What is the California Bar Exam score boost program?
The state bar announced on Friday, that it has requested the California Supreme Court to increase real bar exam scores by up to 40 points for individuals who do well on experimental tests scheduled for November and July. The maximum points on the exam is 2,000 points. Beta testers who score low will not face penalties on the actual exam.
The applicants who complete a sample test written by Kaplan could receive financial incentives. State bar leaders have indicated that they need to test drive sample multiple-choice questions created by testing firm Kaplan. The bar has recently retained Kaplan to develop a 200-question examination to begin with the February 2025 session. The bar’s testing expert will analyze the exam and its outcomes.
As an incentive for field testing 49 sample multiple-choice questions in November, up to 4,300 participants could receive an as-yet-undetermined payment if the state bar secures grant funding. The bar would also offer to raise the scores of certain sample-test participants who then take the actual multiple-choice exam in February or July 2025.
As of now, the California Supreme Court has not specified a timeline for reviewing the bar’s requests to replace the NCBE multiple-choice exam with Kaplan’s test and for offering score increases to field-testers. The high court has still not responded to the bar’s proposal, submitted late last year, which seeks to establish an alternative pathway to licensure that would allow successful candidates to become lawyers through supervised work rather than by passing the standard bar exam.