The American Bar Association (ABA) Section of Legal Education has released comprehensive data on bar passage outcomes for ABA-accredited law schools. The new data show that 97.47% of University of Tulsa College of Law 2017 graduates who sat for a bar exam passed it within two years of graduation. This impressive result has lifted TU Law into the top 20 (#16) of law schools in terms of “ultimate bar passage” success. Only 43 ABA-accredited law schools achieved greater than 95%.
“I am extremely proud of this outstanding result,” said Dean Lyn Entzeroth. “It is clear evidence of the intelligence and tenacity of our graduates. In addition, it speaks volumes about the quality and dedication of TU Law’s faculty and staff, who not only share their expertise with our students but also personally mentor and support them as they develop into future legal professionals and prepare for practice.”
Bar support
One of the mainstays of TU Law’s high bar passage rate is the college’s Bar Support Program. While most law programs give their students the substantive knowledge needed to be a lawyer, they do not teach them how to prepare for the bar examination. At the heart of TU Law’s Bar Support Program is the “Strategies & Skills for Bar and Practice” course, which students take in their final semester.
A recent graduate who benefited from TU Law’s approach to bar exam preparation — she passed on her first attempt (Feb. 2017) — was Caroline Shaffer Siex (JD ’16). Currently an attorney with Gibbs Armstrong Borochoff and secretary of the OBA’s Young Lawyers Division, Shaffer Siex identified a trio of elements the college provided as she got ready to sit for the all-important exam.
“To begin with, the mandatory bar preparation course helped to jump-start my studying,” Shaffer Siex recalled. “In addition, whenever I found myself worried about whether I was doing things right or on time, I was able to speak with Professor Gina Nerger. She helped me deal with my concerns and was a vital part of the support I received. Finally, it might not always get recognized, but TU Law’s library was also essential. The librarians were so accommodating of our need for frequent access, including the ability to reserve study areas. The library’s support was especially crucial during the last few weeks before we wrote the exam, as it was a major crunch time and we were studying at all hours of the day.”
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