Open Day Review

I really enjoyed the insight Open Day at Taylor Wessing. At the start of the day, we were given a clear outline of what the day was to entail and were introduced to everyone on our table. The day started off with two senior partners telling us more about the work that they did as well as shared their experience with us. During the day, we also had a chance to speak with graduate recruitment, trainees, and participate in a commercial business game.

I felt that I was extremely valued during my time at the firm. From the start, we were warmly greeted and made sure that we knew where everything (from the toilets to the snacks) were. Throughout the day, the graduate recruitment team would ask us how we were finding the day. We were also encouraged to ask as many questions as possible – there really were no silly questions.

During the insight, we were given a huge amount of guidance and support. Both during and after each of the activities we were always given time to ask questions. One of the senior partners even over-ran the session because he truly wanted to make sure that all our questions were answered. At the end of the day, the graduate recruitment team reaffirmed that we could email in any questions we had as well.

Regarding my degree studies, I feel like after the open day, I will be able to learn how to follow the news and current affairs better. We were told what to look out for and different ways in which we should approach reading the news. During the session, we were also given advise on how best to answer questions on the application, what makes our application distinct, and how we can succeed in interviews.

The open day was really well structured. We knew at the beginning of the day what our schedule would be like and were given a sufficient number of breaks during the event. There was also a wide range of activities from listening to senior partners, to having a Q&A session with graduate recruitment as well as working in teams for the game. The wide range of activities meant that we were entertained throughout the day.

The general atmosphere was really good. There were a wide range of attendees from students all across the UK to recent graduates as well. We were given some time to talk to everyone who sat on the same table as us and also were put into different teams for the group task. Additionally, the lunch session with the trainees was really fun and it was nice to be able to chat to them about their daily work. Overall, it was a really good experience and I would recommend it to anyone looking to apply to a law firm.

The firm really invested their time into the day. It was clear that the senior partners knew what they were talking about with regards to supporting trainees as they had their presentation prepared early on. The multi-dimensional activities meant that we were able to have an insight on what working at a law from would entail. Throughout the day, the firm also made sure that we were comfortable and having a good time.

The insight helped me understand the full time work because we were able to speak to trainees from different backgrounds. They all spoke about their day to day work, the seat that they were in as well as how they were finding it thus far. It was encouraging to see that even as trainees, they were given a lot of responsibility and were constantly working with their supervisor and the partners in their teams.

The insight helped my understand the company culture because the setting was formal but casual. This meant that we were able to hear the honest opinions of everyone who worked at the firm. Moreover, with the time for us to participate in the Q&A, it was evident that the people at Taylor Wessing really wanted us to take in as much of the firm as we could. They made it clear that this was a two way process and that in order for good work to be done within the firm, it must be a good fit for us too.

The content was valuable to helping me decide on my future career because it made me more certain that I want to go into working in a global firm as a solicitor. Hearing about the work that the partners and the trainees do, it was evident that they were at the cutting edge and truly wanted to be ground breakers in their fields.

Students who travelled from outside of London could claim their expenses.

There were plenty of opportunities to network. Mostly this was with trainees during lunch and throughout the commercial business game as well. We were able to speak to the partners during the presentation sections as well. The graduate recruitment team were also extremely friendly and were with us during the whole day to make sure we didn't have any unanswered questions.

The networking with trainees was good although our session/lunch had to be cut short because the previous Q&A overran. This is completely understandable as we had a chance to speak to trainees later at the networking drinks at the end of the day. It was a really good opportunity to find out more about what the trainees' responsibilities were and how they got their training contract from Taylor Wessing.

I managed to find out about the activities that employees got involved with when asking the trainees about their work-life balance. One of the trainees mentioned that she played for the firm's netball team and enjoyed the social aspect of the firm as well. Many of the employees also mentioned that the firm really appreciated doing pro bono work for either start up firms or charities as well.

I would definitely recommend this insight to a friend who is interested in working in the law.