Winter vacation scheme Review

I enjoyed the vacation scheme. It was well organised and there were numerous opportunities available to network with different practice groups during the lunches that were put on. Also the work that was provided was interesting and I was provided with enough to keep me busy during the week too.

I received sufficient guidance. On the first day we were assigned a trainee buddy and a supervisor who we were able to go to for work and for feedback. Although I did not get chance to interact with my supervisor much, my buddy was great and we went through the work I had done almost immediately after I had completed it which was good.

It was well structured. On the first day there were general inductions and we were informed about the resources available to us in the firm for the week. Each day was well planned out, with a timetable of times and where we had to be. Also the formal assessments were well structured towards the end of the week.

The atmosphere was good in my opinion. I got the impression that the firm and people are generally very friendly and willing to help in any way possible. Also with it being near Christmas there is some festive spirit in the office with colleagues taking part in secret santa and wearing Christmas jumpers which is fun.

To an extent it allowed me to understand what it would be like to have a full time role within the firm, however as a trainee it is clear that the hours expected are sometimes later than we had to work till. It was good though to be sat within the office amongst colleagues and get a feel for working there.

It definitely made me understand the company culture better than I did before. The feel I got from the firm is that the culture is generally friendly and everyone was welcoming towards colleagues and even us as vacation scheme students who are only here for a short period of time.

Yes I will be paid adequately for this vacation scheme. With having to take the time off work, it makes up for this fact by being paid for my time. Also during socials etc we were not expected to pay for the food and drinks, and most days lunch was provided. This again makes the remuneration provided adequate as I did not have to purchase these things too.

Yes we had chance to network during lunch times and during the social. Lunch was provided and practice groups were invited to have lunch with us. It may have been better however to give us chance to eat lunch and then network as often doing both at the same time can be difficult and you don't get chance to eat or network as much as you would like.

They were useful and insightful. Everyone who I spoke to seemed to give me some form of advice or tips or life insights which was nice. The social was good - it was the right atmosphere as there was food, drinks and also pool tables and ping pong tables. It was good to do something practical and be able to move around and mingle with different people. However probably needed more socials outside of work.

Yes I would recommend this to a friend. It seems to be a great place to work and I would love to work here after my vacation scheme. It was well structured, I was adequately remunerated and I was provided with a great insight into life as a future trainee solicitor.