You've come to the right place.

SUMMER PLACEMENTS

Lasting four weeks, our summer placement scheme is principally designed to provide law undergraduates with a chance to learn more about a potential career in Semple Fraser.  You will work beside solicitors and trainees getting exposure to real client matters.  This placement will also give you a chance to demonstrate to us your suitability for a training contract with the Firm.  It's your opportunity to get a really good and first-hand feel for what it's like to work in a major commercial law firm and to ask questions of colleagues about their experiences and career.

These are the main features:

• Two schemes – one in June; one in July
• Four weeks’ duration split between two departments
• Introductory presentations on all other departments
• Allocation of a mentor in each department
• A tailored training programme, including presentation and negotiation skills.

From a student perspective, here's what some of our 2009 and 2008 summer students have to say about their experience at Semple Fraser...

Andrew Swift — University of Aberdeen

"Searching for a good summer placement is never easy; it can be quite an arduous task filling out applications forms and promoting yourself in the correct manner.  However I found the Semple Fraser process to be very different.  The application form itself was straightforward and designed to find out about your individual characteristics rather than confuse you.  I also found the interview process to be quite informal which in turn allowed me to relax and present myself better than if put under any undue pressure.  I certainly left the interview with a good feeling about the firm.

The placement itself was a fantastic experience.  I spent my first two week ‘seat’ in the Commercial Litigation department and my second in the Construction department, both in the Edinburgh office.  The common conception of a summer placement is that your role will simply be to make cups of tea and complete hours of endless photocopying, learning little from the process.  However, the range of work that I was given over the duration of my time was very diverse and challenging.  I was very appreciative of the fact that each task that I was assigned was ongoing work of the department.  While this added some extra responsibility and pressure, it did allow me to learn a great deal about various aspects of the law as well as encounter the kind of work that trainees may face on a day to day basis at the firm.

The training seminars offered throughout the placement were an excellent way to meet new people and gain a real insight into the work undertaken by each department.  There was also the opportunity to learn about a variety of presentation and negotiation skills that may be used when dealing with colleagues and clients in the future.  I also found the support network at the firm to be very strong indeed; all of the staff that I met over the duration of my placement were very approachable and friendly which instantly made me feel comfortable and relaxed in my surroundings.  There was certainly a good atmosphere in the firm and it was brilliant to get the opportunity to socialise with some members of staff and fellow placement students outwith working hours.

My summer placement at Semple Fraser proved to be a highly informative, fascinating and motivating experience.  For me, the firm operates a fantastic placement programme and I am delighted that I had the opportunity to experience all that it had to offer; I am very much looking forward to commencing my traineeship in the Commercial Litigation department in 2011."

Marianne Gilhooly – University of Glasgow

“I found the opportunity to do the summer placement at Semple Fraser to be an invaluable way to spend 4 weeks and a thoroughly enjoyable learning process for me.  The summer placement has helped me greatly with my continuing studies and has given me a great insight into the legal profession and the workings of a commercial law firm.

Following my interview, I was happy to learn I had been offered a position on the summer placement scheme in the Commercial Property and Litigation departments.  Everyone in each of the teams made a huge effort to provide me with work that was both interesting and challenging and took every opportunity to encourage me in the work I was doing.  The very ‘hands-on’ approach to the summer placement scheme was greatly appreciated and I was made to feel confident of my own ability through the support of the Commercial Property and Litigation teams.  The summer placement as a whole gave me the chance to experience some of the work that each of the teams undertook as well as see what the work of a trainee entailed.  The support offered to summer students was great and I found the training seminars that were provided for us a great way to learn more about the firm as well as get to know people within both the Glasgow and Edinburgh offices a bit better.

Semple Fraser was a great firm to spend 4 weeks working for at the beginning of my summer.  I loved being part of the teams I worked with and thoroughly enjoyed meeting new people outwith my departments at the Summer Day Out and at the night out we had at the end of the placement scheme.  My positive experiences at Semple Fraser during the summer placement made me certain about applying for a position as a trainee.  The support and kindness of the people I worked alongside for 4 weeks as well as the success of the firm made me certain that it was somewhere I would aspire to work and is why I am so excited about starting my traineeship with the Edinburgh Litigation department in 2010.”

Summer Placements – 2012

Details on how to apply for a 2012 summer placement will be posted on this website when available.