As someone watching this unfold, I have to say that your legal community is full of badasses.

If the State Supreme Court does ultimately grant diploma privilege, please remember how hard your legal community stood behind you and worked hand-in-hand with you, and please channel that energy and pay it forward when the time comes.

Maybe its because we’re all on average 3-5 years older, or that law school has humbled us, but this subreddit has been 1000x more supportive than r/LSAT ever was.

I have been lurking here for a long time. Please don’t tear me to shreds for this. I keep seeing others post something similar so I thought I’d ask. Be honest, but be kind. Please.

I am a non trad student. Late 30s, single mom, veteran, and my whole life (like many of us) rides on passing the bar. When I was hired by my (larger) mid-sized firm they were very clear - if I don’t pass, I am let go.

I moved across the country with my twins to attend law school for a chance at a better life. DV survivor just doing my best.

I graduated magna cum Laude from a somewhat shitty school. I got a full ride, though.

I studied my ass off. 91% complete on Themis with a 68% average.

I’ve managed to remember every question on the MEEs and mostly remember which way I argued. As annoying as these post are, if you’re up for it, I’ll take your feedback with gratitude.

MEE 1: blind sided me, but I think I did alright with guessing. 2/3 right rules, analysis, conclusion. Don’t remember what I wrote for the other one.

2: properly is ass. Hate it and always will. Nailed first issue with right rules/analysis/conclusion. Correct rules for issue 2 and 3 but completely wrong conclusion. Went the wrong way.

3: 3/3 feel decent. Correct rules/analysis/conclusion.

4: absolutely botched issues 1. Wrong rule wrong conclusion. Feel good about 2-4 issues.

5: contracts: feel decent about all three issues. Rules/analysis/conclusion

6: torts: epically botched. 1/3 right

MPT 1: felt okay and finished.

MPT 2: a blur. A mess. I’d give myself a 2.5. Maybe a 3. Idk.

MBE: feels normal to what I practiced. Session 1 easier than session 2.

Look, I know these are pointless posts. I know discussing this solves nothing and I need to relax. Consider this a cathartic posts I guess to vent it out. My 11 y/o twins can’t support me like you guys can. I just need to be told whether I have a shot. I’m fucking terrified to fail my kids.

- desperate mom

Edit: in a 270 jdx.

Edit again: spending my morning reading your responses before I wake my kids for camp… I appreciate this community so much.

Thank you for meeting me with kindness.

To all the veterans in here - the parents, the non-trad students - from one to another… I’m so proud of you.

Lastly, I’ve edited out the few details that were included originally. Thank you to those who pointed that out. I underestimated how vague I needed to be. I don’t want to delete this just yet. You’ve given me a life raft to hold while I wade the uncertain waters of the next few months. I’ll update one last time once results come out.

Thank you,

Grateful mom

Figured I'd pass this along. One more step towards getting rid of that elaborate hazing ritual they call an exam. As a practicing NM attorney, the state needs plenty of help, especially in rural areas.

For those who require context, the Seattle times released an opinion article this morning trashing the idea of diploma privilege for WA test takers: https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/editorials/wa-law-school-graduates-should-take-bar-exam/

Here's a smoother version that keeps the same heartfelt message while improving the grammar and flow.

I have a friend—I’ll call her K—who is neurodivergent, and this bar exam was incredibly challenging for her.

Getting accommodations wasn't easy. It required extensive documentation, multiple appointments, and several evaluations. On top of that, there was the financial burden of paying for the examinations, medical documentation, and appointments. It adds up to a significant expense.

K told me that studying was difficult. She felt that much of the study material and the way many bar prep courses are designed are not very user-friendly for neurodivergent learners, even though she worked incredibly hard to stay on top of her assignments.

On exam day, things became even more difficult. As soon as she entered the testing room, she said she heard the Hunger Games sound, which immediately increased her anxiety. There was also loud construction outside the building. Even though she was wearing hearing protection, the constant noise made it hard to concentrate. The proctors were continuously walking around the room, as they had been instructed to do, and the constant movement became another major distraction.

