Clifford Chance

Careers

Where bright
minds meet

London Graduates

Are you one of the next generation of leaders in social justice, sustainability or human rights? Are you advocating for change in an area you are passionate about? We want to help you make a difference.

The TARGETjobs Undergraduate of the Year Awards are the only undergraduate awards in the UK. Their aim is to identify and celebrate the UK's best undergraduate talent.

We are searching UK universities and year 13 students, to find the outstanding Young Activist of the Year. We are looking for an inspiring individual who is passionate about driving positive social change within their community and beyond.

For the fourth year running, we are also proud to be seeking out an outstanding LGBT+ Undergraduate of the Year. We are looking for a student who is either driving positive change within the LGBT+ community, breaking down barriers and leaving a legacy or a visible role model excelling in your field.

Do you know someone that you think deserves recognition for their outstanding dedication, drive and initiatives? Are you ready to elevate your efforts to the next level? Then this could be the award for you. 

Young Activist UGOY

This award sets out to identify an individual that is using their initiative to develop and drive a project that creates a positive difference for others and will be able to demonstrate how this has led to social change. We want to hear about the scale and breadth of your initiative and the skills you have developed. Your initiative(s) may fall within one or more of the following areas: access to justice, education, finance, equality, environmental sustainability or any other area of interest. 

Find out more

We are one of the world's pre-eminent law Firms with a significant depth and range of resources across five continents and we are always striving to exceed our clients' expectations. These expectations are no longer limited to legal advice – they have broadened to encompass guidance around how to deal with business critical issues and how to operate ethically. More and more, corporates are stepping into the gap left by governments in tackling social, environmental and ethical issues. As a global law Firm, we can play a unique role in helping our clients to shape their responsible business strategies. Just as importantly, we are compelled to support the communities where we do business. We do this by collaborating with clients, NGOs and charities to deliver services that widen access to justice, education and finance.

Part of our commitment includes supporting young talent in acting as change agents. That's why we send delegates to One Young World as part of our early talent strategy. It's also why our future trainees can apply for funding to support with volunteering or any community-related initiatives that they are developing before they join our firm. And it's why we are a founding sponsor of Unlocked Graduates, which aims to reduce reoffending rates among prisoners by introducing fresh young talent into the prison officer population.

We hope that in partnering the Young Activist Award, we will be able to not only identify future leaders but also to support these individuals in the initiatives that they are driving to create a positive impact.

Win...

By entering Young Activist of the Year you could win either a place on our SPARK scheme or a one-week internship within our corporate and social responsibility pro bono team, depending on your interests.

Upon completing your work experience, you will receive a ticket to the 2022 One Young World Summit as part of our delegate team, in addition to a place on the One Young World Academy online lecture series with some of the world's greatest leaders.

You will also have the unique opportunity to complete a one-week internship with the the One Young World team assisting them with the preparation for the forthcoming Summit. 

Deadline: 31st January 2022

Apply

Meet Curtis and Tessy...

Meet our 2021 winner Curtis and runner up Tessy and hear about their inspiring efforts to bring about change. Toby, also tells you more about this year's process and the amazing prizes that are up for grabs, including some new and exciting opportunities. 

Curtis's Story

Curtis Parfit-Ford (he/him) - University of Southampton, Computer Science
Young Activist of the Year UGOY Winner 2021

Curtis was the winner of Young Activist of the Year 2021. He felt compelled to take action following the introduction of the OfQual algorithm to predict GCSE and A level results during the COVID-19 crisis. He recognised the potential adverse impact this would have on students all over the country, so he and a team of data protection lawyers, began a campaign to overturn the decision. Results day brought with it the disappointment that Curtis had envisaged, which led to his efforts being thrown into the limelight. He was invited to take part in countless interviews, making it to the front page of the Guardian website with news stories running in every major national newspaper and on every television network. This unprecedented coverage was a key contributor in the Government's decision to subsequently withdraw the algorithm, a change that affected the futures of thousands of students across the country. Curtis's commitment to this cause is why he has been the recipient of the award.

Meet Tiara and Danni...

In this video our 2020 winner, Tiara and runner-up Danni, tell us more about their initiatives and how the competition has played an important role in progressing their efforts.  

