About
What is Advocate and am I eligible to apply?
Advocate is Rare’s exclusive development programme for British students from under-represented ethnic minority backgrounds who meet the below criteria and are interested in commercial law. The programme is sponsored by three top City law firms and run by Rare.
If you are a Black heritage student, please do not apply to Advocate. You are eligible for our Articles programme.
- Have secured AAA or equivalent at A-Level, or at least 38 IB points.
- Be in your first year of a three-year undergraduate course or second year of a four-year undergraduate course.
- Be a British student from an under-represented ethnic minority (Rare’s Race Fairness Commitment identifies Bangladeshi and Pakistani heritage students as being especially under-represented in law firms.) As above, if you are a Black heritage student, please apply to Articles, not Advocate.
- Meet one or more of the following criteria:
- You were a UK student and were in receipt of free school meals between the ages of 11 and 16
- You have spent time in local authority care
- You are, or have been, a parent before the age of 21 or a registered carer
- You came to the UK as a refugee or asylum seeker
- You attended a low performing school or college
- You lived at age 16 in an area with a low rate of progression to higher education and/or with a high level of socio-economic deprivation
- You grew up in a household where no parent or guardian had attended university
- You grew up in a household where the main household earner when you were 14 years old was in a lower socio-economic category as defined by the Social Mobility Commission
The more criteria you meet, the more likely you are to secure a place. You do not need to meet all eligibility criteria to be eligible.
We will take into account your background and any mitigating circumstances applicable.
What will the programme involve?
Competition for vacation scheme places is fierce. The application and interview processes are rigorous. Top law firms use a range of assessments including ability tests, case studies and commercial awareness interviews. These assessments measure ability but, inevitably, having confidence and social capital can give students an advantage. This programme aims to enable Advocate students to develop their enormous potential
Participants will receive:
- Individual sessions with our expert coaches. In these sessions, students will be challenged to enhance their knowledge of and ability to talk about complex commercial, economic, and political issues in a confident manner. These sessions will prepare you, not just for the application and interview process, but for a successful career in commercial law.
- Access to exclusive events with our founding partner firms in their London offices. These sessions will involve partners, associates, trainees, and members of the graduate recruitment teams from the firms, providing students with exceptional networking and learning opportunities. All travel expenses for these events will be paid by the founding partner firms.
- Individual support and guidance from our expert law team at Rare throughout the application and interview processes and beyond.
Religious Inclusion Pledge
We recently carried out a research piece focused on ‘The experiences of British Bangladeshi and Pakistani applicants to commercial law firms’. This built on our 2021 research piece ‘One of us? The Experience of Jews and Muslims in City Law’. In response to the findings, we have launched a Religious Inclusion Vacation Scheme Pledge to ensure that vacation schemes are inclusive of candidates who practice a religion. The Advocate partner firms have signed up to this pledge. Amongst other things, it provides that firms will organise events that are focused on inclusive activities held at venues that are not primarily alcohol focused and will provide clear messaging to everyone involved in the scheme that vacation schemers are welcome to pray during the working day and acknowledging that they may be fasting for religious reasons.
When can I apply?
Interested students should apply between 13 January and 20 April 2025. We will review and interview applicants on a rolling basis.
In partnership with:
