Apprenticeships
A place to thrive
Taking an apprenticeship with us means you can combine working with studying. You can qualify into law, without the debt and earn a competitive salary whilst you are doing it.
But, if a legal apprenticeship isn’t for you, we offer business administration apprenticeships, management apprenticeships and IT apprenticeships.
You’ll meet and work with some great people (your colleagues and our clients) and have plenty of opportunities to build and develop a whole range of skills.
- Start your career and earn a salary
- Avoid student debt
- Learn on-the-job as opposed to full-time learning
- Benefit from coaching and feedback
- Be independent and challenge yourself
Solicitor apprenticeship applications are now open.
Close date – 12th April 2024
You can find out about us, the role and the application process below or by watching our video.
Why choose us?
Our values
Empathy
We put our clients first and always consider what other people may be thinking or feeling, so we can support them in the best way possible.
Collaboration
We value the strengths of others and provide the freedom, support and framework to work closely as a team and with clients.
Innovation
Whether we’re working for clients or handling an internal matter, we always search hard for better ways to achieve a stronger end result.
Ambition
We are business advisers supporting clients to reach their goals. We are bold in our approach and driven to get the best results for our clients. We don’t sit on the fence and are confident in our abilities.
Our culture
When it comes to the culture of a law firm, values play a crucial role in shaping our work environment, the way in which we interact with one another and with clients. We foster teamwork and growth, and our employees have a sense of purpose. Everyone is valued, supported and recognised at Schofield Sweeney.
We are more than law – find out more here.
Our benefits
When you join us, you can expect a competitive salary and a wide range of benefits, including:
- Hybrid working
- Healthcare cash plan
- Colleague bonus scheme
- Group pension scheme
- Death in service benefit
- Free fruit in the office
- Holiday trading scheme
- Colleague introduction scheme
- Conveyancing and Wills discount
- Years of service annual leave entitlement growth
- Travel – season ticket loans
- Cycle to work scheme
- Team building
- Volunteer day
- Social events
- Wellbeing initiatives
Our support
Induction
The first two days with us will be spent in induction training where you will get to know the firm, our processes and systems. Our Learning and Development Specialist will support you with all your in-house training needs.
Your dedicated supervisor will support you with your technical learning and how to prioritise work.
You’ll be assigned a buddy who is newly-qualified, they will help you with day to day routines, emotional and social support.
Wellbeing
We have qualified and approachable Mental Health First Aiders and Champions across all three offices who you can talk to as well as a number of wellbeing initiatives and events.
Career progression
We support our apprentices through their studies and beyond, your career is very much looked after when you join the firm. Through our Engagement Surveys, our colleagues tell us in overwhelming numbers that we are a good place to work and somewhere that they can pursue an interesting, enjoyable, and rewarding career.
The training and support we offer during the apprenticeship is designed to equip you to be successful in your career. It will cover the technical areas you need to do the job, the essential compliance training that everyone undertakes, as well as a whole range of core skills that you don’t learn at college or on your apprenticeship. After all, no one really teaches you how to work or behave in an office and it can be a daunting experience.
Our career progression framework can take you towards your next career goals, depending on what you want to achieve.
Our awards
We’re a nationally recognised and award-winning law firm
We are listed in The Times Best 250 Law Firms 2024.
Law Firm of the Year (medium) 2023
Employer of the Year Award 2023
LawTech Initiative of the Year 2023
Diversity, Inclusion and Equality Award 2023
Which apprenticeship is for me?
Legal apprenticeship
Academic qualifications aren’t everything, and we think there is more to being a good lawyer than your exam grades.
You’ll need to fit with our values, so empathy and approachability are really important. But you’ll also need to be a collaborative person who can see and do things differently.
An apprenticeship isn’t an easy option; you’ll need to work and study hard, which means you will need to be committed to a career in law and be dedicated to working hard to be successful.
Minimum entry requirements are:
Paralegal Apprenticeship – You will need to have achieved Level 2 or GCSE Maths and English with a grade 4 or above.
Solicitor Apprenticeship – You will need to have a minimum of 1 A and 2 B’s at A level or equivalent 128 UCAS points.
Graduate Apprenticeship – Degree qualification
Top tips & advice for completing an application
- Don’t send us your first attempt. Complete your application, then put it to one side for a day or so. Then re-read it. If you’re unhappy with some of the answers, don’t be afraid to change some of them.
- Be accurate! Check your application for mistakes and missing words. Then get a friend or family member to do the same. You’ll be surprised what a second pair of eyes will spot.
