Don’t Misread the Stars: What Starred and Unstarred Topics Really Mean on NextGen

As the NextGen UBE gets closer, I'm seeing a very common misunderstanding about the star symbols in the NCBE’s NextGen UBE Content Scope Outline.

The NextGen UBE is the NCBE’s redesigned bar exam, created to better measure foundational lawyering skills (reading, analysis, reasoning, writing, and using legal materials) while still testing a defined set of doctrinal concepts. The exam is designed to feel more like the work lawyers actually do, often with a mix of what you know and what you can do with what you’re given.

The first NextGen UBE is July 2026, with a phased rollout through the July 2028 administration, when the current Legacy UBE will no longer exist.

Jurisdictions administering the NextGen UBE in July 2026 are: Connecticut, Guam, Idaho, Maryland, Missouri, Northern Mariana Islands, Oregon, Palau, Virgin Islands, and Washington.

In preparation for the rollout of the NextGen UBE, the NCBE has identied what may appear on the exam in its Content Scope Outline. Within that outline, some topics are starred and others are unstarred. And that's where the confusion has started.

Some examinees are reading the outline like this:

Starred topics: “I have to memorize these.”

Unstarred topics: “I don’t have to memorize these because they’ll give me the law.”

But that's not what the stars (or lack thereof) mean.

Here's what it means, according to the NCBE:

Within this outline, there are two types of topics:

Topics with a star symbol ★

Topics followed by a star symbol ★ require an examinee to rely solely on recalled knowledge and understanding of the topic; they will be tested without provision of legal resources.

Topics without a star symbol

Topics without a star symbol may be tested with or without provision of legal resources. When these topics are tested without legal resources, the examinee is expected to rely on recalled knowledge and understanding that will enable the examinee to demonstrate recognition that the topic is at issue in the fact scenario.

So the star ⭐️ isn't a "study vs. skip" label.

Any topic could show up in a way that requires recalled knowledge. So an unstarred topic could still appear in a question where you must spot the issue and supply the basic rule from memory.

If you prepare as if unstarred topics will always come with the law attached, you're building a study plan around a promise the NCBE isn't making.

Bottom line: Study all topics (starred and unstarred) like you won’t get the legal resources. Because you might not.

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