Student Review

Although the scheme was only a week long, the variety and balance of activities was vast and delivered everything I hoped for given the current circumstances. The other vacation schemers were an absolute joy to work alongside. The graduate recruitment team did such an amazing job of revamping this scheme for virtual circumstances. Furthermore, the dedication of the extended staff of Taylor Wessing made sure that we were busy and that there was always something to do.

Of the many individuals I reached out to for help, for a chat, for some questions or just to hear about their experience with the firm, approximately 90% of them got back to me enthusiastically and willing to take the time to listen to me and answer honestly. This level of openness and friendliness is rare in a firm of Taylor Wessing's size. I leave this week with no remaining questions since I was able to ask all of them throughout the week!

I received a lot of support on the first day, after that it was in your own hands. You could decide when you needed help or if you wanted to reach out. I thought this was great because it gave you the opportunity to approach the tasks individually but then also to reach out to individuals you saw fit to help you. Both ways, it was a win win situation - either you demonstrate your autonomy or you are able to connect with someone.

I learnt a lot about how to communicate appropriately with individuals who are senior to you, working in teams and being very considered with my scheduling. I believe these skills are always going to be useful regardless of what you end up going into - be that further studies or straight into professional work. I really fell like I made the most out of the week that we had. I was able to schedule talks in with lots of people and get a lot of information in a short period which is definitely transferable.

The structuring was impeccable. The balance between passive tasks (where one could sit back and listen to all the information you're being fed e.g. the practice area Focus On sessions) and tasks which required pro-activity and assertive behaviour (such as skill sessions) was spot on. If there had been too much of one or the other of these sorts of activities I either would've been too bored or burnt out by the end of the day.

The general atmosphere was quite hard to read since the scheme was virtual. When we were split into smaller groups for the skills sessions and the group presentation the general atmosphere was positive, enthusiastic and supportive. There were of course times where it felt slightly competitive but personally, I like to use that to motivate me. It was never to a point where it was too much or the amicability of the scheme was compromised.

They gave us so many opportunities to learn. We were lucky enough to hear from lots of specialists in many fields. This was especially apparent in the skills session of effective collaboration and innovation. The speakers made themselves very available and were very happy to chat about any follow-up questions we may have had from the sessions. Because the scheme was virtual there was definitely a limited number of things that could be invested in us, but given the circumstances I thought the team did well.

Again, because of the circumstances this was a large limitation on our insight into the day to day life of a trainee or anyone work in the firm but at the end of the day they really did try to give us this information as accessibly and clear as possible. Every Focus On session had an element of 'what would you do with us as a trainee' and the buddy and supervisor programme also helped to address this.

This one of my biggest take-aways from the scheme. Out of everything, I'd say I understand the firm's culture so much better than I did before. I loved everyone I spoke to. One of my highlights was joining an equaliTW session with over 80 other Taylor Wessing colleagues all tuned in to support and listen to the stories of the panellists. This really highlighted the community aspect of the firm, even though we are restrained virtually.

At the beginning of the week, I just wanted to understand the firm and the law better as this was my first vacation scheme ever. Now at the end of the week, I want my future with Taylor Wessing. This week has been so important for me and my own realisations about how I'd fit into law as a career, and how I can do so at Taylor Wessing. This scheme helped me to realise that law is what I want to do so I'd say, in response to the prompt, it was extremely valuable.

I was paid for my time very generously. The fact that I get to learn and talk to individuals and I get paid for it is a wonderful thing. I'm very grateful that Taylor Wessing was about to offer that financial support. It also makes them more competitive as many other vacation schemes have a similar per week pay. The payment is processed two weeks after your vacation scheme so you don't have to wait months for that to go through either.

Absolutely. There weren't loads of gaps in our timetables, but of the gaps that there were, we had complete control over that time. It meant that you were able to make your own trade-offs about the sessions and while everything was very highly recommended to go to, nothing was entirely mandatory. That being said, there was not a case where I didn't have enough free time to network and had to schedule it over the pre-existing events.

They were so much fun. Again, it required an element of you reaching out to individuals which I know not everyone is completely comfortable with doing but once you get over that little nervous feeling then there are endless opportunities. Among the vacation schemers we were able to socialise on the first night together with a virtual scavenger hunt. On the Wednesday we had a chill social with the current trainees which was also lots of fun.

I know that there are lots of opportunities for Taylor Wessing staff to get involved in. We didn't find out loads about the activites that employees could get involved in but as I mentioned, this wasn't much of an issue since I had done research on this area before joining the vacation scheme. I did find out about the Blackfriars clinic which I really loved hearing about and that I also didn't know about before.

Absolutely I would. Although I haven't had much experience with vacation schemes in general, this was so well run and so well organised that there's something for everyone to gain. The graduate recruitment team were so helpful and enthusiastic about everything which also really made it more enjoyable. We know that they had tailored this scheme to benefit us and that really came across. If I could, I would relive the whole week and wouldn't change a single thing.