Placement Student Review

The insight was structured so that you had the chance to sit in the practice areas you were interested in (allocated by preferences you submitted before coming). There was a social event and a couple of drinks and networking sessions where you could speak to trainees. However, it would be better if a variety of professionals attended; e.g. partners, associates etc.

The work I was doing was not the usual mundane, boring admin work which I see a lot of other firms giving their vacation scheme students. I sat in on client calls, was given the opportunity to do some research tasks and do first drafts of some important letters. This made me really valued.

HR was incredibly useful in answering any queries we had in a prompt and timely manner. Everything we needed was documented in the folder we were given on our first day. Trainee buddies were allocated and were helpful in explaining the work and also more about the firm in general. Overall the support was good.

There was a series of informal presentations surrounding industry trends, legal developments which would be useful in the GDL, LPC or just broadening your understanding of the commercial world. There was also a negotiation and presentation exercise which would help you to develop key skills in this area which would be useful for other vacation schemes or work in general.

We sat in two seats over the two weeks. These were allocated to do with our preferences we put down before coming onto the scheme; very accommodating. There were a variety of social events including cocktail making which allowed you to bond with your vacation scheme students and other trainees. However, there could be a broader range of professionals.

SH operates as an open door firm and I felt like I could walk into most rooms and ask them for a chat or whether they needed help with any work they might have. Everyone is extremely friendly and willing to answer anything about the firm, as they are trying to sell the firm to you as well.

One of the biggest factors why I really enjoyed working at S H is that the firm really invested in me in terms of personal training and development. You could see that from day 1 where we had workshops and met a bunch of people at the firm who were willing to share their experiences.

A lot of the work I was doing on a vacation scheme would be what you would be doing as a trainee here. As the firm is quite small and trainee intake as well, there is a lot of responsibility given to you early on. This is good but at the same time you are not thrown into the deep end.

I did seats both in corporate and commercial litigation and before the vac scheme I was sure I wanted to be a transactional lawyer. However, being on the scheme made me realised that litigation could potentially be more interesting as the work is more varied and can be more confrontational and aggressive; which I like!

I was paid £360 a week which is fairly generous compared to other law firms in London. Whether its enough to be able to live in London and rent an Airbnb here is questionable but you aren't really doing a vacation scheme for the money anyway; more for the experience. Hence, the money is fair.

There were various and plentiful opportunities for networking and meeting other employees of the company or firm. This was clear from day 1 when we received our timetable for the week. Everything was clearly organised and a lot of networking, presentations and social events listed. These included cocktail making with trainees and drinks.

There were various and plentiful opportunities for networking and meeting other employees of the company or firm. This was clear from day 1 when we received our timetable for the week. Everything was clearly organised and a lot of networking, presentations and social events listed. These included cocktail making with trainees and drinks.

There were various and plentiful opportunities for networking and meeting other employees of the company or firm. This was clear from day 1 when we received our timetable for the week. Everything was clearly organised and a lot of networking, presentations and social events listed. These included cocktail making with trainees and drinks.

If you were lucky enough to get on the insight you are clearly intelligent and would be a fool not to accept a place here to see what it would be like. Everyone is really friendly and you get a lot of responsibility from the outset which I really like. The support given is good too.