BPP’s Head of Outreach joins future trainees to discuss the key considerations when selecting a prep course

With so many options available, choosing the right Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE) course can feel overwhelming for aspiring lawyers.

During a recent Legal Cheek virtual event (full video embedded above), Jonny Hurst, BPP’s Head of Outreach and former partner at a City law firm, teamed up with SQE1 Award Leader Julie Harris to discuss key factors to consider when making this crucial decision, including costs, pass rates, reputation and content.

They were joined by future trainees from two City firms and a current trainee from BPP’s Social Impact Team, who shared their experiences of preparing for the exams and offered advice to those considering this route to qualification as solicitors.

Legal Cheek is running ‘The SQE series’ with BPP University Law School. The video of each session will be made available one month after each virtual event together with further FAQs arising from each session which SQE experts from BPP are answering.

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BPP student Ifeoluwa Aderibigbe shares her experience and why legal work can be the key to success

“The Solicitors Qualifying Exams (SQE) have been interesting,” says Ifeoluwa Aderibigbe, current SQE 1&2 LLM student at BPP University Law School. “I’ve never had to do anything like this before, because all of my exams on my law degree were essay-based. So, it’s taken me some time to get used to the multiple-choice question (MCQ) style.” With this interview coming straight off the back of Aderibigbe finishing her SQE2 exams, Legal Cheek Careers is keen to find out more about her experience so far.

“Even though I’ve done work in a legal clinic, I had never engaged with legal drafting and legal research prior to starting SQE2 preparation, so it has come as somewhat of a challenge,” notes Aderibigbe. “But overall, I’ve found the experience really beneficial because it has taught me so many of the skills that I’ve needed for my work at BPP’s Legal Clinic.”  By working for BPP’s Social Impact team, Aderibigbe is building up her Qualifying Work Experience (QWE). This means that by the time she finishes her six-month placement with BPP, she will have completed 25% of her QWE if she decides to qualify via the QWE portfolio route.

However, she still hopes to secure a two-year traditional training contract at a single employer. “My SQE experience has been really fundamental in helping me to build the skills that I use day-to-day working on cases at the clinic, but also to help build those skills that I’ll need when I ultimately become a qualified solicitor,” she explains.

Talking on why she chose BPP as a provider, she tells us that it’s undeniable that the pass rate influenced her choice. “It’s significantly higher than the national average at BPP, so I wanted to ensure that I was choosing a provider which would give me the best chance of success,” she explains. “And, I have to say that I have no regrets choosing BPP as a provider for the SQE. We’re provided with revision notes and videos which help you to navigate the knowledge that you need to bring over from a law degree,” she says.

“And aside from this, the structure of teaching at BPP is very good,” she continues. “Before each class, we’re all given a ‘prepare task’, and during the session we’re given an ‘apply task’, which really helped me personally to cement my knowledge.”

So, she says, even during SQE1 preparation, students already have an idea of the types of skills they’ll need for SQE2 — given that most of the knowledge tested is ‘applied’ within the classroom. “The tasks that we’re given throughout, whether these are the tasks during each session or the practice exams, all really resonated with the actual formulation of the exams, so in my opinion BPP’s SQE prep course can’t be faulted,” she explains.

After announcing last year that BPP was taking on five ‘qualifying work experience’ trainees to work within its pro bono clinic, Aderibigbe found herself as one of the law school’s first student recruits. We probed her on the kind of work she’s been undertaking. “I had some previous experience in BPP’s Legal Advice Clinic, so I wanted to explore my legal journey with the Social Impact team,” she explains. “But since I’ve started, I advise on civil litigation matters which really relate to what I’ll be doing in practice. I meet with clients and conduct client interviews with a solicitor supervisor, and afterwards I send letters of advice out to each client on their case,” she says. “So, it helps me both to revise all of the knowledge I’ve learned throughout my undergraduate degree and the SQE exams, but also to put this knowledge into practice.”

