Solicitor Apprenticeship

[stubiff]

My DC is starting to investigate this (and other sectors), so thought we'd share some findings which may be of use to others.

What is the Solicitor Apprenticeship?
A job and training over 6 or so years, resulting in a Law degree and the SQE (assuming you pass them!) which is a Level 7 (Masters equivalent) qualification, so you will be a qualified solicitor. It entails paid employment with 1 day a week training, using an external provider, e.g. BPP.
Note – not to be confused with the Paralegal Apprenticeship (L3/4 qualification) or the Graduate Solicitor Apprenticeship (need a degree to apply for the latter).
Not all firms offer them. And there may be change in the future https://feweek.co.uk/shorter-apprenticeships-and-level-7-restrictions-confirmed-by-starmer/ if the L7 apprenticeship moves outside the levy.

What do you get paid in the first year?
Anything from <£18,000, to £32,000 in London.

What about in future years?
A lot of firms pay the same in year 5 (post degree on the apprenticeship) as a trainee solicitor starting at that point. So, there is no disadvantage, financially.
In addition, several top firms have a pledge to ‘Treat all routes to qualification fairly with equal value.’ https://www.legalcheek.com/2022/10/to-firms-pledge-to-treat-training-contracts-and-apprenticeships-as-equals/
In some other industries, apprentices are not seen on the same level as graduates.

How do I find one?
Job ‘adverts’ on the Gov site (note this is not a full list of all firms who offer them, just available when you can apply) https://www.findapprenticeship.service.gov.uk/apprenticeshipsearch.
LegalCheek https://www.legalcheek.com/the-solicitor-apprenticeship-most-list/. This isn’t exhaustive, as firms offering them for the first time might not be in the list.
https://solicitors.lawsociety.org.uk/ search for your local town/area, then look for firms with a larger number of solicitors as they are more likely to offer apprenticeships.
Apprenticeship providers - https://findapprenticeshiptraining.apprenticeships.education.gov.uk/courses/43 then ‘View providers for this course. Emailing Teesside Uni, for example, provided a list of firms that have used their services in the past.

Are they hard to get?
Yes! From LegalCheek there are a lot more training contracts than apprenticeships, and the former are hard to come by. Could be 200-1 applicants-positions or significantly higher.

What are the timescales?
Applications can open in September of Y13, but some wait until the New Year. Employment starts in the following September.

What are the entry criteria?
Using the scenario of still studying A-levels (or equiv), the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) say it is CCC, at A-level (or equiv). Some training providers have higher entry criteria, e.g. BPP’s is 128 UCAS points (equiv of ABB). Then, an employer may have their own, even higher, entry criteria, e.g. the top law firms want AAB. Short story, the employer website should say what is required.
This will be based on predicted A-level grades, if they haven’t been obtained yet.

What is the application process?
With the top firms - Application form/CV, online test (e.g. Watson Glaser test https://www.thelawyerportal.com/solicitor/training-contract-overview/watson-glaser-test/), interview and written exercise, assessment day (any or all - group exercise, partner interview, and written exercise).

This is all great research but I would note the following:

1. very few firms offer them.
2. law is very traditional and you may find after all that hard work it’s difficult on qualification to move firms as most firms know nothing about apprenticeships and won’t favour a candidate who qualified in this way. For example you can now qualify with paralegal work but many firms want to see 2 year training contracts completed.

@PestoPastaChaChaCha

1. there is a reasonable list that do, including the top firms, but agree that it's not universal
2. The end result on qualifying is the same (hence the pledge from a number of firms), i.e. they have an LLB and have passed the SQE and have QWE. What will be different is that they don't have a degree from Durham, Bristol or Edinburgh, etc.

I think perhaps the majority of the bigger firms now offer them (excl the US firms who seem slower on the uptake). Time will tell but I think people who’ve done them will be extremely employable depending on the reputation of the firm in question- I’d expect someone who has done an apprenticeship with eg Freshfields to be top notch.

