advice that I can give, and the only advice people need.