Exeter Assessment Day 2026

You will experience four areas of law during your training contract, spending six months in each seat. You can choose to apply for a Bristol or a South West-based training contract. Our South West trainees will have the opportunity to work across our Exeter and Plymouth offices. We also offer flexibility for trainees to complete a seat in another office if the opportunity arises, including London.

As an Ashfords Trainee, you will be immersed in the life of a full-service law firm. We offer hands-on experience, early responsibility and client involvement. You can expect to be working alongside experienced lawyers and partners, who are leaders in their field, on a daily basis, to develop your technical skills and broaden your commercial awareness.

To make sure that everything is on track, you will have regular review meetings with your supervisor to monitor your development. Our trainees also play an integral role in wider firm initiatives, such as assisting with business development and marketing events, which provide exposure to our diverse client base.

There is far more to life at Ashfords than just the day job - you will have the chance to get involved in various social activities ranging from the annual ball, to sports clubs and fundraising events. Our trainees know that if there is not already a club or activity available, all they need to do is take the initiative to create one! Ashfords’ trainees continue to run the XYBC (Exeter Young Business Club) to encourage inter-profession social and networking activities across the local young professional community.

Who you are

There is no magic recipe for the perfect Trainee. However, at Ashfords, there are characteristics that we value. We are looking for individuals who are curious, ambitious and willing to put forward innovative ideas. We need excellent communicators who are adaptable and ready to accept the variety of challenges that a career in law can throw at you. We expect our trainees to get stuck in and integrate with each team they are a member of, so an open mind and personable, can-do attitude is essential!

We want our Trainees to be our Partners of the future, which is why we ‘recruit to retain’. Our commitment to this is demonstrated by our consistently high retention rates (100% in 2023). We’re really proud of this achievement, and our Trainees choosing to remain at Ashfords to grow their careers is testament to our collaborative and supportive culture, combined with the high quality work that we offer.

If you are selected for an assessment centre, you can expect to participate in scenario based activities and written exercises along with a partner interview as part of the process. Our South West assessment centre will take place at our Exeter Office on Thursday 2 July 2026.

To be eligible to apply, you must be in your penultimate year of a qualifying law degree or final year of a non-law degree. We also look forward to receiving applications from graduates and those pursuing a new avenue in their career.

Please note that applications will close on 31 March 2025, and all applications are reviewed after this date. Unfortunately we will be unable to consider any applications made after this date, or applications received outside of our recruitment portal.

Please ensure you only make one application to either an assessment centre or summer scheme in your preferred location. Duplicate applications will not be considered.

At Ashfords, we value hearing directly from individuals, not AI. While we appreciate that AI tools can be useful for idea generation, we kindly ask that your application is written by you and not produced using ChatGPT or similar tools.

Remember to mention AllAboutLaw in your application so employers know you’re using the best resources.