Although she’s still planning on going down the traditional training contract route rather than building her QWE across multiple organisations, this experience is guaranteed to help her stand out from the TC-hunting crowd. “Interviewing clients is something which I’ve always wanted to do. I really enjoy the aspect of seeing a case through from start to finish, and I find it so rewarding to be able build my confidence and experience,” she says. Working with a lot of qualified solicitors, she tells us that it’s also been incredible exposure to legal practice.

Noting how much this experience helped her in the SQE2 exams, she says:

 “I would advise anyone taking SQE2 to gain work experience before they take the exam. It really helps. When I walked into the client interviewing assessment on the SQE2 exam, it felt so natural because this is something that I do every day at work!”

Aderibigbe will be speaking at Legal Cheek’s event, “SQE courses: everything you need to know”, which is just around the corner, on 6 June. With this in mind, we quiz her on her general advice for SQE students. “The first tip I would give is to make the decision not to self-study. Self-study for the SQE is not going to take you as far as with a provider. There are some things my tutors taught me in class which are not in the materials, yet still became fundamental to my success on the exams,” she explains. “Aside from this, as I mentioned previously, work experience really is key to the SQE2 exams. And, finally, although practice exams are key, try not to focus solely on MCQ prep. Broadening your knowledge so that it’s applicable widely to many types of questions prevents students from the path-dependency that comes with over-reliance on previous practice exam answers.”

On a final note, she urges SQE students to prepare for all eventualities. “The SQE exams can surprise you. Choosing to study in a way which is new or unfamiliar to you may be the key to success. Expect the unexpected”.

Ifeoluwa Aderibigbe will be speaking at ‘SQE courses: everything you need to know — with BPP University Law School’, a virtual student event taking place on Thursday 6 June. Apply now to attend.

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Over 870 aspiring lawyers completed latest sitting

Results for the latest sittings of part two of the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE) have been released today, with the overall pass rate climbing to 73%.

This marks a 9% increase from the previous sitting, where the number of passing students was 64%

In order to pass, students were required to score above 61-62%, depending on whether they took part in the first or second sitting. Across the two sittings, both taking place in January and February this year, the pass rate for the 876 candidates varied between 71% and 75%.

For those taking their first shot at the exam the pass rate was higher at 76%.

As in the last round of results there are significant variations across the scores, with the highest scoring candidates clocking north of 90%, whilst some scored below 30%.

A student’s overall mark is an average of their performance across 16 stations — 12 written stations and four oral stations. These assess skills and applied legal knowledge.

To undertake SQE2 students must first pass SQE1, a test of their grasp of black letter law across two multiple-choice exams.

In April this year 175 students were incorrectly told they had failed their SQE1 exams after a marking error by exam administrator Kaplan. To make matters worse, Legal Cheek later revealed that some students impacted by the blunder had seen their training contract offers revoked.

Kaplan drafted in top statistician after 175 students were incorrectly told they had failed

An independent review has confirmed the accuracy of the reissued SQE1 results.

Assessment provider Kaplan commissioned an independent review of the revised scores after 175 students were wrongly informed in April that they had failed their exam.

Both Kaplan and the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) apologised for the extraordinary blunder, attributing it to a rounding error in the calculation of the final scores.

Affected students were issued their revised scores, but as Legal Cheek reported at the time, some had already seen their training contract offers revoked.

Kaplan stressed that, despite completing “thorough checks” and reviewing the calculations “in detail” before releasing the revised results, it decided to bring in a leading statistician to independently verify the final scores.

This task was given to Anne Pinot de Moira, a chartered statistician with over 25 years of experience working in the fields of assessment and education. She is an Honorary Norham Fellow at the Department of Education, University of Oxford.

In a statement last week, the SRA confirmed that the review had been completed and confirmed the accuracy of the reissued results, including individual marks, quintiles, and overall pass/fail outcomes.

Kaplan is also commissioning a wider independent review of the incident and its causes.

BPP’s Head of Outreach joins SQE Award Leaders and future trainees to discuss part one of the solicitors’ assessment

The Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE) is now just over three years old, and multiple cohorts have already completed both the SQE1 and SQE2 assessments.

During a recent Legal Cheek virtual event (full video above), a panel session led by BPP’s Head of Outreach and former City law firm partner Jonny Hurst, along with SQE Award Leaders Allison Banks (responsible for City Consortium Plus Programme and Essentials for Practice) and Ayesha Anandappa (overseeing LPC Firm Specific and Essentials for Practice), delved into all aspects of SQE1.

