As part of our commitment to providing fair access to quality work experience and promoting social mobility, White & Case has hosted work experience placements since the launch of PRIME in 2012. Participating students are recruited from our partner schools in the Lambeth area, which Evelyn Grace Academy, Lillian Baylis Technology School and Platanos College. The students are all interested to learn more about legal careers and are required to submit a CV and attend a formal interview to be considered for a placement.
During our week-long placements, White & Case offers employability skills development sessions, which include support on networking, presenting, completing job applications and interviews, providing each student with access to a mentor and arranging time for students to work on group presentations that are shared at the end of the week. Each session offers the students an opportunity to develop key skills and engage with professionals from diverse roles who were able to share their own career path and experience.
Since 2015, we have collaborated with the legal team at Deutsche Bank, a White & Case client, to provide additional activities for our PRIME participants. Students are treated to a tour of Deutsche Bank’s art collection, followed by an art quiz and drawing session, and a Q&A with members of the in-house legal team to learn about how they have developed their careers.
Our collaboration with Deutsche Bank receives excellent feedback. As one of the students put it: “The visit to Deutsche Bank was a very useful experience. It allowed us to listen to experienced lawyers and other professionals, and networking with them enabled me to further expand my knowledge of law and other fields. My favourite aspect of the trip was viewing the multiple types of artwork ranging from paintings to models. This is because Deutsche Bank decided to include these pieces of art to ensure visitors are occupied by questions which allows them to have an interest in the building. Therefore, when I did in fact review the art, I enjoyed trying to understand the message behind it.”
Our PRIME students are also invited to take part in the Legal Social Mobility Partnership, each spending a day at the Harlequins Rugby Club, Nomura Bank, Amazon UK, BT and ITV and participating in skills-development based activities with a legal focus.
