Vacation Scheme Placement Review

The insight I was able to receive in the Intellectual Property Rights department was first-class. From the first day, I was involved in live matters and talked through the specific processes. I was able to bounce ideas off senior management as well as my trainee 'buddy'. You do get given real responsibility and exposure, and you are expected to manage your time accordingly. Daily interactions range from Legal Secretaries to Partners. There is no hierarchy when discussing matters as long as you appreciate people's workloads.

As I am a paralegal currently at another firm, I felt comfortable exercising the 'softer' skills required to work in a busy office environment. A skill set essential for this placement includes organisational and time management skills. I believe I developed these existing skills, which I already feel are a strong feature of my skill set. I also continue to strive to improve my understanding of colleagues' styles of work, whether that pertains to presentation or tone.

Gateley made a real effort to explain their somewhat unique business structure and the opportunities this could provide for career development. This came in the form of dedicated zoom calls throughout the week with senior members of staff and the career development team. I also gained insight to this extent through conversing with trainee solicitors and other members of staff throughout the week. I came with a long list of questions and left the week with them all answered!

The company culture is something Gateley are very strong about on their website and social media platforms. I was excited for the opportunity to see what this looked like in reality. Any skepticism I had was a distant memory from the minute I was in the building. The culture is amazing. Arguably, the strongest compliment is that I felt upset to leave at the end of the week. It is clear that the people who are recent hires are hired in respect to this culture fit. There are numerous long-standing members of staff which is a strong indication of Gateley being a great place to work.

I could not recommend highly enough this vacation scheme. It is not a 'week long test' as some may expect, but rather an opportunity to see if you could picture yourself training and working there. It is much as a test for Gateley to impress as it is them assessing you. I was made feel so welcome by all staff and was given the platform to enjoy the week.

Yes

I can confidently say the culture and ethos Gateley present on their website is accurate. So consider is this somewhere you think would suit your skills and personality. If the answer is yes, be yourself! Do not attempt to dress anything up or try to appease what you think they would want to hear. Most importantly, go in open minded. As a trainee you will be in different seats, so to say 'I do not like that sector' before trying it is not the best idea!