The informative discussion covered a range of topics, including the format, booking process, content, and assessments for SQE1. Additionally, it featured an interactive analysis of sample questions aimed at helping aspiring lawyers understand what to expect.

The panel also included current SQE students from BPP who have recently passed SQE1, such as Mikaela Hristova, a future trainee at Stephenson Harwood, and Christian Stocker, a future trainee at Walker Morris. Together, they shared insights into their course experiences and offered advice to those considering the SQE route.

Legal Cheek is running ‘The SQE series’ with BPP University Law School. The video of each session will be made available one month after each virtual event together with further FAQs arising from each session which SQE experts from BPP are answering.

Follow @BPPGroup

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SRA says assessment ‘continues to perform well’

Fees for the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE) are set to increase for the second time amidst mounting student discontent regarding the centralised assessment.

The current fees for the exams are £1,798 for SQE1 and £2,766 for SQE2, totaling £4,564 for students. This sizeable sum doesn’t include expenses for study materials or preparation courses, which can reach up to £10,000. Starting September 2024, the Solicitors Regulation Authority has today confirmed fees will rise by 5% to £1,888 for SQE1 and £2,902 for SQE2. That’s a total of £4,790.

The news comes less than a year after fees were raised by 11% “due to inflation”.

On the rationale for this latest hike, the regulated said: “Our contract with our assessment provider Kaplan allows for an annual inflation-linked increase in fees.The new fee also includes an additional charge towards the costs of providing for candidates to sit the SQE in Welsh if they wish.”

The increase in fees follows several weeks during which students have expressed concerns about both the delivery and management of assessments, as well as the toll they can take on mental health.

Despite this, the SRA’s latest report on the SQE noted that it “continues to perform well and there can be confidence in this rigorous assessment”.

“The SQE Independent Reviewer”, it goes on to say, “concluded that the delivery of the assessment had overall gone well, had improved year on year and the assessments were fair and reliable.” They did however acknowledge “that there had been some operational issues, but Kaplan had been proactive in dealing with issues when they arose and considered the impact on candidates”.

Commenting on the review, Paul Philip, SRA chief executive, said:

“It’s good to see that once again the reports and analyses, including from the independent reviewer, provide assurances that the SQE is a robust, fair and valid assessment. As numbers taking the SQE route continue to increase we, and the public and wider profession, can have confidence that newly qualified solicitors meet the high standards that we all expect of them.”

Last month Legal Cheek exclusively revealed that a number of City law firms had revoked training contracts from students who failed to pass the SQE1 at their first attempt. These outfits include Clifford Chance, Slaughter and May, and CMS.

Follows Clifford Chance terminating TCs

As the shockwaves continue to be felt from Clifford Chance’s decision to cancel TC offers for several students who failed SQE1, future trainees at Macfarlanes are wondering if they could be next — after remembering that the firm has already committed publicly to a no-resit policy.

Macfarlanes’ graduate recruitment website states that “future trainees are required to pass all SQE exams (including the Macfarlanes essential for practice modules) on the first sitting”. Legal Cheek understands this policy has been in place for some time.

While this approach ensures that potential applicants understand what is expected from them regarding the SQE, it also places additional pressure on students — who are already under significant pressure due to the nature of the assessments — to pass first time around.

There are murmurs that Macfarlanes could row back on its strict ‘must pass first time’ rule. Legal Cheek understands that despite the public statement on the firm’s website no final decisions have been made yet regarding students who may have failed the latest sitting of SQE1.

The Legal Cheek Firms Most List shows Macfarlanes recruits around 33 trainees each year and provides an SQE maintenance grant of £17,000. It sends future trainees to BPP, where the firm also covers training fees.

News of the policy comes just 48 hours after Legal Cheek revealed that Clifford Chance had terminated the training contract offers of around four future trainees who recently failed to pass SQE1 on the first attempt.

