Beth’s story

Beth has taken her first step towards her dream career as a solicitor.

Beth, 16, from Neath, always had an interest in the legal sector.

She said, “I had a placement with the South Wales Police, and it was a really good experience for me. From that I knew that I wanted to go into the legal field.”

Understanding options

Beth met with her school’s careers adviser, Rebecca, to talk about her future.

She said, “I told Rebecca that my interest was in law but that I didn’t really want to go to uni. I was really open to college, so initially I thought I’d be doing maybe A levels and law would be one of the options.

“I was unaware of the apprenticeship route until I spoke to Rebecca.”

Rebecca helped Beth to research options and found that JCP Solicitors offered apprenticeships through CILEX (Chartered Institute of Legal Executives). She also advised Beth to go to the open evening that JCP Solicitors was holding.

Beth continued, “I found the open evening really helpful because I was able to see what kind of environment I would be working in if I was successful. They even showed me step by step how my career route would look.”

Taking the next step

After the open evening at JCP Solicitors, Beth felt confident she wanted to apply for the apprenticeship. Rebecca suggested ways to enhance Beth’s CV, such as practising touch typing, completing online courses, and learning the phonetic alphabet.

Beth explained, “Rebecca really did enhance my CV, which I then applied with, and they offered me an interview. I had an in-person interview and then within a week they gave me a start date. It all started from that meeting with Rebecca.”

Beth is now an apprentice at JCP Solicitors. She works in the business support group four days a week and spends one day at Gower College studying CILEX. After that she hopes to progress to Level 5, with the long-term goal of becoming a solicitor.

Advice for others

Beth encourages other young people to think about apprenticeships and seek careers support to explore their options.

She said, “I never knew I’d be able to do an apprenticeship in law. It’s surprising that by the time you work your way up the levels, you have a degree equivalent. You’re earning while you’re learning and getting practical experience.”

“I wouldn’t be in this position without Rebecca. She was very warm and even if you didn’t have a clue what you wanted to go into, she’d explore all the options with you. She definitely built my confidence towards applying for this role.”

If you would like to explore your interests and opportunities with a careers adviser, please contact us today.

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