“This Event Is Aimed at Finance LLM Students," and Then There Was Me: My Thoughts andApplication Tips on Milbank’s Leveraged Finance Open Day

By Freddie Nottage

My interest in leveraged finance began when I read about Clayton, Dubilier & Rice’s

takeover of Morrisons in 2021. I had always thought of Morrisons as simply a supermarket, so I was surprised to learn that much of the £7 billion price had been paid with borrowed money, secured against the business itself. It left me wanting to know who would lend that much, and why.

When Milbank announced its 2026 Leveraged Finance Open Day, I was thrilled. Milbank is one of the leading names in the field, and the day promised an interesting look at its

leveraged finance training contract track.

When the offer arrived last week, I was delighted. I drew up a list of questions, read

everything on leveraged finance I could find, and took my suit to the dry cleaner’s.

It was only then, to my bewilderment, that I read the eligibility criteria properly. The firm

states that its LevFin Open Day is designed 'exclusively' for students studying a Finance

LLM. We are always told to read the small print; this, it turns out, is why. I had been

entirely candid in my application: a second-year undergraduate, reading History at UCL.

For the next few days I wondered whether there had been a mistake, half expecting a

polite email from graduate recruitment withdrawing the offer.

It never came. Gradually I began to suspect that there had been no mistake at all, and this morning I found out I was right. In the opening remarks, the team said that places had been highly competitive, and I was one of very few attendees not studying a Finance LLM, out of the people I had the pleasure of meeting.

My application, it seemed, was thus rather good.

Looking back, I don’t think it stood out because of my degree. It stood out because it

wasn't generic. I've had more and more success with applications now since learning to

spot the generic phrases that recruiters see too often.

Rather than saying in general terms that leveraged finance “interested” me, I built my

answers around specific deals: Milbank’s role for the private credit lenders on TPG’s

acquisition of Aareon, the Adevinta financing, and Zegona’s purchase of Vodafone Spain.

Crucially, I was able to link leveraged finance to my work experience as a compliance

administrator for my parent's domiciliary care company. As such, it was acutely personal.

Nobody else in that cohort would have a similar application to me. I also answered the questions I was actually asked. “What do you hope to gain from the Open Day?” is not an invitation to just sing praises of the firm. Milbank already knows it is good at leveraged finance. Telling them so adds nothing. Instead, I explained exactly

why I wanted to be there. I said what I had read, then asked about what reading couldn’t

tell me. I was specific in what I wanted to learn about the firm at the open day, for instance, what precisely a trainee drafts. I also asked how acting so often for lenders, when much of the City acts for sponsors, changes the work, including who you negotiate against. Every reason I gave was my own, tied to my reading, my questions and my experience.

The day itself was very engaging and well organised. After our welcome from the Graduate Recruitment Team, we had an introduction to Milbank from Financial Restructuring Group Partner, Kate Coleman. The part I found most interesting from her talk was how Milbank often uses lean teams, so trainees are able to get real visibility to partners, as well as strong responsibility early on. I thus suspect that Milbank are very keen on seeing attendees and candidates at the events engage strongly, like any firm, but perhaps a deal more.

Notably, Kate discussed what two skills are most important for a trainee: organisation (in particular time management,) and also intellectual curiosity (ask genuinely interesting, unique questions.) We also heard from Tristan Gargent, a European Leveraged Finance Partner. He talked about the two different training contract tracks at Milbank. The Lev Fin path is 12-18 months in lev fin, with one other seat; crucially, there is an expectation to qualify as a Lev Fin lawyer if you take this route. I felt this was limiting; by prioritising depth over breadth, it seems a trainee is locked into a specific path they do not know that they will enjoy. The alternative four-seat training contract is more appealing to me.

Trainees also discussed the collegiate nature of the firm: the small intake creates a really

strong social environment among trainees, while partners and associates are

approachable, with a real open door policy. I may not have been the student the day was designed for, but a specific application got me through the door, and the day was very useful.