Last year, the City of London Law Society proposed several options for law firms to consider regarding trainees who fail the SQE. This included deferrals and rescission of the training contract, but warned the latter could could potentially lead to “negative publicity”.

Macfarlanes declined to comment.

Do you know what approach your firm is taking? Drop us an email at tips@legalcheek.com

Down from 79%

The latest round of results for part two of the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE2) has been released, with the overall pass rate of students dropping down to 64%.

The fifth round of SQE2 assessments, which ran in two sittings between 23 October and 2 November 2023, saw a significant drop in the percentage of students passing, with the most recent previous cohort of budding solicitors clocking a 79% pass rate.

Those sitting the exam for the first time fared better, with 69% passing, although this is still a significant decrease from the 82% of first-time passers in the last round of assessments.

In order to pass, the 642 candidates were required to average a mark of between 61-62%, depending on whether they sat in the first or second sitting.

A student’s overall mark is an average of their performance across 16 stations — 12 written stations and four oral stations — that assess both skills and application of legal knowledge. In order to undertake SQE2, students must first pass SQE1, an assessment of their understanding of black letter law across two multiple-choice exams.

These most recent assessments saw a significant disparity between those at the top of their cohort, the best of whom scored 90%, and those at the tail end, dipping below the 30% mark.

Follows summer pilot

Aspiring lawyers will soon have the option to sit part one of the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE) in Welsh, the regulator has confirmed.

The move follows a successful pilot last summer which explored the practicalities of running SQE1 in the Welsh language, including the presentation of the questions and the process for translation.

SQE1 will be available in Welsh from 1 September 2024 with the first assessment taking place in January 2025.

The SQE was formally introduced in September 2021 as the new route to solicitor qualification. SQE1 focuses on functioning legal knowledge (FLK) whilst SQE2 focuses on legal skills. Students already have the option to select Welsh as the language for taking SQE2.

In an update last week, the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) said efforts have been undertaken to improve the process of translating questions. A selection of SQE1 questions, translated using a modified method, were evaluated by 15 candidates involved in the pilot. The results of this review were “positive, the SRA said, with 93% of candidates acknowledging an improvement in question translation as a result of the revised process.

Join us on the afternoon of Tuesday 13 February for a virtual student event, ‘SQE myths and half-truths — with BPP University Law School’. Apply now.

SRA tells students to plan ahead

Despite scheduled train strikes across England, the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has confirmed that SQE assessments will go ahead as planned.

The SQE2 assessments are due to begin today at centres across the UK. Whilst the written exam, running from today (30th January) until 1st February, can be taken at Pearson VUE test centres in the UK and internationally, oral assessments are only available at select locations.

These exams, taking place between 6th and 9th February, require students to travel to either Birmingham, Cardiff, London, or Manchester.

Rail strikes are due to take place between 30th January and 5th February, with train operators placing a ban on overtime until 6th February.

According to the National Rail website, “on the days where full strike action is taking place this is likely to result in little or no services across large areas of the network operated by the affected train companies. Services are also likely to be disrupted and start later on the day immediately following a full strike day.”

A separate five-day strike aimed specifically at LNER, between 5th and 9th February, has been called off.

A statement on the SRA website in response to the planned disruption reads:

“Train strikes have been announced for some train operators in the UK, affecting travel between 30 January — 6 February. SQE2 assessments will go ahead as planned. Please check travel arrangements in advance and leave enough time to travel to your test centre as you must arrive on time.”

In December, a number of students were left frustrated after receiving an erroneous exam cancellation email from assessment provider Kaplan. This came after some aspiring solicitors spent over three hours waiting in online queues to book their SQE assessments back in October.

The cost of sitting the SQE2 is £2,766.

Between 100% and 21%

There was a huge disparity in pass rates among providers of the Legal Practice Course (LPC) in the year the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE) was introduced, a new report has shown.

The findings, published recently by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), show success rates varied from as high as 100% to as low as just 21%.

The regulator noted a number of factors which may impact a law school’s pass rate, including student ability and engagement, teaching quality and assessment arrangements.

The report — which covers the period between September 2021 and August 2022 — doesn’t name specific LPC providers but does show two scored a pass rate of 100%. Of the 20, three had pass rates of 30% or below.

