Its important to know your CV inside-out and to be prepared to demonstrate hard evidence of how your skills can add value to the chambers you are interviewing with. Some chambers do things the old-fashioned way. But dont be overawed by the invitation to discuss yourself in front of members of chambers who are only there because they have to do their turn at interviewing. The interview procedures adopted by chambers can be very varied. This is in the hope that the small suggestion I make below for improving the process for applicants (and, as I see it, raising the standards of the profession as a whole), will be considered. I find this poor. A diverse profession representative of those who use the Bars services is a virtue b. However, in most cases the selection process will include a practical exercise and an interview (usually two). Stuart Withers on Twitter: "Some pupillage interview feedback. 1 Why then make it so hard to become a barrister? How to deal with pupillage rejections - The Guardian Use this guide to discover some of the pupillage interview questions you could face, and how to respond. Registered in England and Wales with Company Number 08037587. An idiot's guide to navigating pupillage interviews Pupillage interview panels will not expect you to be strong in every area of the law. Inns of Court (advice sessions, podcasts, mentorship programmes); and, pupillageandhowtogetit.com. This question is asked deliberately to gauge how you would respond to criticism. But try not to be fazed. Yes, its a lot of work. Motivation: a high level of drive, determination and commitment towards the Bar, the chambers and the circuit (if outside London). Watch Rebecca, Shanthi, Max and Colm, all recent ULaw BPTC students with pupillage, under. Your response to some questions will be deliberately challenged by the interview panel. Bewigged and Bewilderedby Adam Kramer QC includes a lot of extremely helpful information, including as to what the various practice areas involve. The short answer is that it isnt possible to keep your nerves wholly in check and nor do you need to. No legal questions or knowledge required. I understand that members of chambers give up their very precious time to sift through applications and conduct interviews, but I do not consider it unreasonable for candidates to expect feedback when they have made it so far through the recruitment process. Having relevant questions for pupillage interview panels demonstrates that you have a genuine interest in their chambers. But dont be arrogant, and dont bullshit to try to preserve the illusion of confidence interviewers are likely to see through that so if you dont know, say so. I think the best way to prepare for this kind of question is just to read the broadsheet papers and decide what your view is and why. If youre seduced by the idea of parading about in a wig, bands and a gown, grow up. Tailor your reading accordingly. Perceptions change in practice. Looking back, I was fortunate not to have a chair thrown at me. This article was written by Lawrence Horner, head of employability services atThe University of Law. Recently, in a series of tweets on the @ExcPupillage account some of my top tips for pupillage interview preparation were shared. You will have rejections for pupillage. If youre interviewing for a criminal pupillage, be prepared to answer, What are the biggest challenges facing the criminal Bar? Be opinionated without being obnoxious; political without being partisan. 30 pupillage interview questions (plus example answers) When you're done with your law degree and want to become a barrister or advocate, the next stage is often a pupillage. Saying something like"I want to come to you because you are a great Set and you do landlord and tenant work", just is not enough. In the gap year between the pupillage application window reopening, keep engaging with . Or are you proactive, responsive and adaptable? This is a really loaded question, but one you may have to answer. These questions arent asked to catch you out, but rather to assess how you would respond on the spot. Tip 4: As difficult as it is, do not care about the outcome. (I appreciate just how difficult this advice may be to put into practice!). Application. If the Set interviewing you does not go for it, then they are not the right Set for you. This cookie is set when an AdsWizz website visitor have opted out the collection of information by AdsWizz service or opted to disable the targeted ads by AdsWizz. The pupillage application process continues as hundreds of aspiring barristers prepare for interviews this month online and in person. I think just take a deep breath and try your best. Many will have impressive previous careers, either in law or outside, and as a twenty-something BPTC graduate, it is easy to be gripped by inferiority. I was lucky enough that a flippant topic Id picked up on was of enormous interest to a wonderfully fun and quirky member of chambers on the panel, who quickly turned the conversation round to 1980s power ballads. Competency is not all about how you perform as a barrister, its also about how you react in the face of adversity. Bring your personal and family life experiences to interview and into your . This does not mean to say you will not be brilliant in another application or another career if you decide to move, but failure is just something you are going to have to get used to mortifying, humiliating and painful as it is, because it will be part of your working life. Applications for pupillage with Mountford Chambers commencing in 2024. It is worth saying because remember chambers are looking to help you. I would have not gotten it if I had done the interview the day before. The old website might have been somewhat mundane but Christ, the old saying the devil you know springs . This is feedback that you cannot get in any other way. None of you are likely to be a senior judge in junior form. 