The Pupillage Gateway and chambers’ application deadlines are fast approaching

With the Pupillage Gateway closing on Thursday 30 April and a host of other chambers placing their application deadlines on this date, this is the last full week that you will be able to submit and amend your pupillage applications to most chambers until next year. It's crucial that you make the most of the next few days to carefully hone applications, spending plenty of time tailoring each one individually to the relevant chambers before submitting well ahead of the deadline. You will improve your chances of success far more by submitting a handful of highly-polished, targeted applications, as opposed to firing off as many as you can in a hurry. While you still have time, be sure to read our extensive guide to pupillage applications, written by Simon Myerson QC, who runs the excellent blog, Pupillage and How to Get It.

Some chambers have also been supplying pupillage application tips via Twitter. We highly recommend that you follow 5 Essex Court (@Pupillages), 11 Stone Buildings (@11SB) and Henderson Chambers (@HendersonPupils), if you don’t already, and take on board their advice. Simply searching ‘pupillage’ on Twitter will also open up a whole conversation between barristers, chambers’ official accounts and the legal press on the subject.

It is also worth reemphasising the importance of submitting your finished applications with plenty of time to spare before the deadline. Not only will this ensure that your application does not arrive on the tide of low-quality forms submitted at the last minute (when many chambers will have begun to assess the applications that they have already received anyway); it also pays to give yourself some breathing space, should the Pupillage Gateway’s high traffic lead to technical problems.

If you find out in the summer that you have been successful at this stage, it will then be time to start preparing for interview. Therefore don’t forget to take in LC.N’s advice on pupillage interviews, which includes some expert tips on this most crucial stage of the application process. Good luck!