Massachusetts Bar Exam Info

Massachusetts Bar Exam Information

Massachusetts bar exam format, subjects, scoring, pass rates, dates, and bar review course options. Comprehensive resources to help pass the Massachusetts Bar Exam.

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Massachusetts Bar Exam Format

Overview

The Massachusetts Bar Exam is administered over two days. Massachusetts administers the Uniform Bar Exam (“UBE”).

Day 1

The first day has six Multistate Essay Exam (“MEE”) questions within a three-hour session and two Multistate Performance Test (“MPT”) items within another three-hour session. On average, there are 30 minutes to answer each MEE question and 90 minutes to answer each MPT item.

Day 2

The MBE is administered on the second day of the Massachusetts bar exam. The MBE is a multiple-choice test containing 200 questions. The MBE is split into a morning and afternoon session. Each session consists of 100 questions. You have three hours to complete each session.

Massachusetts Bar Exam Format Video

Useful Links

Massachusetts Bar Review Course – AmeriBar has been helping students pass the Massachusetts bar exam for over 15 years.
MBEQuestionBank.com – Online question bank with over 2500 simulated MBE questions.

Reciprocity

Under specified circumstances, an attorney can obtain admission to practice law in Massachusetts without having to take the Massachusetts bar exam. The attorney has to fulfill all of the conditions for such admission, which include practicing law for at least five of the past seven years in another United States jurisdiction. An applicant can obtain admission via a transferred UBE score of at least 270 and attained within the prior 36 months.

Massachusetts Next Gen Status

Adopted Next Gen Uniform Bar Exam? Yes
Date of First Next Gen Exam: July 2028

Exam Dates

February 24-25, 2026
July 28-29, 2026

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Massachusetts Bar Admissions

Massachusetts Board of Bar Examiners
Edward W. Brooke Courthouse
24 New Chardon Street, 1st Floor
Boston, MA 02114

Massachusetts MPRE Score Requirement

Massachusetts requires bar exam applicants to pass the Multistate Professional Responsibility Exam (“MPRE”). You must score 85 or higher on the MPRE in order to pass in Massachusetts.

Scoring/Grading and Results

In order to pass the Massachusetts bar exam, you must score at least 270. This equates to 135, on a 200-point scale. The MBE is weighted 50%, the MEE questions are weighted 30% and the MPT items are weighted 20%. Massachusetts makes bar exam results available approximately Massachusetts makes bar exam results available approximately 8 to 9 weeks after the February exam and 13 to 14 weeks after the July exam.

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Jennifer

Regent Law School

Jennifer failed twice with Barbri. “I felt so prepared…for the exam. I never felt that way the first couple of times. I can’t say enough about how I felt after failing twice to come back and just nail it after six years of absence from the law.”

Massachusetts Bar Review Course

AmeriBar has been helping students pass the Massachusetts bar exam for over 20 years.

AmeriBar Students

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Well, the one thing I did do differently was not use Barbri... I used the AmeriBar materials and had the one-on-one tutorial for the essays. I do think it probably made a large difference in how I handled and approached my essays.

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I chose AmeriBar and I’m convinced that had it not been for AmeriBar I wouldn’t have passed the exam.

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So, I can’t emphasize enough how much I would recommend AmeriBar to any student. I was able to pass the bar on the first attempt, even in a state that I didn’t go to law school in, and I feel like AmeriBar was a very significant contributing factor to my success on the bar exam.

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You are also taking a step in the right direction by considering AmeriBar for your test materials.

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The first time I took the bar exam, I took the Barbri program, which was a big, huge program where you don’t get a lot of individualized attention. However, the second time I took a bar preparation course, I took it through AmeriBar. AmeriBar really provided the one-on-one help that I needed to pass the bar.

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This was the fourth time taking the bar ...and this time I passed. I used a competitor’s program for the prior three times, and I didn’t pass. I have to say that I think AmeriBar’s tutoring is what really pushed me over the top.

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I think having a personal tutor help to prepare me for the bar exam is the only reason I finally passed the bar. I can’t tell you how grateful I am to AmeriBar and their program.

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Once you go with AmeriBar they will help you emotionally and academically. They will get you 100% ready for the bar exam... I’m grateful for AmeriBar – because they helped me accomplish my dream. And without them, I wouldn’t be an attorney today.

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I felt so prepared and so well-versed in every area of the law for the exam. I never felt that way with BAR/BRI the first couple of times I took it. I can’t say enough about how well-prepared I felt and how relieved I was after failing twice to come back and just nail it after six years of absence from the law.

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After three unsuccessful attempts at the bar exam, I felt as though as though I had nowhere to turn.... AmeriBar is a large contributor to my success in passing and achieving the dream of becoming a lawyer

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They offered seven hours of personal tutoring and I thought, ‘wow this is a program that is quite different.’ So I signed up and paid the money. Guess what? That was what helped me pass the bar.

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I would tell law students considering AmeriBar they should go with AmeriBar because the materials are put together in a superior way. They read much more smoothly. I think they’re put together in a more sequential and chronological way. They are far easier to comprehend, and learning it in a linear sequential way, the way AmeriBar has them set out, really helped me pass.

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Massachusetts Bar Exam Subjects

Massachusetts Essay Subjects

MBE Subjects

Heidi

Thomas Cooley Law School

Heidi, who failed twice with BarBri, describes how AmeriBar was instrumental in raising her score from 121 to 144.

Massachusetts Bar Exam Statewide Pass Rates

Exam Date	First	Repeat	Total
July 2023	82%	25%	73%
February 2023	60%	28%	40%
July 2022	81%	20%	73%
February 2022	62%	30%	44%
July 2021	85%	19%	75%
February 2021	60%	26%	43%
July 2020	85%	37%	77%
February 2020	53%	30%	37%
July 2019	82%	20%	72%
February 2019	68%	35%	46%
July 2018	79%	21%	69%
February 2018	53%	27%	36%
July 2017	81%	31%	71%
February 2017	61%	39%	48%
July 2016	80%	27%	71%
February 2016	61%	43%	51%

Massachusetts Bar Review Course

AmeriBar has been helping students pass the Massachusetts bar exam for over 20 years.