Ellie's insight into securing a Training Contract with Clyde & Co

We caught up with Ellie McCarthy, a University of Birmingham graduate, about why she chose Clyde & Co as the place to start her legal career.

What attracted you to Clyde & Co and the training contract?

I was attracted to Clyde & Co because of their presence within the insurance market. It's an interest of mine and something I wanted to specialise in. Clyde & Co work for top insurers on a global scale, and with clients of that significance and magnitude comes a lot of responsibility as well as international attention, which appeals to me as a junior lawyer. However, the best thing about Clyde & Co is their cultural ability to pair top International work with a good work-to-life balance. That can be pretty hard to come by in the legal industry but it is well respected here at Clyde & Co.

How did you find the application process? Were there any bits you particularly enjoyed? Or found challenging?

I invested a lot of time into my application form and I believe that initial work really paid off. I did a lot of research into the firm on LinkedIn, legal websites such as The Lawyer, read articles and got to know the firm and why they were different. For the vacation scheme, I was then invited to the assessment centre which consisted of a group exercise, an interview and a written and discussion exercise. These were obviously daunting, but I felt well-prepared. For the group exercise, it's vital that you can work well as a member of the team, that you have your own opinion that you can bring to the table, as well as listen to others. For the interview, it's important to have a good knowledge of the firm and to be prepared for competency and commercial awareness-based questions.

Do you have any tips on how to make your application stand out?

I think people say this all the time and it may seem obvious, but I don’t think people actually take it on board. I spent hours on this application, and it paid off because the time I had invested was evident. Your application will be looked at by someone that has seen thousands of other applications, so yours NEEDS to stand out. And it won't stand out if you have simply quoted facts from the firm's website - they've seen that before, they know those facts, it’s nothing new, and you haven’t bought anything to the table. It needs to be tailored and crafted so that every single sentence is contributing to why you want to be a lawyer specifically at Clyde & Co. We are passionate about what we do and will only recruit people who maintain that. If you haven't conveyed that message, your application form will be cast aside.

How has your experience at Clyde & Co been so far?

My time at Clyde & Co has been different to most - I started during the pandemic and spent my first eight months working remotely. That obviously gave me a different outlook to the one most people witness on the training contract, but it couldn't be helped and the firm made sure that we were best equipped to ensure that we could work as effectively as possible given the circumstances. Clyde & Co invest in you - we have extensive legal training, as well as training sessions devoted to mental health and wellbeing which speak highly to Clyde & Co values. I've sat in three seats so far which have been drastically different to one another (Casualty department, Solicitors, Accountants, Construction and Commercial Litigation and Political Risk and Trade Credit). This has allowed me to have a diversified range of work and has contributed to my development. I've had opportunities to attend mediations and court, attend meetings and draft core legal documents. On top of this, I've really developed my confidence by volunteering to advise at Brent Citizen's Advice Bureau as a Pro Bono initiative. It’s a great opportunity to not only help those members of the public but also to become more confident with advising and running your own workload.

What do you wish you'd known on your first day?

It's important to remember not to panic. There really is no expectation for you to have any real knowledge about the department that you are in. It's acknowledged that this is a new environment for you, and a keen attitude to get involved and learn will go a long way.

Did Bright Network help you in your career journey and, if so, how?

Absolutely! I was the Careers Representative at the University of Birmingham Law Society and often used Bright Network personally but also recommended it to others as a fantastic resource to understand more about the opportunities out there and other peoples experiences of them.