Pass the first time*
91% of Kaplan Students Who Do 75% of Assigned Practice Pass the UBE the First Time.
*Pass rates based on responses to a survey of all first-time takers from accredited ABA law schools who are JD graduates and prepared for the July 2018 Bar examination with Kaplan Bar Review. "Assigned practice" means MBE questions and essays assigned by Kaplan in its Bar Review course.
What is the Uniform Bar Exam (UBE)?
The UBE is a standardized bar exam created by the National Conference of Bar Examiners (NCBE). It is designed to test knowledge and skills that every lawyer should have before becoming licensed to practice law.
The UBE is uniformly administered and scored, and the UBE score is portable, meaning it can be used to apply in multiple jurisdictions that have adopted the UBE. Some jurisdictions that use the UBE may also require applicants to complete additional educational components or exams. Each jurisdiction sets its own passing score.
RELATED READING: UBE Passing Scores By State
About the UBE
The UBE consists of three parts: the Multistate Bar Examination (MBE), the Multistate Essay Examination (MEE), and the Multistate Performance Test (MPT). You can read more details about each of these sections below.
The UBE is administered twice a year over the course of two days.
The first administration of the MBE falls on the last Wednesday of February, with the MEE and MPT being administered the Tuesday prior to that. The second administration of the MBE is on the last Wednesday of July, with the MEE and MPT on the Tuesday prior to that.
What is on the UBE?
The UBE is comprised of the following three sections, weighted as follows:
- The Multistate Bar Examination (MBE) 50%
- The Multistate Essay Examination (MEE) 30%
- The Multistate Performance Test (MPT) 20%
What is The Multistate Bar Examination (MBE)?
The Multistate Bar Examination (MBE) is one component of the Uniform Bar Exam. It is a 200-question, multiple-choice exam administered over a six-hour period on two dates per year: the last Wednesday of February and the last Wednesday of July.
The MBE is used to help bar examiners determine competence to practice law. Specifically, it is used to assess an examinee’s ability to apply fundamental legal principles, exercise legal reasoning, and analyze fact patterns. Jurisdictions that administer the UBE weigh the MBE component 50%.
RELATED READING: How to Study For The MBE
What is The Multistate Essay Examination (MEE)?
The Multistate Essay Examination (MEE) consists of six 30-minute questions that are administered on the Tuesday before the last Wednesday in February and the Tuesday before the last Wednesday in July of each year (when the MBE is administered).
The MEE is used to determine effective communication in writing, specifically the ability to:
- Identify legal issues raised by real-life, factual scenarios
- Differentiate between relevant and non-relevant information
- Present a reasoned analysis of relevant information through clarity in writing and composition
- Demonstrate an understanding of the fundamental legal principles that are relevant to the issues tested
Jurisdictions that administer the UBE weigh the MEE component 30%.
What are the UBE essay subjects?
The Multistate Essay Examination (MEE) section of the UBE may cover any of the following content areas:
- Business Associations – Agency and Partnership, Corporations, Limited Liability Companies
- Conflict of Laws
- Constitutional Law
- Contracts
- Criminal Law and Procedure
- Evidence
- Family Law
- Federal Civil Procedure
- Real Property
- Torts
- Trusts and Estates – Decedents' Estates; Trusts and Future Interests
- Uniform Commercial Code – Article 9, Secured Transactions
Unlike the MBE, which is graded and scored by the NCBE, the MEE is graded exclusively by the jurisdiction administering the bar examination.
RELATED READING: MEE Essay Strategies
What is the Multistate Performance Test (MPT)?
The Multistate Performance Test (MPT) is the third component of the UBE and can consist of one or two 90-minute sections depending on your testing jurisdiction. If your jurisdiction has adopted the UBE, your test will consist of two sections.
The Multistate Performance Test will examine your ability to solve a fictional client's problem. This test was designed to assess your fundamental lawyer skills and determine if they are adequate regardless of which area of law you practice.
The MPT is administered as part of the bar examination on the Tuesday before the last Wednesday in February and July of each year. Jurisdictions that administer the UBE weigh the MPT component 20%.
UBE states and UBE jurisdictions
The U.S. states and districts that accept the UBE are:
Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia, Wyoming, Virgin Islands
The UBE is uniformly administered across these jurisdictions, but the jurisdictions themselves are responsible for certain aspects of the exam and its administration, including, but not limited to:
- Determining who can sit for the exam and how many times they can take it
- Scoring the MEE and MPT components
- Setting score release policies
- Requiring additional jurisdiction-specific exams or educational components
- Setting passing score rates and determining how long scores will be accepted
Why does the UBE matter?
The Uniform Bar Examination provides a standardized bar exam that has been adopted in 26 states and the District of Columbia. Examinees who take the UBE earn a portable score that can be transferred to seek admission in other UBE jurisdictions.
For more information about the UBE and its sections, scoring, and jurisdictions, visit the NBCE’s site.
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