The Solicitors Regulation Authority has slashed the number of questions in the Solicitors Qualifying Examination after being told by candidates that the format felt ‘rushed and pressurised’.
Aspiring solicitors sitting the first part of the exam - SQE1 - have had to answer 360 single-best-answer multiple choice questions split over two 'functioning legal knowledge' assessments. From January, candidates will answer 340 questions.
Each assessment is split over two sessions. The time allowed for each session will remain two hours and 33 minutes.
The SRA said: ‘We have made changes having listened carefully to candidate and stakeholder feedback. In particular, some candidates have told us that the SQE1 assessment can feel rushed and pressurised in terms of the amount of time allowed to answer a question, and this can be exacerbated by the lack of some grouping of questions in the sessions.’
Candidates previously had to answer questions on all subjects in both sessions. Now, each session will cover a set number of subjects. Candidates will know which subjects will be covered in each session. However, questions will not be grouped by subject area. ‘Dividing the subject areas for each FLK between the two sessions will allow candidates to focus on fewer subjects in each session. Retaining randomisation of questions within each session will help to preserve assessment security requirements,’ the SRA said.
The changes will apply from January.
The single-best-answer multiple-choice format for SQE1 has been a common criticism since the exam was introduced in 2021, with one senior lawyer telling the regulator that 102 seconds per question in the multiple-choice exam was ‘unreasonable’.
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