Hi all,
Recent news about firms revoking TCs for failing the SQE1 has given me quite a lot of jitters. My offer letter also stipulates that my TC offer is conditional upon passing the SQE on first attempt, so failing really isn't an option for me and I want to give myself my best shot at getting this right.
I am due to start the LLM Legal Practice (SQE1&2) prep course at ULaw London Moorgate in September 2024. Was wondering if anyone here could shed some light on how best to prepare ahead of the course start date? If there is realistically nothing I can do ahead of the course starting, for those who have finished the SQE1, is there anything you wish you had known earlier when you first started the course that would have made the exams less painful?
Just for some context, I did a 3-year undergrad law degree, graduated in summer 2023.
Hey, I passed the SQE exams recently and pretty well too so can provide some insights.
Preparing for SQE 1
The SQE 1 is designed to test your mental bandwidth across 16 different subjects in two papers. It is looking more for the breadth of your knowledge rather than depth
(which your LLB/LLM would have tested). This means that you have to be comfortable with toggling between different areas of law in one sitting. It does not expect you to remember different judges opinions, case names or dissenting commentary, its primary aim is to test your understanding of legal concepts and principles.
It took me a while to get used to this system of testing but ultimately the best resource is
question banks. ULaw provides an amazing database full of questions that will test your ability to recall answers and look for keywords to quickly pick the answer
(1 minute 42 seconds is the time recommended per question)
There are other free and paid resources out there
(and more will soon follow) that you can use if you would like something different from ULaw. Ultimately, candidates sign an NDA before taking the exam so it is impossible for prep courses and schools to know what comes out. Therefore, it is worthwhile to try a couple of resources as opposed to relying on just one resource.
I made a post back in December on the question banks currently available that are free or affordable that you can check here:
Hey everyone, I recently sat the SQE 1 exams and got high 70s in them. I had a course provider but mainly used other resources to help with revision and practice. I hope they can help, especially for those sitting in January 2024. Question Banks - https://britishlawacademy.com/?p=1545 (Free)...
www.thecorporatelawacademy.com
What you can do now
For now, all you can realistically do is brush up on your underlying legal knowledge
(criminal law, trust law, contract law, tort law, public law, land law, and legal systems). It is unlikely that ULaw will go through these with you during classes as they will be teaching you new subjects such as criminal litigation, civil dispute resolution, business law, property practice, wills, and ethics. Therefore, I highly recommend you get a head start on the underlying law subjects as these are given equal weightage as the new subjects you will learn with ULaw.
Depending on ULaw, you may be given early access to their database of questions maybe 1-2 months before your course starts. So in the meantime, you may revisit some old notes or use some of the question banks currently in the market to start testing your MCQ instincts.
You can start by practicing studying concepts, such as active recall and spaced repetition, and reminding yourself that this exam is not concerned with nuanced commentary and judges' opinions, it is about testing your efficiency and accuracy with concepts. Keep your notes simple, neat, and to the point considering the sheer breadth of the content. By doing this now, you will be less overwhelmed once ULaw teaches you the new subjects.
I'll end by saying this, the SQE is a tough and intense exam. Some may only need 4 months of prep to get a distinction and some may need 9-10 months to pass. It mainly comes down to your consistency and whether you're willing to adapt to this unorthodox method of testing legal knowledge. Considering you are already intrigued to learn at such an early stage, you may be less caught off guard once you start the course. I hope this helps and best of luck, you will be fine.