QWE tracker
Add each placement, job or clinic you've done, with the hours you worked. You'll see your full-time-equivalent total towards the two years of qualifying work experience you need for the SQE route, how many of your four organisations you've used and which periods still need confirming.
Free to use. Your answers stay in this browser and aren't sent to us unless you ask us to email you something.
The QWE rules in brief
- Two years, full time or equivalent. Part-time work counts pro rata. The SRA doesn't define full time, so the tracker lets you set what a full-time week means for you.
- Up to four organisations. You can combine experience from up to four, such as a law firm, an in-house team, a law clinic or an advice centre.
- Paid or unpaid. Volunteering can count, as long as it involves providing real legal services, not simulated ones.
- At least two competences. The work must give you the chance to develop at least two of the competences in the SRA's Statement of Solicitor Competence. You don't have to develop all of them.
- In the UK or abroad. QWE can be gained in England and Wales or overseas, and it doesn't have to involve English law.
- Confirmed by a solicitor or COLP. Each period must be confirmed by a solicitor of England and Wales or a Compliance Officer for Legal Practice. They don't need a practising certificate, and they can be outside your organisation if they've reviewed your work or had feedback on it.
You only need to register your two years by the time you apply for admission, but asking for confirmation while you're still in a role is much easier than chasing it years later.
How the tracker counts
For each period, the tracker multiplies the number of days by the share of a full-time week you worked. If you worked 21 hours a week and full time is 35, each day counts as 0.6 of a full-time day. Overlapping periods never count as more than one full-time day for any single day. Two years is counted as 730.5 full-time days.
If you're still in a role, leave the end date blank. The tracker counts up to today and estimates when you'll reach two years at your current hours.
Keeping a good record
- Note what you did that maps to the competences, with examples. The SRA has an optional template for this.
- Record your supervisor's name and the confirming solicitor's SRA number.
- Download the CSV regularly and keep it with your training records.
Questions
How much QWE do I need?
Two years' full-time qualifying work experience, or the equivalent part time.
How many organisations can my QWE come from?
Up to four. There's no minimum or maximum length for each placement.
Who can confirm my QWE?
A solicitor of England and Wales or a COLP regulated by the SRA. They don't need a practising certificate. A barrister or a lawyer qualified elsewhere can't confirm it unless they're also a solicitor.
Does unpaid work count as QWE?
Yes, if it involves providing legal services and gives you the chance to develop at least two of the competences, for example in a law clinic or an advice centre.
Does this tracker confirm my QWE?
No. It's a personal record to help you plan. Only a solicitor or COLP can confirm QWE, through mySRA.
Sources
Building your QWE alongside the SQE?
Our squads meet in the evening, so you can prepare for SQE1 around your job.