Qualifying Work Experience FAQs
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As part of your SQE journey, you will need to complete a period of Qualifying Work Experience (QWE). We answered the most frequently asked questions on QWE below. If you have any more questions, feel free to reach out to our team here or directly to the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) here.
- ethics;
- professionalism and judgement;
- technical legal practice;
- working with others;
- managing yourself at work.
- on placement during a sandwich degree;
- working in a law clinic;
- at a voluntary or charitable;
- organisation such as Citizen Advice or a law centre;
- working as a paralegal (either in a law firm or an in-house legal department);
- on a training contract.
- a placement during a sandwich degree;
- volunteering in a law clinic or other charitable organisation;
- paralegalling (both in-house and in private practice); or
- a training contract.
- a solicitor of England and Wales in the organisation you are working for;
- another nominated solicitor of England and Wales, outside your organisation, who has direct knowledge of your work;
- the Compliance Officer for Legal Practice, or COLP, (if your organisation has one) can confirm your experience.
No, but from an employability perspective, it would be sensible to avoid a lengthy gap between passing your SQE exams and your QWE. If you complete your QWE with more than one organisation, then a short gap between each role is unlikely to put you at a disadvantage. However, you must try to avoid lengthy periods away from work or studies. This is a risk as it makes you less attractive as a candidate, particularly for competitive roles with high-profile employers.
General SQE FAQs
For all our general enquiries about the SQE Prep courses, exam, costs, and more, please visit our BARBRI SQE Prep FAQs here.