This guide is written for solicitors, trainees and law students in England and Wales.
Qualifying Work Experience (QWE) is one of the four requirements for admission as a solicitor of England and Wales under the SQE framework. Before the SRA will admit a candidate, they must demonstrate that they have completed the equivalent of two years of full-time QWE.
QWE replaced the formal two-year training contract as the work experience requirement for qualification. It is more flexible — it can be completed across multiple employers, in different settings, and does not require a formal training contract — but it comes with its own requirements and pitfalls.
Qualified lawyers using Route 4 — CILEX Fellows and Practitioners, barristers of England and Wales, and certain overseas-qualified lawyers — are exempt from the QWE requirement. If you qualify under one of these routes, this guide is less directly relevant to you, though the supervision and sign-off sections may still be useful.
What counts as QWE
QWE is any work that involves legal activities as defined in section 12 of the Legal Services Act 2007. These are called reserved legal activities and include: the exercise of a right of audience, the conduct of litigation, reserved instrument activities (such as conveyancing), probate activities, notarial activities and the administration of oaths.
In practice this means work at a regulated law firm, an in-house legal team, a legal charity, a pro bono organisation, a barrister’s chambers, or any other setting where legal work is carried out under appropriate supervision.
Settings that count
Private practice law firms (SRA-regulated). In-house legal teams at companies, public bodies or charities. Local authority legal departments. CPS or government legal service roles. Pro bono organisations such as law clinics and legal advice centres. Overseas firms where the work would be a reserved activity in England and Wales. Paralegal roles where legal activities are carried out.
Settings that may not count
Administrative or non-legal roles within law firms. Work in a non-legal business environment. Purely commercial or business development roles without legal content. Work in a jurisdiction where the activities would not be reserved in England and Wales.
How much QWE is required
The SRA requires the equivalent of two years of full-time QWE. There is no officially defined figure for what constitutes full-time. A working figure of approximately 1,400 to 1,600 hours is commonly used by practitioners, based on the 32-hour reference visible on the mySRA confirming page and a 35-hour benchmark used by some commentators. However, this is not a regulatory rule — the SRA assesses QWE holistically, not by hours alone.
QWE can be completed part-time, across multiple employers, non-consecutively, and simultaneously with studying for the SQE. There is no time limit on how long it takes to accumulate.
Who can sign off QWE
QWE must be confirmed by a solicitor of England and Wales with a current practising certificate, or by a Compliance Officer for Legal Practice (COLP). The confirming solicitor does not need to have supervised you directly — they need to be satisfied that your work constitutes QWE.
In practice most candidates have their QWE signed off by a supervising partner or senior solicitor at their employer. Some employers have a designated COLP who handles sign-offs.
The confirming solicitor signs off your QWE via the mySRA portal. They confirm: the dates of your QWE, the nature of the legal activities carried out, and that in their professional judgement the experience constitutes valid QWE.
The SRA does not prescribe how QWE must be supervised — but the confirming solicitor takes on professional responsibility for the sign-off. In practice this means most solicitors will only confirm QWE for candidates they have worked with directly or whose work they can genuinely vouch for. Secure your sign-off relationship early.
Recording QWE
The SRA does not prescribe a specific format for recording QWE, but candidates must be able to demonstrate their experience if asked. Best practice is to keep a contemporaneous log of:
The dates and duration of each QWE placement or role. The employer and supervising solicitor. The type of legal work carried out, with specific examples. The reserved legal activities involved.
Many candidates use a simple spreadsheet or diary. Some employers provide structured QWE logs. The key is to record as you go — reconstructing two years of experience from memory is difficult and risks gaps.
QWE in different settings
Training contracts
A formal training contract with an SRA-regulated firm automatically qualifies as QWE for its full duration. Candidates on training contracts do not need to do anything additional to record QWE beyond what their firm requires.
Paralegal roles
Paralegal work qualifies as QWE if it involves legal activities as defined in the Legal Services Act. Administrative or secretarial work does not. Many paralegals accumulate QWE over several years before sitting the SQE.
In-house roles
In-house legal roles at companies, public bodies and charities can qualify as QWE. The candidate must be carrying out legal activities — drafting contracts, advising on regulatory matters, conducting litigation — rather than purely commercial or business roles.
Pro bono work
QWE can be accumulated through pro bono legal work at law clinics, legal advice centres and similar organisations, provided a qualified solicitor is able to confirm the experience.
Apprenticeships
Time spent on a Level 7 Solicitor Apprenticeship or Graduate Solicitor Apprenticeship automatically counts as QWE for the duration of the apprenticeship.
Common mistakes to avoid
Not recording QWE contemporaneously — leaving it to the end creates significant risk of gaps and makes the sign-off process much harder.
Assuming all work at a law firm counts — administrative, IT or business development roles do not qualify.
Not identifying a confirming solicitor early — some candidates complete two years of work and then struggle to find a solicitor willing to sign off. Identify and agree the sign-off relationship before you start.
Assuming the SRA will tell you if something does not count — the SRA takes a non-prescriptive approach. If in doubt, seek confirmation from a solicitor before spending time in a placement.
Completing QWE in a single setting when variety would be beneficial — the SRA does not require variety, but many employers look for candidates who have experienced different areas of practice.