- Don’t worry if you don’t have much or any work experience. We know it’s been hard to get work experience (from holiday jobs to legal work experience) in the last few years. So think about what other experiences you can draw some of your responses from. That might be your academic or personal life – hobbies, interests etc.
- Be yourself. Try and let your application tell us who you really are. We don’t want robots. Everyone at Schofield Sweeney has something to offer.
- If you’re not sure about something, please get in touch with us. Drop us an e-mail or give us a call, we don’t mind, and we’d be happy to chat with you.
- If you have something else you think we should know about or will make you the ideal candidate, tell us in your covering letter or e-mail
What are we looking for?
Your application needs to be accurate, so ensure it’s checked thoroughly for typos and errors. If it’s not, your application will fall at the first hurdle.
We are not looking for someone who is just ‘building’ their CV or ‘collecting’ placements, so you will need to convince us that we would be making the right decision in offering a place to you.
Some suggestions:
- You may be at the very early stages of your academic career, but do you already have an area of the law that you are particularly interested in? If so, make sure you tell us more about it in your covering letter.
- Tell us what you know about Schofield Sweeney.
- We want to know about your academic career, so make sure you tell us about where you’ve studied and what grades you’ve got.
- We want to know about what work experiences you have had. Don’t worry if they’ve not been in law. Some of the most important skills can be gained in all manner of retail or service-industry roles.
- Tell us about your achievements, be they academic, personal or sporting ones. Anything really, that gives us a better insight into who you are.
Key dates
Solicitor apprenticeship
Our selection process includes an interview stage, which if successful you will be invited to complete a one week work experience placement with us.
There are some key dates that you need to be aware of, as follows:
Applications open – 1st February 2024
Applications close – 12th April 2024
Interviews: May 2024
Work experience placement (one week): 24-28th June 2024
Start date: TBC August 2024
Apprenticeship commences: TBC September 2024
Want to meet us? We’ll be at the following careers fayres:
Feb 5th – Bradford New College
Feb 6th – Greenhead College
Feb 8th – Apprenticeship unlocked
Feb 14th – Uni of Huddersfield Law school
Other apprenticeships
Please see our vacancies for current opportunities.
How do I apply?
Solicitor apprenticeship
Online applications open on 1 February 2024 for our solicitor apprenticeship, you can find out more about this route and apply here.
In the meantime, if you have any questions about apprenticeships at the firm, please contact us.
Where can I find out more about the firm?
Follow us on:
Read about our charity, social and environmental activities.
Find out about our diversity and inclusivity initiatives.
“A legal career has always been an aspiration of mine. Choosing a Solicitor Apprenticeship route has allowed me to gain invaluable experiences while simultaneously learning the theory behind the law with the added bonus of no university debt!”
Caprice Coulson, solicitor apprentice“My apprenticeship has given me some great opportunities . I have attended 3 events within my first month of employment, creating connections and networking, I really feel like part of the team. I have worked on various matters, being exposed to a wide range of clients early on.”
Rebecca Foster, solicitor apprentice“The values and behaviours of the firm are more than words, they are implemented by everybody creating an amazing working environment.”
Eesa Ubaid Rizwan, solicitor apprentice“Everyone at the firm is lovely, so it’s easy to ask for support when completing work and when studying for your degree. Having a group of apprentices that will start with you is also perfect, as you can help each other along the way.”
Katie Cage, solicitor apprentice“There are always people to turn to if help is required. Having a buddy is great as an apprentice, as you always have someone there to have a catch up with, to ensure things are going smoothly.”
Manpriya Kaur Sunner, solicitor apprentice“I couldn’t fault the support I have received from everybody at Schofield Sweeney. From the application up until present, I have been constantly reassured. Everybody is always on hand to help and support. They really care about staff wellbeing, and they make a great effort to ensure everybody has a positive experience.”
Paige Hunt, solicitor apprenticeOur learning provider
BPP University’s unique approach is education that is academically rigorous but also grounded in practical application.
BPP have been granted indefinite taught degree awarding powers (TDAP) under the Office for Students (OfS) new regulatory framework. The award of indefinite TDAP acknowledges the University’s academic integrity as a mature higher education institution with rigorous standards and academic governance.
It has around 21,000 students, studying across 13 centres, in 8 locations across England and online around the world. 78% are full-time, over 83% are on postgraduate programmes.
Find out moreStill have questions?
If you have any questions at all, don’t worry. We’re always available for a chat and are more than happy to help you through the application process.
Get in touch