Vacation Scheme Student Review

The insight was good to the extent that it convinced me that I yould not enjoy working at Walker Morris. Although the firm obviously has a good reputation, and is one of the Leeds 'big six', they did an absolutely terrible job of selling themselves to you. [This section of the comment has been removed by a member of the RateMyPlacement Team because it did not meet our site terms and conditions] at Walker Morris, and, although most people were polite, relatively few were actively friendly and almost nobody was enthusiastic about their work. The impression that this left me with was that the firm didn't really care about their potential recruits or trainees. Indeed, this was effectively confirmed for me during the 'trainee presentation' session, which portraid an incredibly negative picture of what life at the firm is like. Aside from the things which you would expect (such as long hours etc), it seemed that there was no real support for trainees, with people being expected to just 'get on with it' and 'not ask any stupid questions'. I therefore feel that I got an accurate insight into the firm, albeit I didn't like what I saw!

It would be wrong of me to say that absolutely everybody was unfriendly. However, the vast majority (including official supervisors) paid very little attention to you. Even when you 'go around the office', looking for tasks to help out on, people are almost uniformly negative, appearing to treat you as an inconvenience. Although nobody was exactly rude, some people bordered on it, refusing to make eye contact and generally giving you the bare minimum in all respects. Again, although not everybody was like this, there was definately a very negative atmosphere around the office, with close to zero enthusiasm being shown by those within the firm. I was led to conclude that I would absolutely hate to work in the departmetn full time.

To be fair, I was given a good amount of work, which was relatively varied. This is important. However, nobody sought to explain the issues surrounding their work to me, and some outright refused to discuss why it was required (despite the obvious fact that all vac-schemers sign confidentiality agreements). This is in stark contrast to other placements which I have been on. For example, at DLA (across two different departments) I found that absolutely everybody from trainee to partner level was very willing to talk about their work (or almost anything else) with you. This was despite the fact that most of them were incredibly busy and working very long hours. Walker Morris was at the opposite end of the spectrum

Nothing here was original. There were a couple of student exercises, such as mock negotiations, but nothing different from what most firms (and even some law courses) will offer.

Again, nothing different here. Most days in the department, with a couple of exercises elsewhere. Note that the timetable you're initially given on accepting the placement may bear little resemblance to that which you are given on starting. Strangely, Walker Morris's official leaving time is 17:30, which is probably worth bearing in mind.

Again, all I can say is that the atmosphere was very negative. Nobady was enthusiastic about what they were doing. Hardly anybody made a real effort to have a conversation. Some people bordered on being rude. Of course, I can only really speak for one department, and some may have better experiences. However, from listening to some of the trainees on social evenings, it would appear that some are even worse.

Barely anybody showed an interest in me. For the most part, the only time they would talk to you was when they were giving you work or when you were looking for it. They were not at all interested in me as a person, nor why I was interested in Walker Morris (which I was before I started).

As is stated, this placement convinced me that I would not enjoy working at the firm.

[This section of the comment has been removed by a member of the RateMyPlacement Team because it did not meet our site terms and conditions] The thing that was most noticeable to me, during my time at Walker Morris was the absolute lack of enthusiasm from those within the firm. [This section of the comment has been removed by a member of the RateMyPlacement Team because it did not meet our site terms and conditions]

£175 for the week, with tax deducted.

There was a lunch with trainees at the start of the placement, and a social evening midway through the week. Vac schemers were also encouraged to go for drinks on the final evening. However, from what I understand, few will be doing so!

Probably about par. People were far more friendly on social events than they were in the office.

No.

On the basis that any experience is good experience, I would recommend it. However, there are far better firms out there.