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reasonable troll wrote:checking in. thought i was done with this godforsaken website. alas.

since i accepted the fact that i've failed, i've done a bit of research re repeating, and you guys may find this useful:

1. deadline for timely filing for repeaters is Dec. 8. after that, there's a $50 late filing fee.

2. if you took barbri and this was your first unsuccessful attempt, you can retake it at no cost, except for the $250 materials deposit and $25 shipping. when you log in to barbri with your old info, it will give you that rate automatically.


sorry bros & broettes. this super sucks. i actually was consoled by this list of our good company: http://www.buzzfeed.com/deenashanker/fa ... -president

goku wrote:so you're saying my chances of marrying obama are not out the water? that's good to know..

BarZombie wrote: It's good that we will get our essays and scores from CA to know where to focus...just hope it's before mid-December.

a_ela1 wrote:Does anyone know of a good resource for essay approaches? Preferably ones that give you the basic rule statements for memorization? I already know that's my weakest area so I want to get a jump on it now. Last time I did Kaplan and I hated having to take notes from their 30 minute essay lectures, while their professors rattled off issues to look for, rather than just having it spelled out on paper for me.

BarZombie wrote:Ok...well at least we get a second bite at the apple.

Honestly, I felt good about the exam until the last day...some timing issues with the torts question and the last PT...at the time I didn't think it was fatal...so I honestly don't know if it was the MBE or my last PT or a combination of both.

It's good that we will get our essays and scores from CA to know where to focus...just hope it's before mid-December.

If anyone is interested, I looked at the July 2013 scaling formula and compared it to February 2014 and July 2014...we definitely got kicked in the teeth.

It seems that the MBE messed it up for everyone and removed any degree of cushion for a misstep...if your problem was written...maybe not what you want to hear...but reality...and maybe something to help keep things in perspective as you prep for Feb...this is not minimal competency exam any longer...but a game...and there should be transparency.

For July of 2013 you needed a 60 average on the written portion and a scaled MBE of 137 to pass.

For February of 2014 you needed a 60 average on the written portion and a scaled MBE of 145 to pass.

For July of 2014 you needed a 62 average on the written portion and a scaled MBE of 141 to pass (The national average)... Or a 60 average + 152 scaled MBE) ...this is brutal given how tough the grading is in CA...and that a lot of students use the MBE for cushion.

The above noted were quick calculations...so give or take a point or two.

It seems that the bar candidates for July 2013 got lucky with the scaling...February 2014 candidates...not so bad...but the July 2014 formula is brutal...less liberal than even February 2014.

This exam is definitely doable...but I don't think there will be much room to make more than a few minor bloopers on the written portion...the National Conference has removed any cushion...and any chance of padding the MBE side of the exam...especially with CivPro coming up and the way they are writing the test.

Let's hope February is a little softer in terms of the scaling...although who knows...there will be a lot of us retaking this exam with a good foundation and knowledge of what to expect...I feel sorry for any first time takers come February...the bar will be high and we will all be out for blood this round.

And one more thing...if July 2013 candidates were better qualified, then why did they benefit with such a generous scaling?

Good luck everyone!

February 2014:
X -
3.1584 460.6635



July 2013:
X -
3.6115 684.4297


July 2014:
X -
3.1098 469.44

a_ela1 wrote:Does anyone know of a good resource for essay approaches? Preferably ones that give you the basic rule statements for memorization? I already know that's my weakest area so I want to get a jump on it now. Last time I did Kaplan and I hated having to take notes from their 30 minute essay lectures, while their professors rattled off issues to look for, rather than just having it spelled out on paper for me.

2807 wrote:Hey AMH !

Good to see ya, you old dog !

Keep up the good work.

PennJD83 wrote:Does anyone have experience with CA bar tutors? I am currently leaning towards hiring John Crossfield because he is a former bar grader and his services are reasonably priced. Has anyone used John and had a good experience? Can anyone comment on their experience with other tutors? Thanks!

BarZombie wrote:For the CA MBE conversion they use a 2000 point scale...

....so if your scaled MBE was 1500 then you averaged 75%...so then figure 75% of 190 or 200 for your scaled score...so 142.5 to 150.

Same for the essays...use the scaled written off of the 2000 point scale and you can see what the curved written percentage is versus the raw written.