The SRA also highlights the very large differences in the size of the various providers and the number of students of different LPCs (full-time, part-time etc). LPC cohorts range from fewer than ten students to many thousands of students, spread over different locations.

The largest providers, BPP University and The University of Law, shared approximately 87% of the total number of students enrolled to take the LPC.

Overall, pass rates for the LPC fell compared to the previous year, 47.8% in 2021-22 compared to 53.5% in 2020-21. This, the SRA says, may be due to an increase in students who deferred during the pandemic, compare to previous years.

The SQE replaced the LPC as the route to solicitor qualification, although both courses are available until the latter is phased out by the end of 2032.

Last month the SRA confirmed it would miss its self-imposed deadline for publishing SQE pass rates among providers, blaming a lack of “sufficient data”.

74% score

The creators of an AI-powered paralegal say it has successfully passed part one of the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE).

The bot, dubbed ‘Lawrence’, achieved a score of 74% compared to the typical pass rate of between 55% and 65%.

SQE1 is broken down into two Functioning Legal Knowledge (FLK) assessments and covers a broad range of legal topics including contract, tort, property, crime and trusts.

Lawrence was able to successfully answer 67 of the 90 multiple choice sample questions which appear on the Solicitors Regulation Authority’s website. This, according to Lawhive, the lawtech firm that created the bot, demonstrates its “ability to learn, digest and offer considered responses to various legal situations”.

As for the Lawrence’s weak points the creators say that while there were no clear themes, the bot did struggle with questions featuring “complex chains of logic and wider context”. It also struggled when two concepts shared similarities, confusing public nuisance versus private nuisance for example. Law students will sympathise.

But Lawrence didn’t just stop at the SQE. He (it?) and a human lawyer were presented with the same client’s will and probate case in order to compare tone, empathy and legal knowledge.

On the AI paralegal’s performance, Lawhive said:

“Whilst Lawrence managed to steer the conversation with the client to gain the necessary information about the client’s late relative’s will and assets, the conversation remained largely transactional and of half the length of the human solicitor. Feedback from the client was positive to both responses, but critiqued Lawrence for not showing as much empathy as the human counterpart. Lawrence also failed to question the client on their late relative’s spending habits and asked around a wider context that ultimately uncovered financial liabilities the solicitor would need to be aware of.”

Don’t worry, though; Lawrence isn’t out of a job just yet. The SQE-passing paralegal is currently being used to support the companies team of solicitors and legal experts.

18% uplift

Hogan Lovells has upped its financial support for future trainees completing the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE).

The global law firm, which recruits around 50 trainees each year, has increased its maintenance grant from £17,000 to £20,000 — an uplift of 18%.

Hogan Lovells is part of a band of elite firms known as the ‘City Consortium’ which send their future rookies to BPP University Law School. The other Consortium firms are: Freshfields, Herbert Smith Freehills, Linklaters, Norton Rose Fulbright and Slaughter and May.

The Legal Cheek Firms Most List 2024 shows maintenance grants typically vary between £20,000 and £12,000, although some firms offer much less.

Once through the SQE, Hogan Lovells trainees earn a salary of £50,000 in year one, rising to £55,000 in year two. Rates for newly qualified associates currently sit at £120,000.

Exclusive: IT issue… again

Students have expressed their frustration after an IT issue meant they were unable to sit one of their Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE) assessments this week. This is despite, they say, waiting around for nearly six hours in the hope it would eventually go ahead.

The tech problem occurred on Monday and impacted over 30 students sitting their SQE2 written assessments at a test centre is Chiswick, West London.

Several students have told Legal Cheek that they arrived for 9am but were held in a waiting room for nearly three hours while invigilators attempted to rectify the problem. Students, who were unable to use their phones or even read over their revision notes during this time, were eventually told to come back after lunch.

Having returned at 1:15pm, students say they waited for a further hour and a half before eventually being told they would not be unable to sit their exams today.

And while some students at the Chiswick centre did successful sit their assessments as planned, those who were left waiting around have been left less than impressed.

