Introduction to the Multistate: Strategies and Techniques

As you know from the previously published Spring 2020 Course Schedule, the Law School will offer Introduction to the Multistate: Strategies and Techniques over Spring Break.  The course is an elective course available to students who will graduate in May, August, or December 2020.  The course will meet from Saturday, February 29, through Friday, March 6 (including Sunday, March 1) followed by a three-hour exam tentatively scheduled for Friday, March 13.  This course is an intensive intersession course focused on the strategies and techniques relevant to the Multistate Bar Examination (MBE).  Students may take the course for credit OR without credit; as explained below, course requirements differ depending on whether you are taking it for credit or without credit.  Additional information is available in the FAQs below.

What is the course about?

The Multistate Bar Exam (MBE) requires one to know the rules of law, understand how those rules should be applied to various hypotheticals, and understand how to evaluate the answer choices. This course offers students an intensive question-based approach to learning the rules and to learning how to use problem-solving to answer MBE questions. The course will teach strategies and techniques in the context of all seven MBE topics: Contracts, Constitutional Law, Civil Procedure, Criminal Law and Procedure, Evidence, Real Property, and Torts.

Who can take the course?

The course is an elective course available to students who will graduate in May, August, or December 2020.

How is the course structured/taught?

Each day you will take an in-class 50-question online quiz focused on one of the seven MBE topics.  After a lunch break, the lecturer will review all 50 questions with you, explaining the underlying law and how the questions are designed to solicit information from you so you can learn techniques to improve your accuracy in answering MBE questions. You will complete an online quiz after class each day.  You will also have access to additional MBE-style practice questions online.

The lecturer for all classes will be a Kaplan/PMBR instructor.  Four days of the course will have live lecture.  Three days of the course will have video-recorded lecture.

The class will have a three-hour, 100-question multiple-choice exam.  The final exam is tentatively scheduled for Friday, March 13, from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

How will I be graded in this course?

If you are taking this course for credit, it is a pass/fail course. To pass this course, you must attend all classes, complete all quizzes, and satisfactorily complete the final exam.

If you are taking this course without credit, you will not be graded, although you will receive feedback about your performance on the quizzes and the exam.

How many credit hours is the course worth?

This course is available as a one-credit elective course.  The course is also available without course credit.  If you wish to enroll for credit, you will do so through Banner when registering for Spring 2020 classes; see additional details below.   To take the course without credit, you will sign up on a separate system; see additional details below.

When will the course meet?

The course will meet every day from Saturday, February 29, through Friday, March 6, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., including a lunch break, at Memphis Law.  Additionally, there will be a three-hour exam.  The final exam is tentatively scheduled for Friday, March 13, from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

How many days of the course can I miss?

If you are taking the course for credit:  None. You must attend all seven days of the class in person and take the final exam.

If you are taking the course without credit:  Attendance is up to you.  Obviously, you won’t get much benefit if you don’t attend.

Can I attend the class remotely?

If you are taking the course for credit:  No. You must attend all seven days of class in person at Memphis Law.

If you are taking the course without credit:  Yes.  If you are not earning course credit, you are not required to attend the classes in person. You have the option of attending in person or viewing the lectures on demand from any location.

What is the cost for taking the course?

The course is based on Kaplan’s PMBR program.  The cost of the course differs depending on whether you are taking the course for credit or without credit.  If you are taking the course for credit, the answer depends on how many credit hours you are taking – just like it would with any other course.

There is a materials fee of $299.  You pay that fee to Kaplan whether you take the course for credit or without credit.  The course is typically available for $799; the law school is covering part of the cost of the course, which is why it is available for $299 instead of $799.

If you are taking the course without credit:  The materials fee is your only cost.

If you are taking the course for credit:  In addition to the materials fee, you will pay tuition/fees just like you would for any other course.  The specific amount depends on how many hours you are otherwise taking for Spring 2020.  Please review the appropriate fee/tuition schedule available here to determine the tuition/fees associated with adding one credit for the spring.

Does the materials fee provide ongoing access to the Kaplan/PMBR materials?

Yes, you will have access to the online questions after the course ends through the end of the semester.

You will also have the option to pay $449 for both the course and a three-day summer bar course. Opting to add the three-day summer bar course will give you access to the online practice questions until the end of the July bar exam.

How is the materials fee collected?

After you sign up for the course, we will send Kaplan your name and email address. Kaplan will send you a link to complete registration and to collect the fee.

The course won’t start until Spring Break . . . what’s the deadline to sign up?

If you are taking the course for credit:  The course is subject to the usual deadlines for Spring courses.  Per Academic Regulation 6.1, the course must be added to your schedule by January 14.

If you are taking the course without credit:  You must sign up by Thursday, February 1.

The course won’t start until Spring Break . . . what’s the deadline to withdraw?

If you are taking the course for credit:  The course is subject to the usual deadlines for Spring courses.  The withdrawal deadlines and the tuition/fee refund deadlines are set forth in the Spring 2020 Deadline Calendar.  The materials fee paid to Kaplan becomes non-refundable once you take receipt of the printed materials and/or start using the Kaplan account.

If you are taking the course without credit:  The materials fee paid to Kaplan becomes non-refundable once you take receipt of the printed materials and/or start using the Kaplan account.

How do I register for the course?

If you are taking the course for credit: Register on Banner for Introduction to the Multistate: Strategies and Techniques (Course Number LAW 0727/CRN 26631).  Update 11/11/19:  Due to a technical issue, you will need a permit.  Email lawregistrar@memphis.edu to request a permit.

If you are taking the course without credit: Sign up at https://memphis.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_86LQJLZsVPpO1sF.

What if I have a question not listed here?

Contact Prof. DeShun Harris at D.Harris@memphis.edu.