Experts from BPP, TLT and Accutrainee come together to shed light on Qualifying Work Experience
Aspiring lawyers looking to qualify through the SQE can choose to complete their mandatory two-year ‘on the job training’ at up to four different employers.
In the video (above) of our recent virtual student event, representatives from BPP University Law School, law firm TLT and flexible training contract provider Accutrainee discuss what qualifies as Qualifying Work Experience (QWE), and how students can leverage the flexibility of the SQE to their advantage.
The event featured:
• Shazia Bashir, partner in the housing and regeneration team and trainee principal at TLT
• Andrea Gallo, HR manager at Accutrainee
• Jonny Hurst, BPP’s head of outreach and former City law firm partner
• Emma Blackstone, joint head of pro bono at BPP and former solicitor
The speakers started off by discussing which roles in organisations like law firms, charities and legal clinics would qualify as QWE. They highlighted that while work experience is assessed on a ‘case by case’ basis, the key elements to look out for include: the role having real-life provision of legal services, advice or assistance, as well as it meeting at least two SRA competencies. The panel then touched on other questions from students such as the time commitments required during the two-year work experience, differences between a traditional training contract and the QWE, as well as the recording and signing off process.
Legal Cheek is running ‘The SQE series’ with BPP University Law School over the next few months. The video of each session will be made available one month after each virtual event together with further FAQs arising from each session which experts from BPP are answering.
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