You might have just started university, or you might be thinking about changing careers. Either way, it’s important to know you’re on the right path. That’s why we offer plenty of opportunities for you to get a sneak peek of our world.

Uncover the world of law.

You’re interested in law, but you don’t know much about it. What do lawyers actually do? And what will your work life really look like? Our spring insight scheme will give you the inside track.

Spring insight scheme

Discover what it’s really like to be a Simmons lawyer. Join us for a packed two-day schedule of events, workshops and the chance to shadow a trainee. The added benefit? If you go on to apply to our vacation schemes, you’ll be fast-tracked through the assessment process. Our spring insight scheme is open to first year university students of any degree subject, or penultimate year non-law students.

Dates: 08-09 April 2026 | Pay: £150 for two days

Nana Stenman

Trainee

The spring insight scheme was my first introduction to the world of commercial law and the day-to-day responsibilities of a trainee solicitor. Over the course of two days, I had the opportunity to engage in a wide range of activities and gain valuable insights. I attended informative presentations, including a session focused on Fintech, which explored the types of clients and transactions within that emerging sector. My trainee buddy in the Funds department also involved me in various typical trainee tasks, such as conducting legal research, reviewing NDAs, and participating in internal calls. Beyond these practical experiences, my trainee buddy served as a mentor and a valuable source of guidance, which ultimately helped me decide that a career in commercial law at Simmons would be the right path for me.

Explore our evolve placement

Want to be at the forefront of the legal industry? Our Evolve Placement year will give you the platform to succeed.

You’ll work with our lawyers and innovation teams to explore how we can embed emerging technologies across our business. What’s more, you’ll gain exposure to some of our most visionary clients.

This placement is for law and non-law students studying a degree with a year in industry. We are currently recruiting for a September 2026 start date. Those successful on the placement will be offered a training contract with us.

Bojidara Simeonova

Future Trainee

The evolve placement is truly a one-of-its kind opportunity. I spent the first six months in the emerging tech group, where I engaged in a lot of technical legal work. This involved researching, assisting with drafting certain points of contracts, helping with trial preparation. This was intertwined with a great deal of business development work – eg drafting pitches, client reports, business plans, setting up webinars, launching podcasts, attending client meetings, conferences, and events.

In the second half of the placement I found myself immersed in the world of the legal design team, part of the legal tech focused start-up Wavelength. The seat was focused on reimagining and redesigning clients’ documents and user journeys, which allowed me to use my creativity. I worked on reimagining the code of conduct of a major international bank, designing from scratch the data protection policy of a major Middle Eastern tech company, improving the user experience of financial institutions’ documents, conducting accessibility reviews, and even a little bit of coding.

My favourite part about the programme is the open-ended nature – it allows you to shape your experience in a way you’d like it to be. I had a lot of autonomy and was encouraged and supported by my supervisors, to explore outside of my designated teams and work with people from other teams, offices, and literally continents. This allowed me to connect with lawyers from all over the world while polishing my understanding of Simmons & Simmons as a business.

Discover what it’s like to be a trainee lawyer through one of our vacation schemes.

Throw yourself into this full programme of social events and work experience, and you’ll get a taste for our firm and the work we do.

Summer vacation scheme (London)

If you want to spend more time with our firm, join us for a two-week summer vacation scheme. You’ll gain experience across two departments, as well as enjoying a packed schedule of interactive sessions and social events.

Open to: Penultimate and final year university students, or graduates of all disciplines.

Dates: 29 June -10 July 2026

Pay: £500 per week

Summer vacation scheme (Bristol)

Curious about a law career in Bristol? Over the course of two weeks, you’ll become part of working life here, with a stacked calendar of training, practical work experience and social events.

Open to: Penultimate and final year university students, or graduates of all disciplines.

Dates: 15-26 June 2026

Pay: £450 per week

AI Internship (London)

Join us for a two-week scheme and gain experience in cutting-edge AI work. You will work with industry experts in both our technology and legal teams. So, whether you're a tech enthusiast curious about the impact of AI on the legal profession, or you want to shape the future of AI law and governance, this is your chance to combine your passions and make an impact!

