FAMU’s 73.6 percent first-try passage rate was higher than
the overall average of 71.8 percent.
“The latest results help to solidify the direction we have
taken to establish ourselves as the law school of choice for a broad range of
individuals seeking to make law their career,” said LeRoy Pernell, dean of the College of
Law. “Our bar results continue to trend upward as a result of the strong
curriculum and bar preparation programs we’ve implemented, further illustrating
that the FAMU College of Law is a law school on the rise.”
This is FAMU’s highest July bar passage rate to date, second only to its highest first-time bar passage rate of 82.6 percent in February 2013. Since 2009, the College of Law’s bar passage rate has improved by more than 20 percentage points.
“Congratulations to our distinguished graduates of the FAMU
College of Law,” President Elmira Mangum said. “This is a remarkable
achievement given the law school’s commitment to providing access and
opportunities to underserved communities. Moreover, it shows that FAMU is on
the move when it comes to producing graduates who are not only well-equipped
contributors to their respective fields, but are also able to provide solutions
to the needs of the global community.”
For the July 2014 exam, the University of Florida was first in
the state with a 90.6 percent first-try passage rate. Florida State University
was second (81.8) and the University of Miami was third (81.2). Florida International
and Stetson tied for fourth place with 78.2 percent, each.
FAMU finished ahead of five Florida schools: Nova
Southeastern (69.7), St. Thomas (69.2), Barry (62.0), Florida Coastal (58.0),
and Ava Maria (56.6).
In addition to the recent performance on the bar exam, the
FAMU College of Law also saw its applications increase by 16 percent for the
2014-2015 academic year, while other law schools saw a decrease in
applications.
The National Jurist magazine recently ranked the FAMU
College of Law on its “Top 10 for Diversity” list. The College has also been
named No.1 among the “10 Best Bargain Law Schools” by On Being a Black Lawyer.
The law school was recently notified that it was listed as a “Best Bargain” Law
School for Latina/o Law Students in the 2015 edition of the Latina/o Student’s
Guide to Law Schools.