I thoroughly enjoyed this vacation scheme. It was very well structured and I was able to engage in a wide range of work, with opportunities to interact directly with core clients. I felt well looked after for the duration of the scheme. The scheme was jam packed with the right balance of educational and social activities.
Everyone was friendly and I felt like a valued member of the team for the time I was there. I felt all my contributions were valued. I learnt a lot of skills and was also encouraged to challenge ideas. For example in my first week I was invited along to deliver a training session at a client office.
I received a lot of guidance. Each week there is a review session with our supervisor and we are able to talk through all the feedback from the relevant teams. Everyone was also more than willing to carve out time for a coffee in the canteen in order to find out more about the firm and different practice areas.
The skills were invaluable. I received great time management skills and I feel a lot more self-aware following the scheme. I worked for different fee earners against tight deadlines. I also did practical things such as legal and commercial research and drafting.
The structure was very well thought out. We had talks from all the different teams. Through innovative things such as "speed networking" we managed to get a full picture of all the different parts of the firm. We also had an interactive session which involved a game. Everything fit really well around time spent on the floors with practice groups.
It was an amazing atmosphere throughout. The other students on the vacation scheme were not overly competitive and the staff did not pit us against each other. It was bubbly and there was a lot going on through out the scheme, from after work seminars to industry wide events.
There was so much investment into us. We were fed throughout the scheme and had travel covered. We were also invited to a tour of the Lloyd's building and learnt so much about the insurance industry. Several partners and fee earners prioritised spending time talking to us.
We had a full session with HR at the end of the scheme who spoke to us about the life of early joiners and beyond. We were also trusted with trainee level work and sat closely with the trainees.
It was a great way to see the culture in action. Siting in the communal pods helped to understand what it means to be truly collegiate. People often came over whenever they had a query, regardless of what level they were in the organisation it never felt hierarchical
It helped me lot as I saw the different paths my legal career could go. I saw the breadth of opportunities and also some of the high quality clients.
excellent food throughout the scheme. quality canteen. sufficient travel expenses offered also
There were several opportunities for networking embedded into a weekly timetables, and supervisors were also proactive in organising opportunities to meet different people in the business if we so wished.
We had hot food during networking!! And the socials kept booze following throughout. It was great as a diverse selection of people from across the business attended networking, not just lawyers. Marketing teams came sometimes. The industry wide events were also a good way to learn more about clients
Yes, there was so much to do after work. When talking with one of the lawyers, he said if he didn't have external commitments he could easily fill all his evenings with all the great things the firm provides. There is a football club a theatre club and a book club a choir and so much more.
Yes, without hesitation
Insight / Vacation Scheme (< 4 Weeks)
17th September 2019