THEMIS DISCUSSION - FEBRUARY 2019 Forum

[inyourhonor07]

How are you guys feeling?

I finally started reaching 70% consistently on the mixed MBE sets, so I'm feeling better there. I know it's by no means amazing, but I honestly never thought I'd get to this point because of my dismal scores on some of the subject-specific sets. I think memorizing the rule statements for the MEE and IEE are my biggest hurdles right now. This is my last full week of work, so I'm looking forward to being able to study full-time the next two weeks. I'm really hoping my ability to regurgitate a rule improves during that time because I'm definitely still making up rules that sound similar to the actual rule but I'm forgetting some key words/language.

I'm waiting until this weekend to take the simulated because of work. Good luck to those starting on it today!

[Lancair]

156/200 on the simulated MBE. Kinda annoyed that I didn't crack 80% but pretty happy all up - should be enough for basically an autopass if I can replicate it in a few weeks.

[DodgerBlues1991]

156/200 on the simulated MBE. Kinda annoyed that I didn't crack 80% but pretty happy all up - should be enough for basically an autopass if I can replicate it in a few weeks.

Is there such a thing as an AUTO-Pass in Cali with MBE, and what percentage would you need if there is?

[Lancair]

156/200 on the simulated MBE. Kinda annoyed that I didn't crack 80% but pretty happy all up - should be enough for basically an autopass if I can replicate it in a few weeks.

Is there such a thing as an AUTO-Pass in Cali with MBE, and what percentage would you need if there is?

Unfortunately not. If you google "MBE autopass" you will find a bunch of threads here and on reddit discussing it. The basic theory is that because of the way the UBE is scaled, if you write something vaguely law-sounding for each of the essays, with a 150+ MBE it is very unlikely you will fail the overall exam, because even a very poor written score will still net you 100-120 UBE points. Unlike the MBE, which has a set scale, and is closely, but not precisely, correlated to you raw score, they score the essays by basically ranking them and assigning the median essay the median MBE score (~140), and the rest their spot on the MBE curve.

Further cementing the autopass theory is the fact if you can get a 150+ on the MBE you can probably write decent essays for at least half of the essay topics based on your MBE study.

So, 156 on the MBE plus 110 on the essays (which is sub-10% percentile) will pass in NY. The problem with this for CA is that the equivalent pass mark on the UBE scale /400 is roughly 280, so, ignoring the complications of how the essays are graded in CA (which I am not familiar with), "autopass" kicks in not at the "difficult but achievable" 150+ but rather at the (to use a turn of phrase in one of the autopass threads) "weaponized autist" level of 170+.

[yennem]

Scored a 116 today (61 Morning/ 55 Afternoon) how does everyone else feel.... I was averaging 68-70% on the mixed sets before the simulation.

[washington_mystics]

Scored a 116 today (61 Morning/ 55 Afternoon) how does everyone else feel.... I was averaging 68-70% on the mixed sets before the simulation.

122 on Simulated. I'm averaging 70% on the mixed sets so didn't feel the best after the MBE. I ended up quickly putting my scores in Excel to see where I went wrong and plan on drilling those areas in Emmanuel's the next few days: https://i.imgur.com/hnDZMRA.png .

[longagotaker]

134 simulated. The afternoon was rough. I had a huge dip in energy and score. I hope adrenaline kicks in on test day. 200 Qs is grueling.

[yennem]

Scored a 116 today (61 Morning/ 55 Afternoon) how does everyone else feel.... I was averaging 68-70% on the mixed sets before the simulation.

122 on Simulated. I'm averaging 70% on the mixed sets so didn't feel the best after the MBE. I ended up quickly putting my scores in Excel to see where I went wrong and plan on drilling those areas in Emmanuel's the next few days: https://i.imgur.com/hnDZMRA.png .

Here is my breakdown

https://imgur.com/a/Ctz3YNX

[yennem]

Scored a 116 today (61 Morning/ 55 Afternoon) how does everyone else feel.... I was averaging 68-70% on the mixed sets before the simulation.

122 on Simulated. I'm averaging 70% on the mixed sets so didn't feel the best after the MBE. I ended up quickly putting my scores in Excel to see where I went wrong and plan on drilling those areas in Emmanuel's the next few days: https://i.imgur.com/hnDZMRA.png .

