New report
Student confidence in the Solicitors Qualifying Exam (SQE) has fallen sharply, despite growing firm support for the new pathway to qualification, according to fresh research commissioned by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA).
The independent report found that student confidence in the SQE fell from 3.1 in 2022 to 2.7 in 2025, with the sharpest drop seen among those who had passed the exams. This contrasts with employers, including law firms, where confidence has risen steadily, with average scores increasing from 2.9 following the introduction of the SQE to 3.4 in 2025.
The findings are based on research by IFF Research, which asked students and employers to rate their views by agreeing or disagreeing with 10 statements on a scale of one to five, where one meant strongly disagree, five meant strongly agree and three represented a neutral view.
Concerns about the fairness of the assessments sit at the heart of student dissatisfaction, an issue Legal Cheek has reported on and one that previously prompted one trainee solicitor to launch an online petition. Just 28% of candidates agreed that the SQE is a fair assessment, while nearly two-thirds disagreed, marking a significant deterioration since 2022.
Much of the criticism is directed at SQE1, particularly its multiple-choice format and the wording of questions. “Almost all the criticism of the exam’s fairness was focused on the question wording within SQE1 specifically,” IFF said, adding that some students felt questions were “designed to trick the candidate, with dense and difficult wording.”
Students also raised concerns that fine margins between passing and failing made outcomes feel dependent on luck when guessing answers they did not fully understand. Some questioned whether the multiple-choice format properly reflected real legal practice, while others said the assessment relied too heavily on memory rather than applied skills.
Despite the slump in confidence around the exams themselves, the research paints a far more positive picture of qualifying work experience (QWE). Almost nine in ten candidates who had completed QWE said they were satisfied with their overall experience, while 73% felt it helped prepare them to practise effectively as a solicitor on day one.
Costs remain another major source of frustration, with just 17% of candidates agreeing that SQE training options are affordable and only 10% considering exam fees reasonable, even though a majority reported spending less than £5,000 on preparation.
The SRA has acknowledged students’ concerns, particularly around the use of multiple-choice questions, admitting it could have done more to explain the format when the SQE was launched. It has since published additional sample questions, run workshops with training providers and commissioned a technical review of the SQE’s validity, fairness and reliability.
Julie Swan, the SRA’s director of education and training, said:
“The latest stage in our evaluation of the SQE shows increased confidence among employers. We know about the strong performance of solicitor apprentices when sitting the SQE, and it is heartening to see the positive feedback from employers about candidates taking this route, which is an important pathway to widen access to the profession.”
Swan continued: “Some of the candidate responses recorded relate to early sittings of the SQE and reflect the problems that some candidates unfortunately encountered. Over the past two years, Kaplan, the assessment provider, has made improvements to the booking system. And we have published additional resources to help candidates understand and prepare for their assessments. We will continue to respond, where we can, to feedback.”
Yesterday, Legal Cheek reported that the SRA has conceded a flaw in its data collection methods, leaving it unable to publish SQE pass rates by training provider, despite having originally pledged to release this information in late 2023.