SPARK Program Review
at Clifford Chance
Insight / Vacation Scheme (< 4 Weeks)
Commercial Law
London
Review Submitted: August 2023
Overall Rating
4.9 /5
The Overall Rating is the average of all the ratings given in each category. We take those individual ratings and combine them into one final score!
4.5/5
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Overview of Experience
5/5
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Skills Development
5/5
-
Company Culture
5/5
-
Overall Experience
5/5
-
Recommendations and Advice
Overview of Experience
Please give an overview of the insight and what was involved on a day-to-day basis.
The first day was solely classroom based with various talks and activities based around getting to know who Clifford Chance are, their values, what the different teams do and the general work that Clifford Chance undertakes.
The other 4 days were for work shadowing where we would start at 9:30 and end at around 6:30 with some evening activities arranged as well such as dinner. We were given trainee tasks and a workbook.
The other 4 days were for work shadowing where we would start at 9:30 and end at around 6:30 with some evening activities arranged as well such as dinner. We were given trainee tasks and a workbook.
What was it like understanding all about the business and potential roles available?
The first day in particular was great to understand the business because we had numerous talks about the firm, it’s people and values, the work they do, and how they are a firm who our clients first. My work showed to me the emphasis put on being an advisor to the clients and really exposed me to the importance of this in the firms values. Being involved with complex and important deals also helped.
Please rate how insightful you found the insight
5/5
How would you rate the structure of the insight
4/5
Skills Development
Have you learnt any new skills or developed existing skills?
Yes - I sat in the finance team and go to develop my legal research and proof reading skills. I also got to read through documents to find certain bits of necessary information so that developed my contract review skills as well. Whilst you don’t have any contact with clients, a large emphasis is placed on the work done with clients so it was great to get a feel or how important clients were there.
How would you rate the training provided during your experience?
5/5
How would you rate the knowledge learned around industry-specific skills during the experience?
5/5
How would you rate the knowledge learned around personal or professional skills during the experience?
5/5
Please rate how the knowledge learned has helped you with regards to your career development
5/5
Company Culture
How would you rate business leader involvement during the insight
5/5
What was the company culture and general atmosphere like?
Everyone was really approachable and excellent to work with - from my trainee buddy to my supervisor and the partners who gave talks to us or who you saw around the office. Everyone was very personable and there were numerous opportunities to meet and network with a whole host of employees or the firm. I throughly enjoyed the culture and it has made me very keen to apply to the firm in the future from this.
How would you rate the inclusiveness of the culture?
5/5
How would you rate the networking opportunities?
5/5
Please rate how valued you felt during your insight?
5/5
Overall Experience
To what extent did you enjoy the insight?
I thoroughly enjoyed it. Not only were the people extremely interesting and helpful but the work was also really great. I was lucky that even though it was a quiet period there was still a host of work I was involved in by the team, and the Graduate Recruitment team organised a workbook with mock tasks to do - some of which were assessed. This meant I was never bored and in downtime I networked also.
Please rate your level of enjoyment on the insight
5/5
Please rate how your experience met your expectations
5/5
Were you paid or reimbursed adequately for this experience?
I was paid
Recommendations and Advice
Please rate the future employment prospects at Clifford Chance
5/5
Would you recommend Clifford Chance to a friend?
Yes
What tips or advice would you give to others applying to Clifford Chance
Really understand the nature of the firm as being global and client facing because that really helped my understanding of the firm and was only developed further. The firm also specialises in Finance and Corporate work so that is something to be aware of if you’re not keen on that kind of work unlike me. The assessment centre tests you but if you can explain your motivations and grasp basic concepts it’s fine.
