Linklaters is offering £6,000 in financial support to university students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, as part of a new pilot scheme to attract young people to a career in commercial law.

The new London-based Scholars programme is part of the firm's Making Links social mobility initiative and is aimed at helping talented university students from less socially mobile backgrounds succeed in their early careers.

The firm said in a statement that up to nine successful students will receive one-to-one coaching, skills development sessions, mentors and buddies, work experience and £6,000 in financial support towards their fees and living costs.

In return, the Scholars will work with Linklaters to "advise the firm on the challenges, issues and barriers facing those from socioeconomically less advantaged backgrounds to inform its social mobility work", the firm said.

The deadline for applications is June 2, 2019, with mentoring sessions starting at the beginning of the summer for a six-month programme.

The scheme applies to students from a less advantaged background who are in their first year of a three-year course or second year of a four-year course at a U.K. university.

Scholars will also have the opportunity to interview for a place on the firm's 2020 London summer vacation scheme.

Graduate recruitment partner Alison Wilson said in a statement: "As a firm, we want to attract and retain the best talent regardless of background. To do that effectively, we need to do our bit to level the playing field so that we can make a proper assessment of talent, potential and levels of application and determination – key ingredients for career success.

"The Making Links Scholars – in essence – offers the kind of access and support that many entering our industry may have had naturally through family or other support networks.

"It is one of a raft of incremental changes that we have made to our graduate recruitment marketing, attraction and selection processes in recent years. Others include online Q&A sessions, engaging with a wider number and range of universities in person, removing A-level minimum requirements and rolling recruitment practices.

"We know that there is no silver bullet, so all of this has been done to ensure that we continue to improve, remain best in class with respect to recruitment, and we have access to the talent that will help us to navigate tomorrow's challenges."

Last month, the Magic Circle firm ran a competition in state schools and awarded more than £50,000 in prizes to the winners.