Apprentice Paralegal Review

As a Paralegal Apprentice I get to carry out a variety of tasks on a daily basis. I spend a lot of my time communicating with Clients via telephone, email or letters. As well as communicating with clients, I often have to contact external parties such as medical experts so that clients can be medically examined, insurance companies as they are sometimes the defendant and I often contact agencies such as to get advice on limitation. I get to work in a team of other lawyers from Paralegals to Solicitors which is great because there is so much experience within the team. When I first began my Apprenticeship my responsibility was to assist other case handlers, however as I have developed I have now been given my own cases which means I have a lot of responsibility. Having this responsibility is very rewarding and it means I get to do a variety of work everyday. Even though I am still learning, there is always someone to ask for help and everyone is willing to help me.

I have developed a lot of skills in such a short space of time. A skill that I have learnt and found particularly important is time keeping and organisation. Now that I have my own cases I have learnt how important organisation is, I use my outlook calendar to put in all the task that I need to complete each day and then I tick them off as I go along. Some days I don't get everything done that I need to, with this I have learnt that prioritising is important, I now make sure that I complete more urgent tasks first, this allows me to meet deadlines. From working and also from studying I have learnt more about professional etiquette which is a skill that I think I will always be developing whilst working at Irwin Mitchell. I have also developed personally in my maturity, I was already mature for my age but since working in the legal environment I feel that I have become far more mature, I think that this is because I am working with colleagues that vary in age, I have found that I am the youngest but that hasn't made any difference as everyone is treated equally.

So far I am absolutely loving my Apprenticeship. I work in a team of fantastic and intelligent people who I now consider not just colleagues, but friend. The moral in the office is always high and our team do things outside of work which is always great to build our team bond. This job has exceeded my expectations, although I did not know what to expect, I did not think that I would love it as much as I do! I cannot wait to see what the future brings and continue my Apprenticeship journey.

I feel very valued as an employee at Irwin Mitchell. I have received a nomination online for being approachable and caring towards a client - which is one of our key values. This is known as applaud a colleague, I was really happy about this when I received the nomination! I have also had great reviews with my team leader and mentor, they always tell me when they think I have done something really well which is a great confidence boost. I especially felt valued when they decided to give me my own case load as I knew they believed in me and had confidence in me.

I have found the Apprenticeship to be very organised. I have regular meetings with my team leader and mentor, in which my progress is discussed. I also have regular meetings with my law tutor and tasks are given to me with lots of time to prepare and complete. At the beginning, the study side wasn't very organised however after I informed someone of this, it all got sorted.

I receive lots of support from my law tutor, she visits every 8 weeks and she is always just an email away. If I cannot contact her there is always someone else that I can speak to if I need help. They have lots of resources that we can use to assist us. My law tutor is very friendly and helpful, she is genuinely interested and I can tell that she enjoys assisting people.

My employer provides lots of assistance when I need it. All the members in the team are so helpful! Everyone in the team has taught me something that I didn't know before. All the team members have time for me and are keen to help me and answer all my questions, even if they seem like silly questions to me. My team leader is always checking up to make sure I am okay and she reassures if I feel under pressure or if I am stuck on anything. My team always provide amazing resources for me to use, some team members have gone out of their way to photocopy books or bring in their notes for me to study.

I have found that although the pay is very good for an apprenticeship wage, it does not meet my living costs such as having to pay for public transport to work everyday and paying for my car which of course is financially expensive. I cannot drive to work because parking is far too expensive in the town centre and the office only provide parking for certain employees. Socially I would also say that the salary does not meet costs, after rent and bills when on an apprenticeship wage there is not much of my salary left.

There are lots of opportunities outside of work for us to go to. I am involved in the charity committee so there are often events to go to. There are also lots of team events, some Fridays after work we all go for a drink or when it is an occasion such as Christmas, End of financial year, leaving do etc. I have found these events a great way to socialise.

Yes

Irwin Mitchell are a great company to work for, they provide lots of benefits for employees such as health care services that are especially beneficial for apprentices that are on a lower wage. They provide great opportunities for you to socialise with the team. Irwin Mitchell take an interest in their employees, they are keen to know what we think and they value our feedback and advice as employees which makes it a great place to work! There are always incentives in place to make the office a fun place to be, I am very happy at Irwin Mitchell and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a career in law!

When it comes to an apprenticeship interview I would advise applicants to really sell themselves! Think outside of the box and just be yourself, show your interest and ask lots of questions as it is good to show that you want to learn about the company. A top tip to applicant is confidence is key! It is important to find the balance between being confident and over confident but I have found that being outgoing and having self belief really helped me through the application process.