A lot of candidates spend time focusing on the wrong stuff when it comes to preparing for their CVs. They use CV templates with different colours and a modern design. They are wondering whether they should add a nice photograph, or whether there is one perfect layout that every law firm prefers. The truth is there is no magic template that will get you a BigLaw offer…

Every law firm application cycle, I hear a version of the same question: “How do I stand out when everyone seems to have the same legal work experience?”

It is a fair question. Most large international firms receive hundreds, and sometimes thousands, of applications for a relatively small number of vacation schemes and training contracts. Many applicants will have a law degree, decent grades, legal clinics, society positions and one or two internships…

When I was in my penultimate year of law school, I applied for numerous legal internships to try to build a more all-rounded CV in order to prepare for future training contract applications. I spent roughly 30 minutes to an hour on a cover letter. I made sure it highlighted every academic achievement, every extracurricular activity, and every ounce of potential I believed I had. I thought I did a pretty good job. I didn't get invited for any interviews at all. Instead, I received the following rejection email from one of those firms…

Every application cycle, I speak to international candidates who are paralysed by the "quality vs quantity" debate. They have read the advice online or asked around. They have been told to focus on fewer, more tailored applications. They have been warned not to "spray and pray." And so they submit five, maybe seven applications — each one carefully researched, each one painstakingly drafted — and then they wait.

Getting a vacation scheme ("VS") is insanely hard nowadays. For those who have recently secured a VS, you should be proud of yourself: you successfully competed against over thousands of other job applicants, passed online tests / video interviews, survived assessment centres, and impressed lawyers you had never met. You finally earned your place at your dream firm…