How Many MBE Questions Can I Miss On The Bar Exam?

How Many MBE Questions Can I Miss On The Bar Exam?

No matter who you are, preparing for the bar exam can be a stressful experience. You’ll need to devote time and energy to learning and applying the legal material in order to perform well on test day. If you find yourself getting frustrated during bar prep, it’s important to keep in mind that you don’t need to be perfect — you just need to pass. Sometimes, it’s helpful to think about how many questions you can miss on the MBE and still get a passing score.

How Many MBE Questions Can I Miss On The Bar Exam?

How Are MBE Scores Calculated?

Because MBE scores are presented in multiple ways, it can be confusing to figure out how many questions you can miss. There are 175 scored questions on the MBE (though you’ll answer 200 in total). Your raw score is the total number you get correct, and your percentile shows your score in relation to the other test-takers. In order to come up with your scaled score, the National Conference of Bar Examiners converts your raw score in a way that adds some points. Although the NCBE no longer releases data on raw and converted scores, we can look to patterns to determine how many questions you can miss and still get a passing score.

Check out our MBE Conversion Chart here to see how your raw score might translate to a scaled score.

How Many Questions Can You Miss and Still Pass the MBE?

First, it’s important to know that different jurisdictions require different scores for passing. If you’re in New York or DC, you’ll need a 133 as your scale score, which translates to a raw score of roughly 115. That means you’ll need to get 115 questions correct out of 190 — or that you can miss up to 75 questions and still pass the MBE!

Look for the minimum passing UBE score in your state in this chart!

How Can I Improve My Score on the MBE?

Knowing that you can miss a significant number of questions on the MBE and still get a passing score should give you some peace of mind while studying. However, your goal should be to maximize your score as much as possible. One simple tip we recommend is using MBE questions released by the NCBE. Unlike questions created by bar prep companies, these released MBE questions closely mimic the style and format of actual questions on the exam. By using them to practice, you’ll be more comfortable with the questions you see on test day!

Check out this post on why we think you should use real MBE questions to help with your bar prep. Learn more here with our 10 Expert MBE Tips and Tricks!

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