A week in the life of an insight student

Last week we were joined by insight student Bethan Davies, who's just about to start sixth year at George Watson's College. Here's what she thought about her week with team Lawscot!

When I arrived on Monday morning, I was feeling nervous with the assumption that I would be working in an intimidating office. However, my assumptions were squished as soon as I walked through the door into a modern, friendly working environment.

After a very warm welcome I was given an overview of the Law Society's role and structure and then a tour of the office. However, I was quickly put to work with the research team as I was asked to carry out a task on third party complaint procedures in UK jurisdictions. Whilst working in this department I learnt the importance of legal research in informing and influencing policy in Scotland.

This leads me on to my work with the policy team where I got to attend a variety of meetings. One that particularly interested me was the Child and Family Law Committee meeting where they discussed the new Scottish Consultation on incorporating the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child into Domestic Law in Scotland.

Next up, I was with education, training and qualifications. Here I learnt about the Law Society's extensive involvement in working with schools to ensure the accessibility of legal education. During my time here I was also given the opportunity to ask plenty of questions about becoming a solicitor – the answers I got were really helpful!

The week came to an end with the communications team. I had the opportunity to learn about public affairs and see some live action work in public communications. I was also given a behind the scenes insight into the Law Society's social analytics and how they manage them.

Although I had a fantastic week all round, the highlight was taking over the Law Society Instagram story. For this I was asked to post updates throughout the day on what I was working on! It was also very rewarding to know that during my time working in each department the work I did was of genuine use to those I was working alongside.

After a fantastic week I would hugely recommend the insight week to students hoping to study law. It's a great opportunity to learn about work in the legal sector, as well as meeting some useful contacts for the future. It has been a pleasure to work at the Law Society of Scotland!