Reaffirming the commitment, ability and potential of KLS students to succeed in law
Recent graduates and a current student have already secured training contracts with leading global law firms, reaffirming their commitment, ability and potential to succeed in law.
Darren Weir, Senior Lecturer and Director of Lawyering Skills, said, ‘We are immensely proud of the increasing number of students securing positions with top-tier law firms. Whether these students start as paralegals or go straight into the firm on a training contract, it is clear that their hard work and perseverance get them through. The most successful students are the ones who engage with and make use of our services and facilities whilst studying. Whether focusing on the critical approach to law embedded in our teaching ethos, working in the law clinic, undertaking a lawyering skill, or engaging with the employability service and all they offer.”
Current student Benedikt Weyhe (Timo) has just completed his year abroad in France and starts his European Legal Studies degree final stage this September. He has accepted a training contract offer from Linklaters to begin in autumn 2025 after hearing about the opportunity through our Employability team at a virtual presentation event by Linklaters and decided to apply to their Pathfinder scheme. Pathfinder allowed him to “to get to know the firm better while also fast-tracking me to the assessment centre for a vacation scheme.” Read about Timo’s experience here.
Sophie Marler, who secured her training contract with the UK’s highest-ranking law firm, Irwin Mitchell, explained how Kent Law School contributed to her application success; “The Kent Law Fair was definitely a very beneficial experience as it was my first interaction with Irwin Mitchell and helped me to establish connections that were invaluable to me going forward.
I also feel as though the critical approach to the study of law at Kent has also greatly improved my skills of reflection. This has proved useful both throughout the training contract application process and now my Legal Practice Course (LPC).” Read about Sophie’s journey here.
Her experience at the Kent Law Clinic helped Tamzin Bildstein gain legal wok experience where she volunteered as part of her degree. “It was important for my success as I got to see the kind of work that lawyers undertake, and this helped me have a better understanding of what I would potentially be doing as a Trainee.
All the teaching staff played a vital role in my success. They enthused me in my studies, taking the time to have one on ones to develop my understanding and believed in me throughout my degree and the application cycles I entered.” Read Tamzin’s story here.
Accepted by Osborne Clarke on a training contract starting next September following a six-week internship via the ’10,000 Black Interns Programme’ Dong Malwal, told us about his application process; “I had to submit a CV and a written application on my motivations for a career in Law. As part of the training contract assessment process, I had to attend an assessment centre, which consisted of a group exercise and a Watson Glaser test. I also had to attend a final interview and complete a short presentation as part of my interview.” Read about Dong’s experience here.
Elliott Denton began studying law as a mature student aged 27, and secured a training contract at Kent law Firm Cripps. He wanted to reiterate to other mature students not to lose hope in achieving their dreams “ The average age of qualification for a solicitor is circa 30 years old, I’m not sure people know that. If you’re a mature student who is studying later in life you still have time and if you’re graduating at 21 and don’t have a training contract lined up honestly don’t panic. Go at your own pace and as long as you display an intellectual curiosity and strong work ethic you will make it.” Read Elliott’s full story here.
Damien Crone who starts his training contract with Slaughter and may in spring 2025, had this advice for anyone considering applying for training contracts. Read Damien’s full story here.
- Do your research and make sure you know about the firms you want to apply to inside and out. You are going to be questioned about why you want to work at these firms, and when you give your answer, you can expect to be questioned about that as well. Knowing all you can about where you’re applying is key to putting yourself in the best position possible.
- Don’t get discouraged if you aren’t successful on the first try. It’s an extremely competitive process and, chances are, it’s going to take a couple attempts. I submitted 10+ vacation scheme applications and only had one interview – with Slaughter and May – and I didn’t get the position. It took me applying to Slaughter and May again after being rejected and using the feedback they gave me to improve my application for me to get a training contract – persistence is key.
- If you can get a first, get a first – this advice was given to me on numerous occasions. Having top grades helps you stand out from the pack at the application stage – and though it’s tempting to spend your time in university parting and going out, the parties are much better with a solicitor’s salary, making the sacrifice all the more worth it. If being a solicitor is what you want, dedicate yourself to doing what it takes to make that happen.
- Finally, use all of the resources available to you through your degree to broaden your knowledge and develop your commercial awareness. You get either free or heavily discounted student memberships to news outlets such as the Financial Times and Bloomberg, and these are key to understanding what is going on in the commercial world. You can definitely expect to have your commercial awareness assessed in interviews and these get you off the ground running.
Follow the links to hear advice from all these successful students and graduates.
We congratulate them all on their success and we wish them all the very best with their legal career ambitions.