Cranford Review 2019

Mehardeep Singh
(Physics/ Social
Mobility Foundation)
Amrit Rai
(Roehampton/Law/
Sutton Trust)
Shariq Ahmed
(Digital/ Social
Mobility Foundation)
Maisie Mullens
(Roehampton/Law/
Sutton Trust)
Iqra Nadeem
(Roehampton/Law/
Sutton Trust)
Deeq Hersi
(Roehampton/Law/
Sutton Trust)
Aditya Kumar
(Accounting/Social
Mobility Foundation)
Kabir Johal
(LSE/Law/
Sutton Trust)
Aryan Sethi
(Roehampton/ Banking
and Finance/Sutton Trust)
Yusef Deria
(Roehampton/Law/
Sutton Trust)
Pathways to Law is a programme run by the Sutton Trust
(Social Mobility Foundation) involving students around
London with the aim to educate students about the different
sectors of Law, as well as the different pathways into Law.
Pathways has organised trips to universities to attend lessons
on the different sectors of law, the skills needed in Law. They
also organise trips to the Royal Courts and interviews with
various people in the law sector.
My experience with Pathways to Law has been informative
and enjoyable. I regularly attend seminars at Roehampton
University and have been given various opportunities to fuel
my interests in Law such as a trip to the Inner Temple and the
Royal Bailey. I also completed a week of work experience with
the prestigious corporate Law firm Linklaters, where I have
learnt about the various skills needed to go into law as well
as actively applying my skills in a pitch to a panel of lawyers.
I would recommend Pathways to Law to students, as it
enables you to learn about a potential future career as well
as educating students on the different Pathways into Law and
it contributes to UCAS and personal statement which will be
vital in the future years. ​
Initially I applied to this programme as I wanted to
enhance my knowledge of law to see if it was definitely
something I wanted to pursue as a career - it was. We
were given sessions and lectures by Law Professionals
at Roehampton University. In the very first session we
went to the Inner Temple which is one of the four Inns
of the court. There were three parts to this session,
in the first part we were given information about
what the difference was between a solicitor and a
barrister and the pathways to each career, we learnt
about the disadvantages and advantages about being
a barrister or a solicitor. In the second part I got the
opportunity to talk to some barristers and solicitors
who explained what they did on a daily-basis which
was very interesting. I initially thought that barristers
were mostly at Court but in reality, I found out that
60% of the time barristers are working with clients in
this firm and that only 40% of the time would be spent
in Court. The third part was my favourite part as we
got a taster of what kind of things lawyers deal with
and looked at a case study. We had to work in groups of
6 and discuss how we would deal with this case study
and our share views about this case.
Another session that particularly stands out was the
session where all the Pathways to Law programmes in
the UK attended Queen Mary’s University of London.
This session involved public speaking tips, networking
and talking to other firms. At this session there was a
woman who spoke about public speaking and gave tips
on how to do this well. Then we were encouraged to
talk to other people in the Law programme. Personally
this was a big milestone as it helped me improve my
confidence and interpersonal skills. Before I did this
law programme even the thought of speaking in front
of people made me feel nervous and anxious but this
programme helped me in terms of opening up and
giving my opinion. In addition, I got the opportunity
to talk to other firms such as Macfarlanes and Cooley
about the types of Law they cover and what their firm
deals with. This was useful as in a few months I will be
doing my Law work placement with one of these firms
so it helped me prepare effectively.
In addition, there was recently a session on Personal
Branding and Corporate Law. Whilst I knew from
the beginning that I was interested in Criminal Law,
Human Rights and Family Law I found that I quite
enjoyed Corporate Law. This programme has given me
the amazing opportunity to explore the different types
of laws and develop a profound interest in Corporate
Law. Overall, I would say that this programme enhances
not only your knowledge of the law but it also develops
your personal growth in terms of your confidence,
public speaking, interpersonal skills and forming
your own opinions. In addition, this programme offers
something called the National Conference which takes
place at the University of Warwick in July and you get
an insight into studying Law at university which is
very beneficial, I would personally recommend this to
anyone who is interested in pursuing a career in Law,
to take part in an extraordinary programme like this
as it really does show you in-depth how amazing the
world of Law is.
Amrit Rai (year 12)
Yusef Deria (year 12)
13