On the road again

So it's that time again. I, like many law firm recruiters, am limbering up to hit the road for the law fair season. It's gong to be a month of trains, planes and automobiles as we crisscross the land to meet and greet the next crop of hungry, wannabe lawyers in a variety of grand halls, gyms, convention centres and, in a couple of cases, bits of universities not really suited to exhibitions. The old hands will be exchanging war stories from years gone by, while newer bods peak too early and burn out. We'll chow down on institutional sarnies interspersed with the occasional grand spread (some even serve wine) and the best that the likes of Virgin and East Coast have to offer the captive traveller. We're looking forward to it now, but we'll be heartily sick of them by the end. So why do we do it?

Well, the answer will not come as a great surprise. We want to meet YOU! Employers want to impress you and, in turn, they want you to impress them. While you must never forget that you're going to need to sell yourself (you need to pay the bills for goodness sake), don't forget that the firms are looking to wow you as well. They pump lots of time and effort into being there, so it's important to understand their motivations and tactics.

First, they want to make sure that you are aware of them, full stop. They are in a crowded market and they need to ensure that they are in in the running to attract the best talent and are seen to be courting you. Second, they want to demonstrate what sort of organisation and people they are. They'll present a slightly idealised version of who they are (but not too saccharine sweet as it's bad news if recruits turn up at a workplace that is nothing like what they were promised). They are aiming to have a meaningful conversation with you to see whether you both want the same thing (I feel a song coming on).

They will be conveying two types of information: the practical (eg, what they do, the training programme and how to apply) and the conceptual (eg, their values, ways of doing things, aims and aspirations). They will then be examining whether they think you can and want to buy into those things. If you are having the first kind of conversation, about practicalities, move on to the second toot sweet. The practical stuff can be found on their LawCareers.Net page or the firm website. You need to be having a far more meaningful conversation if you are going to get noticed.

I'll be writing more about how to prepare for the fairs in my next post, so look out.

And what about LawCareers.Net? Why are we there? It's to hammer home what we hope you already know - that between them, LawCareers.Net and The Training Contract & Pupillage Handbook offer the most wide-ranging information and advice about becoming a lawyer there is available. We list details of over 1,000 employers; far more than any other place and far, far more than you could ever squash into an exhibition. We want to be your companion and helpmate as your career decisions progress. At the fairs we sign people up to our weekly newsletter, hand out our print publications (the Handbook, Best in Law, The Beginner's Guide to a Career in Law) or are just available for a chat about what you are trying to achieve and how to go about it.

We look forward to seeing you at the fairs and urge you to make the most of them!