Vacation Scheme Student Review

I enjoyed my time at Taylor Wessing, everybody was very welcoming and friendly and happy to take the time to chat and answer any questions. Unfortunately during my first week my supervisor was extremely busy and I wasn't able to experience a broad range of work, however during the second week my experience was much more varied. I enjoyed the social events, although I feel that the second one was much more accessible to all.

At times I was given some very interesting tasks which involved phone calls abroad and preparing notes for clients, however, I feel that our lack of access to the database and the strictness of data confidentiality restricted the work that I was able to do and the extent to which I could experience real trainee tasks. That said, everybody was very welcoming and inclusive.

I liked the fact that we were each allocated an associate supervisor and a trainee buddy during each of our seats. Unfortunately my supervisor was very busy during my first week but my trainee buddy was extremely supportive. During my second week my trainee buddy was out of the office due to illness, but my supervisor was very helpful.

The focus on sessions were really helpful in providing us with an insight into departments that we were not able to sit in during the scheme. I hope that this will assist me when thinking about departments that I might like to sit in during a training contract in the future.

The scheme was very well organised, with a clear timetable including focus on sessions, social events and pro bono opportunities.

I really liked the atmosphere in the office, everybody was very friendly and seemed to get on well as a team. The trainees were also really great at the social events.

During a two-week scheme I appreciate it is quite hard to provide extensive training, however some of the focus on sessions gave us the opportunity to work through case studies which was really helpful in terms of gaining an insight into the day-to-day work at the firm.

The opportunity to sit in an office alongside another employee was invaluable in terms of learning about daily life at the firm. The trainees were also very happy to talk about their roles in their respective departments and I feel that I now have as good understanding of what it is like to work at TW.

Having spent two week in the office I feel that I have gained a good understanding of the company culture. Everybody was very friendly and I liked the collegiate atmosphere between the trainees.

Yes, on the last day we attended a lunch with various partners from the firm, and had the opportunity to talk to employees that we had not met before. This was a great opportunity to learn more about other departments and other employees' routes into the firm.

The two social events varied greatly, the first (Urban Golf) was fun, but perhaps a little less accessible than the bowling the week after. The set up at bowling made it a lot easier to socialise and talk to different groups of people.

Yes, I was really pleased to have the opportunity to attend a pro bono session with several trainees after work.

Yes, I would definitely recommend this vacation scheme to a friend looking to pursue a career in commercial law.