The Beginner’s Guide to a Career in Law

Welcome

The Beginner’s Guide to a Career in Law, sponsored by The University of Law

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First-year opportunities

Find out which firms have open days and insight schemes for first-year students

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Your non-law student hub

You don’t need a law degree to become a lawyer - visit LCN's non-law student hub!

Your non-law student hub

Education hub

Find your undergraduate or postgraduate law course

Visit the Education hub

Discover your options

Find out about the various legal apprenticeships on offer

Kickstart your career in law

Welcome First-year opportunities Your non-law student hub Education hub Discover your options

Kickstart your legal career with these upcoming events!

LawCareers.Net and Shoosmiths masterclass: AI in the legal industry

Wednesday 23 July | Register now

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The Beginner's Guide to a Career in Law

Your essential first step to a career in law

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Key law career questions

Find answers to some of the most commonly asked questions about a career in the legal sector

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Key law career deadlines

Discover several key events and deadlines that you need to diarise

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Reality check

Without wanting to detract from the exciting and challenging legal career on offer, here are some things to bear in mind

Beginner's Guide

First steps checklist

Here's what you can do even before you start university

First-year checklist

Find out what you should be doing in your first year at university as a law or non-law student

Meet the Lawyer

Read how today's lawyers went from student to qualified lawyer

Legal career paths

Take a look at our simple career timetable

Solicitor versus barrister

What's the difference and which career would suit you? Use this guide to get you started

Meet the Recruiter

Lucie Rees

Should you use AI in your applications to HFW? How’s the firm adopting the Solicitors Qualifying Exam and what kind of work can you expect to experience on the vacation scheme? All of this and more is covered by HFW’s early careers manager Lucie Rees in this Meet the Recruiter profile.

Meet the Lawyer

Alasdair Johnston

Associate Alasdair Johnston discusses why he was drawn to working at international law firm Morgan, Lewis & Bockius UK LLP, the rewarding cases he’s worked on and the importance of work experience for aspiring lawyers. Plus, he highlights his time on secondment in Dubai.

Meet the Recruiter

Molly Hill

Graduate resourcing advisor Molly Hill offers a detailed and practical insight into the application process at leading City law firm White & Case.

Meet the Lawyer

Aurelija Grubyte

Hear from Aurelija Grubytė, an associate in the antitrust, competition and trade regulation team at K&L Gates, about her route to qualification.

Videos

See more videos

LawCareersNetLIVE Manchester 2024: trainee panel

Practice Area Profile | Indhu Birdy - Baker McKenzie

LawCareers.Net masterclass: commercial awareness

Meet the Lawyer | Hebe Thorne - Burges Salmon LLP

Vacation Scheme Insiders

University of Exeter

Law

Summer 2023

Vacation Scheme Insiders

Amber Fisher

University

Queen Mary University of London

Subject

English and European law

Started

Summer 2022

Vacation Scheme Insiders

Tasheika Rose

University

University of Warwick

Law

June 2023

The Law Apprenticeships Guide 2025

"Where should I start?"

Practice areas

Find out what life is like in practice

Becoming a solicitor

Find out what becoming a solicitor involves

Becoming a barrister

Find out what becoming a barrister involves

Becoming an in-house lawyer

Find out what becoming an in-house lawyer involves

Useful content!

Feature

Let’s break down the top stories that made headlines in 2024 and consider what you should look out for in 2025. Commercial awareness is a vital skill for all lawyers. For candidates applying for vacation schemes and training contracts, becoming commercially aware involves building an understanding of how law firms and their clients work as businesses, and how the wider world impacts them. This guide rounds up a range of commercial stories and talking points and considers their impact on the year ahead.

Ask the Oracle

City law firms: what are the different types?

I want to join a City firm, but the various categories have confused me. What are the different types of City firm?

LCN Says

Sophie Wilson - Life as a trainee

Sophie Wilson

As the deadlines for training contracts all come crashing in on you, and the emails flood in about whether you’re moving on to the next stage or not, it’s hard to focus on what life might be like as a trainee solicitor, so here’s a glimpse into my life as a trainee.

About the legal sector

What lawyers do

Learn more about the branches of the legal profession, areas of law, and practice areas

Types of lawyers

Read our table of key facts to help you distinguish between the different types of lawyers

Paralegals

Find out about this distinct group of legal professionals

Work experience

Find out about the various work experience opportunities available for aspiring lawyers

News

Dentons partners with legal AI platform to expand AI capabilities across Europe

Global law firm Dentons has partnered with collaborative generative AI platform Legora, giving its lawyers Europe-wide access to advanced AI tools and new ways of completing legal tasks.

News

Law Society proposes 10 steps to restore legal aid services after cyberattack

The Law Society of England and Wales has called for “immediate actions” to restore the justice system, following a major cyberattack on the Legal Aid Agency (LAA) in April 2025, which compromised up to 15 years of sensitive legal aid data.

News

LawCare and University of Leeds introduce reverse mentoring in legal profession

LawCare and the University of Leeds have launched a reverse mentoring toolkit to help law firms and organisations build a more inclusive and fair workplace culture, prioritising meaningful change over performative gestures.

News

Stress levels on the rise among pupils despite positive pupillage experience, survey finds

New barristers reported mixed experiences about their pupillage journey in a new survey published by the Bar Council. Ninety percent of respondents reported a positive experience, while 88% reported stress levels as ‘moderate’ or ‘high’ – a 6% increase from the previous year’s statistics.

Beginner's Guide to a Career in Law

Kickstart your legal career with these upcoming events!

Beginner's Guide

Videos

"Where should I start?"

Useful content!

About the legal sector

More insights

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Podcasts

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