A career at the Bar: tips and advice from those in the know

The Bar continues to attract some of the brightest and best graduates every year, promising a career that has the potential to be thrilling, well-respected, autonomous, lucrative and intellectually stimulating. On the flipside, and especially since cuts to legal aid funding over the past couple of years, it is viewed by some as elitist, dying out and impossible to get a foot in the door without an Oxbridge double first and connections in high places.

The reality, given that there are around 12,000 self-employed barristers and a further 3,000 at the employed Bar, is that there is no one experience of the profession. For most practitioners, it is likely to be somewhere in the middle of the two extremes described above. Much will depend on the type of law practiced, geographic location and other variables.

At a recent event at Middle Temple Inn for university careers advisers, which I was lucky to attend, speakers from the Inn gave their views on what would-be barristers should be aware of, including hurdles ahead and personal characteristics required. Some of the key things that I took away, and which should be of interest to anyone keen on treading the path to the Bar, follow.

No to A-level law

Derek Wood QC was emphatic on this point - "Don't read law at A level" were his exact words. He said that sciences or humanities at A level were preferred by chambers. He also emphasised that it is not essential to do a law degree; there is a 50:50 split in terms of pupils who are law grads versus those who convert.

Cashflow considerations

Wood also revealed that "the money problem distracts me all the time", by which he meant that with both the GDL and the BPTC being very expensive undertakings (the BPTC at around £18,000 in London and the GDL not much less), and in the absence of the "bank of mum and dad", the thorny question of how to fund postgrad studies is a tricky one to answer.

He commented that while tuition fees for undergrad studies seem not to have deterred most people from going ahead with a degree, this is partly attributable to the existence of student loans that are repayable over time at favourable terms. There is no such option for the postgrad courses however.

Wood urged students considering the BPTC to look at the "risk versus reward ratio": namely, that the course requires large expenditure and there is no guarantee of pupillage at the end. And he offered some searing stats - there are around 1,700 people who sign up to do the BPTC every year, of which about 25% are foreign students who complete the course and return to their home countries. That means that 75% of BPTC students every year are looking for pupillage, of which there are only around 450 available, making the ratio of applications to places about 8:1. In essence, competition is fierce.

Question of qualities

So, with the extremely competitive nature of the process in mind, how do you stand out and secure a pupillage? Adrian Whitfield QC provided an excellent list of those qualities that are essential for success at the Bar, many of which also apply to the quest for pupillage. Paraphrased, here they are:

• High intellectual ability - you will need a 2.1 or above in a "hard" subject.
• Analytical ability - you have to be able to get right to the bottom of a problem, research it thoroughly and organise the detail before you apply your own judgement to it.
• Strong nerve - this is no job for worriers. You have to form a view and stick with it, both in court and in your written advice.
• Engaging and empathetic - you have to be able to put yourself in the position of another person, be they opponent, judge or client; this is a people game and you have to be able to inspire confidence.
• Determination/resilience - you must be able to carry on, even if you've been savaged in court or during pupillage. Hang in there!
• Articulacy - it's not just about liking to talk, but also listening, understanding and giving a concise and persuasive answer.

He also talked about the need to write well, be organised, have the ability to focus and be prepared for antisocial working hours.

The good news?

Wood stressed that once you've got pupillage, your chance of getting tenancy is almost 100%. Plus, as a pupil, you can earn up to £60,000 (although the minimum remains at £12,000). In addition, there is relative gender equality at the junior end of the Bar, with around a 50:50 split between men and women, although retention of women as they become more senior is problematic. However, it is possible to take time out and return to work, and an increasing number of women are doing so.

Christa Richmond, director of education services at Middle Temple, detailed the Inn's Access to the Bar Award, which is a two-week, paid-for placement that offers one week's work experience in a set of chambers and one week's marshalling with a judge. As all the speakers said, mini-pupillages are very important, but so popular that they can be hard to get on one, so schemes such as this are crucial.

Richmond's other top tips for work experience were to keep a diary of those experiences, making notes on what you saw, participated in and the people you met. Observations on what you've learnt are important and essential for applications. She also suggested a key place to start gaining experience is with court visits, which are easy to do - you just show up and observe!

Choosing an Inn

The best way to choose among the four Inns? Go and look around, urged Wood, as each has its own personality. Consider the scholarships and financial help that each Inn offers. Every year, the four Inns combined offer around £5 million to students via their scholarship schemes. The aim is have a positive impact on diversity, widen the pool of recruits and ensure that access to the Bar is open to all.