trying to get a pupillage?

“The one thing that distinguishes the successful applicant from their colleagues is that the successful candidate has unwavering self-belief in his or her abilities, which I can help them find.”.

why is it so hard to get a pupillage?

When answering how to Get Pupillage we have to get real. Pupillage application may be a depressing process, as you may feel the crushing weight of rejection only days after completing your application and watch in misery as your classmates are given interviews. For some, it's child's play. Such people, however, are few and far between. The majority of people find the process of applying for pupillage to be challenging and usually eye-opening. It is a competitive field, and the majority of candidates will be unsuccessful simply because there are insufficient opportunities available to handle the high volume of applications. To compound matters, there are essentially no online resources accessible to aid candidates in understanding the application procedure. This guide is intended to assist you in obtaining pupillage and help you understand “how to get pupillage”. It cannot provide you with a secret recipe. However, its major objective is to provide fundamental processes for obtaining a pupillage. Now lets start.

1# Know what the Role is?

Work activities are determined by a variety of things, including your specialty. However, your primary objective is to resolve disputes and problems. The first piece of guidance that can be offer is gain experience. While pursuing the LLB, I volunteered once a week at a local firm of solicitors. The partner of the firms said at my interview "I have no objection to you learning,". Give the principal an offer that they cannot refuse. This quickly developed into paid work, and I was entrusted into legal responsibilities. It is important to demonstrate you have done pro bono work. This is also a good way of getting experience about the role. The types of things you typically need to gain experience and learn the following things:

• taking instruction from clients

• understand how the law is interpreted

• how to manage a caseload

• create legal briefs to counsel

• undertake legal research on points of law

• understand how to write advice in opinions and how solicitors are advised

• preparing cases for court, including conferencing and preparing arguments

• advising clients on law and evidence

• advising on merits of the case

• represent a client in court

• presenting argument in court

• examination in chief and cross-examination of a witness

• summing up reasons why the judge should decide in your client's favour

• drafting of legal documents

• negotiating settlements

Learning these skills early on makes you an outstanding candidate for pupillage and provides a better understanding of how to get pupillage.

2# Have a realistic idea about how much you will earn

In order to qualify for the Bar, people pursuing pupillage (the last step of qualifying) must earn a salary of at least £18,866 per year in London and £16,633 per year outside of London. The Bar Standards Board has set this as a bare minimum (BSB). Some chambers, on the other hand, provide far more than the bare requirement. Top commercial sets, for example, may command upwards of £50,000. But to secure this, chambers are looking for first class Oxbridge graduates.

Those in private practise who are qualified barristers with at least five years' experience may earn anything from £50,000 to £200,000 per year on average. Earnings for people with more over 10 years of expertise might vary anywhere from £65,000 to £1,000,000. Hourly rates for pupils might range from £20 for a freshly trained criminal law barrister to £900 per hour for a tax lawyer, with the former being the most affordable. If you are an employed barrister, you may expect to earn anything from £25,000 to more than £100,000 per year. Please be aware that the rewards are good when you have 10 years’ experience, but it takes a lot to get there. 10 years working in law gives you a dog’s life which short and you will have to make a lot of personal sacrifices such as work life balance.  

In the United Kingdom, around 80% of barristers are self-employed, and their wages may fluctuate dramatically based on a variety of reasons. Some of these factors include your geographic location, area of specialisation, years of experience, and reputation, as well as the sort of organisation you work for (self-employed or employed). Salaries at the highest-ranking commercial sets, for example, might be much greater than those at family or crime sets.

The earnings of barristers in the early stages of their careers are quite low, and there can be a significant wait between the completion of work and the receipt of money. This is a factor if you come from a poorer background and you need money to live. This is a profession which has historically been reserved for the privileged. If you are self-employed, you must additionally take into account deductions for expenses such as rent for chambers, clerks' fees, tax, insurance, and travel expenses, among other things. Employed barristers' salaries will be less variable than those of independent barristers since they are established by your employer.

3# Working hours

While courts are generally open during normal business hours during the day, barristers are usually required to work lengthy, unsociable hours that include nights and weekends, especially in the early stages of their careers. You can forget about seeing your boyfriend or girlfriend and forget about starting a family in the early years. This is the personal sacrifice I mentioned above.

4# First Class Qualifications is Key

In order to qualify as a barrister you must undertake three components of training: academic, vocational and the pupillage or work-based learning. To complete the academic component of training, you need a first class honours degree. Other articles will sugar coat that you need a minimum 2:2 undergraduate degree. This is not the case. If you want to get a pupillage this does not start, after you have completed the Bar Course. It starts from the first day of your undergraduate degree. Every essay you submit, every exam that you sit has to be of a first class standard and it must embody that you are in the top 5% of the 2,000 yearly applicants to the Bar. This is where I can help. If you are adamant that you want to get a Pupillage let us devise a strategy of how you will get there and break it down into smaller steps.

