r/CABarExam • u/Sad_Shower3008 • 4h ago
r/CABarExam • u/amalehuman • Jun 23 '26
I spoke with Mary Basick & Tina Schindler at UC Irvine
I sat in on a panel with Professors Mary Basick u/mary_basick and Tina Schindler u/tina-schindler the other month.
If you’ve spent any time looking into CBX resources, these legends have probably crossed your radar. You might already be using one of their books Essay Exam Writing for the California Bar Exam or California Performance Test Workbook.
After an hour in that room, I got to confirm what moves the needle in bar prep.
My favorite moment:
Me: “Well, you learn to swim by getting in the water, not studying water.”
Tina: “I love that.”
🥺
My notes and insights from the talk:
Bar prep strategies
- Practice over passive learning. Knowing rules =/= knowing how to apply them
- Brian’s own experience: followed Kaplan’s program to the letter, could write beautiful rule statements, still failed with mid scores across the board
- Missing piece: skill and insight to apply knowledge under exam conditions
- Brian’s own experience: followed Kaplan’s program to the letter, could write beautiful rule statements, still failed with mid scores across the board
- Start practicing before you feel ready. Waiting until rules feel fully memorized is a trap
- Do questions open-book early
- Pattern recognition develops through repetition. Bar examiners test the same ~20 variations repeatedly!
- Detach identity from practice scores. Treat each attempt as data collection. Treat performance like a scientist collecting data. Have enough confidence not to judge yourself.
- Parallels: like learning to drive by watching videos vs. turning the wheel, or like learning to swim by studying water vs. getting in the water
Resources mentioned
- AdaptiBar or UWorld: MBE/MCQ question banks
- BarEssays.com: returned essays from California bar takers, useful for calibrating essay quality. Compare what a 50 versus a 65 versus a 75 looks like
- I also keep a bank of graded answers on my site
- Discount codes for AdaptiBar, UWorld, and BarEssays kept up to date here
- Make This Your Last Time (Brian’s website): bar prep strategies, resources, tools, newsletters, stories and lessons from others’ experiences
- Lawyers Mutual / Cal Lawyer (event sponsor)
- I’ve been trying to get a recording of the event… Will link when available
Takeaways and commentary
A good chunk of the conversation kept circling back to one idea: The biggest obstacle for a lot of students is trust in themselves, rather than information.
When I failed the bar exam the first time, I’d followed my prep course to the letter. I wrote down meticulous notes, rewound lectures to fill in the blanks, and did all the assignments. I remember falling behind schedule permanently because I went out for lunch with a friend one time. I was merely going through the motions without being conscious about whether I was actually learning. Without questioning what I was doing, I assumed this process would automatically install the skills needed to pass the exam. This was exhausting and unproductive. And this is extremely classic behavior for novice bar preppers that I see happen every year (meaning it's fixable, good news).
What I didn’t have was agency in myself to take ownership over my studies, nor the confidence to sit with not knowing exactly what to do in the moment. I “knew” the law but didn’t know how to use it.
The students who keep showing up, despite having cold sweats at first because their page is blank or because their MBE choices may as well be random, tend to outperform the ones who think they can outsmart the exam with their thoughts alone. Doing is the best form of thinking.
That said, I’m also not a fan of the “just practice practice practice” advice, because it overcorrects and oversimplifies. We’re not saying that reviewing source materials (e.g., lectures, outlines, flashcards) isn’t important. How else are you supposed to get foundational knowledge to try using it? How else do you review your work? A balance of pre-review, practice, and feedback is needed. Passive “study” alone gets you about 10% of the way. The trap is staying there instead of moving into implementation.
Collecting data points through implementation
Mary and Tina talked about treating every practice question like a scientist collecting data instead of letting your ego see it as a test of your worth:
💬 “Like Mary was saying, it really is about being like you’re collecting data. You can think of yourself almost like a scientist.”
💬 “What can I learn from this question? What can I learn about how to approach those? What can I learn about the mental stamina it takes? To stay focused for that long so that even just the fact that you did, let’s say three essays and three hours or whatever, like you just did what you needed to do and the amount of time that you needed to do, even just doing that is helpful.”
💬 “When you’re practicing, you’re also memorizing your rules. You’re doing things that you don’t realize you’re doing in that moment.”
