MPRE August 2017 Forum

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love23

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Re: MPRE August 2017

Post by love23 » Mon Sep 11, 2017 12:22 pm

** FOR THOSE STRUGGLING TO PASS THE MPRE**
I am here to give you hope in a time where you may feel like others are passing you by and you may never end up passing this exam that shouldn't be so daunting. This worked for me. Hopefully, it works for you too :)

As you read some of these threads and others from other forums, you will find that some people do not know how to give advice at all. I read some of these before I took the MPRE and just felt more nervous and down on myself.

There are people that will say do not worry about this test, it is just common sense. DON'T LISTEN TO THESE PEOPLE! Most of them either got lucky or are just good standardized test takers. You can have a grasp of the rules verbatim and still trip up on the test.

The key to finally passing the MPRE is finding a course that works for you. People will say just focus on the Barbri or Kaplan video outline and do a few practice questions and you will be fine. I know people who did just that and passed with flying colors on the first try. THAT IS GREAT FOR THEM AND CONGRATS. This didn't work for some of us and that is okay. I just found that the Barbri questions were nothing like the actual MPRE questions. Kaplan was a little closer but still not quite.

I found that Barbri and Kaplan were great for learning the rules but not so great when it comes to the actual exam questions. I got my hands on the Ameri Bar MPRE practice questions book (the thin blue one). Two weeks before the August 2017 exam, I refreshed my memory on the rules with the Barbri outline book and didn't bother to look at the questions at all. I just focused on the Ameri Bar questions. I was nailing these questions. I initially thought this has to be a fluke, the questions were too easy but I kept at it. I would read the explanations for the ones I got wrong (twice) and interpret why I got the ones I did correctly. The night before the test, I got super nervous. All of these thoughts were rolling around in my head. Am I really getting these questions correctly? I can't afford to take this test again. What am I doing wrong? Why are others seeming to get this with a breeze? Eventually, I got over these thoughts and googled some more practice MPRE questions. The questions that came up were the same structure as the Ameri Bar questions if not identical with a few parts added or omitted. I was nailing these too. I answered some questions for a few hours and went to bed.

The morning of the test, I answered a few more questions at home and in the parking lot of the test venue just to keep my confidence up. "Confidence is half the battle won" :) When the test started, I realized that they were the similarly structured like the Ameri Bar questions. I remembered the reasoning behind why some answer choices were correct or incorrect and moved along quite nicely. There were some questions that tripped me up but you have to remember that at least 10 of these questions are experimental, but don't attack each question with this mindset. I finished with enough time to go back over the whole test, especially the ones that tripped me up. After the test, I felt confident but still, you just never know.

I got the email that the Bar admissions accepted my score, which means I passed. I logged into my NCBE account and found that I exceeded the score for all jurisdictions. Thank God.

This is just a story to give hope to all of those struggling to pass this exam. For everyone that has passed congrats. And for those that weren't successful on this one, keep your chin up, give my method a try, and do your best next time :)

love23

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Re: MPRE August 2017

Post by love23 » Mon Sep 11, 2017 12:41 pm

sgd19 wrote:Didn't pass. 77 for my state. Need 80 to pass

anyone can share tips for the MPRE? i studied twice for this exam using Barbri and Themis and i don't know what happens when I go in and take the exam. really depressed at how something so simple can be impossible for me
** FOR THOSE STRUGGLING TO PASS THE MPRE**
I am here to give you hope in a time where you may feel like others are passing you by and you may never end up passing this exam that shouldn't be so daunting. This worked for me. Hopefully, it works for you too :)

As you read some of these threads and others from other forums, you will find that some people do not know how to give advice at all. I read some of these before I took the MPRE and just felt more nervous and down on myself.

There are people that will say do not worry about this test, it is just common sense. DON'T LISTEN TO THESE PEOPLE! Most of them either got lucky or are just good standardized test takers. You can have a grasp of the rules verbatim and still trip up on the test.

The key to finally passing the MPRE is finding a course that works for you. People will say just focus on the Barbri or Kaplan video outline and do a few practice questions and you will be fine. I know people who did just that and passed with flying colors on the first try. THAT IS GREAT FOR THEM AND CONGRATS. This didn't work for some of us and that is okay. I just found that the Barbri questions were nothing like the actual MPRE questions. Kaplan was a little closer but still not quite.

