Gowling WLG Vacation Scheme - December 2023

What was the full recruitment process?         

1. Application

2. Games-based assessment

3. Video interview

4. Assessment centre

Which aspect does this report cover?

Video interview

Where did the interview take place?            

Via software called iCIMS

What did the interview involve?      

I was required to answer four questions. There was a three-minute time limit for preparing for each question, and I was then given 90 seconds to record each answer. There was no option to re-record answers. I had a five-day deadline to complete the interview.

Which questions were you asked?

• Your client is a toy-market business owner wanting to expand into markets outside of the UK and wants preliminary advice. How would you approach this?
• The firm wants to run a charity event and tasks you with recruiting volunteers (including a charismatic host). How would you go about getting the help you need for the event?
• You are completing a project with colleagues that work in Australia and Canada. How would you approach managing a project with colleagues in different time zones?
• You have completed a piece of work, and a partner tells you you’ve written it in the wrong tone and it needs changing. How would you respond to this? 

What was the outcome?                                                  

I received an email two weeks later to inform me that I had been unsuccessful. 

Do you have any specific advice on how to prepare?

Have a notebook in front of you to make notes on each question. Have an external timer, such as your phone, as there isn’t a timer onscreen. The interview is scenario-based, so practise answering questions that allow you to display the Gowling competencies for a trainee solicitor, which are: 

• Thinking style
• Getting things done
• Overcoming challenges
• Interacting with others