“The hardest part of the day was having to wait and be ready to take the exam at any moment,” one student told Legal Cheek. “We lost preparation time, were exhausted, stressed out about how the situation affected our individual circumstances, and left in a state unfit to sit such a high stakes exam.”

Exam provider Kaplan emailed students that evening with two options: sit the exam the following day at a different test centre, or reschedule the SQE2 sitting for January.

A spokesperson for Kaplan told Legal Cheek: “There were IT issues at two floors of the Pearson VUE Chiswick test centre on Monday 30 October. This prevented 33 candidates sitting the first day of their SQE2 written assessment and a number of other candidates were significantly delayed in starting.”

“To avoid the risk of further disruption,” they said, “we relocated the exams scheduled on the affected floors on Tuesday and Wednesday to an alternative test centre and out of pocket travel expenses will be refunded to candidates.”

The spokesperson continued:

“We have arranged for candidates that did not test in Chiswick on Monday to take a rescheduled assessment on Thursday, 2 November. A full refund is also available for those who are unable to attend. We will also be making a goodwill payment of £250 to each candidate who was unable to complete their assessment on 30 October. We apologise to all candidates affected.”

Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time IT issues have prevented students from sitting SQE assessments.

Last summer we reported that a glitch at a test centre is Hammersmith meant some students were waiting around for five hours before eventually being sent home. In response, Kaplan provided students with refunds and “goodwill payments” of £250.

More recently, students expressed their frustraion at having to sit in an online queue for over three hours in a bid to secure an assessment slot. Kaplan apologised for the delay.

Over three hours for some

Students have expressed their frustration at having to sit in an online queue for hours in a bid to secure an assessment slot for the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE).

Aspiring lawyers are able to secure exam slots through an on-line booking system, with applications for some SQE sittings opening at 10am today.

But some students report still being unable to secure a space despite waiting over three hours.

One future trainee solicitor, who is still sitting in the online queue at the time of publication, said they logged into the system promptly at 10am. “It’s been very stressful, especially since there’s little progress being made on the queue, and it’s hard to focus on other things when this is in the background!” they told Legal Cheek.

Students on X, formerly Twitter, report facing similar issues. “Waiting in your queuing system, which seems to be crashing when people reach the front of the queue,” one student wrote. “Forcing them to then rejoin the queue. Seems extremely disorganised if you ask me.”

Another said: “Am in a WhatsApp group with around 30 people all trying to book the SQE exams. We’re all either still waiting — now 1hr40 mins — or ineligible to book for pre-booking steps issue. We all work full time in paralegal/casework roles. This is a nightmare.”

“ANYONE ELSE STRUGGLING BOOKING THE SQE1 EXAM? HELP!” another student posted. “I’ve completed all the pre booking steps but days i’m not eligible! Stuck on hold to customer support!”

A Kaplan spokesperson told Legal Cheek:

“We have experienced problems with the booking process for the SQE1 assessment which have now been resolved. We can reassure candidates that capacity is widely available and the booking window will remain open until 15 November. Throughout the booking process, seats will be added where extra capacity is available. We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience caused.”

This isn’t the first time SQE students have ran into problems when booking exam slots. In 2022 Legal Cheek reported that solicitor hopefuls had encountered delays of up to two hours after logging in and joining the virtual queue.

UPDATE: 14:20pm The SRA has now posted the following message to X:

We're aware some candidates had difficulties with the SQE1 booking system earlier today. We've worked with Kaplan, the SQE assessment provider, to understand the cause of the issues. You should now be able to book your place. We are sorry for any inconvenience this has caused.

— SRA (@sra_solicitors) October 4, 2023

Up £3k

Magic Circle law firm Linklaters has increased maintenance grants for future trainees sitting the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE).

Graduates completing the SQE prep course with the firm in London will now receive maintenance support of £20,000, an 18% increase on the previous amount of £17,000.

The increase brings Links’s SQE grant in line with those offered by MC counterparts Slaughter and May and Freshfields. Meanwhile, Allen & Overy and Clifford Chance provide £17,000 in support.

Linklaters is part of the ‘City Consortium’, an influential group of six law firms that send their rookies to train at BPP University Law School. The consortium also includes Slaughter and May and Freshfields, plus three other firms, Herbert Smith Freehills, Hogan Lovells and Norton Rose Fulbright.