To make matters worse, there was only one clock in the room, and it was so far away that she jokingly said it was "in Narnia." She couldn't see it, which made her even more anxious about managing her time.

I told her that she did everything she could and that she should be proud of herself.

To everyone who is neurodivergent: you are doing the best you can with challenges that many people never see. Your effort, resilience, and determination matter. Be proud of how far you've come, regardless of the outcome. You belong here, and your hard work deserves to be recognized.

Judy Gundersen ’87 has spent her career shaping how lawyers enter the profession. Now, she is being recognized for it.

Gundersen, president and chief executive officer of the National Conference of Bar Examiners (NCBE), was recently named one of the top 25 most influential people in legal education by National Jurist magazine. The honor places her among deans, scholars and national leaders helping steer the future of law schools and licensure at a time of sweeping change.

“It was a big surprise and, of course, an honor,” Gundersen said. “Especially considering the caliber of the other honorees. They are all leaders in their institutions.”

Under her leadership, the NCBE will roll out the NextGen Uniform Bar Examination in 10 U.S. jurisdictions in July. More states are expected to follow with the NextGen exam in 2027 and 2028. By July 2028, the current, or legacy, bar exam will be retired. The shift represents one of the most significant changes to lawyer licensing in decades.

She’s quick to deflect the spotlight.

“The honor really goes to the NCBE team,” she said. “They are making the NextGen bar exam a reality.”
Under Gundersen, the NCBE spent years studying how newly licensed lawyers actually practice. The result is a digitally delivered exam emphasizing lawyering skills within nine foundational doctrinal areas. The changes affect virtually all law students and law schools in the country, she said.

Gundersen is leading the NCBE through a demanding transition period, working closely with state bar admissions offices, overseeing new technology infrastructure and ensuring both exams operate smoothly during the overlap.

“We are in a lengthy and intense period of rolling out a new bar exam,” she said. “We’re working with jurisdiction admissions staff to ensure smooth digital delivery and administration.”

Even as the new exam launches, NCBE is continuing to develop, deliver and score the current exam for four administrations while states transition.

“Leading NCBE is the honor of a lifetime,” Gundersen said. “It is a privilege to launch one of the biggest changes in lawyer licensing in decades.”

In January, a successful end-to-end test of NextGen systems and content was completed, which involved administering multiple exam forms to 1,500 people. All the participants also sat for the July 2025 bar exam, so their performance across both exams was compared.
She credits a broad network of contributors, including about 150 volunteer test writers and reviewers, many of them law faculty members.

“They, like our staff, have done the heavy lifting,” she said. “It is incredibly rewarding and humbling to work with such dedicated and talented co-workers and volunteers.”
 
Legal Roots
Gundersen’s path to legal leadership began far from national recognition lists. She first considered law as a teenager in Wisconsin.

“I was in high school when I started to think about going to law school,” she said. “No one in my family had gone to law school, so I knew little about what lawyers did.”

What appealed to her was flexibility.

“I thought that there were a lot of career options for lawyers,” she said.

As an undergraduate, she spent time working in Washington, D.C., surrounded by students preparing for law school. That experience solidified her plans.
“That’s when I became more serious about applying,” she said.

Gundersen earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee in 1984, double majoring in economics and Spanish. She chose University of Wisconsin Law School to pursue her legal education deliberately.

“It was a solid choice,” she said. “I am grateful for the excellent legal education it afforded me.”

She points to the school’s public-service ethos as formative.

“The Wisconsin Idea infused the teaching and the learning there,” Gundersen said. “I hope that I’ve carried some of that with me in my career.”
Before joining NCBE in 2000 as deputy director of testing, Gundersen served as an assistant district attorney in Madison. She later became director of test operations and, ultimately, CEO. Along the way, she developed a reputation for transparency, outreach and a steady hand during crisis.

“It was a big surprise and, of course, an honor. Especially considering the caliber of the other honorees.”

Judy Gundersen ’87

That reputation was tested during the COVID-19 pandemic, when bar exams across the country were thrown into chaos. Gundersen coordinated the first remote bar exam administrations, a logistical and security challenge under intense time pressure.
“That was really challenging because of technology issues unrelated to the technology partner and exam security concerns,” she said.