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Aspiring barrister uses GDPR regs to secure pupillage interview feedback Just remember, for every failure, the next day there may be a success for you to grab on to. Please do a mock interview with your Inn before you do a real one. And that is the very best impression you can leave. You will be competing against people who are able to articulate exactly why they want to do the particular work available at a given set so in order to be competitive on this question I think you need a well thought through answer, and not just a line from the website (which was probably written by chambers marketing manager five years ago anyway). Chambers usually know this a week before your interview. Be honest, but ensure that you give clear explanations why you have considered other careers and why you ultimately chose to pursue a career as a barrister. Now, just to give you some background about how this particular article came about - last month, I collaborated with six juniors at the Bar. When answering this question, you must make it personal to you and immediately refer to your experiences to back up your reasons for wanting to be a barrister. You do not have to hit all the buttons, but having some will be good. Ask for the question to be repeated and drink some water to give yourself a little time to compose yourself and think about your answer. Be yourself. Used by Microsoft Advertising as a unique ID for visitors. I was so bad because I thought I had the answers in my head, but I had not practised getting them out. Make sure you are up to date with current affairs. Think about whether you could be them in a few years and what type of cases they are doing. A common interview trick is to ask you to argue one side of a debate, before immediately inviting you to argue the opposite. Used by Microsoft as a unique identifier. Copyright 2022- Material published on this website is protected by copyright. We will provide feedback to second-round candidates who are not offered pupillage on . Do not worry about how you come across. Dont be intimidated. Make sure to structure these answers and give a clear outline of your arguments. The cookie is used to store and identify a users' unique session ID for the purpose of managing user session on the website. Many thanks to the silks again for their valuable contributions. The UK justice system is constantly under scrutiny, so its important that you give an answer that reflects where you think the Bar is currently and demonstrates that you have an understanding of the challenges that the legal profession faces and how they can be overcome. Everyone has bad days. It seems to me that you write a good deal about the lack of resources in the court system, including the lack of trained personnel. We use cookies to provide you with a better online experience, to tailor advertising based on your browsing, and for statistics and measurements purposes. You can accept or reject cookies which are not essential for the site to work by clicking on the Cookie settings below. Work out what your star selling point is, make it adaptable so you can run it over a number of types of questions. Have something interesting to say when . Give yourself a pat on the back because it means you are doing something right. Tip 3: When it comes to the actual interview, different chambers have different modes of interview. "It is the same for pupillage." Meanwhile, in 2017, Legal Cheek reported that an aspiring barrister had been left "astonished" after chambers asked her to pay a 10 administration fee to obtain feedback. 10 Examples Of Interview Feedback You Can Use In Your Next Interview Be careful with what you put out there. If you are applying to criminal sets, the Secret Barristers books are essential background reading. These are all necessary but insufficient. Used by Google DoubleClick and stores information about how the user uses the website and any other advertisement before visiting the website. This domain of this cookie is owned by Vimeo. According to The Inner Temple, this is a genuine question asked by some chambers interview panels. Instead, you will be expected to present a logical, well-presented and well-structured argument to address a hotly debated topic relating to law. Do the prep. Your answer should be sincere, and perhaps you can draw on your experiences of seeing a good barrister in action in Court who you thought demonstrated great character when handling a difficult case. They ought to be making reasonable adjustments for you. Stand your ground under pressure from smug interviewers, but be prepared to make concessions if your argument is expertly blown apart. They are as follows: Treat it like an exam and make time to revise for your interview. This cookie is installed by Google Analytics. They are usually unpleasant experiences (I hated them!) Written feedback is available for applicants who reach the interview stage - any request for feedback must be made within seven days of the outcome of the interview. The feedback will help you identify any gaps in an application. Through my blog, I share information I wish I had access to back in the day. In terms of nerves that turn into panic, I think there are three solutions. Tagged: pupillage, pupillageapplications, pupillagegateway, pupillageinterview, bptc, btc, aspiringbarristers, aspiringbarrister, silk, junior, establishedpractitioners, theBar. Be prepared, particularly during the second round, for a panel of four or five interviewers, perhaps even more. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads. If you have any questions about pupillage or mini-pupillage do please email us on pupillage@twentyessex.com. Pupillage | Doughty Street Chambers Make sure you have properly understood what it is really like to work at that set and/or in that practice area (broadly described:for example my chambers does construction. This is useful not just in increasing your knowledge of the chambers and its members, but in particular, it builds up a confidence that you have a better base to answer questions from. So incredible, that I had to divide the article into two parts: the first article (this one) focuses on tips from silks (essentially a view from the top); and the second article, which will be released in the near future (so keep a look out! I received no response to this email and therefore, sent a further email on 20 May, once again asking for feedback from the panel, and checking they had received my previous correspondence. Even if its something as simple as, Roughly how long does it take for your junior tenants to start appearing regularly in the Crown Court? If you really cant think of a good question, dont ask a bad one. My brilliant colleague in Chambers, Adam Constable QC, says that as a barrister you should be on average 30% nervous all the time. It seems that it is equally applicable to pupillage interviews. Instead, you will be expected to present a logical, well-presented and well-structured argument to address a hotly debated topic relating to law. Again, an interview staple. Give yourself a pat on the back because it means you are doing something right.
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pupillage interview feedback