Open to: Penultimate and final year university students, or graduates of all disciplines.

Dates: 13-24 April 2026

Pay: £500 per week

Orla Holt

Future Trainee

My vacation scheme at Simmons truly reinforced my ambition to pursue a career in commercial law, and confirmed that Simmons was the perfect environment for me to embark on my legal journey.

Throughout the entirety of the scheme, I was trusted and supported to adopt genuine responsibilities of a trainee lawyer. During my time in the competition team, I researched and drafted a guide for both Simmons lawyers and clients to use in the event of a CMA dawn raid. Whilst placed in the investment funds department, I redlined multiple contracts for a major hedge fund client. I also collaborated with a partner on an insight brochure focused on hybrid funds. Overall, I gained incredible first-hand experience of life as a Simmons trainee solicitor; this was particularly valuable given the STEM background from which I was transitioning.

There were also extensive networking opportunities throughout the scheme, including a Q&A session with the Global Head of ESG, and an evening social at Flight Club Darts. These were wonderful in enabling me to really begin integrating into the uniquely collaborative and nurturing Simmons team.

Training contract

Are you ready to join the world of law for the long-term, and start a lasting career with us? We’ve laid out how your training contract will progress.

Your training contract starts with either one or two funded legal qualifications, followed by a two-year programme of work with us. There are some ways your journey might differ, but it goes a little like this.

Those joining our Bristol office will be offered the option of studying in Bristol or London and those joining the London office will study in London.

Non-law graduates will study BPP’s 8 month Law Conversion Course (previously known as the PGDL), for which we will provide a maintenance grant of £11,000 in Bristol and £13,000 in London.

We require all future trainees to qualify via the Solicitors Qualifying Exam (SQE) route. The SQE route involves a one-year preparatory course including a bespoke Simmons Essentials For Practice module. The course is designed to support you through the SQE 1, two exams, and ensures you have all the skills you need to hit the ground running during your training contract. Whilst completing the SQE we will sponsor you and provide a maintenance grant of £13,000 in Bristol and £17,500 in London.

Simmons training contract

Our training contract lasts for two years. It’s made up of four six-month seat rotations across our practice areas. With support from our lawyers and partners, you’ll have real responsibility for a wide range of matters.

You’ll submit your seat preferences ahead of each rotation, so you’ll have the chance to shape your training contract journey in the direction you want. We only ask that you complete either one or two contentious seats. Our development team will support you through this process, and make sure you get the experiences you need to fulfil your goals.

You’ll also have the chance to apply for a client or international secondment. A secondment is an opportunity to see our work from a new perspective and learn about different aspects of the legal world. These experiences will soon help you become a well-rounded lawyer.

At the end of your four seats, you’ll qualify as a fully-fledged lawyer and graduate to associate. So, whether you choose to work for Simmons in London or Bristol, your training contract marks the start of your full-time legal career with us.

Michael Benson

Trainee

My training contract kicked off with a fun and informative induction, where we got to grips with the firm IT systems and met the amazing teams that keep everything running smoothly behind the scenes. It was also a great chance to connect with the other trainees in my intake and meet my supervisor. From team-building activities to lively socials, the first week set a really positive tone for everything that followed.

I spent my first seat in the Structured Finance and Derivatives team, where I was given real responsibility from day one. I had the chance to work closely with some of the world biggest investment banks and asset managers, including Barclays, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan and UBS. A standout experience was supporting on a series of asset-backed securitisations for Barclays and getting involved in JP Morgan Islamic Trading Programme. I learned so much and loved getting exposure to a complex, fast-moving area of law that was totally new to me after university.

Now, as I wrap up my first seat, I am really excited to be heading to the Dubai office for my next seat in the Debt Capital Markets team. I cannot wait to keep learning, meet new colleagues, and continue contributing to the exciting, dynamic, and innovative work happening across Simmons and Simmons.