SQE Preparation Courses

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has designed the SQE assessments in such a way that, unless you develop and demonstrate the mandatory skills, knowledge, and competence necessary to meet their demanding criteria, you may not pass the assessments. Before you take the SQE1 and SQE2 assessments, you will need to prepare. 

Preparing for the SQE is no small task, and a significant investment of both time and effort is necessary if you wish to be successful. While every person will have different study needs and preferences, given the scope of the syllabus, it is recommended that you study for the SQE1 exam for roughly five to six months, spending between 15-20 hours per week studying. For the SQE2 exam, you will likely spend about three to four months, also spending between 15-20 hours per week studying.

There will be SQE preparation courses run by providers of legal education and training for those who want to prepare in this way or who will need to undertake some form of legal education, having taken a non-law degree or degree equivalent qualification.
Some institutions will incorporate SQE1 preparation into their law degrees or provide separate SQE1 preparatory courses for non-law graduates.

Approaches to preparing for the SQE may include:

• SQE1 preparation included in an undergraduate law degree (LLB)
• standalone courses for those wishing to specifically prepare for the SQE1 – these may be useful for those who have done a standard (non-SQE) law degree, a non-law degree or other equivalent qualification
• standalone courses to prepare candidates for the SQE2 assessments

You may wish to consider the following when looking at options for routes of entry into the profession and preparing for the SQE assessments:

• undertaking preparation courses separately from a university course will of course cost you more
• many well-regarded universities have indicated that they will not be including SQE preparation in their law degree offerings, but they're still likely to be a primary source of candidates for firms to recruit from
• some firms will mandate certain courses, which they will pay for, for their employees to prepare them for the SQE assessments

How much does an SQE preparation course cost?

You can see a guide to prices for SQE preparation courses below.

SQE1 Preparation Course:

London, Hong Kong: £5,500
Birmingham, Bristol, Guildford, Reading: £4,350
Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham: £4,000
Online: £3,500

SQE2 Preparation Course:

London, Hong Kong: £5,500
Birmingham, Bristol, Guildford, Reading: £4,350
Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham, Sheffield: £4,000
Online: £4,000 

How much time will it take to prepare for the SQE?

Preparing for the SQE requires a serious time commitment. On average, it is likely to take about 9-12 months to be fully prepared for both stages of the SQE.

As a general guideline, studying for the SQE1 exam would entail a candidate study for approximately 5-6 months for about 15-20 hours per week, while another candidate might choose to spread out their study time commitment over a period of 12-18 months.

For the SQE2 exam, a candidate would most likely spend about 3 to 4 months studying, or up to 8 months, also studying for 15-20 hours per week.

Related Resources

About The SQE (Solicitors Qualifying Examination)

SQE Requirements

SQE1 Assessment

SQE2 Assessment

SQE Training Options

Funding Your SQE

Frequently Asked Questions About SQE