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The opportunity to experience Macfarlanes begins with our vacation scheme assessment days. You will spend an afternoon work-shadowing one of our trainees as well as being assessed for a place on the vacation scheme itself. As a vacation scheme student, you will gain an insight into life as a trainee over the course of two weeks. We’ll make sure you get the hands-on experiences you need to build your understanding of what we do and how we do it. That could involve drafting documents, carrying out live research, going to client briefings or meeting counsel alongside a partner, solicitor or trainee. The two weeks will be split across two different practice areas to maximise your exposure, and you will work on a mock transaction during that time too. There’s also a social element to the programme so you will have plenty of opportunities to network and to ask the kind of questions that will help you decide if your future lies with us. In the second week of the vacation scheme you will have the opportunity to be assessed for the training contract.
Who we’re looking for
We expect you to have a 2:1 degree or above – that could be in law or in another subject. Ambition is important too. From the very first day of your training contract, you can expect to deal with clients, support important matters and be a representative of the firm. Our clients are very varied but, because they tend to be commercial in their approach, we’ll want to see some entrepreneurial spirit in you. Most of all, we’ll want to see that you have resilience, determination and exceptional communication skills. You must be confident when it comes to giving advice and making decisions.
Lastly, at Macfarlanes, we believe we can all learn from each other. So you’re as likely to be asked for your ideas and opinions when you’re a trainee as you are if you become one of our partners. We think of everyone here as a teacher.
Vacation scheme assessment
Successful vacation scheme applicants will be invited to attend one of our assessment days. In the morning you will be assessed for the vacation scheme, taking part in a group exercise and a written exercise. You will get to talk to our partners and trainees over lunch, followed by an interview with a senior solicitor and one of our partners. The remainder of the afternoon will be spent work shadowing in one of our practice areas.
Vacation Scheme Dates
- Spring Vacation Scheme: 6 – 16 April 2021
- Summer Vacation Scheme One: 28 – 9 July 2021
- Summer Vacation Scheme Two: 12 – 23 July 2021
