Increase in Scores and Higher Pass Rates Expected Nationwide

Law graduates across the country anxiously await the July 2024 bar exam results. Early data on the multiple-choice portion of the test, known as the Multistate Bar Exam (MBE), suggests that pass rates will be higher this year.

Record-High Average Scores

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According to the National Conference of Bar Examiners (NCBE), the national average score on the MBE for July 2024 was 141.8, an increase of 1.3 points from July 2023. This marks the highest average MBE score since 2013, except 2020 when the exam was modified due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Factors Contributing to Higher Scores

"Scores were up this July across most jurisdictions, and as a result, we expect pass rates to go up in many jurisdictions compared to last year," said Rosemary Reshetar, the NCBE's director of psychometrics and operations. Reshetar attributes some of this increase to the unusually large and academically strong class of 2021. Law school applicants surged by 13% in 2021, a trend attributed to the pandemic, allowing schools to be more selective in admissions.

 Impact of Stronger Academic Credentials

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Data from the Law School Admission Council (LSAC) indicates that the average Law School Admission Test (LSAT) score for the 2021 entering class was 1.27 points higher than the previous year. Many of these students graduated in May 2024 and took the bar exam in July. A higher percentage of these July 2024 examinees were first-time test takers, who generally have higher pass rates than repeat examinees.

Mixed Results in Previous Years

For the July 2023 bar exam, the average MBE score increased by just 0.2 points over the previous year. Pass rates varied, with 32 states, including Florida and Texas, seeing increases, while 11 states, including California, experienced decreases. Pass rates in New York and six other states remained flat compared to the previous year.

The Structure of the Bar Exam

The MBE consists of 200 multiple-choice questions administered over six hours. It is the only portion of the two-day bar exam that is scored by the NCBE, providing a national forecast of pass rates. Individual states score the remainder of the exam, set their own passing scores, and report results.

Reporting of Exam Results

Many states will begin reporting the results of the July 2024 bar exam in September, with the reporting period typically continuing through early November. As these results come in, how the trends observed in the MBE scores translate into overall pass rates across different jurisdictions will be clearer.