MAYDAY!! July 2019 UBE State, Got 240 – Need 260 to pass Forum

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frankenfarter

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MAYDAY!! July 2019 UBE State, Got 240 – Need 260 to pass

Post by frankenfarter » Thu Oct 17, 2019 12:15 pm

MAYDAY - MAYDAY! I took the UBE 3 times and haven't been able to eclipse 240. (I would need 260 to pass).
In July 2019 UBE, I got a 130 on MBE, and 110 on MPT and MEE. And generally on all my past exams, I've been getting killed on the MPT and MEE. Last time I prepared by focusing some time on MPTs (although in retrospect I proly only did 6 un-timed MPTs) and focusing on committing BarBri's Convisor mini-review to rote memory. My thinking here was that since my averages on MEEs were 1.5 out of 6, I didn't know the law. I thought if I knew the law a little better, that my MEEs would rise 20 points. I was wrong.

My LSAT was just to the left middle, but I did ok in law school so I thought after the first sitting, a 230ish score was a fluke. Admittedly I coasted through studying for July 2019 by only studying 4 hours per day 4 days per week for about 4 weeks. My 240 was no fluke. I know I need to do more. But what?

My questions are these:
1) At some point I may consider taking that score to a 280 state. Ergo, I'm shooting for a 280. Is this doable? So the ultimate question here is: Is it possible to go from 240 to 280? Am I stuck in a 260 state?

2) Does anyone here have similar experiences with moving the needle 20 – 40 points? Is this realistic?

Any help, thoughts. prayers, animal sacrifices would be much appreciated.

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SilvermanBarPrep

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Re: MAYDAY!! July 2019 UBE State, Got 240 – Need 260 to pass

Post by SilvermanBarPrep » Thu Oct 17, 2019 1:05 pm

It's for sure possible to see such a score increase. You did what you thought was needed by focusing mostly on the law for July and that wasn't necessarily a bad move. In other words, all that work won't go to waste! But for the next one focus much more on applying the law. Rather than memorizing Conviser (an excellent book) instead work through MBE questions so that you start to understand the traps that are set into the answers to try to distract you into picking them. And go over all of the released essays in any subject that you're struggling in. It's one thing to understand the law of Trusts (for example) and it's entirely another to understand how to apply that law to a given set of facts. But scoring high on the bar exam is for more about application of the law.

You definitely have a good, positive attitude even while struggling. Keep working at it!

Sean (Silverman Bar Exam Tutoring)

Moabit

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Re: MAYDAY!! July 2019 UBE State, Got 240 – Need 260 to pass

Post by Moabit » Sun Oct 20, 2019 10:42 pm

As no one else is chipping in, let me state, perhaps, the obvious. The good thing about 110 MEE score is that there is no way down from there, only up. 130 (a rather low score) is not too difficult to achieve, if you focus on just a few fundamentals.
1. Skim as many MEE questions as you can get your hands on (not necessarily writing answers for all of them. (As athletes and artists know, practice does not make perfect. Practice only makes permanent. If you practice bad techniques, such practice only makes things worse.) But make sure you are able to identify the issues. There are usually only 2-3 (may be 4, if simpler ones) per 30 min MBE question. They are typically rather straightforward and have a correct answer.
2. IRAC each issue. Don't waste time writing, "did the defendant commit burglary by entering his girlfriend's apartment to take the engagement ring?" Write "Burglary" and start typing the rule. Know the rules, for that matter. The rules, fortunately, are very basic for MEE (no nuances required, unlike for MBE). Practice stating the rules to yourself. If you have trouble remembering, practice by looking them up and writing them down, preferably with a pen, this way you'll remember them better than while typing.
3. Apply the rule(s) to the facts. That is, find what is similar (and what is not) to the rule that you stated. This is what you presumably spent 3 years doing in law school. So you should have a decent idea what applying law to facts means. Don't argue both sides. You don't need it to get to 130. You generally don't need it on MEE at all. As you get more confident you are covering your main bases and still have enough time, you can sometimes state in passing, "although the fact 1 may indicate that Owner did not have a present intent to transfer the title, facts 2 and 3 show that he did, because..." Weave the facts into your rule, by addressing each one at least once (and once is enough 90% of the time) so that there are no "unused facts" left hanging out. Don't rush. You can spend full 5-7 minutes reading that short MEE passage twice, marking you issues in the margins and circling your facts in the text.

As far as MPT goes, I described my strategy in a few posts this past summer, so I do not want to repeat myself. Good luck! It is easier than you think.

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