Solicitor hopeful has concerns
In the latest instalment of our popular Career Conundrums series, an aspiring solicitor worries that City law firms have preferred universities, and that they aren’t studying at one.
“Hi Legal Cheek. I wanted to ask your readers whether they think City law firms still have a preference on the unis when it comes to selecting future trainees. I applied for a several vacation schemes during the latest cycle and while I’ve been lucky enough to secure one, I can’t help but think my uni (which isn’t a member of the Russell Group) might be holding me back. For context, I am on track for first in Geography. Thank you and please keep anonymous.”
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Some might, but most won’t.
The real correlation between Russell Group universities and law firm recruitment is the A-Level requirements. Most firms set a minimum benchmark of AAB. Most people getting these grades will go to a Russell Group university.
So law firms won’t necessarily recruit based on university, but on academics (A-levels and undergraduate degree).
If your A-Levels are strong, keep applying. There is just a lot of competition.
They do, because the unfortunate truth is that some universities are better than others and therefore a strong degree from those universities is a good proxy for adequate professional characteristics.
Now obviously that doesn’t mean that there is a blacklist of any universities, and every year there will be people from ex-polys who get into top law firms in the City. But these people are exceptions rather than rules (and tend to be hugely impressive vis a vis their peers).
And before people get upset – what exactly are law firms supposed to do? In 1997 the mere fact of a degree was an assurance of a minimum level of skill, given that only 250k people a year were graduating university. We now have about four times that level, while at the same time the generic aspects of university which are good predictors of professional performance (summative handwritten exams, substantial reading lists, second language expectations) have largely vanished.
If I were to advise the original individual – a first from a decent ex-poly combined with strong extracurriculars and a good professional attitude will probably get you a TC in a regional firm. From there it is entirely possible to lateral to City law a few years post-qualification, if you decide that’s what you really want. That’s not the only route to the City – but it is probably one of the more realistic ones.
Other elite careers (banking, investing, consulting, etc) also hire disproportionately from elite unis yet no one bats an eye. Why should our equally elite profession be expected to settle for anything less?
People definitely bat an eye for those too. It’s an issue that measures are being taken against. For example, more of them are reviewing CVs with the university name blanked out
Awaiting the inevitable comment from an Oxbridge graduate to inform us all that they deserve blatant credentialism because they wrote so many more essays at undergrad than other universities.
“The old-boys club” just got renamed to “networking” for the modern age. It’s innate to human nature that recruiters will prefer candidates that they have things in common with, and coming across as “the right sort” will outweigh aptitude in all but the rarest cases. It is what it is, I just wish Oxbridge fish were aware of the water they swim in rather than telling the rest of us that they’re just more hydrodynamic.
Oxbridge Desmond
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Redbrick 2:1
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Ex-Poly First
A senior partner at a city firm relayed to me the following conversation with a junior partner (about ten years ago).
SP: Why have we rejected this candidate?
JP: Went to a non-red-brick university.
SP: But he got a First.
JP: Doesn’t matter.
SP: What would you do, then, with someone who went to a plate-glass university and got a low 2:1?
JP: I wouldn’t even look at him.
SP: You ARE f*cking looking at him.