1Ls should consider starting the application process for the Missouri Bar Exam this year. Because the process can take a long time and the cost rises with each passing year, it is a good idea to start early. Browse this page to read about what you can do during your 1L and 2L years to get a head start on the application process.
Click here to begin the bar application process.
-Missouri law students may take the MPRE after successful completion of Professional Responsibility (PR). If you plan to take the Missouri Bar Exam, then the earliest MPRE for which you will be eligible is August after your 1L year (if you take PR in the Summer session). Please note that some jurisdictions require a certain number of credit hours before the applicant takes the MPRE. Too few hours will result in the applicant having to retake the MPRE for admission to such a jurisdiction.
-In Missouri, a passing score is 80.
-A passing MPRE score does not grow stale or expire.
-The applicant's certified score must be received by the Board no later than one year after the date of written notification to the applicant of passing the bar examination.
-No applicant can be admitted to practice until having passed the MPRE. It is the applicants' responsibility to have a certified MPRE score reported to Missouri by NCBE.
A separate application is required for the MPRE, and it must be submitted to the National Conference of Bar Examiners (NCBE).
-Register for the MPRE here.
- The MPRE is administered three times a year (March, August, and November) at testing centers in several cities throughout the United States.
-Applicants may take the MPRE at any testing center (not just a Missouri center).
-An applicant need not have graduated from law school prior to taking the MPRE, and the MPRE may be taken an unlimited number of times.
Law students who complete the Character & Fitness application prior to June 30 after their first year are eligible for a reduced fee. The fee is approximately half as much as the fee for students filing the application after June 30 after their first year of law school. See the schedule for the reduced fee amount.
Once students have started their last year, they must wait to submit the application for Character & Fitness along with their application to sit for the Bar Exam. For that reason, students in their second year (who did not complete the application by June 30 of their first year) are still encouraged to complete the Character & Fitness application by June 30 of their second year. Although doing so does not qualify second-year students for the reduced fee, it allows the MBLE to provide an early decision on the student's Character & Fitness application prior to the student applying for the Bar Exam later during the third year.
Rule 13 provides for certification of law students to engage in certain activities as specified in Rules 13.01 and 13.04. Law students must file an application with the Supreme Court of Missouri as provided in Rule 13.02. The certification, if granted by the Court, is effective for 21 months or until announcement of the results of the first bar examination following the student's graduation, whichever is earlier. If the student is successful in the bar examination, the Rule 13 certification continues in effect until the date the student takes the oath of admission. Students who have registered with MBLE may apply for Rule 13 certification by clicking here. All MU Law students who apply for Rule 13 certification MUST visit Monique Prince in the Clinic Suite to submit your payment and for further instructions.