Qualifying as a solicitor is no small feat – and for a growing number of aspiring lawyers, the journey runs alongside full-time work, family commitments, or a career change already in progress. At The College of Legal Practice, we are committed to supporting students through every stage of that journey, which is why we recently hosted a webinar bringing together Steve Johnson is the SQE1 Module Leader at the College and Liliya Nagornaya, a current SQE2 student. Liliya works full-time and is a College scholarship recipient. She passed SQE1 in July 2024 and is now preparing for SQE2, which she will sit in July 2026.
Today, we’re sharing the key insights from that conversation, exploring what the SQE actually tests, what online preparation really involves, and what both would tell anyone embarking on this path.
What is the SQE actually testing, and why does that change how you prepare?
Steve: The single best answer question requires you to be analytical and to apply your knowledge of core legal principles to what are described as realistic, factual scenarios. The sort of scenarios that you may very well come across as a practising solicitor. The whole ethos of the SQE1 assessment is effectively assessing your ability to think like a lawyer. What the SRA is saying is: we're not asking you to think like students, we're not asking you to be esoteric and overly academic. We want you to think like a lawyer and that's what we're testing. It's assessing you as a day-one solicitor, not a day-one trainee. And technically, it is possible to sit those assessments without having studied law and without any preparation course, but I would have thought the prospects of passing in those circumstances are virtually nil. Which is one of the reasons why structured preparation matters so much.
Liliya: The College provided me with everything I needed, so I didn't spend any time on extra research. Everything that was in the manual, in the tests, in the activities, I used it and stuck to it. And what became clear is that SQE1 is not only about legal knowledge, It’s about endurance, it's about your resilience. Don't be fooled by questions where the wording includes 'must' or 'may' - always pay attention to the exact wording, because it's a single best answer in the given example. How you read and answer the questions matters as much as what you know.
Is online preparation as effective as studying in person?
Steve: Yes, it's online learning, yes, it's independent learning: but you are guided in a variety of ways. The onus is very much on you to put the work in and to engage with everything that's offered. But the good news is that we help you, support you, and guide you throughout. We provide a study calendar, and into that calendar we make suggestions as to which topic areas from which practice areas you should be studying each week. You have a named personal supervisor, ten sessions in total, some group, some individual - and you can go and speak to them about any difficulties you're having. A couple of months before the SQE assessment, we sit down with you and discuss your readiness. We look at the evidence, we look at your results, and we give you our honest opinion as to whether or not you're ready to take the assessment.
Liliya: I never considered the in-person format, because it's very hard already, when you have so many commitments, to commute somewhere. With the online course, you can study in any place, because the materials are always with you. You don't even need the internet. You can pre-download everything, including all the sessions. In the later stages of my preparation, I was on a plane listening to the videos, using them as a podcast instead of listening to something on YouTube. The sessions I didn't manage to attend because of work were all available to listen on-demand. When I was revising for the SQE1 assessment, , I listened to the classes during activities, , during walks, as a dedicated task. All the topics that were challenging were covered there, and people were raising questions in the discussions at the end of each session, which were very helpful as well.
What does a typical day of online study actually look like?
Steve: Each sub-unit follows the same sequence. You begin by watching a video or listening to a podcast, then read a short part of the manual for that topic area, work through the activities, drag and drop, flashcards, that sort of thing, and then finish with ten multiple choice questions. Across the course, there are somewhere in the region of 1,900 videos, podcasts, and recorded assets, and over 2,300 SQE1-style practice questions. Alongside that, we run course information sessions and seminars throughout - at least ten across the course, and you have your personal supervisor available to you for any practical difficulties. The materials are also available for 14 months after the end of the course, so you have plenty of continuing access.
Liliya: Being in full-time work means fitting study in around everything else. I tend to put in a couple of hours after work each evening - any more than that and it starts to feel overwhelming. The great thing is that everything you need is right there: the video, the sub-unit reading, the set tasks, and ten practice questions. It's a straightforward structure that makes it easy to stay on track.
