Vacation scheme Review

Item: Vacation scheme at A&O Shearman
Rating: 4.4
Author: Anonymous

at A&O Shearman

Internship (1 Month+)

Legal/Law

London

Review Submitted: July 2026

Overall Rating

4.4 /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 - Overview of Role

4/5 - Skills Development

3.5/5 - Support and Guidance

4.8/5 - Company Culture

5/5 - Overall Experience

5/5 - Future Career Prospects

Overview of Role

Please give an overview of your role and what this involves on a day-to-day basis.

I was in the Corporate DDIT team as a vacation scheme student. My day-to-day work included conducting legal research on AI liability and GDPR, reviewing and adapting a Swiss contract for use under English law, and testing AI legal tools such as ContractMatrix and Harvey to review and analyse contracts. I also attended team meetings, training sessions and networking events with trainees, associates and partners.

Were you given much responsibility during your placement / internship?

Yes. I was given meaningful responsibility throughout the placement and worked on a range of substantive legal tasks. My supervisor trusted me with interesting research and contract review work, while also giving me the opportunity to meet and learn from trainees, associates and partners across the firm.

Please rate how meaningful the work you were doing was

4/5

Skills Development

Have you learnt any new skills, or developed your existing skills?

Yes. I developed my ability to use AI tools such as Harvey more effectively, including writing better prompts and using tools like contract matrices to support contract review. I also learned the importance of applying professional judgement when reviewing AI outputs, as they require a strong understanding of the underlying legal issues to assess their accuracy and relevance.
Additionally, I improved my approach to legal research, learned to ask more focused questions, and developed soft skills such as time management, attention to detail, and following instructions carefully.

How would you rate the training provided during your experience?

4/5

How would you rate your development of industry-specific skills during the experience?

4/5

How would you rate your development of personal / soft skills during the experience?

4/5

Please rate how these skills have helped you in your career development

4/5

Support and Guidance

How much support and guidance did you receive during your placement / internship?

It was very well structured throughout, which I really appreciated. We had consistent talks and sessions that gave us insight into different practice areas, and I found the variety of topics covered made the experience feel very dynamic.

How would you rate the support and guidance from your line manager?

3/5

How would you rate the support and guidance from the wider team?

4/5

Company Culture

What was the company culture and general atmosphere like?

Yes, I really appreciated the positive culture at the firm. Many of the trainees I spoke to shared their positive experiences, which gave me a good impression of the supportive and collaborative environment. I did really enjoy the south East Asian inclusion talk on Tuesday morning - the committee brought in great speakers!

How would you rate the inclusiveness of the culture?

5/5

How would you rate the social opportunities?

5/5

How would you rate the diversity initiatives?

5/5

How would you rate the charity, sustainability and corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives?

4/5

Overall Experience

To what extent did you enjoy your placement / internship?

Overall yes I did. I am very grateful for this opportunity.

Please rate your level of enjoyment on your placement / internship

5/5

Please rate how your experience met your expectations

5/5

Recommendations & Advice

Would you recommend A&O Shearman to a friend?

Yes

What advice would you give to others applying to A&O Shearman

I would recommend having a good understanding of the firm’s strong focus on technology and innovation. A&O Shearman not only develops its own in-house technology but also actively explores external solutions and encourages internal adoption. Practises such as the Markets Innovation Group (MIG) and Fuse demonstrate its commitment to staying at the forefront of developments in AI and legal technology.
It is also useful to appreciate that the firm has a strong banking and finance practice, so having a genuine interest in this area and understanding the market context would be beneficial.