I am an attorney taking the UBE. How do I make sure I pass?

I am an attorney taking the UBE. How do I make sure I pass? 

We receive many emails from attorneys who decide to take the Uniform Bar Exam (UBE). If you are an attorney taking the UBE, you probably want to do whatever you can to pass it the first time you take it. This may be because:

• you don’t want to spend more time studying for a bar exam than you have to!
• your boss or firm expects you to pass it the first time
• you want to be licensed as soon as possible so you can be an asset to your team

Here, we give you some advice on how to maximize your chances of passing the bar exam the first time you take it. 

I am an attorney taking the UBE. How do I make sure I pass? 

1. Sign up for a course. 

Even if you took the bar exam within the last five years, a lot has changed. Civil Procedure was added to the MBE in 2015. The MBE average scaled score has dropped significantly. Further, the UBE is different than many state bar exams in that it has a “multistate performance test” section that is worth 20% of your score. And the essay portion (the “multistate essay exam” portion) is worth 30% of your score. These essays are well written and sometimes quite difficult. Remember that the UBE does not test state-specific law.

A bar exam course can help you navigate the UBE and tell you what you need to do to pass it.

There are many commercial courses that are offered. We also offer a Uniform Bar Exam full-service course. Our course is different from most commercial courses in that we offer a very personal approach. We grade essays and PTs each week. We allow students to ask questions. We keep close track of you to make sure you pass. We offer live lectures online (but you can also choose a prerecorded option). We also study the Uniform Bar Exam and have outlines that are precisely tailored to exactly what is tested. Our goal is to help you study efficiently since we know you don’t have a lot of time to waste!

2. Learn the basics of the Uniform Bar Exam.

In this post, we give you some tips for how to pass the UBE as an attorney. We also tell you more about what it is and how it is different from most state exams.  We recommend you get an overview of the basics so you can choose how you study most effectively.

3. Start early.

If you are an attorney taking the UBE, we recommend you start early! We particularly recommend you study early if:

• you have not taken a bar exam in a while (e.g. 5+ years)
• you struggled with the last bar exam you took (either you had to take it more than once or you barely passed)
• it is a “high stakes” exam (you have a compelling reason that you “have” to pass the UBE when you take it)

Many students sign up for our February UBE course because it starts a month earlier than commercial courses. (We also give you two weeks “off” for the holidays.) Others sign up for tutoring to get a head start and an individualized approach.

4. Ask your boss for time off and/or to subsidize costs! 

If you are primarily taking the UBE to be an asset to your firm, ask your boss if you can have some time off to study. You may ask for time off closer to the exam (e.g., half days the week before the exam). Or you may simply ask to work “regular” hours rather than be given extra assignments during your bar prep study time. We recommend that you show your boss your study schedule and how you plan on tackling the exam. This will tell that that you take it seriously and they are more likely to give you some time off (or at least hold off on extra assignments) if it is pre-arranged ahead of time.

The more concrete of a plan you can agree to, the better. For example, saying you are going to take practice exams on Friday afternoons in the office conference room is much better than simply saying “I need some time to study”.  Some firms are more willing to do this than others. But it is something to consider ahead of time.

You can also ask your boss if they are able to pay for some or all of bar prep. We have plenty of firms pay for our full service course. And some firms will pay for a portion of it. If your license will truly be an asset to your firm, many firms don’t mind contributing to the financial aspect of your bar exam preparation.

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