Vacation Scheme Review

During my vacation scheme at A&O Shearman, I sat with the International Debt Capital Markets (IDCM) team. Each day involved reviewing and editing documents, applying feedback, and integrating into the team.
Alongside this, we attended presentations from partners and associates across key practice areas, which helped me appreciate the firm’s international scope and strength in areas such as leveraged finance, debt finance, and M&A. These talks gave helpful context to the work I was doing and reinforced my motivation to pursue a transactional career at A&O Shearman.

Learning about the business and roles at A&O Shearman was very engaging. Through presentations across practice areas, including leveraged finance, disputes, and global financial markets, I gained a clear sense of how the firm operates as a cohesive international business.
These sessions helped me connect my own work to the broader commercial context and showed how trainees can build varied, cross-border careers. Understanding the firm's strategy, especially following the merger, strengthened my motivation to become a trainee there.

Yes, I developed both technical and interpersonal skills during the scheme. I enhanced my drafting skills by taking ownership of first drafts for a subscription agreement, a pricing supplement pro forma, a signing and closing memorandum, and legal opinion.
Beyond my seat, I learnt a great deal through practice area talks and networking. These sessions gave me insight into the firm’s international strategy, post-merger integration, and the broad scope of roles available. Conversations with lawyers at all levels helped me understand the day-to-day trainee experience and strengthened my motivation to return.

The culture at A&O Shearman felt welcoming, collaborative, and genuinely invested in trainee development. From day one, people at all levels made time to answer questions and explain the commercial context behind tasks. I was encouraged to take ownership of my work, and my contributions were valued, even as a vacation scheme student. Conversations during networking events also reflected a culture that values approachability, curiosity, and high performance.

I thoroughly enjoyed the insight. The scheme gave me a realistic and engaging view of life at A&O Shearman. I appreciated the opportunity to contribute meaningfully to live work, particularly through drafting key documents and receiving feedback from the team. I also enjoyed the variety of presentations and networking events, which gave me a broader understanding of the firm’s strategy and culture. By the end of the week, I felt both challenged and inspired, and even more motivated to pursue a training contract at the firm.

Yes

My advice is to prioritise commercial awareness. Go beyond headlines by understanding how deals impact clients and how A&O Shearman supports them across different practice areas. Tailor your application by linking your skills and experiences, whether from part-time work, extracurriculars, or volunteering, to the type of work trainees do. Show how these experiences demonstrate qualities such as attention to detail, resilience, or teamwork.