I am regularly asked how to discuss work experiences on an application form - including whether to focus more on the role or on the skills developed - so I thought I would cover this topic. 

Discussing the organisation

When highlighting a particular work experience, it’s key that you give context about the organisation you worked for. Don’t assume that the person reading your application or interviewing you will know much about it.

For example, is the organisation an international, regional or high street firm? Is it university-based? If it’s a professional services firm, is it full-service or boutique? Does it have a particular specialism? Is it highly regarded (this can be a particularly important point to make if you’ve worked abroad, as graduate recruiters might not have heard of it)? 

For more information on this point, check out our chapter on how to structure answers to competency and strengths-based questions.

Discussing the role 

Similarly, when discussing a role, don’t assume that the reader or interviewer will inherently understand what it involved. Again, given context. Were you employed, freelancing or volunteering? Part-time or full-time? Were you selected for the role through a competitive process? Elected? Invited to participate? 

In terms of what you then highlight about the role, I don't think you need to specifically tailor each work experience entry to the firm you're applying to. In many instances, doing so isn’t really achievable, as work experiences tend to be too broad to align with a specific law firm’s profile. 

Instead, try to tailor the way you write about work experience to the career you’re applying for. Now, this is where people tend to ask whether they should focus on skills when writing work experience entries. But is this the best approach? In my opinion at least, anyone can claim to have developed/honed/utilised skills. It’s fairly subjective, and difficult to disprove. In contrast, evidencing that you’ve developed these skills is more of a challenge, but if you do this well, you’ll come across as more credible. 

So how can you evidence skills in this way? Well, by explaining in granular detail what you have done, and ensuring these aspects of your role very clearly demonstrate the skills you wish to signal. 

Where possible, focus on the aspects of your role that are most transferable to the role of a trainee solicitor. The aspects of your role that might show that you've developed the capabilities needed to succeed if offered the job. For example, you might state that you personally worked on XYZ documents during legal work experience, or helped to project manage ABC processes. The transferable skills should then – hopefully – be evident, even if you don’t then list them out. 

If you have enough space to then link the aspects of the roles you’ve highlighted to skills that are very clearly relevant to what you say you have done, then that’s totally fine, provided you have enough space to do so without sacrificing other crucial aspects of what you’re done. For example, if you do mention that you worked on XYZ documents during work experience, this could link nicely to legal acumen, attention to detail, writing skills, and analytical skills. It wouldn’t obviously link to things like teamwork, project management, and adaptability however. 

Cover letters and “why you?” questions 

The main exception to this is the “why you” paragraph of a cover letter, or a similar standalone question on what will make you a successful junior lawyer. 

These questions tend to require you to focus more on drawing out the skills the firm is looking for from your work experiences. When writing such answers, you still need to give some context about the organisation and your role, but often need to then state the skills that you developed/honed/utilised during the experience.

Check out our cover letter video for more information. 

How much detail should I include?

As a final point, Hannah Salton reflects that “most people fall down in the work experience section by including way too much detail, or not enough detail. The key is to include valuable detail that is specific and relevant for a recruiter to read. Be specific about what you did, share examples of what you achieved, and where possible use numbers or statistics to add credibility.”

So to summarise…

• Give proper context about the organisations you worked for, assuming no knowledge of behalf of the reader or interviewer.
• Prioritise explaining what you did (as this is objective, provided you’re telling the truth!) over the skills you claim to have developed (which is more subjective), unless you’re explicitly asked why you would be great for the role.
• Don’t include detail for the sake of it. Keep your entries punchy and impactful, focusing on the most valuable aspects of your roles, and including numbers or statistics where possible to add credibility.