Wednesday 27 January 2016 saw the official start of the Queen Mary PG Law Professional Mentoring Programme, organised by the Postgraduate Law Professional Development Team for postgraduate law students. The launch party was held at the Centre for Commercial Law Studies (CCLS) where Professor Philip Rawlings welcomed attendees and thanked mentors for their time and support. During the launch mentors and mentees gained an opportunity to meet for the first time and engage with others taking part in the programme. Nearly all those invited were able to attend the evening and as such the launch was a huge success and a positive and enjoyable experience for everyone present.
Prior to the launch, and in less than a two-month period, the PG Law Mentoring Team matched student mentees with 25 professional volunteers working at the very highest levels of the legal profession and across a variety of specialist areas. Mentors enrolled in the programme range from current and former Lord Justices of Appeal to senior partners, sector heads and legal associates. Their law firms and companies include Allen & Overy, Cooley LLP, eBay (UK) Ltd, Preiskel & Co, Promontory Financial Group, The Walt Disney Company, and Shell.
This pilot-mentoring scheme connects the brightest and best students from CCLS with QMUL alumni and UK-based professionals. Student mentees are excited because over a seven-month period they will receive an opportunity to speak with their mentors on a monthly basis and benefit from their expert advice and first-hand insights into the professional legal business world. As Philip Rawlings mentioned during the launch “We are pleased that CCLS has been able to arrange this initiative as it offers a chance for current leaders within the legal profession to reach out to the leaders of the future…”
Jonathan Moss, Partner at DWF LLP said “CCLS’ (unique) mentoring programme allows students to benefit from the experience and knowledge of specialist solicitors, barristers and industry executives working in a range of fields, allied to the students’ research areas. On a regular basis, postgraduates will have direct access to leading practitioners and business people who can broaden horizons and offer a range of different insights, assisting research and analytical techniques.”
LLM in Intellectual Property Law Student Constantin Hoferer commented that "I very much appreciate to be part of the QMUL PG mentoring programme. It's great to see how dedicated our mentors are, providing us with the most valuable insight into their particular jobs and the legal job market in the UK as such. Participating in the first years run is pretty exciting, and I hope that many more students get the chance to learn from the valuable experience of their mentors, like I do now."