Slaughter and May has no online test: the form, a written exercise and two partners decide

Slaughter and May describes no online reasoning test for training contracts. What it does assess, a one-hour written exercise on a fictional business and a discussion of an article you read on the day, leans on the same skill our reasoning test trains: reading closely and separating what a text says from what you assume.

There is no psychometric test here to rehearse, and our test is not a model of anything Slaughter and May sets. The firm says the written exercise needs no legal knowledge and no advance preparation. Treat our test as general reading practice at most, and spend most of your time on the cover letter and commercial reading.

Almost every large City firm screens with an online critical thinking or judgement test. Slaughter and May's published process for training contracts does not. The only online test its pages describe is a situational judgement test for the solicitor apprenticeship, which is a separate route.

That puts more weight on the paper application. With no test score to lean on, your exam record, cover letter and CV carry the first decision on their own, so each deserves a second draft and a careful read by someone else.

The form asks for a full breakdown of your examination results, not a summary. Have the figures to hand before you start. The cover letter is your only space to argue for yourself, so give it specific reasons for choosing this firm rather than a list of adjectives.

Slaughter and May says it strongly advises applicants not to copy and paste AI-generated text into the application. Write it yourself; a plain, specific letter in your own voice is exactly what a reader at this stage is looking for.

On the day, you type a one-hour written exercise about a fictional business on a laptop. The firm says it needs no legal knowledge and that you will not be expected to prepare in advance. What it can reward is clear structure under time pressure.

You can still be ready to write. Practise reading a two-page brief, deciding what the reader needs, and producing headed, short paragraphs in 45 minutes, leaving 15 to check figures and trim. A habit of stating your conclusion first will serve you well.

The partner interview includes a current affairs article that you read for about 15 minutes on the day, with notes allowed. Expect to summarise it, say what it assumes, and give a view you can defend when pressed.

That is close reading in conversation. Practise with any long business news story: write three bullet points on the argument, one on the weakest step, and one question you would ask its author. Our verbal reasoning questions train the habit of separating claim from evidence.

Applications for September 2029 and March 2030 training contracts close on Friday 13 November 2026, and the firm makes offers on a rolling basis. A rolling process means places can be filled before the deadline, so an early application is safer.

The interview is in person, takes about three and a half hours and needs photo ID, such as a passport or driving licence. Plan travel to London with time to spare.