International students studying/ have completed the SQE

[rutabaga]

I have a law degree from the UK and was able to secure a paralegal role at a high street firm whilst on my graduate visa. My visa, however, is due to expire in a few months and my current firm cannot sponsor me nor have I been able to find another role. So I am trying to weigh my options here, one of which is to self fund the SQE as a form of 'upskilling' and being more desirable to employers. Any advice?

Also, to those international students that have done or are in the process of taking the full-time SQE courses within the UK. How long was your student visa granted for and what is the duration of your course?

And to those international students that have completed it. Did you find it made it easier for you to land a legal role as an international?

Thanks

 

[Ram Sabaratnam]

Hi @rutabaga


From having spoken to recruiters about this, my impression is that doing the SQE full-time in the UK doesn’t automatically make you more competitive for a training contract, especially as an international candidate. Firms, particularly those offering structured training contracts, still tend to place more weight on your practical experience, how you present your motivation, and your overall fit with the firm, rather than whether you’ve already completed the SQE. That said, successfully passing SQE1 (and ideally on the first attempt) can be a real advantage, especially since more firms are now asking paralegal applicants to have passed at least SQE1 before considering them for legal roles. In that sense, I think self-funding and passing can help demonstrate ability and commitment, even if it’s not a silver bullet.

There’s also a practical question to consider: enrolling in a full-time SQE/LLM courses may reduce the amount of time and flexibility you have to apply for vac schemes. This is just something to bear in mind, if you're planning on using the year you complete the LLM/SQE course as an opportunity to apply for training contracts. However, it may still be easier to apply for certain schemes that fall outside of your term time if you're still in the UK.

Overall, I think the SQE might play a useful role in demonstrating your commitment to the profession and may help you meet hiring criteria for certain roles (e.g. paralegal roles), but I’d just be cautious about relying on it as the main way to become more marketable. I'd encourage you to really focus on developing a good application strategy if you decide to stay in the UK (or even if you leave for that matter).

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