England
Based in our London, Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds offices
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Empowering diverse voices in the legal profession, we partner with 10,000 Interns Foundation to deliver a bespoke six-week-long work experience programme designed specifically for the 10,000 Interns members.
This programme is the perfect introduction to Pinsent Masons and a pathway to securing a training contract at the firm. We meticulously design, structure, and develop the programme to provide you with an experience that is both practical and enjoyable, while genuinely reflecting the trainee solicitor experience.
The early talent team also offers support throughout the process - from application stage through to the completion of the placement.
This six-week placement programme often serves as the first opportunity for many individuals to work in a professional setting. We ensure this initial step is a smooth one through a firm-wide induction, welcoming you to the firm and encouraging you to seize every opportunity. You will gain comprehensive exposure to one specific practice area, which will allow you to build strong relationships, engage deeply in the team's work, and enjoy a significant level of responsibility. You will be paired with a dedicated supervisor and a buddy who will guide you throughout the placement, assign hands-on tasks, provide constructive feedback, and address any questions you may have about the firm.
The primary goal of our programme is to give you the chance to experience what it means to be part of the Pinsent Masons team and to develop transferable professional skills, boosting your confidence along the way. Additionally, this is an excellent opportunity to understand the social dynamics, forge friendships, and begin constructing a valuable network of contacts for your future career.
If you are offered a placement, it signifies that we already recognise you as a potential trainee. During your time with us, we will strive to give you every opportunity to validate our confidence in you. This is why our vacation placement students are not required to submit a separate application for our training contract programme; in our perspective, you are already being considered. Throughout your placement, we will facilitate your development of knowledge, skills, and confidence, gathering feedback from your team to assess the outcome of your training contract application.
Candidates typically apply for our vacation placement programme two years in advance of when they wish to commence their training contract.
Our firm is deeply committed to diversity and inclusion, partnering with organisations such as the 10,000 Interns Foundation, Aspiring Solicitors, and Bright Network to promote and support applications from individuals of all backgrounds.
You must also meet one of the following:
If you don’t meet the above minimum academic criteria but you have mitigating circumstances, there’s an opportunity for you to include this information in your registration form.
The 10,000 Interns programme will run from Monday 02nd June 2025 to Friday 11th July 2025.
We do not offer ad hoc placements so you must make sure you’re available for the full placement during the above dates.
With a conscientious approach, you'll have the ability to read and absorb large amounts of reference material and spot errors quickly.
We're a purpose-led, professional services firm, with law at the core, so you'll have a genuine interest in how business works.
You’re able to learn new skills and concepts quickly and apply them effectively. You’re curious and open-minded, seeking feedback and opportunities for improvement.
You’re comfortable engaging and openly communicating with people from different backgrounds and experiences to your own.
You have a genuine passion for excellence, and the drive, determination and positivity to go above and beyond to achieve your goals.
You understand that taking responsibility for your successes and acknowledging when things go wrong helps you improve and develop.
With the confidence to express your own opinions and assert your point of view when necessary, you'll be a compelling and persuasive communicator.
You have a clear sense of what is important and plan your tasks and activities, prioritising the most important ones, and managing your time and resources efficiently.
We believe placements should be paid as you will be making a valuable contribution to our business. We also recognise that undertaking placements can mean incurring costs for travel and accommodation. This is why we pay our vacation placement students a competitive rate of pay whilst on the scheme.
Our salaries are subject to review on an annual basis. The salary rates as of June 2024 are as follows:
Visa sponsorship
Our placements are full time i.e. 35 hours per week and may not be suitable for candidates with restricted work permits. If you are not sure about your individual circumstances, please contact us.
Eligible candidates must register via the 10,000 Interns Foundation website and apply for an internship within their allocated deadline, which may be different than our application closing date.
Interns are then matched with suitable employers. If you are not assigned to Pinsent Masons, you will not be eligible for this placement.
Once the 10,000 Interns Foundation system (Pinpoint) allocates you to Pinsent Masons, please complete the following steps:
Tell us about yourself, your academic history and your employment history where applicable. We also gather information about you to support our contextualized recruitment approach.
The next stage of the recruitment process will involve completing our online blended assessment. This blended assessment incorporates situational judgment questions, a written case study and a short recorded video interview allowing us to see how well you would perform in different scenarios.
If you pass the online blended assessment, we’ll ask you to book a place at one of our in-person assessment centres. You will complete three exercises over the day – This will include a one-to-one interview, a business simulation exercise and a case study.
Whatever the outcome, we’ll let you know as soon as we can after the assessment centre. If you display the key attributes we are looking for and perform well throughout the assessment, we’ll send you an offer and talk you through the onboarding process.
If you are successful in securing a place on the 10,000 Interns programme with us, you will be considered for a training contract at the end of the internship and all of your assessment results, together with your supervisor’s feedback will be taken into consideration.
Once you have been assigned to Pinsent Masons via the 10,000 Interns Foundation, please click on apply now to register for an account. Once you have registered, you will need to complete the following before the application closing date:
Once you have submitted all of the above, our recruitment team will review your application and blended assessment, and will be in touch in due course regarding your outcome
Pinsent Masons partners with the 10,000 Interns Foundation to support diverse candidates by offering 6-week internship programmes for candidates from black-heritage, mixed-heritage, or disabled backgrounds. These opportunities run alongside our vacation placement programme.
Eligible candidates must register via 10,000 Interns Foundation website within their allocated deadline, which may be different than our application deadline. The interns are then matched with suitable employers and, if you are allocated to Pinsent Masons, we will be in touch to advise you of the next steps.
The 10,000 Interns programme is a path to securing a training contract with the firm and selected interns will be invited to undertake the same assessments as our vacation placement candidates.
If we offer you a place on the 10,000 Interns programme, we’ll automatically consider you for a training contract at the firm. If you don’t gain a space on the scheme, you’ll need to wait until the following year to apply again via the 10,000 Interns website. Alternatively, you could apply directly for a Pinsent Masons vacation placement or training contract at that time.
Unfortunately, we don’t offer the 10,000 Interns programme to first year students. If you’re a first-year student, we’d encourage you to develop your legal knowledge by attending law fairs and insight events. We also have a open-access virtual work experience programme you can complete for free.
No, we will communicate the outcomes after the application closing date.
We’ll ask you to tell us your top three practice group preferences and we’ll do our best to place you in one of these. However, this is subject to business requirements at the time of your placement.
We are unable to offer alternative placement dates because we hope to communicate training contract results soon after the placement finishes. We also believe our interns benefit from completing the placement together by partaking in the same activities and building their network of support whilst they’re at the firm.
Yes, our salaries take account of the real living wage and will be no less than £400 per week.
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