For an overview of how training contracts work, see our training contracts hub.

For many candidates, securing a training contract involves multiple application cycles, numerous rejections, and several assessment centres. This guide brings together the most important lessons on how to get a training contract, drawn from a wide range of successful and unsuccessful training contract journeys, focusing on what firms actually assess and how candidates can position themselves more effectively at each stage.

Rather than offering generic advice, this guide breaks the process down into clear stages from early preparation through to final offers so you can approach applications strategically.

1. How Training Contract Places Are Usually Filled

Before applying, it is essential to understand how training contracts are filled.

At most commercial law firms, the primary route to a training contract is through a vacation scheme. Many firms recruit the majority, and sometimes all of their trainees from their vacation scheme cohorts.

This means that, in practice, applying for a training contract often involves:

• Applying for a vacation scheme

• Performing well during the scheme

• Securing a training contract interview or offer as a result

Some firms accept direct training contract applications, but these usually involve similar assessment stages and are often more competitive due to limited places.

Understanding this structure allows you to plan properly. Instead of viewing applications, schemes, and interviews as separate hurdles, strong candidates treat them as connected stages of the same process.

You can read more about this relationship in our guide on what a vacation scheme is.

2. Build The Foundations Before You Apply

Strong training contract applications are built long before submission.

Firms are not only assessing what you have done, but how you have reflected on it and how clearly you can connect your experiences to legal practice.

2.1 Academic consistency

Firms do not expect perfection, but they do look for evidence that you can handle intellectually demanding work. This includes:

• Strong degree performance or upward trends

• Evidence of structured thinking in essays or problem questions

• Engagement with legal study beyond minimum requirements

2.2 Work experience (formal or informal)

You do not need a long list of internships. What matters is how you use what you have.

Relevant experience may include:

• Vacation schemes and insight days

• Part-time work

• Pro bono and volunteering

• University societies or leadership roles

• Legal research, writing, or content projects

What matters is not the label, but the skills you can evidence such as communication, organisation, judgment, teamwork, and resilience.

2.3 Commercial awareness

Commercial awareness is not about memorising headlines but rather understanding how businesses operate and how legal advice fits into that context.

Strong candidates can explain:

• Why a legal issue matters to a client

• How external pressures affect business decisions

• Where a law firm adds value beyond technical advice

This is explored in depth in our commercial awareness hub.

3. How To Answer Training Contract Application Questions

Written applications are a screening tool.

Recruiters use them to assess whether a candidate demonstrates motivation, clarity of thinking, and evidence of relevant skills. Most applications are rejected at this stage, often not because the candidate is unsuitable, but because the application fails to differentiate them.

Across different firms, questions may be worded differently, but they often test the same underlying issue: do you understand what the firm values in trainees, and can you show, using evidence, that you meet that standard?

3.1 Be specific about the firm

Generic motivation is easy to spot and easy to reject. Statements such as “the firm has a strong reputation” or “I am attracted to the firm’s culture” tell the recruiter very little. Strong candidates anchor their interest in:

• Specific practice areas

• Types of clients

• Strategic priorities

• Recent developments or transactions

Crucially, they do not stop there. They explain why these features matter to them and how they connect to their interests, experience, or long-term development. This is where many applications fall short: the research is present, but the personal link is missing. You can check out how to answer Why This Firm here.

3.2 Translate experience into evidence

Strong applications do not list activities, but are based on evidence.

Most training contract questions, whether framed as “What skills would you bring?”, “What makes you a strong candidate?”, or “Describe the qualities of a successful commercial lawyer”, are effectively asking “Why you?”

To answer this well, each example you use should show:

• What you were responsible for

• Decisions you made or challenges you faced

• What you learned or improved

• How that skill is relevant to legal practice

The experience itself does not need to be exceptional. A part-time job, university project, or society role can be just as persuasive as a formal legal placement if you clearly explain how it demonstrates skills the firm is assessing, such as communication, organisation, judgment, or teamwork.

What matters is not what you did, but how well you explain why it proves you would perform effectively as a trainee.

Sample example:

Communication is a core skill for trainee solicitors, particularly when working with clients across jurisdictions and practice areas. I developed this skill in practice during an internship where I acted as a point of contact between lawyers and clients from different jurisdictions, requiring me to explain legal concepts accurately and in plain language. This experience sharpened my ability to adapt my communication style to different audiences and levels of understanding. I strengthened this further through content-led work that involved translating complex business ideas into clear, engaging written material for a large readership. Together, these experiences reflect my ability to communicate with precision, clarity, and commercial awareness, qualities that are essential when advising clients in a commercial law firm.

For a full breakdown, check out How to Answer Why You.

3.3 Write clearly and deliberately

Recruiters read hundreds of applications. Clarity stands out.

Strong answers are:

• Structured

• Direct

• Written in the candidate’s own voice

• Focused on the question being asked

Avoid trying to impress with volume or overly polished phrasing. Firms are not looking for finished lawyers. They are looking for candidates who can think clearly, explain their reasoning, and reflect honestly on experience.

A useful sense-check before submitting any answer is to ask:

• Could this answer be sent to another firm with minimal changes?

• Have I clearly explained why this demonstrates my suitability as a trainee?

• Is the link between my experience and the firm’s assessment criteria explicit?

If the answer to any of these is unclear, the response can usually be refined further.

4. Psychometric Testing

At many firms, the application process begins with a psychometric assessment, often before a recruiter reviews your written answers. One of the most common examples is the Watson Glaser Critical Thinking Test, which candidates frequently find more difficult than expected.

These tests are used to assess abilities that are hard to evaluate through written applications alone, including analytical reasoning, accuracy, judgment, and the ability to work under time pressure.

What often catches candidates out is misunderstanding what these tests measure. They are not designed to test intelligence or legal knowledge. They assess method, and performance improves significantly with practice. Candidates who struggle usually do so because they are unfamiliar with the structure, pacing, or logic of the questions rather than because they lack capability.

Successful candidates take a deliberate approach:

• they practise in timed conditions to mirror the real assessment

• they learn how each question type is structured and what it is testing

• they base answers strictly on the information provided, resisting the urge to speculate or overinterpret

Treating psychometric tests as a learnable skill, rather than a hurdle to “get lucky” with, gives candidates a clear advantage. You can take our practice test here.