When you take a practice test, you’re not trying to judge yourself for being good or bad (unless you’re a masochist and shame works on you). You’re finding out what you don’t know yet, instead of finding out on the exam, which is the entire point of testing yourself in the first place. You SHOULD be getting things wrong now and using that data to patch the holes in your understanding.
If you’re good already, what’s the point of prep? Prep = prepare. The point is to BECOME competent and develop the skill.
Tina compared it to learning to drive. You could watch forty hours of instructional video and read the entire handbook, and none of that replaces actually sitting behind the wheel and stepping on the gas.
Don’t just stand there. Give it a try. Who would you trust to do an emergency landing if the pilot has a heart attack: a trainee who’s memorized the manual or the passenger who’s flown amateur planes? In bar prep, watching hours of lecture video can make you feel like you’re learning, but it’s a different skill than sitting down with a closed-book practice question and forcing yourself through it while you’re still not sure you can do it. Then learning from what happened.
When Mary and Tina wrote their essay book, they mapped out how past essays get asked across issues that keep resurfacing. The past will guide your future. The bar exam can’t test beyond a limited number of issues and variations. Once you know how to solve them, you know how to solve the exam. This is the weakness of the bar exam.
Final thoughts
There were a lot more gems, but hopefully the main points got across.
Thanks to Mary and Tina for being generous with their time, and reminding us not to blindly trust some process but to trust ourselves and trust the right process for us. The right process for you is whatever one that helps you understand and retain the material and answer questions correctly.
Advice is autobiography. There’s a lot of advice that sounds good, but they are all said through their own lived experiences. Meaning it may or may not suit your situation.
So I want to encourage you to do a practice set today to see where you stand, find out where your weaknesses are (it’s much less painful to face this now than when you get your results), and figure out how you’re going to patch up those holes. You should be excited to generate data that will help you be stronger on the exam.
Again, a few resources mentioned that could help support your data collection:
- AdaptiBar or UWorld for MCQ practice
- BarEssays for reading real graded California essays
- Discount codes for the above kept up to date here
r/CABarExam • u/AnxiousYam6295 • Jul 15 '26
CA adopts NextGen for July 2028
Updated 8/28/26
- California will adopt the NextGen Uniform Bar Examination beginning with the July 2028 bar exam administration. The NextGen UBE has been adopted by 52 U.S. jurisdictions and is administered in person only. California’s current bar exam format will remain in place through the February 2028 administration.
- The NextGen UBE tests common legal principles that are not state-specific and is designed to assess the knowledge and skills newly licensed lawyers are expected to need during their first three years of practice. See the resources below for more detailed exam information.
- Updated: The California Supreme Court has directed the State Bar’s Committee of Bar Examiners to develop a proposal for a California-specific admissions component, to start around July 2029. Per the most recent bar examiners’ meeting, this component might not be an exam and also might not be administered at the same time as the bar exam.
- The California component will replace the current California Attorneys’ Exam for admission of attorneys licensed in other states. California’s July 2028 and February 2029 administrations of the NextGen UBE are expected to occur without a California component, pending future implementation of any state-specific requirement.
- Major bar prep companies, including BarBri, Helix, and Themis, already have NextGen UBE courses available because other jurisdictions began administering the exam in July 2026.
- Unknowns: Additional details regarding California’s passing score, score portability, and implementation plans will be released by the California Supreme Court, the State Bar of California, and NCBE as the transition progresses. Look for a significant update in early to mid-2027.
Helpful resources include:
r/CABarExam • u/Low-Excitement9484 • 3h ago
10 days out…..
How is everyone feeling? Personally I’ve been doing exposure therapy by opening up “Exam Results” each day even though I know nothing is there yet….idk if it’s working to get over that fear of opening them on the day of but hoping for the best! Vent below and let’s let go of our fears together hopefully maybe!
r/CABarExam • u/when-in-doubt-lol • 8h ago
July 2026 Perspective
galleryFor those of us awaiting results drenched with dread and anxiety (as I myself am), I just wanted to share these two photos of what Michelle Obama commented on her first bar failure experience. She says she always over prepared and had never really failed a standardized test before but for her first bar, she didn’t put in all of her effort because she was burnt out. When she failed, it seems like she was more upset than depressed - upset in the sense of not having managed to achieve what she thought she was fully capable of achieving (rather than falling into the false belief that exam was insurmountable). The message I take here is that we, as law school graduates, though we may not have graduated from Princeton or Harvard law as she did, are just as qualified to pass this exam. By qualification I don’t just mean intelligence - we came this far because we have far more important things - the grit, the belief in ourselves, and the courage to take more difficult paths for things that are valuable to us. We took risks that many others haven’t and we’ve sacrificed our time, youth, memories, maybe even friends / relationships to get here.
