(no subject)
I had a job interview today.
Not that I'm unhappy @ KPS in face, in spite of the fact i REALLY didn't want to do FinIrreg, I'm actually rather content where I am. I get on well with all the staff, and my collaegues are great.
XR is a bully and a prat, but he's been nice with me so...and I was 'headhunted within my own place of employ' so I guess I must be good at it! And even the partner I was terrified of seems to like me, so I really can't complain.
What I DO complain about is the fact that I know there is no guarantee of a training contract - NH told me @ interview that there were 4 Grad Clerks and only ONE contract available Sept09. Well, 1 of those clerks left, and the other 3 all have TC's now.
So, there MAY be one still available in Sept - but there are THREE NEW CLERKS since I started!!!! 2 are brand new, so won't get on this yr (KPS make you work for them for 1yr, regards of your previous experience, before they give you a TC) but IL has more litigaion experience than me, is currently doing post-issue stuff while I'm still stuck in pre - TALKING about litigation, but never actually DOING any! AND he does translation - meaning that he gets more money than me anyway, but also means he's less dispensable.
Ok, work-related rant over. But basically, because NH couldn't guarantee there was a TC @ the end of my 1yr fixed term contract, I DID mention I would still be applying for TC's - hence thi interview.
Its for what they are calling a 'Legal Executive/Graduate Trainee' position. 6 months, and if they like me, they will give me a TC. Guaranteed, there will be one waiting for me in 6 months if they decide I 'fit'. So, much better chances than what I currently seem to have.
Gorgeous place - brand new; only got a postcode in March so the TomTom didn't like it and wouldn't take me there! But Dad went out with me Tuesday, we got lost but eventually got there. Have to go up like 5 junctions worth of motorway AND have to go to Switch Island to get there, but it only takes like 20 mins - about the same, of not less than what I do now.
v small firm - only 35 staff, he said! KPS is MUCH bigger; I mean, there was about 30 ppl just on the 1st floor when I worked down there!
BUT, almost entirely RTA - thats there main thing, so I'd FINALLY get some RTA experience! However, also means I'm a little more restricted, seat wise. I always thought you had to do 4 seats - 2 contentious and 2 non-contentious. (Btw, a 'seat' is a training period in a particular law field. contentious and non-contentious simply means I should have some training in private client law (ie probate and conveyancing) and public (ie more likely to be legal-aid applicable) such as RTA and crime) BUT they say I can do 3; RTA, prob ate and civil - which is the basics of RTA anyway. HOWEVER, I know you can actually do a '1 subject only' TC - Chiara's doing that @ Weightmans. It's just the rumour @ work is that the TC is FinIrreg only training. Which is DAFT because it has a shelf-life of 5yrs TOPS. So, when it goes belly-up, I'd be out of work!!
BUT, to get back to the point of the entry, I had an interview, which I feel went pretty gosh-darn well! He commented that I asked intelligent questions. He was impressed with the amount of work placements I've had, which didn't seem to impress prior to my getting KPS, coz a week or 2 somewhere doesn't seem to be sufficient experience. ALSO seemed impressed with my Masters (they didn't know what an LLM was!!) and I briefly explained what it was about and they seemed intrigued (legal ramifications of violence in sport - with a PI angle, so relevant to their specialist field).
Yeah, felt it went really well.
They said they'd call me 2m and let me know if I have a 2nd interview.
Not that I'm unhappy @ KPS in face, in spite of the fact i REALLY didn't want to do FinIrreg, I'm actually rather content where I am. I get on well with all the staff, and my collaegues are great.
XR is a bully and a prat, but he's been nice with me so...and I was 'headhunted within my own place of employ' so I guess I must be good at it! And even the partner I was terrified of seems to like me, so I really can't complain.
What I DO complain about is the fact that I know there is no guarantee of a training contract - NH told me @ interview that there were 4 Grad Clerks and only ONE contract available Sept09. Well, 1 of those clerks left, and the other 3 all have TC's now.
So, there MAY be one still available in Sept - but there are THREE NEW CLERKS since I started!!!! 2 are brand new, so won't get on this yr (KPS make you work for them for 1yr, regards of your previous experience, before they give you a TC) but IL has more litigaion experience than me, is currently doing post-issue stuff while I'm still stuck in pre - TALKING about litigation, but never actually DOING any! AND he does translation - meaning that he gets more money than me anyway, but also means he's less dispensable.
Ok, work-related rant over. But basically, because NH couldn't guarantee there was a TC @ the end of my 1yr fixed term contract, I DID mention I would still be applying for TC's - hence thi interview.
Its for what they are calling a 'Legal Executive/Graduate Trainee' position. 6 months, and if they like me, they will give me a TC. Guaranteed, there will be one waiting for me in 6 months if they decide I 'fit'. So, much better chances than what I currently seem to have.
Gorgeous place - brand new; only got a postcode in March so the TomTom didn't like it and wouldn't take me there! But Dad went out with me Tuesday, we got lost but eventually got there. Have to go up like 5 junctions worth of motorway AND have to go to Switch Island to get there, but it only takes like 20 mins - about the same, of not less than what I do now.
v small firm - only 35 staff, he said! KPS is MUCH bigger; I mean, there was about 30 ppl just on the 1st floor when I worked down there!
BUT, almost entirely RTA - thats there main thing, so I'd FINALLY get some RTA experience! However, also means I'm a little more restricted, seat wise. I always thought you had to do 4 seats - 2 contentious and 2 non-contentious. (Btw, a 'seat' is a training period in a particular law field. contentious and non-contentious simply means I should have some training in private client law (ie probate and conveyancing) and public (ie more likely to be legal-aid applicable) such as RTA and crime) BUT they say I can do 3; RTA, prob ate and civil - which is the basics of RTA anyway. HOWEVER, I know you can actually do a '1 subject only' TC - Chiara's doing that @ Weightmans. It's just the rumour @ work is that the TC is FinIrreg only training. Which is DAFT because it has a shelf-life of 5yrs TOPS. So, when it goes belly-up, I'd be out of work!!
BUT, to get back to the point of the entry, I had an interview, which I feel went pretty gosh-darn well! He commented that I asked intelligent questions. He was impressed with the amount of work placements I've had, which didn't seem to impress prior to my getting KPS, coz a week or 2 somewhere doesn't seem to be sufficient experience. ALSO seemed impressed with my Masters (they didn't know what an LLM was!!) and I briefly explained what it was about and they seemed intrigued (legal ramifications of violence in sport - with a PI angle, so relevant to their specialist field).
Yeah, felt it went really well.
They said they'd call me 2m and let me know if I have a 2nd interview.