SQE Nerves? Some tips from my journey!

Hey, welcome back everyone!

So with September starting there’s a general buzz of excitement, and an equally anxious vibe, about starting the new academic year. I find that SQE students typically fall into the anxious side as September generally means they are starting on their journey to tackle the infamous SQE. It is completely normal to feel that way, and in fact I felt like that too when I started, but having been through it myself, I know that those nerves you have about starting start to ease once you’ve begun. To help maybe speed this up, I thought I’d share some brief tips I learnt from my SQE journey. (I’ve split this up into two sections focusing on both SQE1 and SQE2 so feel free to skip to the section that is relevant to you).

SQE1

• If you have time before you start try and remind yourself of the areas you were taught in undergrad as some course providers won’t teach this and will expect you to do it in your own time. This includes: Tort, Contract, Criminal, Land, parts of EU Law and Public law. If you don’t have the time to do so before you start then look back through the topics at short but regular intervals during your studies. You will be very grateful for this when you get closer to your exam.

• Answer SQE1 questions in a way that is self-contained. The questions will try to trip you up in ways and it is important to recognise when. But if you are using a course provider who gives you questions, it is important to look for questions outside of them as you can get to the point where you get used to their questions. I would therefore recommend that when you are closer to exams you use a variety of different exam questions.

SQE2

• In my opinion the SQE2 is a knowledge exam disguised as a practical exam. FLK is still (sadly) the most important thing as although it makes up the same amount of marks as the skills do, if you don’t know what you’re being asked to write about you can’t let your skills shine through. Further, the recall needed is different as you no longer have multiple choice options as prompt you. I would recommend making sure you remain on top of your FLK and try to keep it fresh in your mind. I would also recommend implementing techniques such as brain-dumping to help with active recall, as it is recall that builds memory not exposure.

• Join the r/SQE2_prep subreddit. I found having a place where people provided tips and insight from their experience so helpful, but sadly the old SQE subreddit is no longer allowing posts. It would be great if everyone built up this new subreddit so that current and future SQE candidates have a dedicated place to go to help each other.

• But obviously it isn’t all about the knowledge and skills do play a crucial part (roughly 50% of the marks) and so practising them is important (and this will also help with your recall!). When practising, I would focus on finding a structure that works best for you as this will make writing answers feel like clockwork. Some sample answers can be highly unrealistic (I’ve seen some with full SDLT tables) which can be demoralising. Despite this I wouldn’t shy away from them, I would instead focus on the structure of them and see if there is anything you find that could help you.

But sample answers don't have to be unrealistic which is why I am providing practice questions for people with detailed key knowledge sections, to help you narrow down your revision, and realistic sample answers to show you how you can improve. I am currently offering my full mock test bundle which is in my opinion the best way to mentally prepare yourself for the 5 day SQE2 exam at the most affordable rate on the market, and you can get my free bundle of 10 questions, knowledge sections and sample answers completely free of charge (obviously!) if you're interested or just want to see more tips for SQE students check out the website!