I found that Barbri and Kaplan were great for learning the rules but not so great when it comes to the actual exam questions. I got my hands on the Ameri Bar MPRE practice questions book (the thin blue one). Two weeks before the August 2017 exam, I refreshed my memory on the rules with the Barbri outline book and didn't bother to look at the questions at all. I just focused on the Ameri Bar questions. I was nailing these questions. I initially thought this has to be a fluke, the questions were too easy but I kept at it. I would read the explanations for the ones I got wrong (twice) and interpret why I got the ones I did correctly. The night before the test, I got super nervous. All of these thoughts were rolling around in my head. Am I really getting these questions correctly? I can't afford to take this test again. What am I doing wrong? Why are others seeming to get this with a breeze? Eventually, I got over these thoughts and googled some more practice MPRE questions. The questions that came up were the same structure as the Ameri Bar questions if not identical with a few parts added or omitted. I was nailing these too. I answered some questions for a few hours and went to bed.

The morning of the test, I answered a few more questions at home and in the parking lot of the test venue just to keep my confidence up. "Confidence is half the battle won" :) When the test started, I realized that they were the similarly structured like the Ameri Bar questions. I remembered the reasoning behind why some answer choices were correct or incorrect and moved along quite nicely. There were some questions that tripped me up but you have to remember that at least 10 of these questions are experimental, but don't attack each question with this mindset. I finished with enough time to go back over the whole test, especially the ones that tripped me up. After the test, I felt confident but still, you just never know.

I got the email that the Bar admissions accepted my score, which means I passed. I logged into my NCBE account and found that I exceeded the score for all jurisdictions. Thank God.

This is just a story to give hope to all of those struggling to pass this exam. For everyone that has passed congrats. And for those that weren't successful on this one, keep your chin up, give my method a try, and do your best next time :)

edwardt1988

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Re: MPRE August 2017

Post by edwardt1988 » Mon Sep 11, 2017 1:12 pm

Yay, I passed. Got a 123. I walked out of the exam feeling like I definitely failed, so this was a nice surprise

L_William_W

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Re: MPRE August 2017

Post by L_William_W » Mon Sep 11, 2017 6:25 pm

106 scaled. The funny thing is that when I left the testing site, I thought I failed. I said to myself that I don't want to do this shit again. I guessed on about 1/3 of the questions. I took the MPRE right after I took the bar (I'm still waiting for the results. I'm hoping for the best). After I took the bar, I took a few days off. I watched Spider-Man Homecoming (great movie) and then went on a trip. That Sunday, I started studying again. I studied 2-3 hours each day. I bought some used Themis and Kaplan books on Amazon and Googled some notes.

This is actually the second time that I passed the MPRE. I took it in August 2012 and got a 92. However, I want to practice in a different jurisdiction. The NCBE con artists said that my score was "stale" and that I had to take it again. Bullshit. Can I get my $95 back?

DCESQ

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Re: MPRE August 2017

Post by DCESQ » Mon Sep 11, 2017 6:45 pm

Posting for posterity.

I scored a 100 needing 75 to pass. I studied 2-3 hours per day Tuesday-Friday before the exam. I took the bar in July and traveled out of the country between the bar and studying for the MPRE.

Edit to say that I watched all the Barbri lectures and did all the questions online (I never received the book). I also took a practice test from Kaplan the day before the exam.
Last edited by DCESQ on Fri Sep 22, 2017 9:02 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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JShades33

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Re: MPRE August 2017

Post by JShades33 » Mon Sep 11, 2017 11:01 pm

Anybody know how long it usually takes for a jurisdiction to receive your score and send notification?

htownking1

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Re: MPRE August 2017

Post by htownking1 » Tue Sep 12, 2017 1:46 am

sgd19 wrote:Didn't pass. 77 for my state. Need 80 to pass

anyone can share tips for the MPRE? i studied twice for this exam using Barbri and Themis and i don't know what happens when I go in and take the exam. really depressed at how something so simple can be impossible for me
What I did was use both Barbri and Themis. I did not read the through the entirety of the outlines for either. I took two weeks to study, about 4 to 5 hours a day, just to be safe. Watched lectures twice. Completed the fill-in notes that both give you and studied those a couple times. Did as many practice questions and exams that I could. Studied what I got wrong in the outline and that is what worked for me. Everyone is different though, I feel like it is really easy to overthink some of the questions.

