Insider report Watson Farley & Williams LLP
Dom undertook Watson Farley & Williams’ virtual vacation scheme in July 2020. He will start his training contract with the firm in 2022.
No of scheme places Up to 30
What did you dowhile on the vacation scheme? I was part of the first cohort to complete the vacation scheme online. I was assigned a trainee buddy in the capital markets teamand given a timetable setting out the activities scheduled for theweek. The scheme involved presentations conducted by fee earners fromdifferent departments. Thiswas not only a great opportunity to understand each practice area, but it was also very interesting to learn about the roles played by a trainee or associate on a deal. Theweekwas filledwith various opportunities to ask questions, aswell as the chance to get involved in a virtual quiz organised by the trainees.
Location of schemes London
Length of schemes 2 weeks
Remuneration (per week) £325
Dates of schemes Spring and Summer 2021
During the scheme, wewere divided into groups and given the chance towork together and deliver a presentation towards the end of theweek.
Closing date for applications 4 January 2022
What did you feel that you gained fromthe placement? The scheme helpedme to thinkmore proactively about my communication style as the online nature presented a unique set of challenges. In contrast to an office environment where you canwalk into someone’s room for a chat, you had to take the initiative to contact people virtually. I also gained an honest insight into the day-to-dayworking life as a lawyer at the firm. I had ameetingwithmy trainee buddy, who encouragedme to ask genuine questions about the firmandwas transparent about her experiences. This helpedme to visualise myself working at the firmand ultimately helpedme to decide at which firm to train. Whichwere themost enjoyable – andmost challenging – aspects of the scheme? Themost enjoyable part was the virtual quiz. It was a good chance tomeet thewider team in a less formal context andwas good fun. I somehowmanaged to get the team named after me, although I had no idea of the answers tomost of the questions! Themost challenging aspect was the training contract interviewas I had never completed an online interview in real-time before, so I had to use a different set of skills. However, the partner and graduate recruitment teamwere very good at making the interviewconversational and enjoyable. Did the scheme endwith a training contract interviewor some other kindof further recruitment process? The scheme endedwith a training contract interviewwith a partner and amember of the graduate recruitment team. Wewere told in advancewhowould be attending, and the interviewwas centred around the vacation scheme, myCV andmy understanding of the firm. We also had to complete twowritten exercises. Thesewere research tasks based on practical issues lawyers could face. After submitting thewritten tasks, wewere given feedback on our performance and tips on how to improve. The group presentation also formed part of the recruitment process. Is there one key thing that you took away fromthe experience that youwould pass on as advice to others? My advice is to be flexible and open-minded. When submittingmy application, I did not envision completing an online vacation scheme. However, once it was confirmed to be taking place virtually, I had to adjust my approach and use different (sometimes unfamiliar) skills to accomplish similar results. Beingwilling to adapt and able to accept change helpedme to achieve this.
Application procedure Online application
For full contact information and details of Training Contract, see the firm’s full entry in the main directory on p376
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WORK EXPERIENCE
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