The Ultimate Guide to Legal Work Experience in the UK

Jun 18, 2023

Written By Samuel Axford

Although applications are competitive, securing work experience can be vital to both improving your CV and deciding whether a legal career is the one for you.

Work experience for aspiring solicitors

Virtual Work Experience

Virtual work experience can give you an insight into what the solicitors do on a daily basis, all from the comfort of your own home.

Most top law firms will have virtual work experience programmes which will reward you with an e-certificate if you complete all the tasks. These will typically take a few hours, with tasks made to be representative of what a trainee solicitor in a specific practice area will deal with.

Requiring no application and not having any strict time limits, these offer a risk-free way to see if law is the career for you. Forage is a great resource for virtual work experience programmes, where firms will curate specific schemes for different practice areas, with some offering multiple courses. These can also be a great way of finding out more about a firm’s specialisations.

Insight/Open Days

Branded as either insight or open days, many large firms offer the chance to spend a day or two in their offices. This day could include shadowing trainees or associates and workshops on topics like commercial awareness and negotiating.

Typically, these will be open to university students in their first or second year, with most firms reimbursing travel expenses, and some even offering accommodation to those who live outside the city.

Getting places on these can be challenging, with top firms receiving thousands of applications for these schemes each year. Getting onto them will require a strong understanding of the firm and an error-free application, so it is worth taking your time with an application. Some firms will also ask you to complete critical thinking tests like the Watson Glaser, or invite you for an interview. Check out our selection and assessment hub here for tons of articles on how to make your application stand out.

Some firms will offer people who attended their open days guaranteed spots on vacation schemes later, so impressing in those two days is important. Clifford Chance’s SPARK scheme even offers some first-year students training contract interviews if they excel during their insight days.

Vacation Schemes

Similar to insight days, but often taking place over several weeks, vacation schemes give penultimate and final year students, as well as graduates, the chance to gain extensive experience in a law firm.

Unlike the previously discussed options, vacation schemes will usually be paid, with a training contract being offered to those who impress. These can be great opportunities to get to know a firm and its practice areas, whilst also getting to know the people who could decide whether or not you land a training contract.

Being so important, the application process for these is even more rigorous than the open days, so it is only worth applying to a few vacation schemes, so you don’t rush them. These will usually have an interview attached to the application process, so a strong understanding of the firms you are applying to is integral to securing a place.

Different firms will have winter or summer vacation schemes, with applications being reviewed on a rolling basis, so it is worth familiarising yourself with the dates applications open for any firms you are interested in.

Internships

Looking outside of the top law firms, some smaller firms and in-house law firms will offer summer internships in their legal teams. These will be paid work experience, where you become a part of the team over several weeks, usually during the summer. Each employer will have their own stipulations as to who can apply, with some even allowing school-aged students to join their ranks.

Being offered by many different companies, these can be a great option for those who cannot commute to a larger city, or those who want to get experience working in a more specialised team.

Finding these opportunities can be hard, with companies putting up advertisements on a variety of sites, including LinkedIn, Indeed, or other job-search sites, so checking regularly to see what opportunities are open is important.

Applications to internships will usually require you to send in a CV and cover letter explaining why you would be a good fit for their team. So, just as with the other options, research is key!

Work Experience for aspiring barristers

Mini-pupillages

Looking at the barrister career path, fewer opportunities are available, however mini-pupillages are the best way to get work experience alongside qualified barristers. Chambers will run these schemes for three to five days, with students shadowing barristers in a variety of scenarios. Students will join the barristers in court, in conferences with solicitors and even get involved in research.These are unpaid opportunities, but some chambers do offer grants.

The application process is usually just a CV and cover letter, but it is worth remembering that these are very competitive, so make sure to make the letter concise and persuasive.

Court Visits

Although not work experience in the classic sense, visiting local courthouse and sitting in on trials can provide an aspiring barrister with a first-hand insight into the workings of the legal system. Being able to talk about what you saw in these visits can also be invaluable in interviews or in a cover letter.

Shadowing

Open to both hopeful solicitors and barristers, shadowing is one of the most well-known ways of getting experience in any field. It can net you both good contacts and give you an insight to the day-to-day workings of real lawyers, helping you understand if the career is for you.

However, going about this can be difficult. Firms and chambers do not often advertise shadowing opportunities. So, you’ll need to be proactive in emailing smaller local firms or lawyers.

Legal Work Experience