JHOEY CASTILLO BUENO Member Law Official Publication Cagayan State University-College of Law

Changing the BAR Format Which is easier the new or the old format of the bar exam? Studying law in the Philippine was indeed the best course that brings joy, excitement and fashion to become a lawyer. Law students exerted efforts to the best of their knowledge and skills in order to finished law schools, so that they will be admitted to the BAR examinations. The term "bar", according to the Wikipedia, is a term which is often used to mean "the legal profession". It refers to the wooden railing that separated the judge/attorneys from the spectators. Thus the "bar exam" is a test taken to determine if one is qualified to be licensed as a lawyer or "member of the bar". The Philippine Bar Examination is the professional licensure examination for lawyers in the Philippines. It is the only professional licensure exam in the country that is not supervised by the Professional Regulation Commission. The exam is exclusively administered by the Supreme Court of the Philippines through the Supreme Court Bar Examination Committee. Last September 2011, the new format for the bar exams were implemented comprising the 60% multiple choice questions (mcq) and the 40% essay writing. The MCQs will measure the understanding, analysis and solution and the knowledge and recall of the examinees while the essay writing will primarily test the writing skills of the examinee, most especially in his ability to put together coherent arguments. The result of its first implementation has mark as the second highest rate of passers in history where a total of 1,913 or 31.9% out of 6,000 law graduates admitted to take the examinations was successfully passed. In the recent concluded examination held last October 2012, the same format was being adopted by the Supreme Court Bar Examination Committee, wherein the results which will be released this year 2013. But today, what matters most was for the incoming format of the 2013 bar exams. The speculation that they might adopt the old format which is the essay type of examinations seems to be nearly reverting back to the old format when the Supreme Court announced the 2013 Bar Examination Format. Based in its Bar Bulletin No. 1, the examination structure for the 2013 Bar Examination showed that the exam will be 20 percent multiple choice questions (MCQ) and 80 percent essay type question. This will definitely stressed that adjustment should be made by the bar examinees due to such changes of the format. Whether MCQ or essay, the question shall be based on a given set of facts, presented as briefly but as clearly and completely as possible, taking into account that every examinee needs reading, understanding, consideration of the applicable law, and answering time for every question, the Bar Bulletin stated. The question of which is easier, the new or the old format of the bar exam is really a factors that law students often have interested with. Most, if not all, was preparing from the very beginning of their law school life to pass the bar because it is a belief that passing this examination connotes a vivid opportunity in the practice of legal profession. But, whatever the format of the bar exam is, it seems that passing this examinations will primarily rely on the knowledge, skills and attitudes of the examinees. This will measure the capability and ability of the examinees to adopt the principles and doctrine of the law which is relevant to the legal profession. This is, I believed the principle that every aspiring bar candidate should possess with, because passing the bar is not a right, it is a matter of privilege. Hence, the secret of this is to read, read and read the laws and apply its doctrine and principles. Doing this, format of the bar exams shall not be the reason of excuses, instead it is a preparation to pass and to be a good person in the aspect of legal profession.