Fazlur Rahman
Quick Answer
Bar Training (formerly the BPTC / Bar Professional Training Course) is the vocational training stage required to be called to the Bar of England and Wales as a barrister. The 2026 course is 1 year full-time (or 2 years part-time), costing GBP 15,000-20,000 in tuition, delivered at one of the four Inns of Court (Lincoln's, Gray's, Inner, Middle) and eight approved providers. Graduates are called to the Bar and enter pupillage (12 months) before full practice (Bar Council, September 2026). Last verified: 12 September 2026.
What Bar Training covers and how it differs from the solicitor route
Bar Training replaced the BPTC (Bar Professional Training Course) in 2020. The vocational stage prepares graduates for the specialist advocacy and advisory work of the barrister profession. Unlike the solicitor route (which is increasingly dominated by the SQE), Bar Training is a separate, more advocacy-focused course with higher written and oral assessment standards (Bar Council, September 2026). What Bar Training covers: civil litigation, criminal litigation, and alternative dispute resolution (30% of assessment); advocacy (oral and written) (20%); drafting (20%); opinion writing, legal research, and conference skills (20%); and professional ethics and the cab-rank rule (10%). Successful completion leads to being "called to the Bar" by one of the four Inns of Court (Lincoln's Inn, Gray's Inn, Inner Temple, Middle Temple). After call, graduates enter a 12-month pupillage split into two 6-month "sixes" at a barristers' chambers before being authorised to practise as a self-employed barrister (Bar Council, September 2026).