Places are like hen’s teeth though. They’re also being seen by firms as part of their outreach- a way to get talented people from lower income backgrounds into law, which means that (unofficially) they’re unlikely to be the route for you if you’re ex Eton etc.

@WAMozart Yes, DLA Piper use the Rare Contextual Recruitment System to even the playing field.

The firms could still sponsor the degree, just not the SQE under the apprenticeship levy. At least that’s my take on it. Huge numbers of degree and L7 apprenticeships go to existing staff making it very hard for y13 dc to get them. Apprenticeships have been seen by many firms as retraining employees by improving their qualifications and thereby use to the company. The company also knows them of course.

Not sure the apprenticeship route tops a degree from an elite uni, AAB for A levels won’t get dc into one of these and I suspect many apprentices will have higher than these grades. I would think some are great but unbelievably hard to get - as are the top paying traineeships!

@PestoPastaChaChaCha
Actually, just checked again, and it's only Clifford Chance of the top 10 who don't offer it.

@TizerorFizz
Yes, guessing they may change into L6 Apprenticeships for the degree, then the employer pays for the SQE.
Agreed, they won't top a degree from an elite Uni, but they're probably not designed to be that. It means earning and no graduate tax, and in theory, the same opportunities on qualification (bearing in mind a lot will stay with the same firm anyway so that won't matter, like they do after qualifying via a training contract).

The legal cheek numbers recruited as apprenticeships are very low though, Mayer Brown 1?! Only 3 recruit more than 9. They do use it to look at contextual dc or to up disadvantaged and other quotas. If you look at around 6000 recruited as grad trainees every year, these numbers for apprenticeships look pathetic. Plus the US firms will kill the average 18 year old!

@stubiff Yes agreed but look at the numbers! Very very low.

@TizerorFizz
Agreed, hard to come by, as I said in my op, 200-1 or more.
But, someone has to get it/them!

I don’t think these would be looked down on at all. A girl at our school got one she had top
a levels and a place at a top RG university but opted for the apprenticeship

@TheaBrandt They won’t be looked down on but they are a tiny minority at some places. Firms will want exactly the same attributes as their grads have but just not as well developed. It’s a big ask for 18 year olds. Plus I think the odds are worse than that @stubiff Are the adults getting them counted in the application numbers or extracted? I do agree that someone has to get them but they aren’t much of a realistic alternative when compared to grad opportunities when looking at numbers. CC has around 5,800 applications for 110 grad places so that’s a better “chance” as it were.

I can tell you that law firms will not give a monkeys once someone has the experience to do the job well and if they come across well in interview. I went to an ex poly and have never found any trouble getting jobs, in top firms or inhouse.

DS is doing a degree apprenticeship (software engineering though) and loves it. I don't know how different the process is but my advice (based on DS's experience) would be to apply for as many as possible (ds applied for 20+), have really strong GCSE grades and A-level predictions, a professional CV filled with relevant extra curriculars, volunteer work, work experience/shadowing and have examples of working as part of a team. Search up the sort of questions that might be asked at interview and be prepared to answer using the STAR method, get as much practice being interviewed as possible. Research the company and their values and make yours align!

Don't assume that because a company only asks for CCC grades that they will end up interviewing anyone with that predicted - with all the applications they can be very choosy. DS had all 7-9 at GCSE and predicted A stars and still didn't get interviews at some places. Apply early, sometimes they close early if they get tons of applications. Be prepared that it can be a grueling process with lots of stages at an already busy time (Yr 13/mocks) with lots of rejection. It is though a really useful experience IMO. It shows you what you can expect after uni if you go that route instead and just how competitive you need to be. At this age there is always the fall back of uni so the rejection is easier to take and it leaves no doubt in your mind how you need to come out of uni with much more on your CV than 'just' a 2:1.

Not sure the apprenticeship route tops a degree from an elite uni, AAB for A levels won’t get dc into one of these

Realistically AAB won’t get you a solicitor’s apprenticeship either. That’s the official offer- in reality they have enough applicants with top grades and only a handful of places. It’s incredibly competitive.

