July 2018 MBE Scores Drop

Photo courtesy of the National Conference of Bar Examiners

July 2018 MBE Scores Drop 

The National Conference of Bar Examiners (NCBE) just published an announcement about how the national average MBE score dropped this administration. The national average was a 139.5, which is a decrease of 2.2 points from the July 2017 average.  July 2015 was the only other administration with an average MBE score below 140. 

Past July average scaled MBE scores are as follows: 

• July 2007 – 143.7
• July 2008 – 145.6
• July 2009 – 144.5
• July 2010 – 143.6
• July 2011 – 143.8
• July 2012 – 143.4
• July 2013 – 144.3
• July 2014 – 141.5
• July 2015 – 139.9
• July 2016 – 140.3
• July 2017 – 141.7

A few notes on the July 2018 MBE Score Decrease: 

• First, the “average” July 2018 MBE score is still passing in many jurisdictions, including popular jurisdictions like New York (where a 133 MBE score is considered “passing”). It is not passing in jurisdictions like California (which require a 144). To see a list of passing MBE scores by state, check out this post and the chart below. 
• Second, note that most jurisdictions, including Uniform Bar Exam jurisdictions, do not require a minimum passing MBE score. So, for example, if you scored a 130 on the MBE in New York (where a 133 is technically “passing”) so long as you scored a 136 or higher on the written portion, you would still pass the bar exam.
• Third, just because the average MBE score among 45,274 examinees dropped does not mean that your individual MBE score was low. This is just a national average so don’t let it lead you to believe that your personal MBE score was low.

Most states have still not released bar exam results. So, it is too early to say the exact effect that this MBE score drop will have on bar exam pass rates overall. We will continue to update our blog as more information becomes available.

Good luck to those of you awaiting July 2018 bar results!

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