Qualifying as a solicitor in Scotland — an alternative to the LLB

The Pre-PEAT Traineeship offers a route to qualification that bypasses the traditional university setting. Discover the process – from entry criteria to exams and beyond – and hear from two past students about their journeys to qualification and personal perspectives. 

Over the past five years in Scotland there have been, on average, 771 new solicitors qualifying each year. The majority of those solicitors have followed the traditional route by completing an LLB in Scots Law, followed by the Postgraduate Diploma in Professional Legal Practice.  

The alternative route, which is significantly less travelled, is to complete the Law Society of Scotland’s Professional Exams, known as a Pre-PEAT Traineeship. At the moment, there are 61 candidates currently working toward qualifying via this route. This route allows legal secretaries and paralegals who are actively employed by a firm of solicitors in Scotland to undertake the same core exams LLB students do in their first and second years.  

The alternative route to qualification opens doors for those working in law with an interest in becoming a solicitor but who otherwise would find the traditional university experience inaccessible. The main benefits of this route are that candidates can continue to work full time while studying, and can complete the exams at their own pace, deciding the order in which to tackle each core subject. The only exception is that Scottish Legal Systems and Legal Methods must be undertaken first. The Society provides a syllabus, book list, exam timetable and past papers; beyond that, the entire course is completely self-taught. This route opens the door to progression to qualification, but it is not for the faint-hearted!   

Candidates must have the backing of their employer to undertake the route. Candidates can download the syllabus, reading list and application form from the Society’s website. Applications must be submitted with supporting documentation demonstrating that the entry criteria are met. A Disclosure Scotland check is also required before a Preliminary Entrance Certificate is granted. Once the certificate is issued, candidates have four years from their first exam to complete all assessments, including any re-sits. Candidates have three attempts at each exam. The process can typically be completed in two-and-a-half to three years. 

The route involves 11 written exams, two oral presentations, two essays and a workplace logbook documenting anonymised evidence of learning and achievement of required competencies. All assessments must be completed regardless of intended practice area. Exam diets are held twice a year, currently in February and June, with results released after approximately eight weeks. 

At the time of writing the exams are held remotely – with the aim, however, of returning to in-person exams held within the Society’s offices in Edinburgh. In comparison with traditional university expenses, the fees in connection with the exams are relatively small at around £60 per exam, with no requirement for tuition fees or student loans. An additional expense is the sourcing of the reading materials set out in the book list. 

After all exams and the logbook have been completed, the pre-PEAT contract must be discharged and candidates thereafter require to complete the Diploma in Professional Legal Practice, before commencing a two-year traineeship, whereupon they will be sworn in as fully qualified solicitors in Scots law.  

Journey to qualification: Lynda MacNicol 

I began my legal career in the summer of 2015 when I applied for a job as a legal secretary at McSherry Halliday LLP in Irvine, Ayrshire. Within 18 months I had begun the Specialist Paralegal Qualification via CLT and the University of Strathclyde, and qualified as a family law paralegal before becoming accredited by the Law Society of Scotland. In the summer of 2021 I was invited by the partners to commence the Pre-PEAT Traineeship. 

I had heard about the exams, as my colleague in another branch office had completed them, however I wasn’t aware of the finer details. My colleague Leigh very kindly talked me through her experience. I then contacted the Law Society directly and asked a lot of questions. As a busy mum of two I was unsure if I could fit the exams into my life. I spent around two months researching the information on the Society website and contacted a couple of the diploma providers. As soon as I got off the phone with the team at the University of Glasgow I knew immediately that that was where I wanted to study for the diploma. Spaces on the diploma are so competitive, and I knew that in order to secure an offer there, I would have to get the highest GPA (grade point average) I could.  

From that moment on, a fire was lit inside me. As soon as work finished I dealt with housework, dinners, all the mum stuff, and then as soon as the girls were in bed, it was straight into study mode. I sacrificed my social life and sanity but knew that it was only for a relatively short period of time.   

I successfully completed the 11 exams and logbook within five exam diets and my firm was happy to reduce my Pre-PEAT Traineeship down from three years to two-and-a-half. When the time came to apply for the diploma I selected Glasgow as my first choice and Robert Gordon Online as my second choice. Robert Gordon is the only diploma provider to offer remote evening classes, which makes it an incredibly popular option for pre-PEAT trainees as they can continue to work as normal and study in the evening – just as they will have done throughout the previous years to get to this stage.  

The University of Glasgow diploma classes are all held on campus and range from start times of 9am to finishing times of 7pm. I was delighted when the partners confirmed they would be happy to support me in working more flexible hours to accommodate attending classes on campus. We’re a hybrid working firm, so logging in early or doing a few hours in the evening or at weekends was not an issue. Again, juggling the travel, the full-time job, the classes and the prep, the children and the laundry was full on but totally worth it. 

