Notes That Actually Help You Pass

Most SQE candidates take extensive notes. They summarise manuals, highlight heavily, and rewrite large sections in their own words. By the end, they have pages of material that look thorough.

The problem is that these notes are built for coverage, not recall.

The SQE tests whether you can recognise legal triggers, distinguish between similar concepts, and apply exceptions under time pressure. Notes designed to feel complete during revision often fail at the moment they are needed.

Why most notes do not work

Traditional note-taking creates reassurance, not retrieval. Transcribing content reduces effort during study and shifts the burden to exam day. Candidates often realise too late that they cannot realistically use what they have created.

What I did differently

I extracted and rewrote only what I needed to recall under exam conditions: core principles reduced to their decision-making function, distinctions between similar concepts, and exceptions with specific conditions.

This kept my notes short and usable.