Meeting the Qualifying Work Experience Requirements for the SQE

Mar 26, 2023

Written By Panashe Nyadundu

To meet the qualifying work experience for the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE), candidates must complete two years of qualifying work experience (QWE) that meet the SRA’s guidelines. The new route to qualification allows candidates to carry out a range of QWE, so long as the necessary requirements are met. In this article we will cover what this includes.

What counts as QWE for the SQE

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has created the SQE with the intention of providing wider accessibility and flexibility towards becoming a solicitor. This means that there are various ways in which candidates can complete QWE.

These include:

- A training contract

- Working as a paralegal

- At a charitable or voluntary organisation or law centre

- Working in a law clinic

- On placement during a law degree

These forms of QWE can be both paid or unpaid, and can be carried out at up to four organisations. Additionally, it is acceptable if the work was carried out prior to the introduction of the SQE route.

There is no requirement for QWE to be conducted in England and Wales, so candidates can gain qualifying work experience overseas or in other jurisdictions within the UK. However, your work will need to have been reviewed by a solicitor of England and Wales, who has received feedback from the person supervising you.

Furthermore, while your QWE work does not need to cover English and Welsh law, the SQE assessments do, so candidates should be mindful of this.

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The nature of QWE

The nature of the QWE you complete can and will vary from person to person and look different in each role you take on. However, for the avoidance of doubt, the SRA has enlisted a series of guidelines to help decipher what counts as QWE.

- Your job, role or experience must involve providing legal services under The Legal Services Act 2007 (s.12), which states what constitutes legal activity.

- Providing real life legal provision (simulated legal services does not count).

- Exposure to two or more competences in the Statement of Solicitor Competence

- Your role must be completed within no more than four organisations

- Take at least two years full-time/part-time equivalent to complete the QWE

- Your role must be confirmed by a solicitor or Compliance Officer for Legal practice (COLP)

The SRA states that if you answer ‘yes’ to all these questions, your QWE will have met their requirements, so be sure to read through these questions with your employer as the SRA will not advise on your individual QWE. Similarly, they do not define what full-time or part-time entails, which gives candidates added flexibility.

How many competences will I need?

To qualify as a solicitor, you will need to meet the core standards set out in the SRA’s statement of solicitor competence, a series of continuing competences that qualified solicitors are expected to obtain to effectively carry out their work.

During your QWE you will need to meet a minimum of two competences for your experience to meet the SRA guidelines, to qualify as QWE. Competences include: communicating clearly and effectively, orally and in writing; applying good business practice; and negotiating solutions to clients’ issues.

Documenting Your QWE

Lastly, in order for your QWE to be recognised you will need a solicitor of England and Wales or a COLP (either within your workplace or a willing solicitor from another organisation) to confirm that your experience qualifies. They will need to confirm that you have completed the following aspects:

- Necessary length of QWE

- You carried out legal services and obtained a minimum of two competences

- Your character and suitability to become a solicitor sufficed, and no problems surrounding this emerged.

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