Explore Legal Careers and Your Path to Success
Discover the diverse opportunities in legal professions, from solicitors to barristers and beyond. Learn about training paths, career options, and the structure of the legal profession for a successful future.
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Presentation Transcript
My Warwick Journey My Warwick Journey It s all about YOU And how you realise your potential
What does the Careers Service do? What does the Careers Service do? Job Job
We offer We offer One to one appointments for guidance Students only! Job search appointments and drop in at University House learning grid 11.00-3.00pm daily. Skills sessions Careers Fairs Law Fair is on 27th October Facebook page Law Facebook page Twitter Claire's twitter feed A wealth of resources on the university intranet University Careers pages and the Law School careers pages Blog Warwick Careers Blog International Careers Moodle pages
It is completely up to you! It is completely up to you! 2 choices!
Working together ? Working together ? "Through an hour long discussion with Claire about my career options, I benefitted enormously from her knowledge and understanding of the legal job market. I left with a number of great opportunities to apply to and with a second opinion on my current application methods. Don't let your time at university fly by without using the careers service. After all, an hour or so out of your 3-4 years here is nothing and could completely change your career prospects for the better! Ben Renshaw 2014 Graduate Law & Business
Legal Professional Careers are one possibility of many! Solicitors Barristers Graduate schemes in Marketing, Human Resources, Retail, PR, Financial consultancy, Accountancy, Financial Analysis, Civil Service Charity work
Do you want to be a solicitor? Here s how it works . Do a non qualifying degree and then the GDL Undertake 2 years of recognised professional training Do the Legal Practice Course LPC Do a Become qualified qualifying Law Degree
So how is the profession structured? Understand the City Magic Circle Silver Circle White shoe firms Large City Practices And the future? Global Elite? International Business Firms?
What else is out there? All the rest of the profession! Niche Practices Smaller City firms Major National firms Smaller firms, (some in loose groups) High Street practice In house law Government Legal Service Local Authority Legal Departments
Pay on starting training and just qualified LPC funded Working conditions Working hours Training Prospects White Shoe 40/100 Yes Functional? Extreme Active involvement Good retention Magic Circle 40/75 Yes Opulent offices Extreme Observation Ditto Silver Circle 40/75 Yes Very smart offices Extreme Observation Ditto Major City 40/75 Yes Very smart Pretty awful Work and observation Ditto Top niche 35/60 Yes Variable Long Ditto Ditto Smaller City 35/60 Yes Quite smart Long Ditto Ditto Major National 30/50 Yes Variable Sometimes long Work Ditto High Street 20/30 Possibly or loan Basic? Often OK Immersion Early partnership
Key facts about City training contracts You need to start working on it in your first year! Only a tiny proportion of the training contracts available are in City firms.
Timeframe for applications for Solicitors training contracts January application for experience days Attendance at various points during year Year1 January deadline for vacation scheme applications July 31stdeadline for training contract applications Penultimate Year Mid October deadline for Christmas Vac schemes January deadline for vacation scheme applications Final Year
What can you do to maximise your chances of getting a training contract Get customer service work experience Get involved on campus Research the profession Go to the Law Fair Selectively go to presentations Look for some experience in a small firm For City practice go to 1 or 2 Open Days Take advantage of careers support! Do not just apply to top firms, spread your risk - just like with university applications. Work for organisations likely to be clients of top firms
Some brutal facts facts! Almost all law firms want a 2.1 degree in order to offer you a training contract. Typically firms will scrutinise all your marks. Your 1st year marks matter. You need a 2.1 -59% is not a 2.1!! Spelling or grammar mistakes or typos can be enough to stop your application from progressing.
On the plus side Remember the earlier slide? There are lots of possibilities with a law degree. There are alternative routes into a legal career. More and more people are managing to forge one having started as a paralegal. There are a number of career routes which are similar to being a solicitor: tax practitioner, accountant, investigator, contracts advisor, estate agent, negotiator.
What about the Bar ? Do the Bar Professional Training Course BPTC (you have to pass the aptitude test first!) Do a non qualifying Degree and then the GDL Do a minimum of 12 months pupillage Do a qualifying Law Degree Find a tenancy!
How does it work? You need to sit the Bar Course Aptitude Test (BCAT) between the beginning of April and end of July in the year in which you want to start the course. You must have joined one of the four Inns of Court before your course starts. Your application must be received by 31st May in the year in which you wish to start the BPTC. If you are not a native English speaker you must have achieved IELTS a score of 7.5 or above in all subjects before the BPTC starts. There are no overarching deadlines for pupillage and tenancy applications.
Barrister or Solicitor? Do you like working on your own or in a team? Do you like the security of knowing you are going to be paid or the excitement of generating your own business? Do you want paid holidays and sick leave or would you rather be completely independent?