Here is my breakdown

https://imgur.com/a/Ctz3YNX

I added a little more depth, interesting to see how my performance changed in the afternoon session from the morning.

https://imgur.com/a/dmSGWxb

[Lancair]

I did marginally better in the PM session.

Will definitely be taking some chocolates etc as my "quiet snack", thing is a marathon and staying focused for the whole session will make a massive difference.

[MartyFunkhouse]

First-time taker here looking for some encouragement or a slap to the face....

I've currently completed just over 1,000 mbe questions and my average is a 65%. Scored a 48% on the first exam and a 60% on the second one. My graded essays so far have been 4,5,5,4,5. Taking the full practice exam next Tuesday/Wednesday. I'm grinding away everyday but some of these MBE sets, particularly the later ones, are a complete mind duck. Should I be concerned with these numbers 2 1/2 weeks out?

[Neilt001]

First-time taker here looking for some encouragement or a slap to the face....

I've currently completed just over 1,000 mbe questions and my average is a 65%. Scored a 48% on the first exam and a 60% on the second one. My graded essays so far have been 4,5,5,4,5. Taking the full practice exam next Tuesday/Wednesday. I'm grinding away everyday but some of these MBE sets, particularly the later ones, are a complete mind duck. Should I be concerned with these numbers 2 1/2 weeks out?

Hi there! Very common to be experiencing these issues around this time. I know you'll read from plenty of people who are scoring in the 70s or higher, but personally I was around the 60-65 mark at this time last year, and my essay scores were worse than yours. (ending up doing really well on both MBE and written).

My advice, aside from don't beat yourself up about it and just stay the course, is to do more MBEs. I think 1,000 is a little low by this stage, and you should be aiming to do around 2,000 or more (I had done 2400 by the end). And make sure you learn from each mistake and write down the correct rule whenever you get it wrong. You won't ever get to a place where you've seen all the possible questions/rules. But you;ll eventually be able to attain that golden 65% needed for an MBE pass. Written sounds like you're doing fine.

good luck!

[DodgerBlues1991]

Has anyone else noticed the mixed sets range in difficulty as this: one hard one, then one easy one. I've gone through 6 so far, and 3 I got over 70 on and 3 I have got under 65 on.

[Lancair]

Has anyone else noticed the mixed sets range in difficulty as this: one hard one, then one easy one. I've gone through 6 so far, and 3 I got over 70 on and 3 I have got under 65 on.

I understand from the previous Themis threads that the mixed sets do change in difficulty and feature your problem areas.

[DodgerBlues1991]

Any themis users find the final review outlines helpful for memorization?

[MartyFunkhouse]

Any themis users find the final review outlines helpful for memorization?

I used those for review and to create one page checklists to help with the "big picture". I really think memorization boils down to daily exposure to the materials and practicing. I find that outlining only helps for compartmentalizing all of the material into your head in a structured way while flash cards, skimming outlines, and primarily practice will help ingrain the more specific details.

Does anyone have any insight into the February passage rates for Themis? Are they similar to the July rates?

[Smiddywesson]

156/200 on the simulated MBE. Kinda annoyed that I didn't crack 80% but pretty happy all up - should be enough for basically an autopass if I can replicate it in a few weeks.

Is there such a thing as an AUTO-Pass in Cali with MBE, and what percentage would you need if there is?

Unfortunately not. If you google "MBE autopass" you will find a bunch of threads here and on reddit discussing it. The basic theory is that because of the way the UBE is scaled, if you write something vaguely law-sounding for each of the essays, with a 150+ MBE it is very unlikely you will fail the overall exam, because even a very poor written score will still net you 100-120 UBE points. Unlike the MBE, which has a set scale, and is closely, but not precisely, correlated to you raw score, they score the essays by basically ranking them and assigning the median essay the median MBE score (~140), and the rest their spot on the MBE curve.

Further cementing the autopass theory is the fact if you can get a 150+ on the MBE you can probably write decent essays for at least half of the essay topics based on your MBE study.

So, 156 on the MBE plus 110 on the essays (which is sub-10% percentile) will pass in NY. The problem with this for CA is that the equivalent pass mark on the UBE scale /400 is roughly 280, so, ignoring the complications of how the essays are graded in CA (which I am not familiar with), "autopass" kicks in not at the "difficult but achievable" 150+ but rather at the (to use a turn of phrase in one of the autopass threads) "weaponized autist" level of 170+.

