Complete with care.
Prepare your résumé and cover letter carefully, backing up information about you with real examples from life, preferably your life. When you've completed them to your satisfaction, check them for spelling and punctuation. Mistakes are unimpressive.
Prepare for the interview.
Your interview is a real opportunity to show us what you can do and to check out for yourself that Linklaters is right for you. To get the best out of it, remind yourself of your strengths. Think about the impression you want to convey. Note down the information that you want to learn. Consider doing a mock interview with someone you trust.
Firm handshake, good eye contact, smile.
You've probably heard these tips before, and there are good reasons why. Body language conveys a lot, even when your interviewer isn't consciously monitoring it. Creating a positive and energetic impression begins with the first moments of your interview. Doing these things will help you relax, too.
Be focused, not rambling.
Sometimes law students think that when a silence falls during an interview, it means the interview is going irretrievably south. That's not the case. You don't need to fill the air with continuous sound to make a good impression on your interviewer. Think about how you want to answer a question, answer it, and then STOP.
Ask questions.
Which firm to join is a major decision, and often law firms can start to blur together during the frenzy of callback season. Toward the end of a full day of callback interviews, when perhaps you're tired out and just want to go home, remind yourself that you only have limited chances to assess the choices in front of you. Asking a few well-thought-out questions will not only show us that you are seriously interested in Linklaters, it will also help you make a far more informed choice.
Take it all in stride.
For most students except a fortunate few, the callback season will inevitably bring some disappointments, whether a decline from a law firm you really liked, or not-so-great experiences with interviewers or callbacks. Don't let it get you down. Law firms are made up of imperfect human beings, just like any other organization. They may make decisions for reasons that have very little to do with your merits as a lawyer or a person. Put the downers behind you and enjoy your successes.
Do your homework.
Although we don't expect you to know all there is to know about business or the law, it will be more useful to you and far more impressive to us if you've done some research on Linklaters before your interview.