I am now approaching the end of the first year of my training contract and looking back I can’t believe how quickly the time has flown. I can honestly say that completing the Pre-PEAT Traineeship was one of the most challenging experiences I have ever had. I learned a lot about myself, and I pushed myself even when I wanted to give up. Motivation waned pretty early on but I knew that I had to be disciplined to get the results I needed. I discovered I have a paralysing fear of failure, which certainly helped to keep me on track!  

I would absolutely recommend the Pre-PEAT Traineeship to anyone who is interested in progressing to become a solicitor. It can feel extremely stressful and intense at times – you are sitting the same exams as university students but you don’t have lectures or tutorials etc. That can feel quite daunting but as long as you are highly organised and disciplined, it can certainly be achieved.    

Journey to qualification: Carly Russell 

I also began my legal career in the summer of 2015 as an office junior, employed by Hilland McNulty Solicitors in Lanark. I qualified as a family law paralegal in June 2020 and shortly after became accredited by the Law Society of Scotland. In February 2023, I began my journey to qualification through the pre-PEAT route.  

I had been keen to progress my legal career for some time and was looking into different options such as the part-time LLB. I had never heard of the pre-PEAT route before my employers suggested it to me. They told me to look into the “Law Society exams” as an option – and with that, my research began. I searched LinkedIn for people who had undertaken the route and came across Eve Gilchrist. Eve answered all of my questions (there were a lot!) and added me into a WhatsApp chat with others undertaking the route. At the time, I wasn’t entirely sure how the route would fit into my life, but I decided to give it a go. 

I sat my first exams in July 2023, easing myself in with a mixture of optimism and mild panic. What followed was a period of balancing full-time work with studying. This largely consisted of late evenings, weekends and a lot of coffee. It quickly became clear that this was not going to be an easy route, and that ‘self-taught’ really does mean exactly that. 

There were definitely moments of doubt along the way, as well as the occasional questioning of my own life choices, but also a real sense of progress and achievement with each exam passed. Slowly but surely, the finish line came into view.  

I sat my final exams in February 2026, bringing to an end a journey that was as challenging as it was rewarding. Looking back it’s hard to believe how far I have come: from starting out with no experience in law at all to completing this stage of the qualification process.  

The next step for me is the Diploma in Legal Practice. My applications are in and I’m looking forward to enjoying my first exam-fee summer in three years while waiting for the offers to hopefully come! 

I tell everyone who is considering this route into law that I absolutely recommend it but with that comes honesty: it is very challenging but extremely rewarding. The time will pass anyway, so why not give it a go. 

I am incredibly grateful to all of my colleagues at Hilland McNulty who have supported me through this route.  

Personal perspectives 

As awareness of the Pre-PEAT Traineeship pathway grows, its role within the Scottish legal profession is likely to become increasingly significant. The route promotes social mobility by widening access to the profession. It enables individuals from all backgrounds to qualify as solicitors. It also strengthens the profession by producing trainees who combine academic legal knowledge with extensive practical experience. 

From a personal perspective, the completion of this journey represents the culmination of years of commitment, perseverance and belief in a non-traditional pathway. More broadly, we hope the future holds greater visibility, recognition and structured support for those undertaking the route.  

The pre-PEAT route is not the conventional route into law, but it is a great alternative. It proves that there is no single way to become a solicitor, and that determination, experience and hard work can be just as important as traditional academic pathways. 

For us, it has been challenging, demanding and at times exhausting. But it has also been one of the most rewarding journeys we have undertaken and one that continues to shape our professional identity and future within the Scottish legal profession. 

We have both experienced first-hand the challenges and the opportunities the route presents. We also know we are far from alone. There is a growing community of paralegals and legal secretaries working their way through this demanding but rewarding pathway.  

Would we recommend it? Absolutely, but with honesty: the pre-PEAT route is not an easier option; however, what it offers in return is invaluable. 

Get in touch  

Enquiries can be submitted to the Law Society of Scotland directly by sending an email to the qualifications coordinator, Louise Bradley, at: [email protected].   

There is also an ‘unofficial’ pre-PEAT WhatsApp group chat, which was created by Eve Gilchrist. Eve successfully the completed the Pre-PEAT Traineeship and went on to practice as a highly regarded litigation solicitor, before transitioning to become an advocate. She is currently devilling with the Faculty of Advocates and calls to the Bar in June 2026. 

At the moment there are 57 members in the group chat who live across Scotland and are at varying stages of the Pre-PEAT Traineeship. If you would like more information from a personal perspective or to join the group chat, please contact Lynda or Carly via LinkedIn. 

Lynda MacNicol, Trainee solicitor, McSherry Halliday LLP, Irvine, Ayrshire specialising in family law, re-mortgage and transfers of title, wills and powers of attorney.  

Carly Russell is an Accredited Family Law Paralegal at Hilland McNulty Solicitors, Lanark, specialising in family law matters. Carly recently completed the Law Society of Scotland’s alternative route to qualification via the Pre-PEAT 1 process and will commence the Diploma in Professional Legal Practice in September.