Work experience student Review

This was a week long work experience programme for students that involved an insight into life as a solicitor in a firm. There were interactive sessions, online presentations, tasks such as drafting legislation and interpreting discussions as well as the opportunity to ask lots of questions to trainees and solicitors.

I didn’t know a lot about what being a solicitor in a firm involved, so I felt that I gained an insight into what the job actually involved through the statutory tasks. I think I have improved my communication skills and attention to detail through drafting as well as my argumentative and reasoning skills within the Jaffa Cake and Eviva sessions.

Despite being online, I really enjoyed immersing myself in the experience this week as I felt that every session was of value. I always felt engaged in the presentations and activities and found myself curious to ask more questions and listen to every word all of the guest speakers were saying. I will definitely remember this experience and know that it will help me take the first steps into my career in law.

The whole programme was very organised, the sessions being on time, the activities well thought out and the student team being very responsive to any issues people had. Covid has made it difficult to organise events, especially as they would usually happen in person and we know that technology is renowned for playing up!

The work experience definitely spotlighted what working with Pinsent Masons is like: the recruitment process, company values, and all of the various groups and roles that exist within the company. It seems like a very positive environment to work in and every speaker and person involved were so friendly and willing to answer any questions we had.

Despite already having an interest in law, the work experience programme gave me a greater insight into how to get into the career that I am considering, however I am not certain whether or not I will want to go into soliciting or commercial law in the future as I do have other interests also - however I know for sure that I want to do a law degree, and I may decide to follow the path in the future.

I was not paid for this as it was student work experience, however all resources and sessions were online and carried out without any kind of fees as some work experiences require. As the event was online, there was also no travel or extra costs that there might have been if it was in-person.

The week allowed us to meet a lot off people within the company such as trainee solicitors or members of various departments who we were able to talk to and ask questions. There were also more personal sessions such as those with supervisors or the group exercises where we were able to talk to our peers more as well as a networking session during the final lunch. However, I do think it would have been nice to have more networking time with fellow students but that would not have been possible due to covid.

Yes

The whole atmosphere of the company is a very positive and organised one. I think that they have positive values including striving for diversity and inclusion which is important in a company. It was also clear that they put a lot of effort into this work experience which indicates that they do this throughout the company.

As a work experience student I don’t feel that I’m qualified to give this kind of advice, however from this week I have discovered that Pinsent Masons values those who demonstrate a passion for law, a strong work ethic and people who can just be themselves and show that through their applications ie being a well-rounded person.