Well your comment took a lot of pressure off me, "weaponized autist" level (LOL) is currently where I stand with a consistent raw score of 168-170 over the last month or so and three practice tests. I think I'm going to shift over to more practice essays. The time I spent reading these posts makes me feel a lot less anxiety than I had this morning. Thanks!!!!

[Lancair]

156/200 on the simulated MBE. Kinda annoyed that I didn't crack 80% but pretty happy all up - should be enough for basically an autopass if I can replicate it in a few weeks.

Is there such a thing as an AUTO-Pass in Cali with MBE, and what percentage would you need if there is?

Unfortunately not. If you google "MBE autopass" you will find a bunch of threads here and on reddit discussing it. The basic theory is that because of the way the UBE is scaled, if you write something vaguely law-sounding for each of the essays, with a 150+ MBE it is very unlikely you will fail the overall exam, because even a very poor written score will still net you 100-120 UBE points. Unlike the MBE, which has a set scale, and is closely, but not precisely, correlated to you raw score, they score the essays by basically ranking them and assigning the median essay the median MBE score (~140), and the rest their spot on the MBE curve.

Further cementing the autopass theory is the fact if you can get a 150+ on the MBE you can probably write decent essays for at least half of the essay topics based on your MBE study.

So, 156 on the MBE plus 110 on the essays (which is sub-10% percentile) will pass in NY. The problem with this for CA is that the equivalent pass mark on the UBE scale /400 is roughly 280, so, ignoring the complications of how the essays are graded in CA (which I am not familiar with), "autopass" kicks in not at the "difficult but achievable" 150+ but rather at the (to use a turn of phrase in one of the autopass threads) "weaponized autist" level of 170+.

Well your comment took a lot of pressure off me, "weaponized autist" level (LOL) is currently where I stand with a consistent raw score of 168-170 over the last month or so and three practice tests. I think I'm goingto shift over to more practice essays. The time I spent reading these posts makes me feel a lot less anxiety than I had this morning. Thanks!!!!

With those scores your last two weeks of study could should consist of watching Netflix.

One of the best things I did to keep calm over the last couple of months is read all the bar review threads and notice the amount of people hysterically fretting about failing, then getting obscene UBE scores.

You’ve gotta put in the work but not sense driving yourself crazy doing it.

[longagotaker]

Has anyone else noticed the mixed sets range in difficulty as this: one hard one, then one easy one. I've gone through 6 so far, and 3 I got over 70 on and 3 I have got under 65 on.

I understand from the previous Themis threads that the mixed sets do change in difficulty and feature your problem areas.

I really hope this is true. Has anyone else noticed this? I had 70-78% on sets 1-6 and then 7 & 8 I saw a huge plummet. I hope this is intentional!

[inyourhonor07]

Has anyone else noticed the mixed sets range in difficulty as this: one hard one, then one easy one. I've gone through 6 so far, and 3 I got over 70 on and 3 I have got under 65 on.

I understand from the previous Themis threads that the mixed sets do change in difficulty and feature your problem areas.

I really hope this is true. Has anyone else noticed this? I had 70-78% on sets 1-6 and then 7 & 8 I saw a huge plummet. I hope this is intentional!

Yes! I even got some in the 50's after the 7th set and I had been consistently getting 68-70% prior to that. I'm definitely seeing more than a few rules I hadn't seen before in these later sets.

[longagotaker]

Has anyone else noticed the mixed sets range in difficulty as this: one hard one, then one easy one. I've gone through 6 so far, and 3 I got over 70 on and 3 I have got under 65 on.

I understand from the previous Themis threads that the mixed sets do change in difficulty and feature your problem areas.

I really hope this is true. Has anyone else noticed this? I had 70-78% on sets 1-6 and then 7 & 8 I saw a huge plummet. I hope this is intentional!

Yes! I even got some in the 50's after the 7th set and I had been consistently getting 68-70% prior to that. I'm definitely seeing more than a few rules I hadn't seen before in these later sets.

Phew! Glad to hear I’m not the only one. Thanks.

[yennem]

How did everyone do today?

[washington_mystics]

How did everyone do today?

70/100

#4 felt like it was testing every exception and minor rule.

[Lancair]

Heading to the States tomorrow so I've saved No. 4 for the flight.

Is anyone else ITT taking in Albany?

[yennem]

I am in a major slump, just scored a 48% on the last fl MC yesterday... Lost all my confidence.... The pressure is on