Aytana Anghel

LLB, 2026, St. John’s College

The environment at Durham, together with its people, were essential in preparing me for the vacation scheme application process. Being used to discussing and debating legal issues in tutorials made technical law firm interviews much easier, and being used to interacting with so many students with different backgrounds and interests meant that the collegial environment fostered by law firms was easy to adapt to. Meeting lawyers who were Durham alumni during vacation schemes cemented that idea, as reminiscing about university life and which colleges everyone was in was always a great icebreaker. On the academic side, I think the way Law School staff approached lectures, seminars and tutorials also made sure I never felt afraid to ask questions or voice my opinions during interviews or vacation scheme placements.

The resources provided throughout the degree were a huge advantage, particularly in terms of the networking events organised by the Law Society, which allowed me to get into contact with various law firms and find out more about them. The Employability Course in first year was also a great introduction to what could be expected both from a career in law, as well as from the application process itself, and was a huge help to me particularly as an international student not yet used to the intricacies of a different legal system. Additionally, the University provided various sample aptitude tests and mock interviews, the latter of which are both great simulations of an actual law firm interview, and a way to ease nerves ahead of a real one.

I will start my legal career as a trainee solicitor at Latham & Watkins.

I would say the best advice I could give anyone starting at Durham is to keep an open mind in terms of opportunities which come your way. That applies to anything from law firm networking events or open days, to various societies, sports or general extracurricular activities outside of the academic part of the degree. While being knowledgeable about the law itself is, obviously, a key part of both studying law and practising it, I have found that there is a lot of value in being knowledgeable about niche topics or having more unusual interests. This can be helpful both in more formal settings like interviews or tasks during the vacation scheme, but, most importantly, it shows you are a well-rounded person who is interesting to talk to during a quick coffee chat. During my application cycle, I learned that law firms look at candidates as a whole, rather than just at their knowledge base, which means that they’re not necessarily looking only for the person who knows the most about the law, but also for people who fit in well with the firm culture and its values.