360 ➡️ 340
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is cutting the number of questions in SQE1 from 360 to 340 following feedback from candidates that the assessment can feel rushed and pressurised.
From the January 2027 sitting, each Functioning Legal Knowledge (FLK) assessment will contain 170 questions rather than 180, meaning candidates will face 85 questions in each session instead of 90.
The amount of time candidates are given will remain unchanged at two hours and 33 minutes per session, meaning they will now have roughly 108 seconds per question, compared with 102 seconds currently.
The regulator says the change follows feedback from candidates and other stakeholders, as well as a review of data from previous SQE1 sittings.
The SRA says some students have reported that the exam can feel “rushed and pressurised” because of the amount of time available to answer each question. Legal Cheek has also previously reported on the challenges facing SQE1 candidates, with students citing high levels of stress and anxiety caused by the intensive MCQ format, while pass rates have fallen as low as 41%.
Alongside trimming the question count, the regulator is also changing how subjects are divided between the four SQE1 sessions.
At present, all subject areas within each FLK can appear across both sessions. From January 2027, subjects will instead be split between the two sessions, meaning candidates will have fewer areas of law to focus on at any one time.
Questions will not, however, appear in neat subject-by-subject blocks. They will continue to be randomised within each session, while ethics and professional conduct questions can still crop up across any subject area.
The SRA says dividing the subjects in this way should make the assessment less challenging for candidates, while retaining randomisation to protect exam security.
The regulator said it waited until it had data from a sufficient number of SQE1 sittings before reducing the question count, giving it confidence that the move would improve the candidate experience without affecting the “accuracy” and reliability of the assessment.
The changes will apply to both first-time candidates and those resitting SQE1 from January 2027 onwards.
Some have already called for the SRA to go further. The College of Legal Practice has welcomed the changes but argues candidates should be allowed to sit and pay for FLK1 and FLK2 separately at their first attempt, saying the current structure still forces students to prepare for two demanding assessments within the same window.
Dr Giles Proctor, CEO of CoLP, said reducing the number of questions should not be mistaken for a solution to the broader challenges facing students. “The difference between 102 seconds and 108 seconds per question is welcome,” he said. “The difference between preparing for one FLK assessment and preparing for two simultaneously would be transformational.”
Will it come with an asterisk?
Since they are now admitting the exam is too hard, will they allow people that have failed three times to resit?
Mum took 6 goes to pass her driving test.
The roads have been more perilous ever since.
Having sat SQE1 this July and passed comfortably, I do think some perspective is needed. It is a difficult exam, but it is absolutely manageable if you put the work in.
I used ULaw’s materials and question banks, read the manuals and spent a few months doing little other than studying. That was essentially it.
The volume is huge and the preparation is intense. For a few months, your social life pretty much disappears. But this is a professional qualification leading into a demanding career. I’m not convinced that making the assessment easier is necessarily the answer.
There is also a wider reality here. Around 20,000 students graduate with law degrees each year, before you even account for non-law graduates and unsuccessful applicants from previous years who remain in the market. Against that, there are only around 5,000–6,000 traditional training positions available annually. The SQE has opened up alternative routes through qualifying work experience and solicitor apprenticeships, which is a positive development, but competition to enter the profession remains enormous.
In that context, I’m not sure reducing the demands of the qualifying assessment because candidates find it difficult is necessarily doing aspiring solicitors any favours. The profession itself is highly competitive and demanding. Making the gateway easier does not make practice easier once you get through it.
There are legitimate criticisms to make about the SQE, particularly its cost and accessibility, but simply being difficult should not be one of them.
Hi Sir
Can you please guide me how to pass SQE1 and tell me about study material. Thanks
In July 2025 the pass rate fell to 41% for overall candidates while 41% for first time sitters.
Which somehow feels about right. A degree, law or otherwise, gives no indication of a candidate’s likely fitness to practise law. The SQE, while not a reliable indicator on its own, at least shows that a successful candidate has some of the raw knowledge, skill and tenacity needed for the profession.
Can future clients at least know which candidates couldn’t stand the pressure? Or complained about having to know more than one subject area? Or struggled to switch from topic to topic? Because let’s face it, there are some shockingly mediocre people who think they’re entitled to practise law.
In other news, the Olympic Committee is reducing the 100m to 85m.