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vitrl

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Re: MPRE August 2017

Post by vitrl » Tue Sep 12, 2017 3:17 am

Just squeaked by got 83 needed 80 to pass. As for studying, used Themis, only did 2 - 30 question quizzes before the test. Saw some test questions in my practice material.

TXforeignlawyer

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Re: MPRE August 2017

Post by TXforeignlawyer » Wed Sep 13, 2017 5:18 pm

Just signed up for the November MPRE, it's on the day after we are meant to receive our results :?

Waiting on my book shipment from Barbri. Can anyone share how the prep goes? Is it online videos and completing outlines?

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Nonconsecutive

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Re: MPRE August 2017

Post by Nonconsecutive » Wed Sep 13, 2017 5:39 pm

TXforeignlawyer wrote:Just signed up for the November MPRE, it's on the day after we are meant to receive our results :?

Waiting on my book shipment from Barbri. Can anyone share how the prep goes? Is it online videos and completing outlines?
I did no outlines, but it was videos + practice questions for me.

busylittlebee

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Re: MPRE August 2017

Post by busylittlebee » Fri Sep 22, 2017 6:39 pm

TXforeignlawyer wrote:Just signed up for the November MPRE, it's on the day after we are meant to receive our results :?

Waiting on my book shipment from Barbri. Can anyone share how the prep goes? Is it online videos and completing outlines?
Prep consists of video lectures (which you could theoretically get through in one day), some practice questions through AMP modules, and some practice tests. I made an outline of practice questions I messed up on so I wouldn't repeat my mistakes. It wasn't anything major as I would slip up on minor differences between the rules.

I wish you the best of luck on the MPRE! If you put in the work, you will pass.

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Sprout

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Re: MPRE August 2017

Post by Sprout » Fri Sep 22, 2017 8:50 pm

vitrl wrote:Just squeaked by got 83 needed 80 to pass. As for studying, used Themis, only did 2 - 30 question quizzes before the test. Saw some test questions in my practice material.
I got an 82 and need an 86, so be stoked for your jurisdiction and success.

This exam is so obnoxious.

Also for the poster above me (not quoted) I completely disagree with you. I know people who put zero work in and passed and people who studied very hard and didnt. It's a weird ass exam.

busylittlebee

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Re: MPRE August 2017

Post by busylittlebee » Fri Sep 22, 2017 9:41 pm

Sprout wrote:
vitrl wrote:Just squeaked by got 83 needed 80 to pass. As for studying, used Themis, only did 2 - 30 question quizzes before the test. Saw some test questions in my practice material.
I got an 82 and need an 86, so be stoked for your jurisdiction and success.

This exam is so obnoxious.

Also for the poster above me (not quoted) I completely disagree with you. I know people who put zero work in and passed and people who studied very hard and didnt. It's a weird ass exam.
There will always be people who "sail through" standardized tests, but I am def not one of those people.

Imo, where the exam trips up people are the minute differences between certain rules and how certain questions on the test are formulated in a roundabout way to get at a simple rule. I think it is quite easy for people to get the answer choices to 50/50 and pick the wrong one. That's my own theory as to why the exam might mess with people. I know that happened to me a lot while studying. However, what helped me here was determining why a wrong answer seemed attractive in the first place. I did that for every wrong answer I picked and did it enough times to know when the test was trying to tempt me with the wrong answer.

I think what I did might be overkill for some people (because some people are lucky and won't need as much effort to pass), but it ended up helping me.

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OUgrad14

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Re: MPRE August 2017

Post by OUgrad14 » Sun Sep 24, 2017 5:28 pm

Passed. I got a 113. I had the Barbri Professional Responsibility book from last year and read both the long and the concise outlines. Did three sets of their practice questions and true and false. I took the MPRE almost right after the July bar exam and it took my all on the exam to read those 60 long questions. I was dragging myself past the finish line. But no surprises on the MPRE and Barbri was good.

Tony48

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Re: MPRE August 2017

Post by Tony48 » Sun Sep 24, 2017 7:05 pm

I signed up for the November exam. Thank God Barbri gives you the study materials for free. I've been reading that unlike the bar exam, you don't have to kill yourself studying and that 2 weeks is usually sufficient.

EDIT: Signed up for Kaplan, too....just for the extra practice exams.

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