Trainee solicitor's assistant Review

Every day I worked in a different section of the law firm in order to gain an insight into the different areas that they did. Some of the work I did included organising case bundles and looking at two contracts to see the differences between them.

I improved my presentation skills as one of the tasks included working with a partner in order to present a solution to a problem that a business had.

I thoroughly enjoyed the work experience as the fact that it was a formal scheme meant that every day was clearly well thought out. This meant that each day was interesting and different in comparison with the other. Also, throughout the time that I was doing the work experience placement, I was able to talk to different trainee solicitors and find out how they got into the career of law and what they would have done differnetly if they had applied again. This was very informative.

I think that Pinsent Masons really treated all the work experience students as prospective graduates who may apply to the firm in the future. Thus, when I performed a task to a high standard, I would be praised by my trainee solicitor. Also, I wasn't left to do menial and monotonous tasks, but instead I did some work that my trainee solicitor actually used.

The programme was very well organised and structured and each day ran smoothly. This is because we were allocated a area of the legal firm and a trainee solicitor. Thus, every morning the placement began with a presentation either relating to the firm or applying for law at university or getting a career in law. Then, you would spend the rest of the day in a particular area of the company.

I received a lot of support, as we had the email address of the person who organised the placement if we had any problems. As well as this, the trainee solicitors were always there to help if I was confused or didn't have any work to do.

The employer was very useful in guiding me with any problems I had. I always felt well supported and that everyone was inviting and happy for me to be working with them.

As this was an unpaid experience, I can't comment on how the salary met my costs.

Pinsent Masons has a strong work ethic as well as offering a variety of clubs and societies that workers can do in their leisure time. In particular, the voluntary programme of starfish was emphasised and volunteering appeared to be an important facet in the firm.

Yes

This is because I enjoyed the placement and felt that they would be a good firm to work for in the future.

It is important to be yourself and to spend time on the online application, making sure that the details that you provide accurately represent you as a person.