First-ever results for SQE1 show pass-rate disparity between white and Black, Asian and minority ethnic students

The Law Society of England and Wales comments on first-ever results for SQE1 show pass-rate disparity between white and Black, Asian and minority ethnic students.

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has today published its first ever results for the Solicitors Qualifying Exam (SQE) – the SQE1, showing there is some disparity of pass rates between white and Black, Asian and minority ethnic students.

Law Society president I. Stephanie Boyce said:

“I offer my congratulations to those students who passed the SQE1, you have studied hard and are well on your way to joining our profession.

“We are, however, concerned at the attainment gap between white and Black, Asian and minority ethnic students.”

According to the SRA, 65% of white candidates passed compared to 44% of Black, Asian and minority ethnic groups (according to figures from the SRA’s SQE1 November 2021 Statistical Report).

For the Legal Practice Course, 65% of white students passed compared with 52% of Asian/Asian British students and 39% of Black students (according to figures taken from the SRA’s Education and training authorisation and monitoring activity September 2019-August 2020 report).

I. Stephanie Boyce added:

“We welcome the news the SRA has commissioned in-depth research so it can better understand the causes of differential attainment in legal qualifications.

“The regulator needs to monitor closely whether the situation is worsening or improving with the move to SQE and if so why.”

Kindly shared by The Law Society of England and Wales

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