In an ever-more competitive market, vacation scheme experience is a key piece of weaponry in the battle to secure a training contract.

In times past, having done one or two vacation schemes or periods of work experience in a legal services supplier was seen as a bonus. These days, it is much more important. Why? Quite simply, firms want to be sure of your commitment to the profession and they have also cottoned on to the fact that you can find out a lot more about a person when they are sitting at a desk next to you for two weeks than you can in a half-hour interview, or even a day-long assessment centre.

With certain firms, if you haven’t done a vac scheme there, your chances of getting a training contract with them are minimal. The prime example is City firm Nabarro, which now takes almost all of its trainees from people it sees on its vac scheme. Not every firm is like this, but you'll have taken the point by now that if you seriously want a training contract, a vac scheme can be a massive leg-up.

Furthermore, vacation schemes are one of the best ways to find out what being a lawyer is actually like – to get a sniff of the truth behind the Denny Crane and Ally McBeal fictions.

How do you get on one?

No secret here: our handy-dandy table of vac schemes over the page tells you what places are available with the firms covered by this guide and when to apply. Timing your application is important: certain schemes are targeted at penultimate-year law grads or final-year non-law grads, which can leave other students frustrated. Suffice it to say, law undergrads need to start thinking about their application campaign as early as the summer after the first year at university. The application deadlines for the majority of vac schemes come in January and February, but some firms run schemes in the Christmas and Easter holidays and the deadlines for applying to those can be as early as October. Don’t miss out. You’ll generally find full details of exactly how to make your application on firms’ recruitment websites.

As competition for training contracts gets more intense, it’s no surprise that competition for vac scheme places is equally so. Obvious conclusion: you’ll need to put as much effort into vac scheme applications as you do into training contract applications. For some tips on how to do this refer to our feature on How to make successful applications. On our website we also have detailed advice on the application procedures for each of the firms covered in the True Picture. The strongest applicants always manage to secure a clutch of offers, but don’t despair if you can’t secure a place – it doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll never get a training contract. Try and build your CV up in other ways – say with voluntary work or other legal or commercial experience – and then have another stab at vac scheme applications.

Even if you navigate the vac scheme obstacle course perfectly, don’t get complacent. You’ll usually still need to prepare well for a training contract interview.

What will I get to do?

Vac schemes differ as much as the firms themselves. In some cases, your time will be structured down to the minute with talks about the firm and its training contract, followed by tasks and social engagements. At others you might find you have to hunt and gather work. For detailed information on the structure of each firm’s vacation scheme, go to our website.

What should I look out for?

When on a vac scheme, become an anthropologist. Observe your environment and its inhabitants; figure out the social structures, the hierarchies, the shared values that bond people (if indeed there are any). Watch how the trainees fit in with all of this. Eavesdrop. You’ve got to be on your guard though because people will be conscious you’re there, and some of our sources did end up concluding: “It can be an artificial exercise – you see what they want you to see.” Your aim is to peer beyond the mask at the living, breathing, sweating entity behind it.

Try also to get a feel for how different departments work by reading as much as you can. A starting point would be our Solicitors’ Practice Areas. It’ll help you figure out what sort of work might suit you best and will enable you to ask intelligent questions of your supervisors. Intelligent questions pave the road to success, so lay as many down as possible without becoming annoying.

How will I be assessed?

Vac schemers are often given research to do as a way of evaluating their abilities; expect to be given some specifics to look into before reporting back to solicitors with your findings. You might be asked to shadow someone, helping them out with their workload. This is an excellent opportunity for you to find more out about the firm while proving yourself at the same time. You might even get to go to client meetings or visit court. Last, but certainly not least, are the mini-assessment tasks designed to test your ability to present, argue and work as a team. “Don’t be over-assertive, but don’t fade into the background either. Remember to ask other people what their opinions are – you have to look like a team player.” Some tasks we heard about involved advertising pitches to faux-potential clients, mini-transactions and business scenarios.

How should I act?

While you’re busy watching everyone else, don’t forget that they’re watching you, watching them, watching you. This recruitment lark is a delicate dance, so attune yourself to the characters around you and follow their lead. More than anything else, people will be trying to see if you ‘share the firm’s core values’. Ultimately, ‘professionalism’ should be your watchword. This is a job interview, even when you’re eating lunch in the canteen. Don’t be late for work. Switch off your mobile phone when in the office. Don’t bitch or send stupid e-mails. Thinking about browsing Facebook in a slack moment? Why take the risk?

Okay, so don’t be an idiot. That much is obvious. But how can you impress? As one recruiter says, it’s all about “marketing yourself well.” Does that sound a little intimidating? It’s really not. After all, you marketed yourself well on paper when you sent your application form in, now you are just doing it in person. Asking well-timed questions and showing an interest is an easy way of doing this. Just remember, “seeking out work and raising your profile without pestering people is a fine line to walk.” A trainee confirmed that you have to strike the right balance, telling us that on the last vac scheme he was involved with, “there were a couple of people who were too enthusiastic!”

Coming for a quick drink? Bankers, lawyers, doctors and even priests all know how effective alcohol can be when it comes to greasing the wheels. But the trick is to drink the right amount or none at all. Even when firms take vac schemers out to snazzy clubs, recruiters' mental notepads will still be out. So gauge the situation: is the firm boozy or abstemious?

At the end of the day, a law firm is just like any other office workplace and you'll find all sorts of characters. You'll also find variety within any group of vac schemers. “You get the quiet ones, the loud ones, the ones who say inappropriate things, the ones who’re always smiling.” Obviously, you’re being assessed on how good a lawyer you’re likely to be, but don’t underestimate how far a normal, attractive personality will get you.