How I Scored a 180 on the MBE

How I Scored a 180 on the MBE

I took the bar exam in February 2011 and scored a 180 (99th percentile) on the MBE. Here I tell you how I scored a 180, and reveal tips for how you can maximize your MBE score. 

How I Scored a 180 on the MBE

One important piece of background information to know from the beginning is that I graduated as the #1 student in my law school class out of 203 students. So, statistically speaking, I was likely to pass the bar exam on the first try and score higher than average on the MBE. However, none of the common misconceptions that people have about me are true:

• I am not a naturally good test-taker.
• I was by no means the smartest person in my law school class.
• And I did not study 24/7 (in fact, in law school I took every Sunday off and during bar prep I took even more time off!).

When I studied for the bar exam, I was not overly anxious about it. I was not trying to get a 180 on the MBE. I was just trying to pass the exam. Like everyone else, I felt internal pressure (I didn’t want to graduate as the #1 student then fail the bar exam — how embarrassing!). I did not have very much external pressure — most of my family did not know what the bar exam was and since I graduated early, I was taking the bar exam before the rest of my law school class, which made it easier to study distraction-free. I took a bar review course online and mostly studied out of my apartment or from a coffee shop. I did not have commitments such as a full-time job or childcare obligations, which made studying much more leisurely for me than it is for some. I am a morning person so during bar prep I got up early (at around 4:30 AM). I exercised every day. And I went out with friends or family or relaxed in the evenings. I took every Sunday off.

A few weeks before the bar exam, I needed an emergency operation which put a dent in my bar exam study schedule and I did not complete as many practice tests as planned. That was the only true “hiccup” in my bar exam study schedule.

So, keeping that in mind, here is what I did to score a 180 on the MBE.

How I Scored a 180 on the MBE

First, I made my bar prep course work for me.

Many bar exam takers become slaves to their bar review courses. They act as though their goal is to complete their bar review course — when in fact, their goal should be to pass the bar exam. Some of the activities that a bar review course has you do may not benefit you. For example, I am not an auditory learner. I am a visual learner. So sitting through hours of lectures was not very helpful for me. So, instead of watching hours of lecture, I sped up the lectures or skipped the subjects I was very familiar with.

We have students that need to spend more time on, say, Evidence than they do Torts. Perhaps they didn’t take Evidence in law school, or perhaps they struggled with it. It is best to tailor your bar exam study schedule to what you need to do to pass the bar exam. So keep in mind that your ultimate goal is to pass the bar exam (not necessarily check off every single box on the to-do list your bar exam course gives you!).

We recommend that students consider their learning style, as well as their strengths and weaknesses, prior to starting bar prep.

Second, I focused on memorizing the highly tested issues. 

So many bar exam takers make two big mistakes:

• (1) They don’t memorize the law from the beginning
• (2) They don’t focus on the highly tested issues

This is not necessarily the fault of the bar exam takers. A lot of courses do not emphasize memorization (and many tell examinees to memorize issues during the last two weeks — which is way too late!). Further, many courses do not illuminate the highly tested issues for examinees (we pride ourselves on doing this for our course students, as well as anyone who purchases our MBE one-sheets or MEE one-sheets).

Just memorizing the law from the beginning and staying focused on the highly tested issues can make a huge difference in your bar exam score.

A classic example of this is as follows: If you look at a breakdown of the highly tested MBE topics, you will see that negligence is 12-13 scored questions on the MBE. And present and future interests are probably about 2 scored questions. Yet, most examinees spend way more time trying to understand the intricacies of present and future interests (including the Rule Against Perpetuities) than they do on negligence! In other words, a lot of examinees work hard but not effectively! Make sure to maximize your hours studying for the bar exam by focusing on the law that is most likely to be tested — or in some cases, guaranteed to be tested.

Third, I didn’t reinvent the wheel. 

Remember this: what worked for you in the past will continue to work for you in the future.

If you studied best in the evening in law school, continue to study in the evening when you study for the bar exam.

If study groups didn’t work for you in law school, they probably won’t work for you when you study for the bar exam.

If you primarily used “visual” methods of learning in law school, continue to use these for the bar exam.

A lot of students feel as though they “need” to get up early, join a study group, study 80 hours a week, and completely change their routine during bar prep. In reality, it is best to evaluate what worked for you in the past. What worked for you in the past will continue to work for you in the future.

So, in a nutshell, these are some key strategies I used to score a 180 on the MBE. Hopefully, these tips can help you maximize your bar exam score as well!

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