Update:
SQE 2:
I took the SQE2 in July/August 2024 and I'm very pleased to say that I passed in the 1st quintile! This exam was a lot tougher than I thought it would be and I underestmated how important the FLK aspect of the exam would be until I started my revision. This meant that I mainly focused on FLK revision in the lead up to SQE2. I am confident that this is the reason for my success. My advice is:
- Focus on the FLK that you need for this exam. Personally, I made a checklist using the SRA's website and I used this to check that I had covered every aspect of the FLK that I could be examined on. Unlike SQE1 where it was possible to tactically avoid revising one part of the FLK to ensure overall success, that does not work for SQE2 as you may be given an entire question on the area you didn't revise. I have attached the checklist I used to this post.
- Ensure you are familiar with the documents you could be asked to draft. In particular, the documents that may require free-hand drafting such as:
- Board minutes.
- Witness statements.
- Particulars of claim.
- Defence statements.
- For advocacy and interviewing, ensure you are comfortable with how you will structure your responses and practice these.
Seat Selection
I recently had to submit my seat selection for the first seat of my TC at NRF. The preferences I submitted were:
- Asset Finance (Banking Seat).
- Project Finance (Banking Seat).
- Corporate Regulation (Corporate Seat).
- Aviation and Shipping Disputes (Dispute Seat).
I'm also excited and hopeful about doing an international secondment in my second seat which is one of the reasons that I have picked banking seats as my top choices!
Rest
I won't pretend that this year has been easy. I have balanced:
- Full-time SQE studies (City Consortium Programme at BPP).
- Full-time rowing at Leander Club.
- A part-time job with another rowing club.
- Weekly volunteer mentoring including with The Mentor's Collective and Grow Mentoring.
It was a very difficult year and I spent most of it on a knife's edge between managing things well and burning out spectacularly. I was busy from 6am-10pm every day and honestly, it was pretty horrible. I was so busy that the only time I had to eat lunch was on the train between rowing and classes, which I was inevitably a few minutes late for each time, despite running on both ends. I also had to leave the country unexpectedly for a month due to family illness (that became a family death). I'm pleased to say that I managed to do it, but I certainly didn't thrive. Although I did well at each invidual focus, I think I would have performed even better and enjoyed myself more if I had stuck to just one or two.
The main thing that helped me manage this all was scheduling in rest. I didn't just write "rest" in my very detailed schedule, I would specify exactly what I was going to do (e.g. read x book, or watch x tv show). This stopped me from doom-scrolling, or wasting any of my precious rest time (30 mins/day before bed). I think this is the main way I prevented burn-out.
After the SQE 2 exams and rowing season were over, I was at a loss with what to do with myself. I had been so busy, and then suddenly I had free time! I was lucky that I had 6 months before my TC started whereas a lot of my CCP cohort were starting their TCs in a matter of days after our exams. I considered what I wanted to do in those 6 months. Initially, I thought I would just stick with rowing, but as anyone who has done the sport knows, high-performance rowing takes up time and energy, and is pretty stressful in itself. I decided I needed to recover from the year that I had chosen to put myself through and I booked a trip to the Dominican Republic.
I've now been in the Dominican Republic since September and I can honestly say that it is the best decision I have ever made! The time spent relaxing in the sun with no high expectations has been so restorative. I am still remote working as a paralegal to fund my trip, but I feel more like myself. Even my parents have commented on how much healthier I look. I think that this period of rest will enable me to hit the ground running during my TC. I have also learnt from the last year not to overdo things, which will be invaluable when starting the TC. I know I will be most successful when I don't spread myself too thinly, so at least for my first 6 month seat, I am going to focus on my TC with 1 hour set aside each week for mentoring. The rest of my free time I will ensure I use to actually rest and recuperate.
My biggest takeaway for anyone reading this is that you should ensure that you do not forget about the importance of rest when making applications, doing the SQE/GDL/LPC, or starting work. You will only thrive and enjoy yourself if you give yourself the space and time to do so.
Thank you for following my journey!
