On the evening of 22nd March 2018, Bygott Biggs, a specialist legal recruitment agency held a both valuable, and thought-provoking ‘NQ Careers Talk 2018’ at Revolution in association with Derby Junior Lawyers. Bygott Biggs, as an agency are known for working with law firms and in-house legal teams to find the best and brightest people at every level, from NQ to partners.
As a current first year LLB student, myself and a couple of my friends attended with the hope to gain a deeper insight into how to get that all-important job as a newly qualified solicitor/attorney. Also in attendance with us were paralegals, senior paralegals, trainee solicitors and other LLB students at different stages in academia.
Although qualification for myself seems miles away, noticing just how quickly my first year here at Derby Law School has flown by, I did not want to miss an opportunity to learn as much as I could about the different routes to qualification. Thinking ahead in such a way, I thought that it would enable me to sit back and think about what I can do in the competitive legal profession post-graduation.
The event began with an inspirational presentation discussing the legal market forecast for 2018 including in-house growth and the transferring of training contracts. The Bygott Biggs representatives went on to review potential salaries of different professional positions, how to maximise the success of your CV, and the pitfalls to look out for. I felt that the section of the presentation that was the most beneficial was the section about the priorities. I learnt that a potential employee should consider the geographical location of practice, the firm itself, the salary, the work/life balance and timescales either before qualification as well as transferring from training contracts.
Once the Bygott Biggs presentation had concluded, a representative for the Derby Junior Lawyers gave a short speech about the division, with the hope to recruit members to join their exiting organisation. I learnt that they are the junior division for the Derby and District Law Society. Its members include those from trainee solicitors to law students who live, work or study in derby, and represent the role of junior lawyers and law students both regionally, and nationally. Due to our keen interest in law and wanting in the future to work in the legal sector, my friends and I are looking forward to actively getting involved.
All in all, personally I am so grateful for the careers team, and team of lecturers at Derby Law School the for links that they have built and continue to build with the legal professionals and firms near and far. It provides us, as students, with the opportunity to broaden our horizons and network with potential future employees or colleagues. After all, the legal profession is just as much about who you know, as it is what you know!
I will look forward to engaging in like events in the future!
Katie Goldstraw
LLB Law Student
