UK - Access Law

Eligibility requirements

You will be eligible to apply for our Access Law programme if:

• are studying in your penultimate or final year of secondary school (Year 12/13 in England & Wales; S5/S6 Scotland; Year 13/14 Northern Ireland and 5th/6th Year Republic of Ireland).

• are attending a state funded, non-fee paying school/college or are attending a fee paying school on a 100% means-tested bursary.

Additional criteria

You must also meet one or more of the following:

• have been, or are currently, in local authority care.

• are currently in receipt of, or have previously received, free school meals, Pupil Premium, Education Maintenance Allowance and/or 16 to 19 Bursary.

• are, or have been, a full-time or part-time carer.

• came to the UK as a refugee or asylum seeker.

• grew up in a household where the occupation of the main earner is categorised as a routine or man-ual occupation. For further details please click here.

• are attending a state school or college with:

  • below average A-Level or Higher point score and/or

  • low rate of progression to higher education (PRIME Work Experience School Eligibility Criteria).

• grew up in a household where no parent or guardian attended University.

Important information

• We are passionate about reaching students who will benefit most from this opportunity and use Rare Recruitment's contextual recruitment system (CRS) to support us with our recruitment decisions in relation to applying the above 'additional criteria'. The CRS allows us to understand your achievements in the context in which they have been gained. We seek to recruit the best people, from every background, regardless of their personal circumstances, and the CRS help us to do that.

• If you are (or have been) looked after, accommodated or in care, you only need to meet the school year requirement listed in the Eligibility Requirements section.

• There is room on the application form to explain any extenuating circumstances that might impact your application.

These above additional criteria are not exhaustive and may be amended over time.

Our short application form will include a question asking you about your interest in a career in commercial law, Ashurst and this programme.

Top tips

• Make sure you allow plenty of time to complete the application form.

• Include time at the end to carefully proof read your application before submitting.

• Draft your application in Microsoft Word to make use of the spelling and grammar checker.

• Spend time researching Ashurst and the type of law we specialise in and remember to mention why this type of law interests you.

• Use the word limit as guidance for how much you should write and remember to back up your statements with relevant research and examples.

• Try to avoid long sentences where these are not needed. Short sentences are easier to read and will help you to get your point across more clearly.

• Finally, don't be tempted to copy and paste from our website. We want to read your own words and not ours.

Candidates with disabilities or long-term health conditions

We are committed to making all stages of our recruitment process accessible to candidates with disabilities or long-term health conditions. If you consider yourself to have a disability or a long-term health condition, please feel able to be open about this at any point during the recruitment process. If you are not sure what adjustments you require, we will work with you to establish the most suitable adjustments at each stage of the recruitment process. Please note that our online application form includes a section which allows you to advise us of any extenuating circumstances that are relevant for us to consider when reviewing your application form.

If you would like to talk to a member of our team in relation to any queries you may have on your disability or long-term health condition and the recruitment process, please contact us. Any information disclosed on your disability or long-term health condition will remain strictly confidential.