Summer work experience schemes 2025

Our summer work experience schemes are designed to offer you the opportunity to experience life as a trainee at the firm and find out more about our work and our culture.

During the scheme, you will sit in one of our legal groups and will get involved in legal work and conducting hands-on legal research. There will be a trainee solicitor assigned to you, who will help you to settle in and will be available throughout your scheme to answer any questions and assist with any tasks you may be given.

Throughout your time in the firm, you will also take part in training, workshops and interactive case studies, and different social activities will be organised to give you opportunities to talk with partners, associates and trainees outside the office.

We run three schemes each summer in our London office. Please visit our website for more details on the scheme and our 2025 dates.

Who can apply?

Our summer schemes are for penultimate year students (and first year students on a two-year accelerated law degree).

If you attend the summer scheme, you will be offered the opportunity to interview for a training contract. Your interview will take place in the third week of the scheme.

How to apply

To apply, please complete an online application. You will be asked to provide some personal details (including a full breakdown of all your examination results) and to attach your cover letter and CV.

Applications are open and close on 6 December 2024. We encourage you to apply as early as possible within the application window. Interviews are scheduled on a rolling basis.

About Slaughter and May

Slaughter and May has a global reputation for providing outstanding legal services. The strength of our practice is reflected in the multi-jurisdictional nature of our work and our international client base. The firm is a trusted adviser to some of the largest companies in the world, advising on complex cross-border deals every single day.

We advise on high-profile and often landmark international transactions. Our varied client list ranges from governments to entrepreneurs, from retailers to entertainment companies and from conglomerates to Premier League football clubs .

Our practice areas

We are a full service law firm to corporate clients and have leading practitioners across a wide range of areas including Mergers and Acquisitions, Corporate and Commercial, Financing, Tax, Competition, Disputes and Investigations, Real Estate, Pensions and Employment, Financial Regulation, Information Technology and Intellectual Property.

A world of difference

There are clear differences between Slaughter and May and other global law firms:

We train each of our lawyers to be a multi-specialist, equipped to advise on a broad range of legal matters which at other firms would be handled by a number of different lawyers. This is hard work but our lawyers say it makes for a far more fulfilling career. It provides challenge and interest while allowing lawyers to develop deeper relationships with clients, because they get to know their businesses better,

• and we think that by broadening your training and experience, you will be a better lawyer.
• Much of our work has an international element and on average we work with more than 200 law firms across 100 countries annually. Our work is international and cross-border in nature; we go where our clients go. We never compromise on the quality and consistency for which we are widely recognised.
• At Slaughter and May we also take a different approach to time; there are no set billing or time targets. This means that our lawyers are free to work collaboratively, sharing expertise and knowledge, so that they can concentrate on what matters most – the quality of the work and client service.

Diversity and Inclusion

Diversity and Inclusion is an integral part of how we do things as a firm. We believe that a supportive and inclusive workplace drives collaboration and enhances business performance. We are looking to employ the brightest minds regardless of what or where they studied. Traditional approaches to D&I are often skewed towards initiatives helping diverse individuals to "fit in” and succeed; we focus on examining and adjusting the system for greater acceptance of different leadership styles and ways of working.