Loading More Content
To find out details about any law apprenticeship programme, as well as the specifics of the entry requirements and application process, it is important to check the website of the law firm you are interested in before applying.
As there are so many apprenticeship opportunities, and so many employers, this may seem like a time-consuming and tedious task. You can use our law apprenticeship deadline page to easily find open opportunities, with information about the apprenticeship and the firm, so you can find the apprenticeship programmes that most interest you.
Apprenticeships are offered all year round, with each firm advertising vacancies in accordance with its own recruitment schedule. Many firms, however, try to coincide their apprenticeship openings with the ending of the academic year, to ensure student cohorts have sufficient time to apply.
As such it’s a good idea to keep an eye out around July to September for open opportunities.
Most employers will require you to submit a CV and cover letter directly to the firm, and some vacancies may ask you to fill out an internal application form. Bear in mind that the application process for law apprenticeships will vary between employers, so it is important to read the job advert carefully to ensure you provide the necessary information to meet the application requirements.
Writing a good CV and cover letter is therefore an important part of any apprenticeship application. Make sure that you research the firms you’re applying to in order to tailor your application to the skills and expectations set out in the vacancy.
Your CV should lay out your education, work experience and any interests and hobbies, while your cover letter should tell the employer why you’re well suited for the job.
To find out more about writing a stand-out law CV, take a look at our dedicated guide.
To learn how to write the perfect law cover letter, take a look at our guide.
After your application there may be one or more interviews with different members of staff. For your interview, you should be fully knowledgeable on your own application, your CV and the firm you’ve chosen. This is an opportunity to highlight your experience and your interest in the firm.
Assessment centres are a fairly common way for firms to review candidates that are successful at earlier stages of their application. Usually, these take place in a group setting, so that the firm can see how you work with others. It’s also often in person, where interviews tend to take place online – this is often a candidate’s first face-to-face impression.
Apprenticeships are developed for a range of different candidates and the first thing to check is that you fit the candidate spec. Each apprenticeship will have different entry requirements, depending on what kind of apprenticeship it is.
Each apprenticeship will offer something different, whether it be the area of work, the employer or the qualification type, so it’s important to ensure that you are well suited to the apprenticeship you are considering.
Make sure you do your research to check what kind of apprenticeship you are applying to, what the apprenticeship programme will involve, and what you can expect to get out of the apprenticeship, in order for you to tailor your application to meet those expectations.
As apprenticeships are often offered to students from ages 16-18, they rarely require you to have relevant work experience. Instead, they will be looking for you to demonstrate relevant skills that you have developed while at school and in any extra-curricular activities.
In this sense, you don’t need work examples to demonstrate skills such as communication and organisation, since you can use experiences from school.
Following the submission of an application, some applicants will be selected to go through to the next stage: the interview. So how do you impress an employer in the interview?
Make sure that you do your research and get to know the company you are applying to. The interviewer will want to know that you have taken the time to get to know them and thought about why you chose to apply to their position.
Knowing about the employer will also help you come up with some questions to ask at the end of the interview.
It may help you to prepare some answers to typical interview questions that you may be asked. For example:
It’s good to think of your answers and any relevant examples you could use to show evidence. As an apprentice applicant, you may feel like you lack work experience to use as examples – this isn’t a problem. The majority of applicants will be in the same position, most likely coming out of full-time education.
Employers will be sympathetic to a lack of work experience if you’re a younger recruit and open to examples of your punctuality, reliability, and digital expertise from school/extra-curricular activities. The most important thing is that you show your passion for starting an apprenticeship with the specific law firm, and prove that you’re the perfect candidate for the role.
Dressing smartly creates a good first impression, and will make you feel more professional and confident. While wearing business attire may seem like the best option, it is important you dress for the position you are interviewing for – for an apprentice, business casual is a safe choice.
Take a look at our dedicated guide for some more advice for standing out in legal interviews.
If you are invited to an assessment centre, you will usually get some general details of what to expect, be that a test, a group project or similar. There are often multiple tasks to complete as part of the assessment centre so, as with the interview, you should prepare as much as you can, but be ready for the unexpected.
Lawyers frequently get unexpected questions or find themselves in new situations. This requires the ability to adapt and stay calm in challenging circumstances, which law firms will want to see you demonstrate.
Loading More Content