The Graduate Diploma in Law (also known as the Postgraduate Graduate Diploma in Legal Studies) is required to be completed if your bachelor's degree is in a discipline other than law, or if your law degree was obtained more than five years ago (GDL). There are several course providers that provide a combined academic and vocational course, which integrates both the academic and vocational components of the training programme. Again results are everything and you will need to show prospective chambers that you are the candidate they need. You top results will hold a big advantage over others. Studying law for the first time is hard enough but having to also get top marks is not easy. Book a consultation with me to see how I can help you. The one thing that distinguishes the successful applicant from their colleagues is that the successful candidate has unwavering self-belief in his or her abilities which I can help them find.

The Bar Course Aptitude Test (BCAT), which measures your ability to think critically and rationally, will be required before you can begin the vocational component of your course. This is a really basic test, and if you fail it, you should seriously reconsider pursuing a career at the Bar.

In the next phase, you will complete a vocational component of training, the goal of which is to give you with the specialised skills, knowledge, attitudes, and competence necessary to become a barrister. Until recently, completing the Bar Professional Training Course was the only way to do this (BPTC). After then, the BPTC will be phased down and replaced with a variety of new bar courses beginning in September 2020. Although the titles of these courses may differ, they will all fulfil the requirements for the vocational component. The new names for the Bar course are:

• Bar Course

• Bar/Barrister Training Course (BTC)

• Bar Practice Course (BPC)

• Bar Vocational Course (BVC)

• Bar Vocational Studies (BVS).

It is essential that a student gets a Very Competent mark as a minimum. An Outstanding would be even better. If you have done legal work before you will find vocational training a lot easier. The work and reading you will be required to do is not difficult or academically challenging. It is that the course providers give you a lot of information to read and digest. It is a test of stamina and not intelligence. You will be required to read every day. I can provide guidance and tips and tricks, notes, past papers and advice on how to successfully study for the bar, it always good to get a second opinion on legal issues and a study partner.

#5 Applying for pupillage

As mentioned above in order to practise law, potential barristers must undergo a pupillage (work-based component) after completing the vocational component of their training. Each year of pupillage is split into two parts: the non-practicing six months (referred to as the "first six") and the practising six months (referred to as the "second six"). Before beginning a Bar course, please apply for a pupillage via the Pupillage Gateway, which is maintained by the Bar Council of England and Wales. Applicants may submit applications to as many as 20 chambers or Authorised Training Organizations at a time (ATO). I can give support and guidance in respect to the application process, as well as the interview and evaluation process. Competition is fierce, both in terms of academic requirements and in terms of personal characteristics. Over the next few of years, new training requirements for those wishing to become barristers will be implemented. Training should be more flexible and affordable, making it more accessible to a wider range of individuals while maintaining the same high standards required to practise as a barrister, according to the goal. We are waiting to see how and when more authorised training tracks will be made accessible and available.

6# Skills that you need to demonstrate

You will have to demonstrate that you are suitable for the bar. You will be required to show the following skills:

• academic ability (particularly research skills)

• legal and commercial awareness

• excellent written skills

• ability to express ideas and arguments clearly

• advocacy skills

• excellent time, project and people management skills

• attention to detail

• problem-solving skills with a flexible approach to work

• IT skills

• interpersonal skills the ability to communicate with a diverse group of people

• Self-motivation and self-discipline

• as well as responsibility and integrity

• as well as drive and stamina

The rewards once you get there

Upon completion of pupillage, you will be eligible to apply for tenancy in chambers and become a junior barrister. The situations you'll be dealing with will get more severe and sophisticated as time goes on.

Challenges to career advancement for self-employed barristers may include limited financial resources; lengthy hours spent covering cases, and managing your own caseload at this time of one’s professional life. Consequently, your ability to advance in your profession and maintain financial security is highly reliant on the quality of your cases, your attitude to working, and your ability to effectively establish a practise and reputation. Alternatively, barristers may opt to practise at the employed Bar and seek for posts with in-house legal services departments in commercial firms or public sector organisations, rather than at the independent Bar. Career advancement may include taking on leadership responsibilities or rising through the ranks of general management.

Senior barristers from both the self-employed and the employed Bar may seek to 'take silk' and become Queen's Counsel by submitting an application (QC). This may include taking the lead in very critical cases or joining the court as a recorder prior to being appointed as a judge. In most cases, you will need, at least 15 years of experience in order to be eligible to apply. Growing your professional network and involvement with professional organisations and organisations such as the Young Barristers' Committee (YBC), which is a division of The Bar Council, from an early age will enable you to establish a positive reputation and build your professional abilities. In order to advance your career, you must take a creative approach to job prospects and have the capacity to think laterally. Your success may be dependent on your ability to choose a particular field or niche in which you may establish a reputation.

Book me if you need career advice or help getting a pupillage, which is the final stage of training to be a barrister or if you want to take steps to ensure you get a pupillage. I hope this page has given you some insight into “How to Get Pupillage”.