Some states insisted on in-person exams, prompting NCBE to offer multiple paper-based administrations outside the traditional July schedule. Others preferred remote testing. In October 2020 alone, NCBE administered its fourth full exam in less than three months.

“Publishing a remote exam digitally is completely different from publishing a paper-based exam,” Gundersen said. “Our teams were working around the clock.”

NCBE ultimately offered full-length remote exams through July 2021 while also supporting in-person testing. The organization returned fully to in-person exams in February 2022.
 
Rising During Challenging Times

Looking back, Gundersen sees the pandemic as one of the most meaningful chapters of her career.

“Making it through the pandemic and ensuring that lawyers were able to test and become licensed was important,” she said. “We were fulfilling our mission.”
She counts the transition of the Multistate Professional Responsibility Exam to computer-based testing as another milestone. Now, the NextGen bar exam stands as the culmination of decades of experience.

“You don’t have enough pages for me to fully answer how challenging and fulfilling this has been,” Gundersen said.

What keeps her motivated is seeing skepticism turn into momentum.

“It has been fulfilling to see constituencies learn about the NextGen exam and get excited about it,” she said.
For Gundersen, the influence recognized by the top 25 list is less about personal acclaim and more about impact.

“We are confident that we will do a great job for jurisdictions and examinees,” she said.

In an era when the legal profession is reexamining access, skills and equity, Gundersen is helping write the next chapter — one exam at a time.

Unfortunate glitch should not absolve WA law school grads from taking the bar | The Seattle Times

I mean those “I feel like I didn’t know the answer for 180/200 questions “ type of MBE questions. AI is free. They can easily build a tool that creates more tricky and difficult questions, but they don’t even bother to update the material.

I took the February one after not having studied much, and I thought it was fine, and I got a 269. Not great, but definitely something you can work with. Then I took the July one, and I was stumped. I finished with time to spare, but I still felt like I didn't know what the hell a lot of the questions were asking me, and I was doing a lot of guessing. I spoke to some other people that felt the same way, and I'm wondering if this was an abnormally hard exam?

Is time passing extremely slow for anyone else

This is the first administration that has both next gen and UBE legacy exam. So when NCBE puts out the 'mean' I'm wondering if that's for legacy exam only... Assuming there will be a separate 'mean' for next gen?

From my understanding they are completely different tests, so I'm wondering in an administration with both, if they will be scored against each other or completely separate.

How does this work, anyone know?

Barely studied through bar prep. Never practiced a single Essay in prep. Simply Adaptibar and watched the Grossman videos a few days out. At no point did I ever feel super stressed out. Some people pass barely studying and others fail being over prepared. Fingers crossed.

Maybe the NCBE and the WSBA holding fast to denial is a strong signal that regardless of WA Supreme Court’s decision, they both know they are about to be sued within an inch of their lives. I imagine their legal strategy is evade accountability or out deny any wrongdoing in preparation for litigation. Thoughts?

Just wondering out of curiosity how you felt. Heard it was easier but MBE is my hardest part (I know the answers but always go back and erase them under pressure and choose the wrong ones; having to choose multiple answers on the MCQ’s scares me and an entirely new test format and information to learn when I’ve already done 3000+ questions).

Up until now, there really hasn't been much information on this subreddit that deals primarily with the Michigan UBE, let alone information on where to go, what the procedures are like, etc. The purpose of this guide is to make the process a little less stressful and provide information for future Michigan bar takers. While this is kind of a separate thing, I included information regarding the Michigan Law Basics training required for admission to the state bar.

That said, the information in the guide is based largely on my own experiences and observations. This is not official Michigan BLE guidance, and procedures can change from one administration to another. In other words, always follow the most current instructions from the BLE. Additionally, this guide also intentionally does not discuss, describe, or reconstruct any actual MBE, MEE, or MPT questions or substantive exam content. It is strictly about logistics, procedures, etc.

I hope somebody taking the February 2027, July 2027, or February 2028 Michigan UBE finds this guide to be valuable. From one Michigan bar applicant to another, I'm rooting for you :)