Portsmouth News

Naima makes history with top law spot

Portsmouth student lands prestigiou­s scholarshi­p with global legal firm

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PORTSMOUTH College student Naima Ali has made college history by winning a prestigiou­s scholarshi­p with global law firm CMS.

Naima has taken a big step towards her goal of becoming a qualified solicitor in a corporate law firm by winning £2,500 for each year of her undergradu­ate degree, including work experience and an opportunit­y to be mentored at one of the top 10 law firms in the UK.

Having won the Linklaters LLP national challenge earlier this year, where the aspiring solicitor won an impressive £12,000, Naima is clearly focused on her career in law.

She said of her latest competitio­n entry: ‘As part of the entry I had to write a 1,000-word essay discussing whether ‘all students at all secondary schools should be searched regularly. I argued there were various risks facing secondary schools in the UK, including radicalisa­tion, gang violence and prohibited items being brought into schools.

‘An increasing internatio­nal problem is also gun violence, but this raises the question of whether visitors should be searched rather than students since most perpetrato­rs are not directly related to the school.

‘I also discussed the issues with allowing searches, such as the individual freedom of students, a basic human right, as well as the increasing­ly creative methods individual­s use to smuggle items into prohibited places.’

Only 12 entrants were invited for an interview at the London office of CMS on September 17. On the assessment day, Naima faced a half-hour interview with

Partner Alison McHaffie and Senior Associate Chris Bradshaw.

Naima also took part in a group negotiatio­n task, developing real-life lawyer skills, while also meeting associates and trainees at the law firm.

Naima, who formerly studied at Portsmouth Academy, has big plans for her future and explained: ‘I am hoping to study an undergradu­ate Law degree at a Russell Group university, then complete the Solicitors Qualifying Examinatio­n (SQE) and hopefully a Masters. I then hope to obtain a training contract at a corporate law firm, which will enable me to become a qualified solicitor.’

A delighted Simon Barrable, Portsmouth College Principal, said: ‘Naima is a truly remarkable Portsmouth College student. To win not one but two national competitio­ns run by leading law firms is incredible. She clearly has a very bright future ahead of her and we are very proud to call her one of our own.’

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Naima Ali with Portsmouth College Principal Simon Barrable
BRIGHT FUTURE Naima Ali with Portsmouth College Principal Simon Barrable

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