The Law Apprenticeships Guide 2018

Key questions

Below are some commonly asked questions about legal apprenticeships. However, if you want to ask something not covered here, email your query to LawCareers.Net’s Oracle at oracle@lawcareers.net for a personalised response. Q  How do I know if law is the right career for me? Q  Haven’t all lawyers been to private schools and Oxbridge?

At this early stage, it can be hard to be sure, but you can ask yourself some key questions as a start. Do you find legal issues interesting? Are you intrigued by the ways in which the law is part of everyday life? Is there a particular practice area (eg, crime, the environment or human rights) that has caught your attention? Are you the kind of person who would thrive in a fast-paced legal environment? The best way to really find out whether law is for you is by talking to lawyers and doing some quality work experience within the legal profession. Q  What skills and strengths do you need to be a good lawyer? There are a number of important skills that are needed if you are to be a good lawyer. Many of them are developed during your academic studies, while others become apparent in your working life – the advantage of developing them as an apprentice is that you will be doing both simultaneously. The attributes that most recruiters look for include: intellectual ability; motivation; resilience; accuracy; teamwork; leadership; commercial awareness; and communication skills. If you have the majority of these, law could be a good option for you!

No. Most firms understand the benefits of a representative workforce, which means recruiting the best candidates regardless of background. These days, most have their own diversity policies to ensure that they provide a welcoming and supportive environment for people whatever their gender, ethnicity, sexuality, age or socioeconomic background. In fact, legal apprentice schemes are one of the ways that firms are trying to attract and recruit a more diverse group of employees. Q  Who can become an apprentice? Legal apprenticeships are aimed at students who leave education after completing their GCSEs or A levels, wanting to go straight into a career rather than progress on to university. Most legal apprentices are young people aged 16-24 who have recently finished secondary education. While there is no age limit on who can start an apprenticeship, there is no government funding available for apprentices over the age of 24, meaning fewer opportunities for this age group. Apprenticeships are not open to university graduates.

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