The pass rate for the February South Carolina Bar exam is down this year compared to last. Overall, 61.96 percent of the test takers passed, compared to 67.11 percent last year.
For graduates of South Carolina law schools, the passage rate was 54.96 percent, with 55 out of 104 examinees passing, down from an in-state school passage rate of 67.11 percent in 2013.
Of 37 test-takers from the University of South Carolina School of Law, 23 — or 62.16 percent — passed the exam, compared to last year’s 75 percent success rate.
Thirty-two of 67 Charleston School of Law graduates —47.76 percent — passed the exam. This is more than an 11-point drop from 2013.
Out-of-state law schools fared a little better than average on this year’s test, with a 68.21 percent pass rate.
Assuming they have completed all other requirements for bar admission, South Carolina’s newest attorneys will be sworn in May 19 at 2:30 p.m. at the Township Auditorium in Columbia.