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United Kingdom · Professional exam

SQE qualifying work experience (QWE)

To qualify through the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE), you need two years of qualifying work experience (QWE), full-time or equivalent, providing real legal services. It can be split across up to four organisations, paid or voluntary, in England, Wales or abroad, and a solicitor or Compliance Officer for Legal Practice (COLP) confirms each part. The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) says SQE qualifying work experience is more flexible than the period of recognised training it replaces: you can gain it before, during or after the assessments, and count work you’ve already done.

  • 2 yearsFull-time or equivalent
  • Up to 4Organisations you can use
  • 2Competences a role must offer, at least
Where to study

Updated October 2026 · Written from official sources, listed at the bottom of this page

What counts as SQE qualifying work experience?

QWE must involve providing legal services, and the SRA points to the definition of legal activity in section 12 of the Legal Services Act 2007. Simulated work doesn’t count. Examples the SRA gives include:

  • a placement during a law degree
  • a law clinic
  • a voluntary or charitable organisation or a law centre
  • paralegal work
  • a training contract

The work doesn’t have to cover the law of England and Wales. A role in a law firm or legal team that doesn’t involve legal services is unlikely to count.

Checking whether your role counts as QWE

The SRA won’t rule on individual cases. It says that if you can answer yes to all of these, your role is likely to be QWE:

  • Does it involve providing legal services?
  • Is it real legal work, not simulated?
  • Have you been exposed to at least two competences in the Statement of Solicitor Competence?
  • Is it in no more than four organisations?
  • Is it at least two years full-time or equivalent?
  • Will a solicitor or COLP confirm it?

The SRA doesn’t define full-time. It expects employers to take a common-sense view. A role that only ever uses one competence doesn’t count, even if it’s legal work.

Who confirms your QWE

For each organisation, the confirmation comes from its COLP, a solicitor who works there, or, if neither applies, a solicitor outside the organisation who has reviewed your work and had feedback from your supervisor. They must be a solicitor of England and Wales but don’t need a practising certificate. A barrister or other kind of lawyer can’t confirm it unless they’re also a solicitor or a COLP the SRA regulates.

They confirm how long the experience lasted, that it gave you the chance to develop some or all of the competences, and that nothing arose that questions your character and suitability. They aren’t judging how good your work was.

Past experience and recording QWE in mySRA

You can claim QWE for past jobs, placements or volunteering, with no limit on how far back, as long as someone at that organisation can confirm it. The confirming solicitor gets an email, logs in to mySRA and approves or rejects the period, and you hear back by email.

You only need to register your two years by the time you apply for admission. The SRA’s training template helps you record experience against the competences, but you don’t have to use it.

LPC graduates using QWE →SQE qualification →
Sources: SRA and 3 more. Checked October 2026.

Rules and fees can change, so check the official site before your test.

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