I plan to apply for a position of an Associate to a renowned international law firm. Chevening

Chevening essay on post-study plan

Hello! This is my Chevening essay for the last prompt. I would appreciate your feedback

Chevening is looking for individuals who have a clear post-study career plan. Please outline your immediate plans upon returning home and your longer term career goals. You may wish to consider how these relate to what the UK government is doing in your country.

After having completed my studies, I plan to apply for a position of an Associate to a renowned international law firm such as HC, BM, KST which are among the current leaders in the industry in my country. As a main career path, I would like to become a Partner in the firm.

I am convinced that working in a legal firm will make me a truly professional commercial lawyer. It will allow me to deal with mergers & acquisitions, tax, cross-border and commercial transactions and other complex legal issues. For example, in 2014, KST advised banking consortium of T LLP, which is one of the biggest petroleum operating companies, on financing of its Future Growth Project worth 39 billion dollars. I know these firms provide for a solid mentorship programme for Associates. These firms cooperate with British Chamber of Commerce and often advise leading British companies doing business in Kazakhstan such as the Wood Group and Rio Tinto. HC is a member of the Legal Advisory Board of the Astana International Financial Center - a newly inaugurated Financial Hub that operates based on the principles of Laws of England and Wales.

I believe knowledge and practical skills in International Commercial Law acquired during the LLM programme will allow me to excel professionally in the firm I will work at. Not to mention that it would open great networking opportunities as the most part of prominent lawyers in legal consulting are alumni of the UK law schools.

After having obtained two years of experience in legal consulting, I would like to become an arbitrator of the K International Arbitration. I believe arbitration gives any lawyer a unique opportunity to practice law in a different way - by settlement of the disputes / trying cases. I am sure it would be a great supplement to my main work.

Further, I plan to establish a Fund for Promotion of Legal Education. The mission of the Fund would be provision of financial aid to prospective students willing to pursue a degree in Law and organization of legal writing competitions. I would also like to make this Fund a platform for a non-profit organization that would promote civil society values in my country. After acquiring some experience, I would like to collaborate with British Embassy through Foreign & Commonwealth Office Fund Programme on anti-corruption measures and even apply to Magna Carta Fund for Human Rights and Democracy.

I will certainly devote part of my life to teaching law. After having acquired four years' experience in legal consulting, I plan to become a part-time Professor of Commercial Law in my alma mater, because I know it lacks professors who are practicing lawyers.

To sum up, my priority upon return would be to secure a job in legal consulting. Then it is my intention to work on the Fund for Promotion of Legal Education and a professor at my home university, and becoming a civil rights activist.

Adil, your plans are good. Don't change those references. However, the British Chamber of Commerce is a non-government institution and as such, does not qualify as a government UK reference in your country. It does not have projects accredited by the British government since it is a civilian organization. I am afraid that you will have to research some sort of UK government related legal project in your country. That is the only way to make a qualifying representation of how the UK has specific legal interests in your country. It is important that you align your UK reference to the correct institution because the UK government project connection a highly important aspect of your post study plan. If you do not get a scholarship grant, it will most likely be due to the lack of UK government sponsored legal project in your country. I am not telling you to lose heart. I am telling you to ask around. Maybe there is a UK government sponsored legal project or undertaking that you just haven't heard about which can be used for the essay. Otherwise, you will have to use the British Chamber of Commerce reference and hope it works for your application even though it is not a government institution that is dealing with projects and training in your country.

@Holt
Mary, thank you very much for all your feedback! I am going to submit my application today. You have been very helpful.