Winning questions to ask at the end of a TC interview

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Deciding the questions to ask at the end of a training contract interview is critically important.

Many candidates don’t ask any. Or they fail to invest time in crafting questions to finish the interview on a high. This is a huge missed opportunity as the last impression you leave on your interviewers is important.

I’ve heard 1000s of questions asked when conducting mock TC and vacation scheme interviews, and the majority are on the weaker side.

In this post, I will explain why the questions to ask law firms are so important and give you some tips on how to ask good ones. I’ll also outline some examples of the types of questions which will have the most impact.

Why the questions you ask at the end of an interview are important

There are 3 main reasons you should carefully consider the questions to ask:

  • Reason #1: Making informed decisions. They help you make an informed decision over whether you want to train at the firm – particularly when you’re deciding between multiple offers.
  • Reason #2: Demonstrating your motivation. Showing genuine curiosity about aspects of the firm can provide further compelling evidence of your motivation to train at that firm.
  • Reason #3: Differentiating yourself from other candidates. Many candidates don’t ask questions because they’re desperate for the interview to finish or think they already know everything about a firm from their research. Asking good questions will set you apart.

That said, no specific questions will work well for every firm.

A quick Google or Chat GPT search will reveal plenty of lists of questions to ask at interview. Many of them are offered as THE questions you SHOULD ask.

However, the reality is there are no specific questions a firm wants to hear from you or which will be the killer questions that get you the TC offer. Remember that everyone can access these suggested questions, so will be asking them too. Even though interviewers meet many candidates, they quickly notice similarities in their questions.

So, be mindful of sounding like other candidates.

It’s fine to look at lists of questions for ideas but it’s then much better to put them away and consider which questions you really would like the answer to. The best questions are always the ones the interviewee has clearly thought about and is genuinely curious about.

Let’s dive deeper into how to come up with some good questions.

7 tips for asking strong questions at interviews

Asking good questions at interview is easier than you think – here are some tips to help you:

  • Tip #1: Be genuine. Ask questions that you genuinely want to know the answer to. Either because you’re interested in the area/topic or it’s an important consideration of yours around where you want to train. Or both!
  • Tip #2: Be personal. Ask your own questions. Rather than asking questions you think will impress them or blindly recycling others’ questions from suggested lists, ask them your burning questions. That will impress them.
  • Tip #3: Be specific. Tailor your questions to the specific firm as much as you can. The core question might be the same, but you can give it specific context relating to the firm.
  • Tip #4: Be strategic. Ask questions about areas of the firm’s work that you have some knowledge around and could have a discussion on. This will prevent your question from turning against you if you don’t. It will also give you an additional chance to demonstrate knowledge and motivation.
  • Tip #5: Be spontaneous. As well as asking questions at the end of the interview look for opportunities to ask questions during the interview as well. This makes it more conversational and will impress if you do it well.
  • Tip #6: Be knowledgeable. Framing a question with what you already know before asking a related question can be a very effective technique. It just needs a bit of time and thought during your interview preparation.
  • Tip #7: Be reflective. Some of the most impressive questions I’ve heard relate to something already discussed or mentioned by the interviewers earlier in the interview. This shows good listening skills and attention to detail and a genuine curiosity to learn more. I discuss these improvised questions in more detail below.

Now, let’s look at some proven question types you can use as the basis for your own questions.

7 examples of proven question types

Rather than giving you another long list of questions that multiple candidates will use, I want to give you some effective question types to consider.

These are all tried and tested by my interview coaching clients, who said the questions went down well with interviewers.

1. Work Questions

These questions focus on the practice areas and sectors the firm has strengths in.

Think about what you don’t already know from your research or would like their insights on – for example:

  • Commercial areas, such as the challenges or opportunities facing a particular area/sector. But be prepared to demonstrate your understanding and opinions around this.
  • The type of work a trainee might do in a particular practice area/sector (bonus points for picking the interviewer’s specialism).
  • Why a trainee might choose one practice area/sector focus over others.

Be careful not to blindly ask the interviewer about their practice area if you don’t already know things about it – they will expect you to.

2. Reversed “Why This Firm?” Questions

A common but effective type of question reverses the “Why this firm?” question often asked to candidates.

So, questions around why the interviewer has chosen to work at this firm over others or what they enjoy most about the firm. Or you can Zoom out a bit so it’s more focused on the firm – for example, what they think sets their firm’s training apart from other firms?

Whilst this type of question is asked a lot by candidates I think asking a form of it is still a solid strategy. It usually comes across as genuine, shows curiosity and demonstrates motivation.

3. Them & Their Choices

Good areas to ask questions around are those you couldn’t possibly know the answer to.

So, personalised questions about the interviewers are great.

If you know who will be interviewing, you should research their backgrounds and work and consider which questions you’re genuinely curious about.

Asking about their own career choices can also go down well – for example, why they chose their practice area or sector specialism.

The added bonus with these questions is it gets them talking about themselves and people like to do this – so it can build greater rapport.

A word of warning, though: don’t overdo the flattery – just ask clear questions from a place of genuine interest.

4. Firm Strategy

Whilst you’ll learn about the firm’s strategy during your research, getting further inside insights is invaluable.

And questions around strategy, if pitched correctly, go down really well.

To make your questions even stronger, you can start by stating something you know and then asking a follow-up question to elicit information you don’t know (and couldn’t find out so easily online).

So, asking about the firm’s strategy around particular practice areas, sectors, or geographical areas can all be rich seams to mine.

You can also ask questions about the firm’s business model, for example, areas of growth, newer areas the firm plans to move into, or how the firm will leverage technology/AI to compete with competitors.

5. The Trainee Experience

A surprising number of candidates fail to ask about the trainee experience.

Asking questions about these sorts of questions tends to come across as personal and genuine and demonstrate motivation:

  • The specific work you would do
  • Levels of responsibility
  • Expectations of trainees
  • Training and development of trainees.
  • Assessment and evaluation of trainee performance and development
  • Seat selection
  • Skills and qualities needed to stand out as a trainee

6. Culture Questions

Asking questions to get under the skin of the firm’s culture will also show your motivation.

Simple questions around how they would describe the culture, what they enjoy most about the firm culture and how that culture might differ from other firms.

You can also explore the firm’s diversity and inclusion initiatives if that’s important to you.

7. Improvised Questions

Given that so many candidates will ask similar questions, it can set you apart if you improvise a question or two.

Interviewers are impressed if you ask a question that’s not pre-prepared. This will usually be based on something you’ve discussed earlier with the interviewers or something specific an interviewer has said.

Remember that an interview is still a conversation at its core. We are used to improvising our questions throughout other conversations. Don’t let the fact you’re being assessed and the stakes are higher stop you from asking a question you’re genuinely curious about based on an earlier part of the interview.

The same goes for asking a follow-up to a pre-prepared question you’ve asked once the interviewer has answered.

Over to you…

If you spend some time reflecting on what you’re genuinely interested in learning, you can easily come up with some of your own bespoke questions to impress interviewers.

You don’t need to be clever or seek to impress – just craft questions from a place of curiosity.

The more you want to know the answer, the better!

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matt oliver law career coach

Matt Oliver

Matt is a former FTSE 100 in-house lawyer, an experienced legal career coach and MD of Trainee Solicitor Surgery. He provides entry level law careers advice to students and graduates through his writing and mentoring. He also offers private one-to-one coaching to those struggling with training contract and vacation scheme applications, interviews and assessment centres. Find out more about Matt's 1-2-1 Coaching >>>>