A woman working on a temporary contract for her local authority after growing up in a deprived immigrant community in London’s East End has finally qualified as a solicitor—eight years after graduation and being turned down for countless jobs.

Amina Uddin, who was raised in Stepney Green, has qualified with the prestigious West End firm of Ridouts working on health and social care regulation law.

Reaching this point in her career has not been easy for Amina, who was born to first-generation immigrants from Bangladesh.

She got to university where she developed an interest in law at the LSE where she graduated in 2008.

“I want to be a mentor to the next generation,” she said. “I want young girls to know that you can achieve your dreams—you simply must never give up and never lose hope.”

Amina never lost hope, despite making 50 training contract applications and not getting a single interview—not even a reply to her requests for feedback.

The experience made her more determined, even volunteering as a Legal Advisor while holding down a temporary contract in Tower Hamlets Council’s legal department.

Ridouts—whose clients include care home operators, children’s homes, GP and dental practices, care agencies and hospitals—wanted to fill two vacancies for paralegals and had 150 applications. Amina was “by far the most outstanding”, the firm said.

Paul Ridout, the boss at Ridouts Professional Services, said: “We are at a loss to explain Amina’s career to date, but have now benefitted where other law firms missed an opportunity.

“We see a lot of ordinary candidates—Amina is by contrast extraordinary.”

Now Amina has qualified, she has joined the firm’s frontline team of West End lawyers—a long and determined road from growing up around the council estates of Stepney Green.