Media Contact:
| ETS: | Kristen Mitchell |
|---|---|
| Email: | kmitchell002@ets.org |
PRINCETON, NJ, USA — (June 24, 2026) — ETS, a global education and talent solutions organization, announced today that it has been selected by the UK Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) to conduct an independent technical evaluation of the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE), the high stakes licensing assessment for solicitors in England and Wales.
ETS’s Research Institute will lead the independent evaluation work, providing a rigorous, transparent review of the SQE’s validity, reliability, and fairness, key pillars underpinning public trust in professional licensure and the regulation of legal services. The ETS Research Institute will apply its proven audit approach that leverages the ETS Standards for Quality and Fairness to assess the SQE across test design, marking and scoring processes, standard setting, quality assurance, and assessment regulations.
“The Solicitors Qualifying Examination plays a critical role in protecting the public interest and maintaining confidence in the legal profession,” Kadriye Ercikan, Senior Vice President of Global Research at ETS. “We are honored to support the SRA with an independent, evidence-based evaluation that is rigorous, transparent, and aligned with international best practices for high stakes professional assessment.”
A Rigorous, Independent Evaluation
Staff at the ETS Research Institute will lead a comprehensive, multiphase evaluation designed to stand up to public, professional, and legal scrutiny. The work will include:
- A structured audit of the SQE’s validity, reliability, and fairness, guided by internationally recognized measurement standards
- Independent review of test design, marking and calibration, standard setting, and quality assurance processes
- Examination of assessment regulations and policies, including accessibility, accommodations, and candidate progression
- Clear, actionable findings delivered through both a technical report and a public facing report written for broad audiences
The evaluation will be conducted by an interdisciplinary team of ETS assessment experts, psychometricians, and legal subject matter specialists with deep expertise in high stakes licensing and regulatory assessment.
“When the SQE was launched we committed to a ten-year program of evaluation. As we approach the fifth anniversary of the assessment’s introduction, the independent audit to be conducted by ETS is the latest stage in this plan,” Beth Black, the SRA’s Director of Education and Training. “ETS brings significant, global experience of evaluating high stakes assessments like the SQE. The insights provided by this audit, and our other regular reports, will support our program of continuous improvement and make sure the SQE is fit for purpose. We look forward to receiving the findings in 2027.”
Global Expertise
ETS brings nearly eight decades of experience evaluating complex, high stakes assessments used to make critical decisions in education, licensure, and the workforce. Its audit program has been applied to globally recognized assessments including GRE, TOEFL, and Praxis, as well as national and international programs including the U.S. Department of Education’s National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), the State of California’s Assessment System, the Ireland State Examinations Commission, and professional licensing bodies in the United Kingdom.
Supporting Transparency and Public Confidence
A central objective of the evaluation is to support transparency and stakeholder confidence. In collaboration with the SRA, ETS will document the evaluation process in detail and produce a public facing report that clearly explains findings and recommendations without compromising assessment security.
The evaluation process has begun and is intended to conclude in Spring 2027.
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About ETS
ETS is a global education and talent solutions organization enabling lifelong learners to be future ready. Our mission – advancing the science of measurement to power human progress – ensures our focus to enable everyone, everywhere, to demonstrate their skills and chart their path to future readiness for life. We are committed to readying 100M+ people for the next generation of jobs by 2035. We deliver on this commitment through trusted assessments and skills solutions – including TOEFL, TOEIC, GRE, Praxis and Futurenav – and groundbreaking initiatives powered by our Research Institute. With a robust global footprint, including subsidiaries (PSI), offices and operations in more than 200 countries and territories, we help over 50 million individuals each year measure their proficiency and unlock new opportunities. Discover how we expand our worldwide impact: www.ets.org