How To Earn a Law Master’s While Preparing to Qualify as a Solicitor
For many aspiring solicitors, postgraduate study presents a difficult choice. Should you pursue a specialist master’s degree to deepen your legal expertise or focus on preparing for the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE), the assessment required to qualify as a solicitor in England and Wales?
At Queen Mary University of London, students do not have to choose between those goals. The university’s LLM with SQE Preparation combines specialist legal education with professional qualification preparation in a single programme, allowing students to build expertise in their chosen field while preparing for the next stage of their legal careers.
Building Expertise While Preparing for Practice
Students pursuing the programme complete a specialist LLM alongside integrated SQE preparation. The structure is designed to help students develop both academic knowledge and practical readiness for qualification.
Professor Nigel Spencer, Professor of Professional Practice at Queen Mary, says the programme was created to give students the opportunity to do both at the same time.
“What we’ve done is given you the opportunity to choose one of Queen Mary’s wide range of specializations,” explained Spencer, “but also within the period of your masters, add in the opportunity to do your SQE preparation modules as well.”
Students can choose from a broad range of specialist pathways: Commercial and Corporate Law; International Business Law; Technology, Media and Telecommunications Law; Intellectual Property Law; Environmental Law; Banking and Finance Law; and more.
The programme combines 120 credits of specialist Queen Mary modules with 60 credits of SQE preparation delivered through BARBRI, a global legal education provider that has helped prepare more than 1.4 million lawyers worldwide.
A Flexible Approach to Learning
One of the programme’s distinctive features is its blend of in-person teaching and flexible online learning.
Students attend Queen Mary classes in London while completing SQE preparation through BARBRI’s digital learning platform. A key component of the BARBRI experience is the Personal Study Plan, which helps students organize their studies around existing commitments and learning goals.
Chris Howard, University Partnerships Director at BARBRI, says the programme was designed to create a cohesive experience for students.
“We’ve worked very closely with Queen Mary University of London in the development of this program so that students will have a seamless experience in both preparing for their LLM studies and preparing for the SQE.”
The flexibility of the model has been particularly valuable for students balancing multiple priorities.
“I’ve loved the fact that there is a nice balance,” said student Ida Lyckemy, a current student. “My Queen Mary modules on campus, and I can plan around those my SQE learning on the BARBRI learning platform.”
“It really helps me feel in control: using the ‘personal study plan’ of BARBRI I can literally plan week to week, deciding when to do each lecture or reading, fitting it all around my schedule.”
Studying Law in London
Queen Mary’s postgraduate law programmes are generally delivered through the Centre for Commercial Law Studies (CCLS), a leading centre for legal education and research in the heart of London.
Founded by the late Sir Roy Goode on the idea that academic lawyers and legal practitioners should learn from one another, CCLS brings together leading academics, solicitors, barristers, judges, and industry professionals. More than 1,000 postgraduate students from around 80 countries study at the centre, creating an international learning environment grounded in professional practice.
As a Russell Group university and a leading law school, Queen Mary offers students the opportunity to study in one of the world’s most influential legal and commercial centres, where community is more than a sense of belonging. It is access to London’s legal profession, an international network of peers and alumni, and the connections that can help shape your future career.
For those considering careers connected to the UK legal profession, the combination of specialist legal study and SQE preparation offers a practical route toward opportunity.