Tiara's story

Tiara Sahar Ataii (she/her) - University of Cambridge, Asian and Middle Eastern Studies
Social Impact UGOY Winner 2020

Tiara was the winner of the Social Impact Award in 2020. She is the founder of SolidariTee, the largest British student-led charity fighting for long-term change in the refugee crisis. SolidariTee mobilises 500 student volunteers across 42 universities and has offered grants worth over £200,000 to refugee aid. As an Arabic, Farsi, French and German speaker, Tiara has extensive experience as an interpreter, and has interned at two UN agencies. She has also given a TedxCambridgeUniversity talk on the importance of legal aid. She is now looking to combine her humanitarian expertise and social entrepreneurship to find innovative solutions in the refugee crisis.

Danni's Story

Danni Watts (she/her) - University of Oxford, Law
Social Impact UGOY Runner Up 2020

Danni is the founder of TABOU, a narrative-changing online and print magazine run entirely by disabled students across the UK. TABOU aims to increase the access and inclusion of disabled students and provide a platform to bring issues impacting disabled students into mainstream conversation. Since its launch, TABOU has been published at five universities and now is represented by over 30 ambassadors at various institutions. Danni’s other interest is improving access to education; she has volunteered for the educational inequality charity, Universify, and was also Access and Outreach Ambassador for Oxford Law Faculty.

LGBT+ UGOY

If you identify as LGBT+, and have been passionate about making a difference in your community as a trailblazer for LGBT+ rights then this is the opportunity for you. Or if you're an individual that has showcased excellence in your field of expertise, this is your chance to showcase the contributions that you have made and to be a role model for other students who might be struggling with their identity or questioning what they can achieve personally and professionally.

Apply

As a global law Firm, we recognise the unequivocal right of every individual to be who they are. We feel a sense of duty to champion, pioneer and campaign for the equal rights of under-represented groups wherever possible. We strive to ensure that we create an environment that not only embraces people from all walks of life but celebrates their identity and individuality, providing a foundation from where they can flourish. We're commited to doing everything possible to deliver greater equality for LGBT+ people in our firm, help to build the capacity of our clients to be stronger supporters of equality, and drive real change across the world.

Around the globe, being an LGBT+ person all too often means you are faced with legal discrimination and persecution. Working with partners in civil society and across the world of business, we are building partnerships and taking strategic action to help dismantle such laws, whilst at the same time, we work constantly to change cultural attitudes that allow such laws to exist. 

From Poland to Singapore, London to Brazil, we are working in courtrooms and communities to make sure no one ever feels that they will face a life of marginalisation simply because of who they are and who they fall in love with. To read more about our work click here.

With this award, we are looking for people who are as fervent as we are about making a real difference. We want to hear from individuals who are actively dedicated to promoting justice and equality, whether that be through being a visible role model to others, driving forward an initiative that has made a real impact or being an active agent for change.

It is more important than ever that we identify those individuals that possess a definitive sense of purpose and who are clearly on the path to becoming a leader of tomorrow. We want to help promote their efforts and support their cause and with this award we will do just that. 

Win...

By entering LGBT+ Undergraduate of the Year,  you could win either a place on our SPARK scheme or a one-week internship in our diversity and inclusion team, depending on your interests, as well as networking opportunities with the firm's LGBT+ network.

You will also receive £500 towards either driving your initiative further or a donation to your LGBT+ charity of choice.

Deadline: 31st January 2022

 

Find out more

Meet George...

George is our LGBT+ Undergraduate of the Year 2021 winner and in this video he shares why entering the competition was a great opportunity to raise the profile of his efforts and meet other like-minded individuals. This year's prizes are designed to support you in your efforts, as well as provide you with meaningful work experience that suits your interests. 

George's story

George Barker (he/him) - University College London, Medicine and Surgery
LGBT+ UGOY Winner 2021

During his first year at University College London, George undertook a module in Relationships and Sex Education (RSE), which involved teaching a comprehensive and LGBT+ inclusive RSE curriculum in schools across North London.

He has gone on to train over 130 students to deliver RSE and has delivered sessions to over 500 pupils. He went from being coordinator of the project at UCL for a year, expanding the programme to include additional talks on topics such as HIV, blood donation and the importance of teaching about consent, to becoming the National Director of the charity Sexpression:UK which oversees and coordinates the running of similar projects involving over 1000 students at over 25 universities across the country.

Meet Zareen...

In this video, our 2020 winner Zareen tells us more about her work with FUSE and what winning the competition has meant to her and the work she is doing. 

