ENGAGEMENT HIGHLIGHTS
THE OPPORTUNITY
OUR PARTNERSHIP
EA, with support from AccessLex and The State Bar of California, created the Bar Exam Strategies and Stories program to address this question. After conducting surveys and focus groups of California bar exam participants, we found that applicants experienced considerable stress and anxiety when preparing for the exam, which impacted the quality of their studies and performance. We developed an online program designed to address and mitigate these psychological factors hindering student success with passing the bar exam.
The program includes an introductory film, stories from prior test-takers, and a writing activity, in which participants share insights and strategies that may be useful to them and to future test-takers. These elements were designed to help test-takers apply a growth mindset to their studies by finding productive ways to interpret challenges, obstacles, and negative psychological experiences associated with preparing for the exam. The State Bar of California has offered this online program to all applicants for their state bar exams since July 2018.
EA also prepared a report for the Supreme Court of California, which empirically evaluated California’s prior passage threshold on the bar exam of 1440 (“the cut score”). Based in part on our comprehensive report, the Supreme Court permanently lowered the cut score from 1440 to 1390. As a result, our recent report Evaluating a Productive Mindset and Structural Intervention that Promotes Achievement on California's Bar Exam describes how coupling a growth mindset program and this structural change enhanced passage rates on the bar exam, especially for first-generation students and underrepresented minority applicants.
THE IMPACT
After six years of the program, we have gathered unprecedented data, and the results are clear.
Key program results:
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- Increased total bar scores by approximately 18 points on average
- Lifted total bar scores by approximately 21 points on average for first-generation students and applicants of color
- Combined with our recommendation to lower the bar passage score to 1390 from 1440, improved passage rates by 20 percentage points overall
- Reduced psychological friction and promoted stress-is-enhancing growth mindsets
In total, we estimate that over 1,000 applicants enrolled in the California Bar Strategies and Stories Program passed the bar exam who otherwise would not have. Our analysis also revealed that this impact was equity-enhancing. Over 700 structurally disadvantaged* applicants (racial/ethnic minority applicants and first-generation college students) enrolled in the program passed the California bar exam who would not have. Applying a growth mindset towards the way applicants think about stress and mistakes when studying for the exam not only helped all law students fulfill their potential to become lawyers and gain access to the legal profession, but also helped to reduce the equity gaps on the bar exam.
Early in law school, I hated making mistakes because of how it made me feel behind my peers or incompetent, however I quickly realized that mistakes are a great value because they show you areas you are lacking in and should focus on. Additionally if you make a mistake and acknowledge and practice, it is a lot less likely you will forget and make the same mistake again.
When I feel stressed, I can remind myself that it means that I care. I can take a step back and think about what is causing my stress (wanting to pass so I can become a lawyer, wanting to be a lawyer, so I can help people.) I am stressed because this is important to me and my goals. I can channel that stress into positivity, optimism, and hard work instead of fear and worry.
*We use the term structurally disadvantaged throughout this report to refer to first-generation college students and individuals from racial and ethnic groups who experience disproportionate obstacles in their education pursuits as a result of structural and systemic barriers to access and opportunities in higher education that undermine representation, academic retention and achievement for students who, absent an oppressive culture, can thrive.
Read the full report
Evaluating a Productive Mindset and Structural Intervention that Promotes Achievement on California’s Bar Exam