Australia Clerkship
Search vacanciesClerkship
Our clerkship lets you experience what it’s like to work in a top tier firm, our culture and the type of work we do.
You'll work on real cases and transactions with one or two teams, depending which office you're in, and will have a dedicated partner who supports and mentors you.
There are structured training programmes to develop your legal and business skills, and the opportunity to take part in plenty of social events too! A clerkship leads places! Most of our graduate roles are offered to people who have clerked with us.
What we can offer you
Real work
We want you to get a realistic understanding of what it's like to be an Ashurst lawyer. During your clerkship you may work on cases and transactions, attend court, join client meetings, sit in on client calls, work on pro bono matters, attend CLE sessions, and complete research.
Professional development
Your clerkship will include many chances for professional (and personal!) development. There are formal training courses, practice insight sessions, informal "on the job" learning, networking opportunities and exposure to pro bono and social impact work.
Dedicated support
We invest in our people. As an Ashurst clerk, you'll have a dedicated partner mentor, supervising lawyer, buddy and support from the Early Careers Team.
Insight
Your clerkship is a chance for you to get a genuine insight into being an Ashurst lawyer. This will help you make informed decisions about graduate offers.
The recruitment process
You'll be asked to upload a CV, cover letter and academic transcript as well as complete several short answer questions.
Our application lets you showcase your talent by sharing why you want to be a lawyer at Ashurst.
You'll be asked to complete three psychometric assessments.
Cognify – a series of online games measuring your problem solving and analytical skills.
Emotify – a series of online games measuring your emotional intelligence
Values Fit – helps us to identify candidates who have similar values to Ashurst, ensuring the best cultural fit for both you and Ashurst.
We'll invite clerkship applicants to come to Ashurst, meet our people and learn more about our culture.
Our Early Careers Team will send you details during the early stages of the recruitment process.
You will meet with our partners, lawyers and members of our Early Careers team. We ask competency based questions that give insight into the behaviours we value at Ashurst.
We give you the opportunity to ask more about us too – our interviews are a "two-way street"!
Clerkship offers are made based on your overall performance throughout the recruitment process.
Key dates
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Brisbane
Important dates
Read moreBrisbane
Applications open Monday 17 July 2023 – Friday 11 August 2023 Clerkship offers made Wednesday 11 October 2023 Clerkship offers accepted by Thursday 12 October 2023 by 5pm AEST Summer Clerkship 20 November 2023 – 15 December 2023 Autumn Clerkship 22 April 2024 – 17 May 2024 Winter Clerkship 17 June 2024 – 12 July 2024
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Melbourne
Important dates
Read moreMelbourne
Applications open Monday 3 July 2023 – Sunday 13 August 2023 Clerkship offers made Wednesday 18 October 2023 – 10.00am AEDT Clerkship offers accepted by Wednesday 18 October 2023 – 2.00pm AEDT Summer 1 Clerkship Wednesday 22 November 2023 – Friday 15 December 2023 Summer 2 Clerkship Wednesday 31 January 2024 – Friday 23 February 2024 Winter Clerkship Wednesday 26 June 2024 – Friday 19 July 2024
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Perth
Important dates
Read morePerth
Applications open Monday 26 June 2023 – Sunday 30 July 2023 Clerkship offers made Friday 15 September 2023 – 9.00am AWST Clerkship offers accepted by Friday 15 September 2023 – 1.00pm AWST Summer 1 Clerkship 20 November 2023 – 8 December 2023 Summer 2 Clerkship 22 January 2023 – 9 February 2024 Winter Clerkship 17 June 2024 – 5 July 2024
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Sydney and Canberra
Important dates
Read moreSydney and Canberra
Applications open Monday 5 June 2023 – Sunday 9 July 2023 Clerkship offers made Wednesday 13 September 2023 – 9.00am AEST Clerkship offers accepted by Thursday 14 September 2023 – 5.00pm AEST Summer Clerkship Monday 4 December 2023 – Friday 2 February 2024
Events
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Come and meet us!
Commence in March each year
Read moreCome and meet us!
The best way to find out more about our clerkships is to hear it directly from our people.
We attend universities across Australia and host networking events.
To find out when we'll next be on campus reach out to your university student law society, university careers team or email us directly at: Graduate.Programs@ashurst.com
Testimonials
"Clerkships are a brilliant way to bridge the gap between foundational legal knowledge at university and the commercial practicalities of law in the corporate world. A clerkship at Ashurst will expose you to some of the most brilliant legal minds and work."
Nikita Summers, Clerk 2022
"My clerkship experience at Ashurst was incredibly fun, informative and rewarding. It was great being exposed to some of the most cutting edge matters in the legal world right now, while also getting to know lawyers from the various teams around the firm"
James Samson, Clerk 2022
Applicant Resource Hub
For answers to all your frequently asked questions and information on application & interview tips, the benefits we provide, life at Ashurst, our L&D programmes, and our IDB initiatives.
Visit hub
Inclusion, Diversity & Belonging
Our inclusive and diverse culture stands at the heart of everything we do. For more information on our initiatives and the support we provide please follow the link below.
More informationContact us
If you can’t find answers to your questions on this page or on the Applicant Resource Hub then please contact our Early Careers team.
Agencies
Agency submissions and candidate introductions will only be accepted with prior approval from a member of the Ashurst Talent Acquisition team. To submit or introduce a candidate, an agency must have valid agreed terms of business in place with Ashurst. Any agency submissions or candidate introductions made without prior approval or without the agreed terms of business in place will be considered invalid.
Diversity
We are committed to offering a safe and welcoming environment for our employees and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds. With diversity and inclusion at the heart of what we do we place a strong emphasis on working with people from diverse communities and aim to make a positive impact through our Social Impact programmes.
Acknowledgement of Country
We acknowledge First Nations Peoples as the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we work in Australia. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging and to the youth who are working towards a brighter tomorrow.