Winter Vacation Placement Review

I had a fantastic time. Everything - social events, people, work itself and atmosphere - lived up to expectations. The only reason Jones Day gets 9 stars instead of 10 was that it also met my expectations for high pressure and relatively long hours.

Jones Day has a brilliant atmosphere - I've worked in other law firms before and these guys were the first to really follow through on the promise to have an open-door policy and welcome new people.

The recruitment staff were fabulous and the scheme they've designed mirrors the unusual training system Jones Day uses, so it gives you as much support as you seek out. All the people on my scheme were given trainee mentors and qualified mentors as well as the support staff, and the belt-and-braces approach turned out to be really useful to me as my trainee mentor was having a really busy two weeks.

Because you seek out your own work it comes in fits and starts, so I oscillated a little between really busy and calm. If you used their system for more than two weeks though, it would be pretty easy to get used to.

The variety of work we did covered everything from filing (actually more interesting that you'd think given the case it was for) to research memos for a senior partner and attending client meetings.

I was offered a training contract but that's not why I've given Jones Day 10 stars. Actually, it's because they made me want to work for them, which other law firms had failed to do.

I shared an office with two other placement schemers (one of the only bits of the experience that isn't authentic because new trainees all get their own offices) and they were fantastic. In the building as a whole you could genuinely stop all but two or three people (out of close to 300) to ask them what they were up to, solve any problems, and get any work.

[This section of the comment has been removed by a member of the RateMyPlacement Team because it did not meet our site terms and conditions], the recruitment manager, and her second-in-command, [This section of the comment has been removed by a member of the RateMyPlacement Team because it did not meet our site terms and conditions], deserved so much chocolate/wine/thanks for everything they organised for us - from partner meetings to a poker night it was really well run.

As a non-law student on a two-week placement, personal development really came from the work I was doing and the teamwork of my group, which were both really good. However, Jones Day also offers one of the most innovative training schemes in UK law firms - the non-seat scheme is why I chose it - and in terms of GDL and LPC sponsorship, the trainees do pretty well comparatively.

I got a training contract and I'm looking forward to working there from September 2014.

There were plenty of social events with the firm, but we also went to the pub and to dinner on our own as a group.

It is the City of London: 't'aint cheap. At least on the scheme there was usually a tab, so students didn't have to carry all the burden.

Tudor Street in London is down the back of Fleet Street so there are plenty of pubs and bars open late, packed with other city workers, and it's also 10 minutes from Covent Garden if you want a bigger night out.

Ice-skating at Somerset House, at least 3 dinners, a Poker night, a lunch with the partners - you name it, we had it. Also, the in-house catering at Jones Day was shockingly good.