Work Experience Student Review

There were two virtual tasks to complete in our own time - statutory interpretation and drafting and a lease report. These are tasks that trainee solicitors would complete. On video calls, we completed two group tasks - one was to review an unfair contract and another was how to best handle a faulty product situation. There were live presentations from trainees and the Early Talent team on how to improve our applications, covering commercial awareness, CVs and interviews. There were also live sessions about the firm's culture. Finally, there were pre-recorded videos to watch.

I developed my application skills and presentation skills from learning how to set out a CV properly. I learned skills of teamwork by advancing my arguments to members of my group, while listening to their opinions. I also learned presentation skills by representing my breakout room to the wider group.

It surpassed my expectations for what a virtual work experience programme would be. I have been on virtual work experience programmes that just involve listening to webinars, without any student interaction or tasks to complete. However, this work experience was completely different - there was a great balance of listening, doing and learning, as opposed to just listening. I really enjoyed my work experience - the most engaging work experience I have done so far!

The Forage platform was well laid-out and it showed the upcoming schedule in a very organised manner. My only minor improvement in this area was that we couldn't access one or two sessions straight away so we had to be sent another link, but this did not affect the overall organisation.

The diversity group and responsible business presentations gave me a great insight into Pinsent Masons' culture. Talking to trainees and staff also let me learn that Pinsent Masons has such a friendly culture and it sounds like a great place to work. The Early Talent team were engaging and friendly. I learned lots about the firm!

The presentation on routes into law was helpful for confirming that I do want to go into the legal profession. Before the work experience, I was leaning towards becoming a barrister, but this work experience has swayed me more towards the solicitor route. Either way, something I learned from the work experience is that it is never too late to start doing what you enjoy, and you will find out what you want to do eventually!

As it was a virtual programme, there were no travel expenses to reimburse, so reimbursements were unnecessary. I received £15 as a prize for jointly winning the slogan competition for the work experience programme. It otherwise was an unpaid placement, like most work experience programmes for students my age are.

There was a group chat on the Forage platform where we shared social media contacts with fellow students. We were able to discuss with other students in breakout rooms and on the Zoom chats. We had a small group session with our supervisor, where we learned more about other students. There was a networking lunch on the last day that I unfortunately couldn't attend.

Yes

The work experience programme was a great insight into the firm. Everyone I spoke to was so friendly and willing to answer any questions candidly. I also developed invaluable skills and learned things that I would not have known about applying to law firms - and they were all delivered by Pinsent Masons' employees, showing how friendly the employees are.

When I applied for the work experience, I had already completed the Pinsent Masons Virtual Work Experience Programme on Forage. I mentioned this in my application form and how this gave me an insight into the firm and the tasks the trainees there do, which is why I wanted to complete the formal work experience.