SQE1 vs SQE2: what each assessment involves
What SQE1 and SQE2 each test, how the formats differ, why preparation differs and the misconception hiding in their pass rates.
SQE1 and SQE2 are both required to qualify as a solicitor in England and Wales, alongside qualifying work experience and character and suitability checks. They test different things, and preparing for one tells you surprisingly little about the other.
What SQE1 involves
SQE1 tests functioning legal knowledge through two assessments, FLK1 and FLK2. Each currently consists of 180 single best answer questions split across two sessions, taken at a test centre, closed book. FLK1 covers areas including business law and practice, dispute resolution, contract, tort and the legal system. FLK2 covers property practice, wills and estates, solicitors accounts, land, trusts and criminal law and practice. Ethics runs across both.
The format matters as much as the content: five options per question, all plausible-sounding, with one best answer at the standard of a newly qualified solicitor. Always confirm the current structure and dates in the SRA assessment specification before booking.
What SQE2 involves
SQE2 tests practical legal skills. It currently consists of 16 assessments mixing oral and written tasks: client interviewing with attendance note, advocacy, case and matter analysis, legal research, legal writing and legal drafting, set across core practice areas. You must pass SQE1 before you can sit SQE2.
Where SQE1 asks whether you can select the right legal answer, SQE2 asks whether you can perform: structure an attendance note a supervisor could rely on, draft a document a client could sign and present advice a court or client would accept.
How preparation differs
SQE1 preparation is dominated by question practice, recall and coverage across a wide syllabus. SQE2 preparation is rehearsal: producing written work and spoken performances against the assessment criteria, repeatedly, with feedback. Strong SQE1 habits, especially disciplined fact-reading, carry over. The skills themselves do not. SQE1 preparation is covered in how to prepare for SQE1.
One misconception needs removing early. SQE2 pass rates in published results have typically been higher than SQE1 rates, and candidates conclude SQE2 is easier. Everyone sitting SQE2 has already passed SQE1, so the comparison tells you about the cohort, not the difficulty. Treat SQE2 as a serious assessment in its own right.
Order, timing and the practical route
The sequence is fixed: SQE1, then SQE2. Qualifying work experience can be completed before, during or after the assessments. Focused study blocks around each assessment window usually work better than preparing for both at once, which suits how different the two stages are.
Key points
SQE1 is two closed-book assessments of 180 single best answer questions each.
SQE2 is 16 practical skills assessments, oral and written.
You must pass SQE1 before sitting SQE2.
Higher published SQE2 pass rates reflect a filtered cohort, not an easier assessment.
Check the current SRA assessment specification before planning dates.
How Qualifico helps
Qualifico covers both assessments. SQE1 gets FLK1 and FLK2 question practice, flashcards and progress tracking; SQE2 gets Written Response practice, where you type an answer and get a mark, the points from that question's mark scheme your answer missed and a suggested repair for next time. Given how differently the two stages are assessed, that matters here more than in most comparisons: the tool does not change when the demand does.
Next steps
Start with what the SQE involves overall and how SQE1 works in detail. Comparing routes? See SQE vs LPC. The SQE resource hub lists the SQE1 preparation guides.
Sources checked
Search other posts