Insight Day First Year Review

The insight was extremely enjoyable. The mixture of activities, from presentations to workshops, kept me engaged throughout the two days. The social activities were fun and enlightening, giving all us first years a great insight into the different types of personalities and variety of work available at HSF. All the talks were incredibly purposive and informative, and the workshops gave me a real flavour of the type of work available at HSF.

Everyone at HSF was extremely friendly and helpful and I never felt that I was a burden. All the employees I interacted with seemed genuinely interested in me and answered my questions with honesty and enthusiasm. Whilst I was worried that I would trouble the trainee I spent the afternoon with (as I am aware they often have quite a lot on their plates), she was immensely kind, interesting and organised. She gave me an excellent debrief on the work she was involved in and offered me a variety of tasks across the office. From beginning to end, I was made to feel extremely valued at HSF by every member of staff I had the pleasure of meeting and felt that a lot of thought had gone into making everyone on the scheme feel as comfortable and appreciated as possible.

From providing us non-Londoners with a wonderful place to stay to making trainees, associates and partners available for us to ask a potentially endless list of questions to, HSF offered guidance and support at all levels. There was almost always a trainee on hand if we had any questions; I felt they all really went out of their way to spend time with all of us and make us feel comfortable (and I am sure that the offer of free lunch and drinks also helped!). Clare and Tara (the graduate recruiters) always had the answer for any questions we had and were available for any additional support we might need. The workshops were well-run and the trainees consistently supported us and made sure what we were suggesting was relevant and that we were making the most of our time.

Whilst not particularly relevant to my degree studies (no bad thing, as we had all come to learn about the firm and not improve our subject knowledge), the information was pertinent to the pursuing a career in law. The commercial and corporate focus provided a great insight into the differences between academic and working law, with the workshops making us consider some of practical skills and personality traits we might need if we want to succeed as practicing lawyers in a large, multi-national firm. Over the two days, we were also given more general information about the HFS, what it is looking for in an employee and what sets it apart from other city firms. This was extremely useful, as many of us are considering a career at HSF/ commercial law and it is always advantageous to gain as much insight into the process of selection and the firm's culture as possible.

The insight was extremely well structured. There was a good balance between informative and interactive activities; I think all us first years felt that there was always something going on. The social aspects were great and transitions from HFS to hotel to London Eye to the restaurant were very smooth. It was useful having the timetable to start, as it made us quickly realise that the two days were jam packed with activities. There was a great variety of experiences and I honestly feel as though every moment on the scheme was well spent.

From partner to trainee, everyone was extremely friendly and helpful. All the members of the firm made an effort to engage with you and your fellow first years, often rotating so that we could get a variety of opinions on the different sectors of work at HSF. Going up the London Eye was a great, albeit somewhat scary, experience and having drinks with partners, associates and trainees was not nearly as intimidating as I thought it would be. Overall, the atmosphere at both the offices and social events was very relaxed and amiable. There was a great sense of camaraderie and it seemed clear that while working at HSF required academic prowess and hard work, everyone genuinely enjoyed their time at the firm.

For the length of time provided for the Insight Day, Herbert Smith Freehills managed to squeeze in as much personal development as possible. As our time at the firm was too short to really expand on any training elements (and that is something best reserved to the more elaborate training scheme), there was personal development opportunities available in the form of commercial and corporate awareness workshops.

The insight scheme did just what it said on the tin: it gave us all a great insight into working with the firm. Although there were elements that were understandable brushed over due to time constraints, I feel that the HSF did a great job of letting us experience what life at the firm would be like, from explaining the firm's culture and expertise to allowing us to shadow and learn from a trainee's average working day.

HFS has a very distinctive culture: international, diverse and collegiate in nature. The insight day was extremely helpful in helping us first years understand that culture. From watching videos and hearing presentations about the firm's business practices and working culture to actually getting to meet and socialise with a variety of staff ourselves (who were entirely open to any questions on the firm), the insight provided a mixture of methods, both academic and practical, to aid us in our understanding of life at HSF.

The content of the day was very valuable, as we were allowed to have a 'meet and greet' session with numerous departments (Corporate, IP, Employment, M&A, etc); this helped us get a general idea of the kinds of work that HSF offers its trainees.

I was reimbursed expenses and also provided with food and a hotel for the night as the Insight Day was a 2 day event.

Almost every activity was an opportunity to network and meet employees. We all had one-on-one time with trainees for several hours, and in that time many of us met partners, associates, and other, where we had the opportunity to ask any questions we wanted. Trainees also assisted in the workshops and ate lunch with us for both days, and again offered to answer any queries we had. Furthermore, many joined us as we went around the London Eye (courtesy of HSF) and later, many associates and senior partners from different areas of the firm joined us for drinks and food at the South Bank. This provided many of us with the chance to ask about everyday working practices/ graduate recruitment whilst they asked about our routes into law and got to know us a people as well as potential lawyers.

Detailed above. Overall, HSF provided very comprehensive, useful and enjoyable social and networking sessions. Everyone was incredibly nice and helpful, and appeared really interested and engaged with our questions and opinions. There appeared to be no real hierarchy as everyone seemed to know each other or were getting to know one another regardless of department and seniority.

There was a large variety of activities that HSF employees with outside of work, from sports to socialising to pro bono work through presentations and the employees themselves.

Yes.