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City law firm chances?? Need help

Hi everyone,

I am an international student who secured a first class LLB at a top 10 UK university and am currently preparing for my LLM exams at a top 3 UK uni. I also have some legal experience at an MC and US firm in one of their international offices.

I hate my course and uni which has affected my academics. I am most likely going to get a pass on the LLM and wanted to know how screwed I am for a career with a city firm? Would self-funding the lpc/sqe and (hopefully) getting a distinction make up for the weak LLM classification? I know that I have the ability to get a distinction but various circumstances (not enough to be mitigating circumstances) have just really demotivated me from the course.
Reply 1
Avatar for ezlaw
ezlaw
12
I am at a non-russell group UK university. A classmate of mine, who is yet to even graduate, has secured a training contract with Clifford Chance (a magic circle firm). Your first class degree should suffice to demonstrate intellectual ability. But don’t let your demoralisation affect the rest of your application (even subconsciously). The competition is fierce. Even if your circumstances aren’t ‘enough’, if they adequately explain why your LLM wasn’t great - explain them, even to your advantage e.g. decided to use the LLM to explore an area of law i thought I might enjoy but really disliked, plus X and Y circumstances - or whatever yours are.

Your experience is also good. Grab as much more for your CV as you can, then it’s really down to a strong application imo.

Hope that helps and best of luck!
Reply 2
Avatar for katniss.m
katniss.m
2
Original post by Throwaway183737
Hi everyone,

I am an international student who secured a first class LLB at a top 10 UK university and am currently preparing for my LLM exams at a top 3 UK uni. I also have some legal experience at an MC and US firm in one of their international offices.

I hate my course and uni which has affected my academics. I am most likely going to get a pass on the LLM and wanted to know how screwed I am for a career with a city firm? Would self-funding the lpc/sqe and (hopefully) getting a distinction make up for the weak LLM classification? I know that I have the ability to get a distinction but various circumstances (not enough to be mitigating circumstances) have just really demotivated me from the course.

Hey, just wondering how it's going for you. It's really hard to define yourself with academics and work experience and then try to guess whether you'll get a training contract, there's really no way to guess. I'm currently applying for TCs and Vacs and have gotten a handful of rejections thus far, and have been put on 'hold' for Clifford Chance.
Reply 3
Avatar for Kb00
Kb00
6
Original post by Throwaway183737
Hi everyone,

I am an international student who secured a first class LLB at a top 10 UK university and am currently preparing for my LLM exams at a top 3 UK uni. I also have some legal experience at an MC and US firm in one of their international offices.

I hate my course and uni which has affected my academics. I am most likely going to get a pass on the LLM and wanted to know how screwed I am for a career with a city firm? Would self-funding the lpc/sqe and (hopefully) getting a distinction make up for the weak LLM classification? I know that I have the ability to get a distinction but various circumstances (not enough to be mitigating circumstances) have just really demotivated me from the course.

Hey!

The fact that you have a first class degree from a top 10 UK uni reflects very strong academics. Maybe try to list your struggles with your LLM under the mitigating circumstances section of the application form. Regarding your applications, I would focus on attending law firm events and open days in order to discover what type of firm you would like to work for. When you apply you could use your LLM as a reason to show your interest in that firm if it has a big practice in the same area that you did your LLM in.

I have used Commercial Law Academy's "writing successful applications" course, which I found helpful in explaining why I want to pursue a career in the City and how to talk about my experiences since they cover this in detail.

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