📚 SQE2 Legal Research: From Downfall to Highest Mark

Описание: In this episode of the SQE Journey Podcast, we dive deep into one of the most misunderstood, anxiety-inducing, and least-taught stations of the SQE2 exam: Legal Research.

Our guest, Anna Asumadu, an LPC graduate and now qualified solicitor, explains how Legal Research was her downfall in her first SQE2 attempt — and how it became her highest-scoring station the second time around.

This is an essential watch for:

🔸 SQE2 resitters
🔸 LPC graduates transitioning into skills exams
🔸 Candidates who fear research
🔸 Students who lack strategy for skimming/scanning
🔸 Anyone unfamiliar with SQE2-style research without legal databases
🔸 Candidates who need structured peer comparison and feedback

➡️ Watch FULL episode for FREE (registration required) https://smart.superexam.online/regist...

⭐ About the Guest — Anna Asumadu

Ethnicity: Black British
SQE1: Exempt (LPC graduate)
SQE2: Passed (Second Attempt — July 2025)
Preparation Time After First Attempt: 6 months
Academic Background:
• LLB – University of Leicester
• LPC – University of Law
English: Native speaker

What This Episode Explores

In this discussion, Anna and the tutors break down exactly why Legal Research is so challenging — and how structured group practice, peer marking, and systematic skimming techniques transformed her performance.

Key topics include:
Why SQE2 research is nothing like research in the LPC
Why many students fail research on their first attempt
How to handle research without Westlaw / Lexis / databases
Why practicing alone is not enough
How peer comparison accelerates learning
The importance of timed research conditions
Why skimming and scanning are essential—not optional
How to avoid getting lost in 12+ documents
Why “unrealistic suggested answers” from some providers harm students
The importance of repeating stations with different partners
How to approach primary vs secondary sources
How to adapt strategy depending on the practice area
How SUPERexam group research mocks helped her move from confusion → clarity → mastery

🔍 1️⃣ Research Was Anna’s “Downfall” — Until It Became Her Highest Score

Anna begins openly:

“My first attempt — research was my downfall.”

Like many LPC graduates, she entered SQE2 assuming research would be simple. But SQE2 research is:
database-free
time-limited
loaded with 8–16 documents
full of irrelevant information
designed to mislead
technical and strategic, not academic

In her second attempt:
“Research became my highest mark. I was shocked.”

👥 2️⃣ Why Group Research Mocks Work (When Solo Study Doesn’t)

Anna explains how the Academy placed her into:
small groups of 2–3
later, groups of 4
practising research tasks collaboratively
marking each other
comparing approaches
then reviewing the official specimen answers

This exposed her to:
✔ alternative thinking
✔ different ways of locating key passages
✔ quicker approaches
✔ better structuring logic
✔ peer mistakes she might also make
✔ peer strengths she could learn from

She says:
“You gave us free research mocks to practice and share within ourselves…
and then you gave us the specimen to mark ourselves.
It helped me understand each station and what is required.”

You must practice the skill.
⚡ 3️⃣ Skimming & Scanning — The Deciding Skill in SQE2 Research

Anna reveals that the single biggest turning point was learning how to skim documents properly.
“You sent me a report on how to skim through documents …
it helped me know how to skim and pick out important aspects.”

Anna’s summary:
“Practicing more is the only way to pass research.”

📑 4️⃣ Primary vs Secondary Sources — Adaptive Strategy

Anna highlights a crucial insight that many candidates never realise:

“For criminal, primary sources were shorter and easier.
For property or wills, primary sources were long.”

So her approach became:
In some stations → skim primary first
In others → skim secondary first
Always adapt depending on the practice area

This skill is not taught in LPC.
It is learned only through repeated SQE2-style practice.

🧭 5️⃣ Peer-Combined Thinking = Strongest Strategy

Anna perfectly sums up why group research practice works:
“We all think differently, but when we combine our approach in a single one, that’s when success comes.”

🛠 6️⃣ The Final Advice: “Practice, Practice, Practice”

Anna’s closing message is simple:
“Practice more — and find the approach that works for you BEFORE the exam day.”

🎥 Watch the FULL Research Episode (Free)

This YouTube episode is only a fragment of the full discussion.
Watch the complete interview with Anna on our SUPERexam platform:

👉 FREE Access — Registration Required: https://smart.superexam.online/regist...

🔗 Additional Resources for SQE Students
📘 SQE2 for LPC Graduates — Special £1,250 Package
https://superexam.uk/sqe-for-lpc/

📙 SQE1 Course Information
https://superexam.uk/sqe2-preparation...

📋 SQE2 Resitters Form
https://superexam.uk/sqe-resitters-form/