Rachel is the first in her family to go to College, let alone University. Rachel identifies as LGBT, speaks with a distinct northern accent, and graduated with a first class honours from Hull University.

Without connections to the legal sector, in her first year at University Rachel distributed her CV and a cover letter to the 50 UK firms she had identified through a Google search! Whilst some firms were polite enough to redirect Rachel to their vacation scheme opportunities, most firms (unsurprisingly!) did not even respond.

Already feeling somewhat disheartened, when Rachel began attending law fairs and other events (which introduced Rachel to lawyers from various firms), she quickly noticed that she did not appear to fit the typical mould of a City lawyer. Rachel began questioning her prospects and indeed whether she had made a mistake pursuing a career in law.

However, guided by Chris, who offered assistance on how to approach the application process, interview preparation and generally boosted Rachel’s self-confidence, Rachel began to recognise her own potential and ability. With Chris’ support and encouragement Rachel eventually secured a vacation scheme with a large City firm, which subsequently led to Rachel securing her training contract.