UK Winter Vacation Scheme – trainee perspectives

Tara Khanna

What made Ashurst stand out for you?

Three main things stood out to me about Ashurst at the time of my application (and still do!): People, Process and Prospects.

Ashurst is its people - I felt seen, supported, and encouraged both personally and professionally from the very first interview, where my experiences as a singer and musical performer were met with as much enthusiasm as my interest in the variety and complexity of deals in the Projects team.

In terms of process, I heard (and eventually experienced on the scheme) that Ashurst was very "open-door" - I can say even today that this iis true! No question is ever seen as a "stupid question" and the genuine interest and enjoyment that fee earners have in their work is felt across teams - I remember a trainee taking out an hour of time to sit down with me and run through how to approach using Practical Law.

As for prospects, Ashurst's motto says it all: "Outpacing change". What made the firm stand out was a commitment to always be a step ahead, for its people and its clients. The innovative and pioneering mentality is shared across the firm, from its various divisions (e.g., Ashurst Advance), to using assistive GenAI (Harvey) on a day-to-day basis, to constantly thinking about adapting and improving various processes to increase efficiency and quality. With the firm's client base and a culture of looking ahead, the quality of work at Ashurst really stood out to me, and still does.

Ahead of attending the scheme, what did you do to prepare for your first day?

I got a haircut, a notebook and a pen. In my notebook, on the first few pages I wrote down certain things I wanted to find out more about whilst on the Vacation Scheme - for example, trainee life in general, trainee tasks in my practice areas of interest, and up-and-coming areas of expertise for the firm. I also had separate pages for the key points raised during the application process - such as my interest in Projects and Dispute Resolution and the firm's established relationship with clients in the public sector.

Throughout the scheme, I ensured that notebook was an extension of my hand - I noted down every interaction and task that I had. By the end, I had a log of lived-experiences that substantiated my reasons for applying to the firm, which was particularly useful when preparing for the final Training Contract interview.

Tell us about some of the tasks you were involved and what an average day looked like on the scheme?

I sat in the Dispute Resolution team for 1 week, focusing mainly on understanding the basics of international arbitration. I assisted trainees in the team with different tasks, including a research task on interpreting certain wording in construction contracts, and even attending and making notes on a livestreamed court hearing.

A typical day on the Winter Vacation Scheme involved several sessions introducing us to the firm run by the wonderful Early Careers team, outside of which we spent time in our practice areas assisting our supervisors/trainee buddies with different tasks, or reaching out to wider members of the firm for a coffee to learn more about their journey, interests, work, and what keeps them at the firm.

What do you think were the main benefits of doing a vacation scheme?

As above, I think the main benefits of doing a vacation scheme involve being able to experience the firm first-hand, start building a support network, and learning more about the firm by speaking to people and understanding their work and work life. The experiences on the scheme cemented my reasons for applying to Ashurst, most of which otherwise stemmed from news articles or word of mouth, and gave me even more valuable insight.

Did the scheme help build or hone your soft skills or commercial awareness?

Both, the scheme helped build my soft skills in a professional context, in particular my confidence at the time. I was encouraged and supported to write. The scheme also motivated me to be more continuous and consistent in developing my commercial awareness, and introduced me to new practice areas such as Digital Economy which I previously had no knowledge about and was interested to learn more about and keep up with.

Milly Rawlinson

What did you do to prepare for making an application to Ashurst (provide information on resources that helped, how they approached writing the application etc)

Before applying I spent as much time as possible learning about the firm, both to enhance my application, but also to ensure Ashurst was the right place for me. To this extent, I used the following resources, all of which were incredibly helpful:

• Ashurst Virtual Work Experience Programme via Forage
• Ashurst podcasts (ESG Matters @ Ashurst, and Ashurst Legal Outlook) – these were really helpful, and also raised interesting discussion points during my final interview
• Ashurst in Action – Bright Network webinar series
• Ashurst webinars – Spotlight On series
• Vantage webinars (which included representatives from Ashurst)
• Reading and reviewing recent Ashurst publications and LinkedIn posts

When writing my application, I approached it just as I would a university assignment. I took my time drafting the application, reviewing it, ensuring it fully answered all the questions, and was completely personal to both me and Ashurst. When applying to vacation schemes I didn't apply in bulk to every opportunity available, but rather chose a small number of firms that were the right fit for me, and put all my focus into ensuring those applications were perfect.

Do you have any hints or tips for future candidates who are looking to apply?

Be yourself. This might sound cliché and unhelpful, but this is genuinely the most helpful advice I can give anyone applying to Vacation Schemes/Training Contracts.

By this I mean: you may not have legal work experience at 3 different firms, or have a huge network of legal professionals as role models, but if you are in a sports team, have a part time job, volunteer, have a particular hobby, or are involved in a university society, for example, these are all things you can talk about and include in your applications. All of these things will give you transferable skills that will benefit you in a legal career, and are worth including in an application. Not only that, these things should also be easy for you to talk about naturally and confidently in any interview, if they are genuinely things you enjoy and are passionate about. So, be yourself, sell your skills and make your application personal to you.

Also, answer every part of every question - this applies to both applications and interviews. If you are asked how and why, for example, make sure to answer both how and why.

How did you prepare for the assessment day and first stage interview, what did you do to prepare (researching practice areas, undertaking mock interviews, or networking)? What proved most effective in helping you secure a place on the scheme?

In preparation for the assessment day, and first stage interview, I focussed on my commercial awareness (as this was the area I felt least confident). Using the resources highlighted above, I focussed on Ashurst practice areas, and considering how current affairs might impact Ashurst/clients of the firm. There are so many different tools and resources available now to help with commercial awareness (Finimize emails, LittleLaw updates, podcasts). Using these little and often was the most helpful method for me!

When preparing for the first interview, you should also make sure you are confident talking about anything you have put in your application. In reality, this should be really easy – if your application is tailored to you, and sells your skills and attributes, these should come naturally into conversation in your responses.

What was the best part of the scheme?

As I was on a winter vacation scheme, we got to enjoy the annual Christmas lunch. I was also invited to the department Christmas Party, and being involved and invited to these events gave me a further feel of the culture and life at Ashurst.

What was the most daunting part or what part took you out of your comfort zone?

It can be very easy to compare yourself to other people, and this can become quite daunting if you let it! Per my earlier advice, be yourself, focus on yourself and don't worry about what anyone else is (or isn't) doing!