The digital copy and the hard copy have the same content, but the digital version is the one that gets constantly updated by the College as the law changes - that's worth knowing. I used the recorded sessions like podcasts, in the background during everyday things. It made revision feel less like going back to a textbook and more like revisiting a conversation - because you're hearing the questions that other students had, too.
How did you fit studying around everything else you had going on?
Liliya: I came to the College wanting to get through the pre courses very, very quickly, as many people do but the College was very open and honest with me. They said that due to my many commitments - a full-time job, other things going on -I need to be realistic about which length course I was signing up for. And I realised that yes, 40 weeks would be the best choice, because a full-time job leaves you a very limited amount of time to actually study. From day one, you open the calendar and you see what you need to do for the day. You watch the video, read the sub-unit, do the tasks that are allocated, you have ten questions and that's all you need. Don't create the mindset of “after work, I'm going to study the whole time”, because it's not going to work. Allocate two hours and stick to it. That's going to be way more productive than spending all your free time at a desk but not studying effectively. As an international student, the slower pace had another benefit; SQE1 is not only about legal knowledge, it's about endurance and your resilience. If you put yourself under extra time pressure when you don't have to, it will not play a good game with you.
Steve: Falling behind is a real risk. If you're on a 13-week course, you'll be covering around 12 sub-units a week to keep pace, and it only takes a week or so before you're very behind and trying to catch up while still keeping pace with new content. My strong advice is to follow the schedule. It might mean that some of the things expected of you by family or friends need to be put onto the back burner for a period of time - and so you need to have that conversation, explain what you're doing, that it's relatively short-term, and ask for their support.
What are your top tips for studying effectively online?
Steve: Have confidence in the materials. Fully engage with them, knowing that what we've done is provide you with everything that you need. If you go to the SRA website, one of the messages they're very consistent about is that the SQE assessments test your ability to apply core legal principles to realistic, factual scenarios, and that's exactly what the course is built around. Be prepared for the seminars - they're not first-time delivery sessions, they're there to help you understand what is difficult in order to get the most out of them, you need to have studied the topic areas beforehand. And don't be afraid to ask questions. We have a forum, and an enquiries inbox. If there's anything you don't understand, whether it's part of the manual or why the answer to a question is X rather than Y, send it in. Finally, use the progress tests. There are ten in total and they start small and get bigger. They're there to help you build stamina and time management, and you can attempt them as many times as you like, which makes them very good decision aids.
Liliya: Don't skip the complex concepts. If you're reading after work and you feel exhausted and you don't really understand something, if you tell yourself you'll park it and come back later, you never will. If you see a concept you don't understand, spend the extra five minutes on it there and then. Use whatever resource helps you understand it. If English isn't your first language, try working through it in your own language first. In the exam itself, never spend too much time on one question. You have one minute and forty seconds. If you don't know it, unfortunately, you don't know it. Move on. And be mentally ready for the length of the exam. At some point you will experience fatigue, so bring snacks and water for the breaks.
What would you say to someone who's worried about whether they can do this?
Liliya: It's not all about locking yourself in and staying isolated and studying all the time. You need to see family, you need to see friends, you need to spend time in fresh air, you need to sleep properly. Don't isolate yourself - it's not going to work. You need to reduce stress levels, not increase them. Tell the people close to you what you're doing, ask for their support for a set period of time and protect your focus during study hours, but protect your rest too.
Steve: You're not alone in this. If anything's out of your supervisor's remit, they'll refer you to where you need to go, and that's a very important part of the preparation, because it means you have somebody there to support you. The students who do best are the ones who engage with everything that's offered, not just the self-study materials.
Final thoughts
Steve: Online SQE preparation works but it only works when you take it seriously and follow the structure. The format gives you flexibility, the discipline has to come from you. If you engage fully and consistently with everything the course provides, you will be prepared.
Liliya: I sat the sitting where the SQE1 pass rate was at its lowest - 43% - and I passed using only the materials provided by the College. Choose the course that fits your situation, follow the plan, and don't underestimate what you're capable of when you approach it properly.
View the full recording now for more insights and tips.
Additional resources
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