Zareen's story

Zareen Roy-Macauley (she/her) - University of Cambridge, Human, Social and Political Sciences
LGBT+ UGOY Winner 2020

Zareen was the 2020 winner of LGBT+ Undergraduate of the Year and she was the first LGBTQ+ officer of the African and Caribbean Society in Cambridge, where she worked to improve LGBTQ+ inclusion within the African and Caribbean community. She later became the first ever president of FUSE – a society for BME LGBTQ+ students. Alongside her team, Zareen relaunched the society and enhanced its capacity by establishing new committee roles, securing a source of funding and introducing new social media strategies. FUSE is now widely cited as a place of community and safety for BME LGBTQ+ students in Cambridge.

Lizzie's story

Lizzie Finch (they/them) - University of Surrey, BSc in Psychology
LGBT+ UGOY Runner Up 2020

Lizzie is a recent graduate from the University of Surrey where they studied a BSc in Psychology. During their time at university, they were the 2017/2018 Vice President of the university’s LGBT+ society.

Lizzie spent their placement year as the Inclusive Diversity and Gender Pay Gap undergraduate at Pfizer, where they worked on various inclusion projects that helped to create positive change for minority employees within the company. One of Lizzie’s proudest achievements is the publication of Pfizer UK’s Transitioning in the Workplace Guidelines, which they wrote. Currently, they are freelancing as a workshop leader on non-binary inclusion, offering training and consultation to companies that wish to improve their inclusion of non-binary people in their workplaces.

Tom's Story

Tom Moran (he/him) – University of Lancaster, Management and Information Technology
LGBT+ Winner 2019

Tom who identifies as both Gay and Autistic, was the 2019 winner of LGBT+ Undergraduate of the Year. He was the founder and President of Lancaster University’s Sign Language Society, where he taught weekly sign language classes with the aim of improving the experiences of deaf people on campus. Tom also was the Lead for Students with Learning Differences and the Disability Representative for Lancaster’s LGBT+ society, championing intersectional inclusion and standing as a role model for his Autistic peers.

Since winning the award, Tom has successfully secured a Training Contract at Clifford Chance and undertook international legal work experience in the firm’s Brussels and Hong Kong offices. He has also been able to use the award as a platform to speak about the importance of inclusion with the BBC, the National Autistic Society and myGwork.

Our partners

For the second year running, we are delighted to be partnering with One Young World (OYW) for our Activist of the Year Award. OYW identifies, promotes and connects the world's most impactful young leaders to create a better world, with more responsible, more effective leadership. The annual One Young World Summit convenes the brightest young talent from every country and sector, working to accelerate social impact. Read more about our relationship.

For the third year running we are partnering with National Student Pride (NSP) and Attitude magazine for our LGBT+ UGOY award. NSP is the biggest gathering of LGBT+ students in the UK. Their annual event is held in February (LGBT History Month) featuring talks and debates with inspirational activists, a weekend of roof-raising pride parties and the UK’s largest queer-inclusive recruitment fair.

As the world’s biggest LGBTQ media brand, Attitude has used its platform to elevate and celebrate the trailblazers of tomorrow, be it through the magazine, their social and digital platforms or the Attitude Awards and Pride Awards.  "We are proud to continue uplifting the voices of tomorrow through our sponsorship of Clifford Chance’s LGBT+ Undergraduate of the Year award.'' Cliff Joannou, Editor in Chief Attitude

For the second year running we are delighted to be partnering with myGwork, who are an LGBT+ business community for graduates, professionals, and inclusive employers. They work with businesses and individuals alike to promote workplace equality and employment opportunities. ''We’re proud to be co-sponsoring the LGBT+ Undergraduate of the Year award. Amidst all the barriers LGBT+ students face, it is important to promote the successes of role models within our community." Adrien Gaubert, Co-founder and CMO of myGwork

Engage with us...

If you want to find out more about these unique and exciting opportunities, you can register to attend a live chat that we will be hosting on 10th January 2022 from 5pm-6pm, where you can pose your questions about the awards to our previous winners and runners-up. We would also encourage you to watch the 'How to Make A Difference' One Young World event that showcased young leaders driving forward action featuring our UGOY 2020 winners.

Responsible Business

As we try to build a better, more sustainable future, it is the fundamental principles of the law that guide us, as a responsible business: equality and fairness, access to justice, effective regulation and government, and the promotion and protection of human rights. Our 2020 report demonstrates our commitment to sustainable growth and how it has endured and been strengthened during a period of uncertainty and change.

Read More