Pathfinder Scheme Review

I had a very enjoyable time at Linklaters and there were so many activities packed into two days. The atmosphere at the firm is really welcoming and I never felt out of place.

There was a huge effort to make us all feel involved in the firm, especially during our shadowing sessions - even though the associates were busy they took the time to explain the type of work they do to us. I loved being treated as if I were a trainee in the firm, and not just a first year who was only there for two days!

There were lots of useful talks and information about how we can apply to vacation schemes next year, and we were constantly given the opportunity to ask questions if we had any.

There were loads of useful tips about application forms, interviews and assessment days.

There was a huge variety of different things planned, with the first day being packed with talks and group activities, and the second day being mainly for shadowing in two different seats.

There was a really good balance between fun group and team building exercises and interesting talks from a mix of people within the firm.

There were people from inside and outside the firm that came to give talks with tips and advice for our future applications to the firm.

The associates actually let us get involved with their work during the shadowing sessions and helping them on small tasks as well as observing them at work allowed me to understand more about what they do on a day to day basis.

Just being in the firm allowed me to understand the atmosphere within it and to know that it was somewhere that I could see myself fitting in.

I got to know more about the departments in which I did my work shadowing.

Travel expenses were reimbursed.

There were loads of opportunities to meet and ask questions to trainees, associates and partners, as well as to get to know the Graduate Recruitment Team. We had a dedicated session for networking with trainees, a talk from one of the partners in the morning, and we could constantly talk to employees of the firm at lunch times and in the coffee breaks.

There were several group activities, including some fun team building games and an evening pub quiz, as well as a more intense business game.

I found out about social evening events that are planned, as well as trips and sports teams.

I would definitely recommend it - it's so useful to do the Pathfinder scheme to find out about the firm at such an early stage in your degree.