AccessLex Institute has published groundbreaking research that finds the minimum passing score (known as the “cut score”) on the California Bar Exam, which is the second highest in the nation, excludes minorities from admission to the bar at a disproportionately high rate and does not result in greater public protection in the state.
Mindsets in Legal Education research, featured in AccessLex newsletter Raising the Bar, shows that the choice of the passing score on a bar exam is also a choice about the profession’s size and diversity.
An online learning program designed to help applicants navigate the challenges they face when preparing for the California Bar Exam is showing promising results, measurably increasing the likelihood of passing the exam, a two-year analysis indicates.
Citing “data from ongoing studies,” such as MILE’s disparate impact research, the California Bar Exam lowered the longstanding score of 1440 required to pass the California Bar Exam to 1390.
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AccessLex Grant Received for $125,000
AccessLex has awarded researchers on the MILE team $125,000 to undertake research to create a productive mindset intervention for the California Bar Exam.
Mindsets in Legal Education research, featured in AccessLex newsletter Raising the Bar, shows productive mindset interventions mitigate psychological friction and improve well-being for bar exam takers.
By participating in a brief productive mindset intervention, prospective lawyers improved their well-being and performance on the California Bar Exam.
The California Bar Exam Strategies and Stories Program, designed to help applicants navigate the challenges they face when preparing for the bar exam, will be offered again to applicants studying for the July 2019 exam.
The program was first offered to all applicants studying for the July 2018 exam. Initial results were promising: the program increased the likelihood of passing the bar exam by at least 7.4 percent among test takers who timely registered for the July 2018 bar exam.
The State Bar is also looking forward to the evaluation of the Productive Mindset Study, which may assist the State Bar and California law schools in developing mechanisms to help students better position themselves for success on the Bar Exam.