I guess what I want to say is that even if some of us “fail” this bar exam, this does not mean we do not deserve to pass or that we are not qualified enough. I think we can just take a simpler approach - maybe we didn’t study as hard as we could, or could improve the ways we were studying. I choose to believe it’s not complicated; it’s simple.
Yes there are big things on the line like student loan payments, job positions, having to work full time, etc. which create added anxiety. But for those of us who do end up failing, why don’t we dust ourselves off and try again?
r/CABarExam • u/Valuable-News-8613 • 14h ago
July 2026 So scared I'm gonna fail
Anybody terrified?
r/CABarExam • u/Intrepid-Bottle9480 • 19h ago
Crazy High Fees
Anyone on here recently move to CA and apply for the MJP program. Just on the MJP application fees ($2000) and Moral Character Determination ($1050) I'm already over $3000 in fees. Obviously not counting things like fees for the fingerprints, driving records, etc. All in all will be about $3,100 just to apply. Pretty wild.
r/CABarExam • u/S00gyCheese • 16h ago
Annual License Fee Confusion
Hey all, I submitted my oath package and am waiting for my approval through the attorney registry. I was told different information by attorneys about the annual license fee. Because I submitted it this month, of 2027, I'd have to pay a late fee? Or that I would be paying a fee to practice for the year of 2027, and then have to pay another $600 in March to pay for 2028? Or that by paying the fee I'll be getting soon it will count as if paying for both 2027 & 2028? I'm sure you can see why I'm confused.
I'm also curious about something else. My moral character expired but I submitted my oath package 4 days after (expired this month). Strangely, on my account, my moral character still says approved 2 weeks since the expiration email. I do wonder how that will work with my moral character. Will I get an email saying I wasn't approved or will they just stay silent all throughout the process? And I wonder, if I have to make a new moral character, can I get the fee waived by trying to speak with them through their office of admissions number they have on their Moral Character FAQ? Does anyone know if thats even possible?
Thanks
r/CABarExam • u/Creative_Pack476 • 1d ago
Passers with decent mee scores
If you missed subparts for multiple mees what was your written score assuming that your mbe score is reported on the letter? If a breakdown was provided, explain in depth
r/CABarExam • u/folkmispu • 3d ago
February 2026 To all my fellow F25 CA bar applicants, we will make it through.
r/CABarExam • u/The_K_in_Klass • 5d ago
State Bar Drafts Plans for a Remote, California-Specific Bar Exam
This is from law.com with a paywall. Can a kind soul "summarize" the story here?
Thanks
r/CABarExam • u/NoBullBarPrep • 5d ago
Need some help with your writing?
My free writing workshop takes place tonight (10/14/26) at 7PM PST. It's part of my free Early Start Program, so, if you're already registered, no need to reply. If you're not in the Early Start Program and want to join in, just send an e-mail to [admin@nobullbarprep.com](mailto:admin@nobullbarprep.com) and put "Early Start" in the subject line. The zoom link will go out at 6:30 PM PST this evening, and the class will start promptly at 7PM PST.
r/CABarExam • u/S00gyCheese • 5d ago
Moral Character Approval Expired
So I passed the CA Bar exam back in Nov 2024 and had my Moral Character approved since 2023. I recently received an email from the State that my Moral Character Approval has expired and that I need to make a new Moral Character application if I so wish to practice in CA. Yea, I know, my fault for procrastinating. The problem is it still says I'm approved on my application for Moral Character.
Does anyone know if I can submit my swearing/license documents while it still says approved? It's been a week since I received the expired email and I'm still approved on Calbar. Would like to avoid paying another $1k if its possible. But at the same time since I've received an expiration email I keep thinking the approval for swearing in will just bounce back.
