Pupillage: How to apply
Pupillages are now required to be advertised on the pupillage gateway, run by the Bar Council – here is the link to the gateway, which also has useful FAQs & guidance https://www.pupillagegateway.com. They are advertised around 18 months in advance of the start date. You can apply for pupillage from the January before you intend to start the Bar Course.
The application window is open between January and February, although you should start researching pupillages and drafting sample application answers before that date. While all pupillages have to be advertised on the gateway they do not all have to use the gateway application portal so be prepared to complete different forms, as there isn’t one portal for all pupillages. Tailor your application to each chambers, ensure your application is concise and engaging and proofread it multiple times! Having an application which shows that you’ve done some research into the people and cases within your target set of chambers will help to differentiate your application, showing that you are genuinely interested in that particular set. See our virtual training page for recordings of virtual workshops on how to apply & then interview prep. Legal twitter also has a lot of helpful tips from late autumn each year for applicants.
Most chambers have two rounds of interviews. Know your application inside out, keep up to date with current affairs and do practise interviews. Sometimes you will be required to complete an advocacy exercise in your first-round interview and you will always be required to complete one in your second-round interview. These will almost always be a plea in mitigation or a bail application. Chambers will take into account the stage you are at in your studies when assessing your performance in the advocacy exercises. Some typical questions asked at interview are:
– Tell us about the kind of person you are and what makes you tick?
– What do you do to relax?
– How do you think your work / study in this related area [referring to examples of relevant work/study you’ve set out in the application] will help you as a criminal barrister?
– Tell us of a time when you dealt with a difficult client / colleague and what did you do?
– Why did you apply to this set in particular?
You may also be asked about topical issues or particular parts of your application, for example:
– Without going into details, what did you learn from moving to the UK at a young age / failing an A Level / caring for your elderly parent?
– How should we deal with racism in society?
– Should CV-19 vaccination be compulsory?
When it comes to interviews do not be afraid to argue your point when challenged. Most importantly, be yourself: your experiences and outlook have shaped your desire to become a criminal barrister and by the time you’ve reached a pupillage application and interview you have demonstrated considerable determination, academic achievement and clarity of purpose. The challenges you’ve faced, or the moments when you’ve had to regroup and try again, are often those which give applicants the grit and the compassion which make them stand out. Don’t be afraid to lean on them if and when you need to.