The firm recruits around 100 trainees each year on a starting salary of £50,000 in London, rising to £55,000 in year two. Links now offers a recently improved salary of £125,000 to its newly qualified associates.

Leeds grad Zalikha Younas receives £3k for BARBRI course

Aspiring solicitor Zalikha Younas has secured a full scholarship for BARBRI‘s SQE1 prep course as a part of the global legal educator’s latest essay competition.

In her 1,000-word essay, Younas, who obtained an LLB from Leeds University and an LLM in public international law from Leiden University, mapped the impact of AI on the legal profession so far, ending with a warning on the potential ethical concerns wrapped up with the latest tech.

“Based on the unprecedented launch of ChatGPT in November 2022, it is clear that the use of AI will have a transformative effect in all professional spheres, let alone the legal profession”, Younas told Legal Cheek. “I wanted to highlight the benefits and risks of the use of AI in the legal profession. I truly believe that AI will undeniably transform the legal profession as it can be used productively to aid lawyers with their tasks. Therefore, AI should be embraced as an indispensable assistant.”

The scholarship, which is now in its third year, will allow Younas to commence her SQE studies with BARBRI. Younas is currently working alongside UN special rapporteur Javaid Rehman as a research assistant for the human rights situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran.

On her success, Younas said: “I was absolutely thrilled to have won the scholarship. I am extremely grateful to BARBRI and Legal Cheek for this opportunity and their generosity. Undeniably, it is a privilege to be chosen for this scholarship which will enable me to accomplish my future career goals.”

Robert Dudley, BARBRI’s head of employability and engagement, commented:

“At BARBRI we believe everyone should be given the opportunity to access the profession and that’s why we’re proud to be continuing our SQE1 scholarship offer with Legal Cheek to help support future SQE students achieve their legal career ambitions. This most recent scholarship attracted a high number of high-quality submissions, however the judges were in agreement that Zalikha Younas’ essay was the most original and innovative.”

Younas is now enrolled onto BARBRI’s Flexible SQE1 Prep 40-week, preparing to start the SQE1 in July 2024. She will begin her studies at the beginning of October.

Includes SQE1 prep

De Montfort University (DMU) has entered into a partnership with legal education provider BARBRI to offer a new LLM programme targeted at aspiring solicitors.

Replacing the university’s Legal Practice Course (LPC) from October, the new masters will enable students, through BARBRI, to prepare for part one of the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE).

The SQE was formally introduced in September 2021 as the new route to solicitor qualification. SQE1 examines functioning legal knowledge (FLK) whilst SQE2 focuses on legal skills.

Brett Koenig, associate head of law at De Montfort University, commented:

“We are delighted to introduce the new LLM SQE course in collaboration with BARBRI. This unique offering exemplifies our commitment to providing our students with the most relevant and practical legal education possible. By combining our academic expertise with BARBRI’s proven track record in legal education, we are confident that our graduates will be exceptionally well-prepared to succeed in their legal careers.”

The course offering will be delivered from the DMU’s campus in Leicester, giving students the opportunity to gain some vital legal experience at the university’s busy law clinic.

Earlier this year BARBRI partnered with London South Bank University on a similar programme, and also has training tie-ups in place with major law firms including Baker McKenzie, Reed Smith and Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner

Meanwhile, Legal Cheek reported earlier week that the College of Legal Practice (CoLP) had teamed up with Middlesex University to provide a similar SQE-LLM course.

Mark advocacy assessments

The regulator has said it is looking for experienced solicitors to act as assessors for the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE).

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has launched a recruitment campaign on its website, searching for “experienced qualified solicitors” to assess the live oral advocacy assessments which form part two of the SQE. It says full training will be provided.

Potential examiners will be called to attend an unpaid online selection event where they will practise assessment marking and watch a presentation on SQE2 assessment methodology and criteria.

Successful solicitors will join the pool of SQE2 examiners ready for the next assessment period, which is paid.

SQE candidates that sat exams in April will be receiving their results on Tuesday this week.