I know this might not be the best subreddit to ask, but it's the only one I know where I can discuss such things.
r/CABarExam • u/nathakell • 6d ago
The closer we get to results the more I want to vom
Also why did they have to drop these results Halloween weekend? Way to ruin a fun weekend. I would’ve honestly rather waited til November 6 since we’ve already waited this long. Every time I think of the results my stomach is in knots and I’ve been sleeping very poorly ugh.
r/CABarExam • u/Needsallkindsofhelp • 6d ago
Previously passed the CA Bar, retaking it after 10 years — self-study or bar prep course?
This will be a weird post. I passed the California Bar Exam a while ago, but my moral character application was denied. I have now gotten through C&F, but my score has expired, so I’m taking the February 2027 exam. I’m trying to figure out how the hell should I study for this thing.
I graduated at the top of my class from HLS, was an appellate clerk, and have worked as a circuit court staff attorney since graduation (no bar passage required). I also tutor law students extensively, along with some bar exam tutoring.
Barbri worked for me before, but it's extremely expensive, and I suspect a substantial portion of the lectures would be redundant given my background.
AI suggested UWorld for MBE practice, SmartBarPrep for California-specific outlines and memorization, and Quimee or another resource for unfamiliar subjects. But…that approach scares me. I need to pass. Wondering if I should bite the bullet and purchase Barbri or Themis.
Anyone else been in a familiar situation or have any advice?
r/CABarExam • u/Suitable-Strategy-65 • 7d ago
GMC: Don’t freak out if assigned investigator
I had a few small issues that I fully disclosed. I was assigned an investigator this morning and about had a heart attack.
Received a positive determination about 2 hours later.
Don’t let it dishearten you!!
r/CABarExam • u/Interesting-Waltz607 • 6d ago
Approval notice?
I submitted my form and fee for Feb 2027 exam receiving a submission of fee the same day on 10/04/26 but still have not received any approval or confirmation emails? I don’t remember it taking so much time when I applied for the Feb 2026 exam. Am I overthinking?
r/CABarExam • u/ExpertLevel3687 • 6d ago
Anyone taken the exam at San Mateo County Event Center? Looking for advice on the test site
Hi folks! I’m a foreign attorney planning to fly to SF for the Feb 2027 exam. I am thinking of taking the exam at the San Mateo County Event Center. I am hoping I can hear from anyone who has taken an exam there.
A few questions:
- Hotels: Any recommendations within walking distance? Is walking to the center practical?
- Safety: How safe is the surrounding area for walking alone during the day?
- Charging: Are there outlets available?
- Tables & chairs: Is there enough desk space, and are the chairs comfortable for a long exam? If not can I bring cushions?
- Bags: Is there a secure area to store personal belongings during the exam?
- Check-in: How long were the lines?
- Restrooms: Are they easy to access, and do lines get long during breaks?
- VS Oakland: Would you recommend the Oakland site instead? I just heard safety concerns about that area.
Thanks so much!
r/CABarExam • u/Comfortable-Judge468 • 8d ago
Working full time and studying for feb 2027 bar exam
How soon did you start studying and any suggestions on how to pass a retaker? I want to give myself enough time and think December wouldn't be enough if i start then.
r/CABarExam • u/Every-Argument-7037 • 8d ago
May I have your attention please. If you failed the bar.
r/CABarExam • u/PuffyClaudia • 8d ago
Group for Feb 2027
Hey there
Is there an active WhatsApp or facebook group for people studying for Feb 2027 Bar exam
accountability group?
Foreign lawyers group ?
r/CABarExam • u/Icy_Change6767 • 8d ago
July 2026 Sanity check!
The results come out in less than 3 weeks, and I’ve been thinking about how it’s all going to go (because that’s what you do when there’s a lingering fear of whether you’re going to pass or have to take this exam all over again).
I honestly don’t know how it’s going to turn out, but I do know that I gave it everything I had. Every single molecule in my body wanted to give up during the exam but I still completed all the essays and the PT. Were 2 of my essays and the PT my best work? Absolutely not. But I finished them and right now, I’m choosing to be hopeful.
The MCQs were a different story. 😭 I randomly guessed around 20% of my answers because I ran out of time, and I genuinely have no idea how that part went.
But despite all of this, I’m still hoping for the best. Maybe that’s what we all need right now, a little faith that despite everything we think went wrong, things might still work out in our favor.
I really, really hope we all pass. And if you’re reading this and feeling scared, please know that you’re not alone. We’ve made it this far, and I hope we get to close this chapter together. ❤️
So, for now, let yourself hope 🫂