You can achieve all of these things outside of university. Society doesn’t exist in the vacuum of university (it might do if you keep that fire lit). The legal industry (and even within the law firm market) has tonnes of networking, sports, academia that build rounded individuals and “dynamism”. For me the only real upside of university is that you can go out and get pissed regularly and miss lectures etc without much consequence – so doing an apprenticeship means you have to grow up faster. But, saying that, law firms are known to party hard too.

University is but one path into adult life. Choose what’s best for you!

Oh Alan – I’m divorcing you.

All you do is spend your time waiting for legal cheek articles to comment on

We can’t continue our marriage like this

I’m taking all the money. But it’s not like you have much

Had no idea they are US law firms!!

I urge you to reconsider the apprenticeship route. While it’s a fantastic opportunity, I view it similarly to Milbank Leverage Finance TC or Palantir’s Merit Fellowship – the real winners are the firms getting bright young talent to mold into perfectly specialized workers. The very people admitted to these schemes often have the most to lose.

University comes with debt and learning that can seem disconnected from the “real world,” but as a senior associate at a US law firm, my greatest career advantages are tied to my university experience. I won’t bore you with abstract virtues, but here’s what will significantly impact your career long-term (assuming you’re more than capable of getting into top universities):

1. University isn’t just about friendships, its about the network. It’s about building broad networks through classes, sports, clubs, and alumni connections that become the foundation of your professional network. Law is relationship-driven, and no small apprenticeship cohort can compete with that ecosystem.

2. Being on a different timeline than your peers, means missing valuable relatability with future colleagues and clients. Young professionals often mistakenly think they must network upward when lateral networking is more crucial. The peers at university now will be your most valuable connections later.

3. Legal careers require dynamism. An apprenticeship is essentially a job that leaves little time for other pursuits – sports, language immersion, research projects. As your career progresses, legal practice involves significant socializing beyond stereotypical networking. Coming from a council estate as the first in my family to attend university, college grants gave me access to experiences that expanded my worldview and ability to connect with diverse clients.

4. University teaches you HOW to learn. I studied what’s now derided as a “three-letter degree,” but it gave me space to explore topics intellectually – one of life’s most rewarding experiences. Great lawyers apply frameworks across domains and understand client concerns deeply. Dedicated time learning how to learn is an invaluable gift to yourself.

5. The prestige factor matters. Despite UK optimism about degree apprenticeships, the legal profession remains driven by prestige both domestically and internationally. Foreign counsel, especially where law is a postgraduate degree limited to elite institutions, may view your path differently. Consider whether you want to be part of this experiment.

My perspective stems from seeing myself in your shoes if this option had existed back then. These legal apprenticeships will attract the brightest students for whom university isn’t financially seamless. Ask yourself: would the partners encouraging these programs recommend the same path for their own children? The answer is revealing.

Bait used to be entertaining at least

White & Case, Weil and Mayer Brown (& Hogan Lovells which is half-US!) are all members of City Century so they definitely offer it, plus I’m sure there will be others.

Hogan Lovells, White & Case and Mayer Brown

It’s probably Weil

Alan, you little man. No wonder your wife is with me (your neighbour)

She says you spend all your time writing to the government about cutting budgets and it’s turned into a fetish which she does like.

Magic Circle firms: Freshfields, Linklaters, Clifford Chance.

Platinum Circle: Slaughter and May

International firms: Allen Overy Shearman Sterling, Baker McKeznie, Hogan Lovells etc

Do us all a favour and fuck off.

Yes.

MC first – take your pick between them (they are all relatively equal, go with which one you like best)

US can come later (if that is what you want)

that is tried and tested and looks not not gona change anytime soon

The post tax pay difference between MC firms and US firms at the trainee – 2PQE level is pretty negligible in the grand scheme of things, especially when performance based bonuses at MC firms are taken into account.

If you decide a few years down the line that you want to make the switch (as an increasing number of people do, particularly in the MC > US direction), it’s much easier to move from a MC to a US firm at the junior/mid level, than it is the other way round. MC firms take on an army of trainees every year and have pretty high retention rates, so there is much less demand for lateral hires at the junior/mid level as compared to US firms.

My personal view is:
– MC firms have, generally speaking, being running training contract (and perhaps solicitor apprenticeship ?) programmes longer than US firms, and so the their training is more structured as opposed to the more ad hoc “learn on the job” US style;

– MC firms typically have larger trainee intakes and so there is a higher likelihood that trainees’ holidays will be respected as compared to the smaller US outfits;

– whether rightly or wrongly, the magic circle “brand” carries a historical weight even outside of the legal industry, which arguably makes moving in-house easier at the junior level if that’s what you decide to do. Though TBC how long that continues to be true, considering the rising dominance of US firms in the London market; and

– if you are hoping to do a secondment, your chances of going on a secondment are generally higher at a MC firm than at a US firm.

All of those points are of course huge generalisations, and there are nuances depending on which specific firms you have offers from and what practice area you end up qualify into etc. I would just say that your quality of life at a MC firm as a junior is likely going to be better than your counterparts at US firms and so, in the absence of a compelling reason otherwise, I’d go with MC.

Anyone advising otherwise should be thoroughly ashamed of misleading an impressionable young person.

US firm: Still high client service standards and great training, but to a lesser degree. More demanding in terms of hours and expectations to just “get things done”. Less predictable hours, still hierarchal but to a lesser extent, slightly less formal and more “entrepreneurial”. Generally less secondment opportunities but some people do not care about that.

I have worked at both.

For something where you’ll be joining most likely straight from school, and you’re stuck there for 6 years, I think the MC offers are the obvious decision here. They have a long history of offering the best quality of training and they have the biggest infrastructural resources at their fingertips in terms of L&D, HR support etc which are all going to be really important for apprentices.

Within the two MC offers, I think it’s important to trust your gut (as nebulous as that sounds) – don’t get distracted by which has a flashier office, or which has the best merch/marketing materials. I also wouldn’t get too hung up on the idea of one being a firm which does more in X area than Y area at your stage – the training you get will be exceptional across the board regardless and there’s plenty of time in your career for moving to firms that are super specialist in an area you become interested in.

Get a read off of the people you speak to – do they seem to enjoy their work? Do they seem to have good relationships with colleagues? What types and forms of support (particularly informal support) are the firms offering you throughout your apprenticeship? These are all the things that are going to have a massive impact on your day to day life and general levels of happiness over the next few years and the things you should put at the top of your priorities list when making this decision.

Whatever you go for, wishing you the absolute best of luck with your apprenticeship.