Guides
SQE1 guides
Costs, timelines, test centres, QWE, exemptions and study strategy, written from first-hand SQE1 experience.
Practical SQE1 reading, not marketing copy. Each guide is written for SQE1 candidates deciding how to prepare, where to sit, and how to plan their time, whether you are a student, changing career or already a lawyer in another country.
How Much Does SQE1 Prep Actually Cost, and Do You Need to Spend It All
What every major SQE1 provider actually charges, the SRA exam fee, and why targeted practice can close the gap without a £5,000 course.
Read guide →How to Choose the Right SQE1 Prep Option for You
Full course, manuals-only self-study, or a practice-led middle route — how to pick based on who pays and how you actually learn.
Read guide →SQE1 Changes for January 2027, What Actually Matters
The confirmed post-September 2026 FLK1 and FLK2 changes worth planning around for the January 2027 sitting.
Read guide →Qualifying Work Experience (QWE): Who Needs It and How It Works
Who needs two years of QWE, who doesn't, and how experience from anywhere, before or after the exam, can count.
Read guide →A Simple Guide to the SQE2 Exemption Application
The two things that actually decide an SQE2 exemption application, and what the SRA form is really asking for.
Read guide →SQE1 Test Centres Outside the UK
Where SQE1 runs via Pearson VUE internationally, which countries are missing, and where candidates from Nigeria and Pakistan typically travel.
Read guide →When Should You Start Studying for January 2027, a Simple Timeline
Work out a personal start date from total hours needed and realistic weekly hours — not a single date for everyone.
Read guide →How Many Hours You Actually Need to Study for SQE1 While Working Full Time
The 300–400 hour range for full-time workers, what that means per week, and a sustainable pattern that protects weekday evenings.
Read guide →Civil Law Background: The Parts of SQE1 That Actually Catch People Out
Trusts, land law and solicitors accounts — the England-and-Wales-specific subjects with no civil-law equivalent that cost candidates most.
Read guide →You Already Know More Law Than You Think
Practising lawyers already have most of the exam skill. Study the England-and-Wales differences, not a second law degree.
Read guide →English Is Not Your First Language, and That Is Not a Weakness for SQE1
Careful reading beats fast reading on a single-best-answer exam — why non-native speakers hold a genuine advantage.
Read guide →July 2026 SQE1 Pass Rate: 42% Overall, 47% First Time
The SRA's July 2026 SQE1 figures next to five earlier sittings, and what the pattern says about January 2027.
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