What have you found most inspiring during your time at the University of Bristol?

The Law School teaching staff. I have been very impressed by the enthusiasm my tutors have for their specialisms. As well as making the subjects academically stimulating during lectures, many of my tutors engage with law outside of academia.

For example, after a seminar on refugee and asylum law I wanted to find out how I could volunteer with asylum seekers in Bristol. My tutor told me about two local charities she had been involved with, both of which I have now volunteered for.

In addition, two other lecturers, both of whom are practising barristers, helped me with cases when I was a legal adviser for the University Law Clinic. One represented my client in court and the other met with me several times to offer legal advice, giving me an insight into how they bring their academic expertise to their legal practice.

Many other law tutors generously spared time to chat over my academic queries and offered excellent advice when I was applying for pupillage. Their willingness to offer guidance inspires me to support students at the start of their career in a similar way.

You previously spoke about your experience of working with the Law Clinic and how it has helped you in terms of preparing for the workplace. Did your voluntary work influence the area of law you would like to pursue?

Absolutely. Acting as a legal adviser at the Law Clinic for two years allowed me to assist clients with a range of different legal issues within contract, employment, family, property and social security law.

In one memorable case, I advised an employment law claimant with an unfair dismissal claim. This gave me the opportunity to type up witness statements, learn about disclosure obligations and assist my client at a two-day hearing.

I enjoyed studying employment law during my undergraduate degree at Bristol University and was thrilled to bring an Employment Tribunal claim myself. This exciting experience definitely played a role in my decision to apply to barristers’ chambers that specialise in employment law.

Congratulations on securing your pupillage with Old Square Chambers! What are you doing now until you start?

I am currently working part-time as research assistant for Professor of Labour Law Alan Bogg and as a legal intern for Menzies Law, a firm of employment law solicitors. This balance allows me to maintain my academic interest in employment law whilst assisting with employment tribunal claims.

I will start the Bar Professional Training Course in September and will begin pupillage in October 2019. In my free time I’m continuing with my voluntary work with asylum seekers and am trying to make the most of the sunshine in Bristol!

What advice would you give to students starting out at Bristol?

• Speak up during seminars. These precious classes are valuable for checking whether your ideas are any good and a useful time to benefit from your tutors’ expertise. Your lecturers will love you for it and you will be much more engaged during seminars, meaning you are likely to retain the information better.

• Don’t limit yourself to the required and further reading lists when preparing for seminars and assignments. Look for exciting developments in the law by finding new journal articles, online blogs and legal twitter profiles. Not only will this make it much easier to study the subject in question, you are also more likely to be awarded higher marks as your tutor will be pleased to read something different.

• Find out how to learn more effectively. You can waste a lot of time reading and copying out vast quantities of text verbatim without thinking critically about it. Don’t fall into this trap. Improve your critical thinking skills and discover how to develop powerful arguments in your essays.

• Get involved in a wide range of extra-curricular activities. In addition to helping you find out what you are genuinely interested in, these activities often involve working in a team. This will give you the chance to develop your interpersonal skills and meet like-minded people. I cannot understate the beneficial transferable skills you develop by participating in the wide range of extra-curricular opportunities the Law School and Student Union have to offer.

• Look after your mental and physical health. Although university is great fun, it can also be quite stressful. You should not neglect your general wellbeing. In fact, you are likely to be far more productive and perform better academically if you do make time for yourself to relax and to keep active.