Pathways to more

At the end of last month I was privileged to attend the final presentations and gala dinner of the Pathways to Law programme's annual conference. The event is the culmination of two year's worth of learning, study and work experience by 300 potential recruits to the legal profession. Those attending were drawn from a wide variety of backgrounds and circumstances but were united in a fantastic zeal for improving themselves and their chances of breaking into the profession. It was my feeling that they had the best possible start for a person trying to break into the legal world and I felt that I was certainly in the presence of an appreciable number of future lawyers.

The Pathways to Law programme has now been running for five years and is the result of collaboration between a number of universities (Bristol, Leeds, LSE, Manchester, Southampton, UCL and Warwick) and firms (Allen & Overy, Clifford Chance, DLA Piper, Edwards Wildman, Eversheds, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Hogan Lovells, Macfarlanes and Mayer Brown), with funding from the College of Law and the Sutton Trust. The aim is to put year 12 students on an intensive programme whereby they are exposed to what it will be like to both attend university and work in the legal profession, with the programme culminating in the annual conference and gala dinner. The key aim is to offer the skills, insights motivation and encouragement that are not just desirable, but required to succeed in the long march to becoming a lawyer. Looking at the Pathways programme, I think, offers some useful lessons in how our readers should approach their work towards a career, and suggests ways in which your endeavours could be tightened up. I'll take some of the key aspects of the programme and describe how I believe they benefit candidates.

• An early start: it is probably regrettable that the battle for a career in law begins in earnest at a very young age. The recruitment timetable is geared towards those who get motivated early and keep pushing forward. By coming on the Pathways programme, the participants were given lots of information, early on, about how they should be approaching their career planning, what is expected of them and what the future holds. Those who kept their ears open, acted and continued to act put themselves at a huge advantage. But it is more important to realise that one is on a continual upward learning curve, and wherever you are now, there is more to learn and do - and the time to address these tasks is NOW!

• Seeing what it's really like: The programme involves placements within law firms where participants can see what really happens in a law firm and what people do. This kind of insight is invaluable and really helps focus minds on what is in prospect. More generally, our advice would be to get inside a firm by hook or by crook - it shows motivation and gives you an idea of what to expect.

• Mentoring: Advice from people who know more about a topic than you is always useful and, at Pathways, mentoring is part of the package. But help and advice is available to all - careers services are there to help you and it is incumbent on the individual to seek out and make use of it. And remember that advice is a two-way process - you won't just be spoon fed everything you need to do, it's about looking at your efforts, what you have done, need to do, and how to improve.

• The right environment: The Pathways programme is designed to place aspiring lawyers in a series of scenarios where they are meeting, talking to, interacting with and learning from others who are focussing on the legal world; be they fellow participants, mentors, law firm employees, helpers etc. The point is that there is a community of purpose, meaning that individuals are more likely to think, act and engage like members of the profession. This is a challenge for everyone aiming for a legal career; working out how to get up to speed and make themselves appear to be naturally a part of that community. This is about research and networking. You need to know what lawyers are thinking and talking about - what makes them tick, so you need to continue to read the legal press and, crucially, find ways to meet and talk to like-minded people - law fairs, open days, firm presentations, mooting, pro bono and university law society events are all places where 'legal osmosis' can occur.

• Competition: The highlight of the Pathways conference was a competition between the participants, divided up into ten teams. Each team presented on a legal topic which they had been allocated - they had to research it, decide how to present their views, create supporting written materials and, crucially, use a whole array of skills central to being a successful lawyer: research, written and verbal communication, teamwork, attention to detail, analysis, drive, listening, leadership; the list goes on. The results were amazing, with inspired performances throughout that used role play, music, acting , visual media and much more. These activities will be CV gold when the individuals come to make their case to potential employers. While the Pathways people had the framework of the exercise presented to them, they did the hard work. There are plenty of other frameworks that already exist or which you can create yourself that will help you develop and demonstrate the skill needed for success.

Pathways has certainly given 300 teenagers a flying start to their potential legal careers, but the very structure of Pathways is just a microcosm of what any really determined candidate should be putting him or herself through. It's time to ask yourself how you can improve your approach to success, to train as hard as possible, to think your way through the opportunities that present themselves and to mark yourself out as being capable of success.