Sophia Park passed the California Bar Exam on November 8 at the age of 17 years and 8 months, according to ABC News.
The girl's brother, Peter Park, was the youngest person to pass the exam at 17 years and 11 months in late 2023. Sophia Park will join her brother in working for the Tulare County Prosecutor's Office in California.
“I don’t think the exam is that hard,” the 17-year-old said of the bar exam in an interview. “I think the hard part is the amount of information you have to cram into your brain in a limited amount of time.”
Sophia Park, 17, is now the youngest person to pass the California bar exam. (Photo: Tulare County District Attorney's Office)
The Korean-American graduated from Northwestern University School of Law in 2024. Sophia Park first thought about pursuing a career in law after taking a career survey in sixth grade.
The student started law school at age 13 in 2020 while still in middle school. During her freshman year of high school, she found studying too time-consuming, so she took and passed the California High School Aptitude Test.
She worked as a summer intern for the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office when she was 16 and is currently a paralegal for the Tulare County District Attorney’s Office. She will begin working as a prosecutor after being sworn in as a full-time attorney in March 2025, when she turns 18, according to a press release.
"I wanted to work for the prosecutor's office because I liked the idea of representing the people of California, protecting the community and making sure that justice is served," the student told the Sun-Gazette.
Sophia Park believes her record could be surpassed by her 14-year-old sister, who is in her second year of law school. Park has an 8-year-old brother who also wants to be a lawyer and wore the costume for Halloween.
"Actually, no one in my family is a lawyer. So we are the first ones. My dad is a patent specialist and my mom used to be a Korean baking teacher," Sophia shared.
Leah Wilson, executive director of the California State Bar Association, said passing the bar exam is an "incredible achievement."
"Passing the state bar exam at any age is a huge accomplishment, and to do it at 17 is truly extraordinary," Wilson told ABC News.
Sophia Park and her brother, who also passed the California bar exam last year. (Photo: Tulare County District Attorney's Office)
Sophia Park's father, Dr. Byungjoo Park, once shared with Newsbreak that his daughter's path to becoming a lawyer was nurtured through many years of tireless efforts.
Shortly after his son passed the bar exam last year, Byungoo Park released a book called “Fast-track attorneys - passing the bar at age 17,” sharing his children’s unique journey into law school. He said the total cost of passing the bar exam even without a bachelor’s degree was under $15,000, and the book outlines the steps to do so.
Bar Exam is the short name for Uniform Bar Examination. This is a comprehensive exam, requiring candidates to have knowledge of law, writing skills and practical skills. Candidates will go through 3 rounds: multiple choice, essay and practice.
The California bar exam is considered the most difficult in the United States, with a passing rate of 52%. The two-day exam has a benchmark score of 1390/2000, 40 points higher than the national average.
Source: https://vtcnews.vn/nu-sinh-vao-dai-hoc-tu-tuoi-13-la-nguoi-tre-nhat-do-ky-thi-luat-su-tai-my-ar908916.html
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