Oxbridge graduates 15 times more likely to receive top pupillage awards

Bar pupils who attended Oxbridge are 15 times more likely than others to obtain financial awards of £60,000 or more, according to the Bar Council’s latest pupil survey which asked about university education for the first time. 

The fifth survey, published today, also reveals that 8% of pupils working in publicly funded areas, such as crime and family, received awards above £60,000 compared with 46% of pupils working in other areas.

Chambers and employers set their own awards when they advertise pupillages, just as law firms do with training contracts. Privately funded chambers, such as chancery and commercial, typically set higher awards.

The minimum award is set by the Bar Standards Board and guided by the Living Wage Foundation. The minimum pupillage award for 2026 is £25,863 for 12-month pupillages in London and £23,504 for pupillages outside London.

The median pupil award for this year’s respondents fell in the £40,000-£49,000 bracket. Last year, it fell in the £30,000-£39,000 bracket.

The survey was sent to 472 pupils and attracted 143 responses. Three in 10 respondents attended Oxbridge, 35% attended a Russell Group university, 11% went to other ‘research-intensive’ universities and 23% went to another institution. Four respondents attended university overseas.

Eight in 10 respondents said their overall experience of pupillage had been positive. However, three in 10 pupils with disabilities were negative about their pupillage compared with 13% of pupils without a disability. While 77% of pupils were satisfied with their induction, pupils identifying as neurodivergent were twice as likely to say they were unsatisfied or neutral about theirs.

Bar chair Kirsty Brimelow KC said: ‘One focus of mine is improving access to practice for barristers with disabilities, seen and unseen, and those who are neurodivergent. We recently published a new neurodiversity guide with advice for chambers and pupils, and we will continue to work closely with chambers using the findings of this and previous surveys, to ensure that our pupils have a strong and positive a start at the bar.’

Fewer pupils reported experiencing or witnessing bullying, harassment or discrimination - 18% this year compared with 28% last year. However, Brimelow said there was no place for bullying and harassment at the bar and she was determined to work with the bar’s commissioner for conduct, Dame Maria Miller, to stamp it out.