NQ Salary
~£140,000 London · £84,000 outside London
TC Salary
~£55,000 / £60,000 London · £35,500 / £39,000 outside London (year 1 / year 2)
Annual Intake
c.35–45 per year (London), up to 65 UK-wide
Seats
4 seats
This profile is compiled from publicly available sources and may not reflect the latest changes. Always check the firm's official careers page for current deadlines, application processes, and programme details.
DLA Piper trains in London, Leeds, Manchester, Birmingham and Edinburgh and has 90 offices in 40 countries. Chambers UK 2027 ranks the London practice Band 1 for M&A between £100 and £800 million, IT and outsourcing, litigation, real estate litigation and restructuring litigation.
Generated by Folio · folioapp.co.uk · 28 October 2026
Folio is independent and not affiliated with any firm listed. Salary and deadline information is approximate. Always verify with the firm's official graduate recruitment page.
The training contract
There are no mandatory seats, so trainees can follow their interests
International Training Programme
Recruited mainly through the summer internship · The firm says it may at times recruit outside it
Summer Internship 2027
21 Sept 2026 – 20 Nov 2026
Opens 21 September · London closed 23 October · Birmingham, Edinburgh, Leeds and Manchester close 20 November · Runs 15 June to 2 July 2027
Law, Unlocked 2027
Closed for 2026 · Next window not yet published
Discovery Days 2027
Closes 5 Oct 2026
Closes 5 October for London · Manchester 6, Leeds 7, Birmingham 12 and Edinburgh 14 October, all at 5pm
Apprenticeships
Closed · Opens early 2027
Project Manager Apprenticeships
Not currently accepting applications
Assessment processes change annually. Always check the firm's website for current details.
Deals and announcements in the firm's own words. Naming a recent matter is the fastest way to show you have paid attention.
DLA Piper newsroomUnlock the full interview pack for DLA Piper
Practice questions built around DLA Piper's actual assessment stages, with “Why this firm?” evidence traced to verified facts.
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Method
The firm's recruitment roadmap: a non-assessed realistic job preview, an application form with a CV and no cover letter, Rare's contextual recruitment survey, a strengths-based online assessment with no preparation required, a virtual case study of around one hour discussed with an assessor, then an in-person assessment centre. The Watson Glaser and phone interview of the previous cycle are gone from the roadmap, though the page's FAQ still refers to them.
Tests
Explore the firm's work before you apply: free simulations on Forage, built to mirror real trainee tasks.
For Year 12 (S5) students who have always attended a state-funded school and are first in the family at university, had free school meals, attended a low-progression school, have parents on means-tested benefits, have been in care, or came to the UK as a refugee. Recruited through the Sutton Trust's Pathways to Law: a five-day placement at the nearest DLA Piper office, during which candidates are invited to apply for the multi-year Head Start programme of mentoring, financial support and skills sessions.
Applications for Pathways to Law open in September each year; indicate DLA Piper as your placement preference. The firm hosts up to 50 candidates a year.
Independent Resource
Folio is an independent student project and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or officially connected to DLA Piper. All information is compiled from publicly available sources and may not reflect the most current data. Salary and deadline figures are approximate, based on prior recruitment cycles. Always check the firm's official graduate recruitment page for confirmed details.