Lessons from Successful Magic Circle Law Firm TC Applicants

Having coached many successful Magic Circle applicants, I’ve seen what helps them secure a training contract ahead of the thousands who get rejected.

Here are 3 of the biggest lessons from their stories:

Lesson #1: Starting early is a game-changer

Successful candidates regularly say that being organised and starting the TC process early was key to their success.

Ideally, you would start during your first year at uni (or second year for non-law students). Many opportunities exist to engage with and learn about firms during recruitment events and first-year schemes. It also gives you more time to consistently do things to learn about the legal profession, practice areas, firms, etc, so you develop a deeper career understanding over time. 

This is critically important, and there’s no easy way to shortcut the work needed. 

The earlier you start this, the easier it is to do well. 

Even if you don’t start in the first year, starting early for an upcoming recruitment cycle is usually enough. 

So, for a recruitment cycle starting in September, you should ideally be starting in July or August to get yourself organised. This will mean you’re organised and ready for when the law firm events and application windows start to go live.

As part of starting early, you should decide on a specific application strategy. 

Research firms well and identify firms that are the best fit for you. Go beyond superficial factors such as prestige and supposed ‘best’ firms and select firms based on your genuine interests, strengths and personality. 

This is always the most effective application strategy.

Getting a clear application strategy in place early also gives you a specific focus for your research. This helps you to target your efforts and choose which events to attend, which firms to meet, who to reach out to for conversations and what news to consume.

Starting early also allows you to plan your applications.

You can make a timetable that comfortably meets application deadlines and prioritises firms that recruit on a rolling basis. You can also schedule a good amount of time on each application. This can include time for the necessary deeper firm research and time for thinking, outlining and editing. 

All of these smaller things are what successful candidates say made a huge difference.

As part of your planning, you should manage your TC work around competing commitments such as studies, work and extra-curricular activities. You can also schedule strategic TC activities that can give you a competitive advantage – such as virtual internships, career events, and outreach conversations.

Starting early is a simple thing, but simple doesn’t mean easy. Those candidates who do it, though, realise how much more effective their applications are and see their chances of success increase as a consequence.

Lesson #2: Tailor every application to match you to the specific firm

Successful candidates say the fact they spent more time thinking about how to tailor their application to the firm made a BIG difference to their success rate.

The problem I see, though, is that lots of candidates think they’re doing this when, in reality, they’re not. 

Here’s what you need to do.

Firstly, you need to understand what differentiates a specific Magic Circle firm from other firms (both Magic Circle firms and other City firms). Then, you need to ensure you demonstrate that understanding when explaining your reasons for applying to that firm. As part of this, you will need to identify the firms’ specific work focus and practice area strengths, as these will differ between firms. 

This means your application is tailored specifically to them rather than being a generic application that could be for one of many firms. 

Recruiters can spot the latter a mile off, and it’s a common reason to put a candidate onto the ‘No’ pile.

You also need to tailor your application to the firm by focusing on those aspects of yourself that make you a good fit for the firm:

• What strengths and values do you have that match the trainee profile the firm is looking for?
• How do your background, personality and interests match the specific culture of the firm?

As I explain more below, it’s not enough to rely on academic achievements. 

Instead, firms are seeking evidence that you fit their trainee specification and that you’re able to articulate why you and the firm are a good fit for each other.

Lesson #3: Magic Circle firms look for much more than academics

Candidates quickly learn that being a high-achiever with strong academic results and a good university isn’t enough to land a training contract at a Magic Circle law firm.

Of course, Magic Circle firms are looking for intellect, and that can be demonstrated by strong academic results. But they’re also looking for evidence of the ability to apply intellect in different ways around core competencies they value in their trainees.

These can include:

• Teamwork and leadership
• People skills
• Self-starter qualities
• Ability to have an impact
• Resilience
• Drive 
• Adaptability
• Initiative

Different firms will value some things more than others so you need to investigate this with thorough research. 

This way, you can create your own version of each firm’s trainee specification and then provide evidence of their most emphasised requirements. Successful candidates analyse all of their work experiences and extra-curricular activities for key achievements and their best examples of these in a real and tangible sense. 

The best experiences are those where you’ve had some real responsibility and had an impact in some way. 

Candidates who are academically strong but who have little other experience or less developed competencies tend not to progress very far in the recruitment process. Instead, firms value well-rounded candidates with a range of experiences, both work and non-work, legal and non-legal, through which they’ve developed a solid set of relevant competencies and interests.

Successful candidates understand this and work hard to describe their experiences in a way that evidences their well-rounded capabilities.

Another key aspect firms are looking for is a commercial mindset – and there’s an important distinction academic high-achievers need to learn about this. 

Having a commercial mindset (or commercial awareness) is not just about knowledge. It’s a way of thinking, and this is a critical transition successful candidates learn to make. They go from an academic approach, which is all about learning and then demonstrating how much they know, to thinking about the knowledge more practically. 

In simple terms, firms are seeking candidates who can demonstrate two things:

1. A genuine curiosity about the commercial side of business and law firms
2. An ability and desire to think about and make connections between the things that are going on in those environments.

For example, if interest rates are going up how might that be affecting the housebuilding sector, the businesses within it, and the law firms who advise those businesses?

Over to you…

These lessons are critical to your success so ignore them at your peril.

The good news is once you understand what has contributed to previous candidates’ success, you then have a blueprint to follow. 

Then the big question is: are you going to put in the time and effort to follow it? 

Or will you make the same mistakes as thousands of candidates every cycle and learn the lessons the hard way for yourself?