Most of the successful candidates for these schemes will be top candidates who could easily get into a top university. They are a great idea for those who are committed to the career but not an easier access route

If you are really bright you will be joining these firms at 21 or 22. Yes you have uni debt but you have greater academic learning. The apprentices have more experience. No one, without going to a major city, will find 20 firms to apply to!

It will depend on firm. I’ve worked at several and heard (unfair) comments about non-traditional ways of qualifying at all of them. I didn’t go to a great uni, have an ordinary background BUT I’m the exception at my firm, everyone else is RG/Oxbridge. I’m not saying it can’t be a good way into the profession but I’m saying it’s a difficult way in and may not be well received by all firms. Most magic circle, silver circle and US firms are full of solicitors wanting to recruit people just like them and are not very open to new ways to qualify. Law is still sexist and elitist in many many firms.

It's still very new, even the SQE is new and firms are still getting their heads around that as the traditional training contract route is only coming to an end now and that's been in place for decades.

I'm all for different routes in but need to also be realistic that ultimately these wont replace a university degree or be viewed as equal for a long time yet and may never be as so many people will still go down the uni route.

Many opportunities also will not be advertised, so no vacancies as such. It will most likely be internal applicants in firms wanting to progress that have greater access to it as a way to develop from within their existing entry level and support roles, which have been the types of people that have previously used the alternative routes to qualify. May also find, like other alternative routes that have existed for a long time, that it is the more routine and generic practice areas that these get used for more eg. private client/wills, residential conveyancing etc and those doing it get pushed into those areas unless already in firms and in working in other areas.

If I had a bright and keen DC that could otherwise go down the university route into law I'm not sure I would encourage them to deviate from that right now as quite likely it will limit their options.

But if I had a DC that may not be so suited to the uni route then I would encourage it as an alternative as it gives them an option they wouldn't otherwise have had so if they are interested and want to definitely explore it, but they need to be realistic that it will likely never be seen in many firms as being equal or comparative - but that doesn't mean that they cannot succeed, there are hundreds of different jobs as a solicitor out there and the legal industry relies on that

The traditional training contract is not really going at all for the vast majority of people at the best firms. What we have done with SQE and these new apprenticeship route is move the log jam of people wanting to qualify from TC stage to NQ stage - so loads of people will qualify much more easily but will never be hired as they have not had a good TC. However if someone gets a rare as hen's teeth age 18 apprenticeship at a top firm and has A stars in A levels etc etc and they do well over the 5 or 6 years and pass SQE exams (50% of people fail them) then they will be likely to do fine.

My friend’s dc is doing a solicitor apprenticeship at a regional firm. Stiff competition. She has top grade A levels and did an additional A level and a 40 hr a week office based customer service job in gap year. Rigorous interview process including a presentation to panel of partners. She thinks evidence she could balance work and study swung it. Enjoying it and doing well.
Some local authorities are offering them for hard to recruit areas like adult social care legal.

You surely cannot spend a whole apprenticeship only doing legal work around adult social care? Obviously you could do this specialism after qualifying, but it’s very narrow.

If you are going down this route you need to consider the firm you are doing it with. I don’t just mean what experience they can offer you. I mean the success or otherwise of the firm itself, where it sits in the market place and is that likely to change over the next six years you will be there? Law firms regularly grow, downside, close regional offices, merge etc. Your experience will be impacted by that.

Re 'so loads of people will qualify much more easily' - they still need to pass the SQE, like a graduate would need to. Why more easily?

Re 'will never be hired as they have not had a good TC.' - are you talking about a TC from a top firm? They'll stay at the firm they have done the apprenticeship with more often than not, just as someone passing the TC would (if offered a role). Some firms have the apprenticeships as permanent roles, rather than fixed term, so they'd need a good reason to get rid when the apprentice did qualify.

LPC is being phased out, so some firms may move more to the Graduate Solicitor Apprenticeship as the route in.