Shoosmiths are trailblazers in using AI in recruitment from candidate support during applications to using AI tools in selection. Samantha Hope, Senior Emerging Talent Manager, shares their learnings.
Artificial intelligence isn’t a distant prospect for the workplace, it’s already here. For those working in early careers and emerging talent, the question is no longer if AI will affect recruitment, but how we respond to it.
The impact is felt across every stage of the candidate journey: how people prepare applications, how they perform in assessments, and even in the skills they bring into organisations from day one.
Guidance, not guesswork
At Shoosmiths, we made a deliberate decision not to ban the use of generative AI in training contract applications.
We chose to embrace the AI-enabled candidate, recognising that one in three applicants were already using it (at the time) and that approach aligned with our innovative culture.
To set clear expectations, we provided candidates with guidance on how AI could be used appropriately, sharing advice on our website, links in our application, through blogs, Instagram Reels, and live Q&A sessions. We also went a step further by introducing a dedicated application question:
“How do you expect to use generative AI tools to enhance your effectiveness as a solicitor in the future? If you have, you may also choose to include specific examples of how you’ve utilised generative AI to elevate part of your application in this answer.”
This gave candidates the chance to reflect on AI as a future skill while still demonstrating their originality and personal insight.
When we first introduced this policy in late 2023, plenty of firms were banning AI outright. For us, embracing it was about transparency. If candidates are already using AI in everyday life, asking them to switch it off when applying for a role feels unrealistic.
Instead, our approach has been to set boundaries and frame the conversation. We emphasise that AI can support clarity, structure and confidence, but originality and personal voice are still what matter most.
Beyond the application form
This year, around 50% of candidates told us they had used AI in their application, up from around 30% the year before.
Usage rates were even higher among underrepresented groups, suggesting that clarity around AI expectations can support fairness and access.
Some recruiters have reported being overwhelmed by a 40% surge in applications, blaming one-click apply tools and copy-and-paste AI responses.
At Shoosmiths, we saw a far more modest increase of around 10%. We believe that’s because our guidance prevented a flood of low-quality, AI-saturated applications.
And importantly, when we analysed candidate scores at both application and assessment stage, we found they were consistently higher than in previous years - by a similar margin at both points.
That reassured us that candidates weren’t ‘gaming’ the application process only to fall short later on. Instead, they are learning to enhance their applications and apply themselves more effectively, and we see that as a positive step towards workplace readiness.
AI in assessment centres
AI also has a place beyond applications. At our assessment centres, we’ve built AI into exercises in two ways.
First, it helps to set the scene and the theme of our immersive assessment centre - candidates are asked to assess ‘AI-powered solutions’ for a fictional client, weighing up benefits, risks, and ethical considerations such as privacy and data security.
Second, they have access to Copilot for preparation tasks, with follow-up questions designed to explore their judgement, critical thinking, and reflection.
These conversations have often been the most insightful part of the day because they reveal how candidates think, not just what they produce.
Of course, introducing these exercises has meant upskilling our assessors too, so they can recognise the difference between surface-level AI use and thoughtful application. But that investment is worthwhile: it ensures we’re assessing skills that are both relevant and transferable to the future workplace.
And while much of our early work has focused on applications and assessments, we’re also exploring how AI can elevate the wider candidate journey, from personalised feedback to smarter self-service, which is allowing us the time we need to dedicate to relationship building with candidates and colleagues.
Culture and future readiness
At Shoosmiths, AI adoption is not just an operational choice but a cultural one. We became the first UK law firm to share guidance with candidates, and the first to link AI-use to a firm-wide bonus, a clear signal that innovation and cultural change aren’t optional extras, but priorities backed by leadership.
Crucially, that incentive is about encouraging exploration and familiarity, positioning our business in the best place for the future.
Looking ahead, the role of AI in early careers will only grow. At Shoosmiths, we’ve been clear: AI has no place in providing legal advice or in screening or making hiring decisions – not yet anyway. But that doesn’t mean it can’t enhance the candidate journey.
By weaving AI into our processes, we’re not only signalling its importance to candidates’ future careers, but also showing them how to use it responsibly.
While we can’t yet rely on AI to solve the challenge of screening high application volumes, we’re already using it to elevate the experience, freeing up time to make recruitment more personal, human, and impactful.
Think about how you can use AI to scale high-quality feedback, enrich communications with video or voice notes, or provide instant, accurate responses through Q&A chatbots.
Done thoughtfully, these enhancements don’t replace the human touch, they protect it, by giving recruiters the space to build genuine relationships with the individuals moving through their process.
That, ultimately, is what sets apart a great candidate experience in the AI age.
Hear more from Shoosmiths in the ISE webinar AI and student recruitment