Burges Salmon welcomed 43 GCSE and 36 A-level students from Bristol and South West schools to attend two Law Information Days on Tuesday 8 and Thursday 10 April.
Burges Salmon has been organising its Law Information Days for the past eight years and the aim of the sessions is to create awareness of the opportunities for a career in the legal profession and assist students with making important decisions about university courses and future careers.
As in previous years, the days included talks from partners and trainee solicitors in the firm, a careers adviser from UWE and a barrister from St John's Chambers as well as a negotiation skills exercise. The format included interactive group discussions, which proved to be very useful as the students enjoyed meeting other students from different schools. Each group was allocated a trainee solicitor for the day, which the students found of value as they could ask them questions directly and learn from their experiences first hand. The days concluded with a careers’ advice clinic run by Burges Salmon's HR team where students were able to obtain information on CVs, applications and alternative ways into law.
The Law Information Days are always a success and are oversubscribed with every school receiving a maximum number of five students on a first-come, first-served basis. One GCSE student said: 'Thank you very much for today – nobody else does it for our age.'
When asked about the impact the day has had on future degree choices, one A-level student said: “It made me much more focused on the future and what direction I want to go in.”
Catherine Correia, Burges Salmon's Corporate Responsibility Manager, commented: 'We were very pleased to, once again, open the doors of our office to all these students and hope they enjoyed their day. Considering students came during their Easter break, attendance was excellent and it shows how committed and serious they are.
'The group discussions worked particularly well as the positive energy they created was maintained throughout the day. We will definitely be repeating those next year and welcome students from all schools in Bristol and the South West.'