How do you write a mini pupillage cover letter?

May 31, 2022

Written By Isabella Priestman-Bennett

There are various mini pupillage cover letter templates available online, but there is no one-size fits all cover letter that suits all candidates and all chambers. However, below are some top tips that can assist you in writing a personalised and compelling cover letter that is likely to impress and secure you that all important mini pupillage.

Before you start writing, do your research. Look at the chambers’ website and, before anything else, make sure you meet the criteria. Some chambers will specify that they only offer mini pupillages to those at a certain stage of their undergraduate degree, or those on the PGDL or BPTC. You don’t want to waste people’s time by sending in an application when you are not yet eligible, so this step is crucial.

Introduce yourself

It is helpful to open by stating that you are writing to express your interest in a mini pupillage and by introducing yourself. Be concise here: give chambers a quick sense of the stage you are at in your education or career.

Why this particular chambers?

It is then a good idea to dedicate a significant amount of the letter to explaining why you have applied to this particular chambers over and above any other.

It can be useful to break your reasoning down into, for example, the work that members of chambers do and the people themselves.

In discussing the work, this is a useful opportunity for you to show the reader that you understand the practice areas that members of chambers specialise in and, perhaps more importantly, for you to explain why these areas appeal to you.

It can be particularly impressive to discuss the culture within the chambers if you have had some previous interaction with them; for example through a pupillage fair or another mini pupillage, through which you got a sense of what the people are like and the atmosphere within chambers.

Why you?

Once you’ve shown that you’re serious about this particular chambers, you then need to show them why they should invest their time in you.

Here, you should explain how your skills and qualities – evidenced by your experiences and achievements to date – align with the chambers and the qualities they look for in candidates. This is where your research into chambers through its website or the information gathered from interactions you’ve had with chambers to date will help you.

Key here is making sure that you demonstrate that you possess the specific qualities and skills they look for in candidates, but without simply regurgitating the wording on their website.

It is also vital here that you evidence each statement you make about yourself: instead of stating simply that you are intellectually curious, state that your intellectually curious nature is demonstrated by some certain achievement or activity.

Take this one step further by linking this quality back to the specific chambers, stating that it is this intellectual curiosity that makes you suited to this particular chambers by, for example, making you suited to the complex and often novel points of law that arise in the cases that members of chambers work on.

How you will benefit from the mini pupillage

It can be particularly impressive for you to demonstrate to chambers that you have reflected on how this opportunity would further your knowledge of the bar or make you a better candidate for pupillage in the future.

Practical information

Don’t forget the basics. If chambers’ website doesn’t specify particular dates or cycles during which they have their mini pupils in chambers, it can be helpful for you to state the dates that you are available.

Before signing off, ensure that you thank them for their time in reading your letter.

Proofread, proofread and proofread again

This stage is very important. Successful applications will be free of typographical and grammatical errors, and they will be concise and easy to read. Note that the letter should ideally be no more than one A4 page in length.

In ensuring that the letter is polished and devoid of error, it can be helpful to print the letter off and check it line by line. If possible, ask someone else to read it before sending it off.

And that’s your mini pupillage cover letter written and ready to go. Well done for putting in the work to get it written and don’t be disheartened if you don’t hear back from chambers immediately. Chambers are busy places, and it is often the case that you might have to wait a while before getting a response.

Mini Pupillage