College News

Former QE students gives detailed insight into life as trainee solicitor

At QE we thoroughly enjoy catching up with former students and we recently caught up with Suraj Saggar, who studied at the College. Suraj secured A Levels in English Literature, French and History whilst at QE before moving on to read Law with French Law at the University of Birmingham and spending a year at Université Paris II Panthéon-Assas. In Paris, he completed his dissertation in French and had the opportunity to debate in front of French Supreme Court judges.

Upon returning to the UK, Suraj began his training to become a solicitor and he gave us a fascinating insight into his daily life: ‘When working on a case, I can be doing anything from attending meetings with clients or barristers, drafting letters or submissions to court, liaising with local lawyers around the world, or preparing files for hearings.’ When asked about his experience at QE, he commented: ‘I found QE to be a step up from secondary school: the new people, size and step up in work load. In retrospect, this really helped my transition to university. I’m incredibly grateful to my teachers for being so patient and willing to help. I definitely could not have done it without them.’ Finally, we asked Suraj if he had any advice for our current students to which he responded: ‘I’ve found that working hard, working smart and trying to be kind has worked for me. Don’t be afraid to ask for work experience and try things outside of your comfort zone’.

If you are a former student and have a story to share, we would love to hear from you. If you could email qe@qeliz.ac.uk with your details, a member of staff will be in touch.