Legal Cheek Careers sits down with two BPP University Law School experts to demystify the SQE, from choosing a provider to the habits that separate high performers from the rest
Aspiring solicitors who think the SQE can be cracked by working through practice questions alone may want to think again, according to Caroline Rayson, Award Leader for SQE1 Programmes at BPP University Law School. “Doing hundreds of MCQs is not a substitute for in-depth learning and understanding of the material,” she says. “If a different question comes up in the exam, you will be stuck.” Rayson and her colleague Jonny Hurst, Director of Outreach at BPP Law School, know the qualification inside out, and between them they have plenty of advice for students on how to approach it.
For Legal Cheek readers still getting their heads around the two-part qualification, Rayson offers a clear-eyed summary of what each stage actually involves. SQE1, she explains, assesses legal knowledge across both the core underlying law and practice subjects (contract, trusts, land and the like), all tested through 360 question intensive, closed-book, multiple-choice exams. SQE2 can, generally, only be taken after passing SQE1 and consists of skills assessments, although half the marks remain knowledge-based. Alongside demonstrating your competence in the skill being assessed, “You will, for example, be asked to explain and advise on the law in scenarios like client interviewing or legal writing across a wide range of subjects,” she tells me.
One of the most significant shifts the SQE has brought about is the variety of routes now available to access the profession. Hurst is well-placed to map the landscape, running an independent YouTube channel, SQE TV, alongside his BPP role. As well as the traditional sponsorship pathway, where firms fund a candidate’s law school fees before their training contract or qualifying work experience begins, there are now two apprenticeship routes worth noting. Level 7 apprenticeships allow school leavers to qualify as solicitors via the SQE over six years with a law degree and no university debt. Graduate solicitor apprenticeships, meanwhile, are aimed at those who already hold degrees: firms typically employ them four days a week while they study for the SQE on the fifth. “There is also the self-funding route,” Hurst adds, explaining that there are a large number of students either studying for the SQE full-time before working full time, or working part-time alongside their SQE studies, sometimes as paralegals.
With students no longer required to hold a law degree or complete a conversion course, the question of whether cheaper or shorter routes are a sensible choice is one many aspiring solicitors are weighing up. Rayson is measured but direct in her response. “You still need to know a very wide range of law,” she says. “The exams are expensive and challenging, so it is better to prepare well the first time.” At BPP and most leading law firms, she notes, “the view is that a law degree or conversion course provides the best foundation. There isn’t really a shortcut to the broad understanding required for SQE1.”
SQE pass rates have become a source of anxiety in the wider legal education market, and Hurst is candid about the competitive landscape. BPP’s SQE1 pass rates, he says, are consistently 20% or more above the national average, a figure he attributes to a combination of live teaching by qualified practitioners, course design, and BPP’s accumulated expertise – they have been training prospective solicitors for over 30 years. “Those who choose to self-prep with little or no live teaching often miss interacting with both their tutors and their peers, when you tend to learn in much greater depth why an answer is correct,” he explains. BPP’s programmes are built to deliver knowledge and in-depth understanding incrementally, in what Hurst describes as “bite-sized chunks, drawing on interactive tools, quizzes, videos and textbooks”.
The question of which provider to choose carries more weight than many students realise. “Choice is vital for confidence,” Hurst says. He is blunt on the subject of transparency: “You should choose a provider that publishes its pass rates. I think it is inexcusable that some still choose not to do so five years into the SQE regime.”
Rayson sets out what students can expect in terms of preparation support. BPP offers regular small group workshops delivered by expert tutors, alongside materials covering all the underlying law subjects and skills tested across the SQE. “Students receive strong revision support, lectures, and formative assessments with feedback,” she tells me, “covering practice MCQs for SQE1 and full skills assessments for SQE2”. Hurst adds a layer to this picture with what he calls “wraparound” support: personal tutors, mental health provision, and a dedicated module designed to help students manage the pressure of the course and its demanding external assessments.
For those balancing work or family commitments, flexibility is built into BPP’s range of SQE options. Students can study face to face in BPP centres across the country or in a live online classroom. From the outset, they can “disaggregate” their SQE journey: e.g. they can just, initially, commit to an SQE1 preparation course if they wish. Or they can combine it with SQE2 Preparation into an 8-month diploma or 12-month Master’s. Or, for non-law graduates, their SQE1 preparation can follow their law conversion course by way of a Master’s programme, which is potentially eligible for funding from Student Finance England. “I encourage students to talk to our admissions officers about which course is the best fit for both their pocket and their personal circumstances,” Hurst says. Rayson adds that students can move between full-time and part-time modes “if life events require it”, an acknowledgement that the path to qualification does not always run smoothly.
So what separates the students who perform well from those who struggle? For Rayson, the answer starts with organisation. “High-performing students have a plan and stick to it,” she says. Since the exams are closed-book, she stresses the importance of practising MCQs under timed, exam conditions to develop the agility the format demands. Students should draw on study techniques that have served them well before, but remain open to new approaches if needed. “The goal is to arrive at the exam cool, calm and collected.”
Time, Hurst adds, is the most precious commodity of all. Many students are working alongside their studies to finance the qualification, but the trade-off is a real one. His advice is considered: “It is not a race. It might be better to wait a year to save up for a comprehensive course so you don’t have to work as many hours alongside it.” Starting under extreme financial pressure, he suggests, is rarely a recipe for success.
The sheer volume of material in SQE1 is a challenge in itself. “The SQE1 specification (i.e. the SQE syllabus) is sprawling,” Rayson acknowledges. BPP’s curriculum team has done the work of breaking down what they believe students need to know for each law and practice area, but, she adds “students must remain disciplined and focused to avoid being overwhelmed.”
As our conversation draws to a close, both offer a final thought for those preparing to sit the SQE. Hurst’s warning is one worth taking seriously: “It is easy to persuade yourself that you understand something at a surface level. You must interrogate yourself, especially when you get an MCQ right, to ensure you didn’t just get lucky. Deep learning brings about a deeper understanding: that’s what really matters.” Rayson, characteristically, brings things back to first principles. Practising hundreds of questions, she reiterates, is not a substitute for genuinely knowing the material. “You need to understand the underlying concepts first,” she says. “Learn the law, understand how to apply it, and only then practise MCQs.”
Jonny Hurst and Caroline Rayson will be speaking at ‘Everything you need to know about the SQE — with BPP’, a virtual event taking place TOMORROW (4 JUNE 2026). Secure your place!
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