With it being September already, thousands
of young people are getting ready to start their brand new degrees, while
others are lamenting the end of theirs. With graduations all under way it is
time for the reality to kick in that for many students, it is time to get a job.
Law, in particular, is one of the main
degrees with very daunting graduate prospects. Despite being fully trained in
your future profession, as a law graduate you will be faced with a fairly
desolate employment landscape as many law firms and chambers have reduced their
training contract and pupilage opportunities.[i]
Plus, despite the stereotype of glamour and riches in the legal industry, many
start up lawyers and solicitors have to put in very long hours for little
monetary reward.
Such dedication is common, if not expected
within big city law firms. Even trainee solicitors can be seen working late
into the night in order to impress their superiors, as well as taking work home
and working on weekends and holidays, all for the chance of winning a contract.
With such high standards of devotion before any wage is paid, it is easy to see
why so many people do not succeed at their career in law.
In London the competition is incredibly fierce;
yet in places just outside there are still law firms that can offer excellent
opportunities, especially in the smaller businesses. Solicitors in Surrey and
Hertfordshire, for instance, are still in close enough proximity to the capital
to catch the larger cases, yet avoid the terrible commute and aggression within
the London solicitors industry.
The benefit
of working for smaller solicitor firms means that they will have more time
to develop you and train you, whilst allowing you more freedom to explore
various niches. You may find that in larger firms you are simply another number
to them and must abide strictly to their already established processes and reputation,
rather than working these out for yourself.
Plus, with less structured departments that you find in larger
corporations, it is more likely that you will get the chance to work on much
more varied cases, allowing you to work across a much broader spectrum of
practice areas.
With smaller legal firms that are not as
well known, you instantly reduce the competition as there is less chance of
your peers finding out about them! Although this means that the number of law
graduates they take on may be lower, the entry process should be less grueling.
Furthermore, with less workers there, you run a much bigger chance of getting
to work, or at least assist, on larger or more difficult cases when they need
all expertise on deck!
So for any law graduates already in despair
at the prospects having now left university, do not panic. Patience and more
thorough research is what you need to heighten your employment chances. I am
not saying that getting into a smaller firm outside of London is going to be
easy, nor may it be the glamorous chintzy life you dreamed of when making your
UCAS applications, but it will provide you with a solid foundation through
which you can develop that soaring career.
Comments
Post a Comment