How many times did Kamala Harris take the bar exam? Discover how failing once can lead to incredible success through persistence.
Kamala Harris took the bar exam twice. She failed her first attempt and passed the second time… and that small detail says a lot about what resilience really looks like.
Kamala Harris took the bar exam twice. Her story shows how failing once can lead to incredible success through persistence and self-belief.
Kamala Harris took the California Bar Exam two times. She failed her first attempt but passed on her second, later becoming Vice President of the United States.
Okay… so I was scrolling through an article about Kamala Harris one evening, and something made me pause.
It said she failed the bar exam the first time she took it.
I don’t know why that line hit me the way it did, but it stopped me cold. I started wondering… how many times did Kamala Harris take the bar exam? And more than that… what did that failure feel like for her?
Because we all know what it’s like to want something so badly you can almost taste it… and then to watch it slip through your fingers.
That’s when I realized; this isn’t just trivia. This is a window into how failure really works.
So let’s figure this out together.
What You'll Discover:
The California Bar… aka The Monster of Exams
If you’ve ever heard stories about the California Bar Exam, you probably already know it’s not your average test. It’s brutal. Long. Unforgiving.
It’s like the marathon of exams; hours upon hours of essays, multiple-choice questions, and mental gymnastics that test whether you actually understand the law, not just memorized it.
And the pass rates? Yeah… they’re rough. Somewhere around half of first-time takers don’t make it through. So when Kamala Harris graduated from UC Hastings College of the Law and sat down for her first bar exam in 1990, she was walking straight into the lion’s den.
And it didn’t go the way she’d hoped.
She failed.
But here’s where things get interesting.
The First Fall
Imagine this for a second.
You’ve just spent three grueling years in law school. You’ve told everyone; your friends, your family; that you’re about to become a lawyer. You’ve sacrificed sleep, weekends, and probably your sanity to get to this moment.
And then… the letter comes.
You didn’t pass.
That’s where Kamala Harris found herself.
She could’ve easily kept it quiet, pretended it never happened. But she didn’t. She’s been open about it; she failed her first try.
And I think that’s part of what makes her story so powerful. Because it’s not the failure that defines her… it’s what she did next.
The Second Try
Here’s where I started to really respect her story. She didn’t walk away. She didn’t decide law wasn’t for her. She faced it again.
She studied harder. She looked at what went wrong. She went back into that exam room knowing exactly what failure felt like; and that she could survive it.
And that second time? She passed.
It’s kind of poetic, right? The woman who would later become the first female Vice President of the United States… once failed the test that was supposed to start her career.
But instead of letting it end her journey, she used it as fuel.
That second attempt wasn’t just about passing. It was about proving; to herself; that failure doesn’t have the final word.
Why That Matters to You
You’ve probably had your version of a “bar exam” too; something you wanted so badly, and despite all your effort, it just didn’t work out.
Maybe it was a business you tried to start. Maybe a dream job that slipped through your hands. Or a relationship that fell apart even when you gave it everything.
That’s what makes Kamala Harris’s story hit home. It’s not about politics. It’s not even about law. It’s about the space between who you are right now and who you’re trying to become.
And sometimes, you only reach that next version of yourself by failing first.
Failure Isn’t Final… It’s Training
You know how when you work out, your muscles have to tear a little to grow stronger? Failure works like that too.
That first failed bar exam didn’t mean Kamala Harris wasn’t smart enough. It just meant she wasn’t ready yet.
And maybe that’s true for you too. Maybe the thing that didn’t work out the first time wasn’t rejection… maybe it was just redirection.
When she passed the bar the second time, it wasn’t just a win on paper. It was proof that setbacks can actually refine you; not destroy you.
A Quiet Kind of Bravery
There’s a quiet bravery in owning your mistakes.
Kamala could have easily hidden the fact that she failed. She’s a public figure; no one would’ve blamed her for brushing over that part of her story. But she didn’t.
She embraced it.
And that honesty is what makes her story feel human. It’s not polished or perfect. It’s real.
Because let’s be honest… nobody wants to hear about someone who’s never stumbled. We connect with people who fall and then figure out how to stand again.
Seeing the Pattern in Powerful People
As I started researching more, I noticed something. Kamala’s not alone in this.
Here’s a quick look at some others who failed before they succeeded:
| Public Figure | What They Failed | How It Turned Out |
|---|---|---|
| Kamala Harris | California Bar (first attempt) | Passed second time, became Vice President |
| Hillary Clinton | D.C. Bar | Failed once, passed Arkansas Bar, became Secretary of State |
| John F. Kennedy | Harvard Entrance | Rejected initially, later became President |
| Oprah Winfrey | First TV job | Fired, went on to build a media empire |
| Albert Einstein | Early school exams | Failed some, revolutionized physics |
You start to see it, right? Failure isn’t a sign you’re off-track. It’s a checkpoint that asks, “How badly do you want this?”
The Bar Exam as a Metaphor
The more I thought about it, the more the bar exam started to feel symbolic.
It’s this massive test that decides who gets to call themselves “lawyer.” But in life, we all have our own versions of that exam; those moments where the world asks, “Do you really want this?”
Kamala Harris faced hers at 26. You might be facing yours now.
And here’s the thing… she didn’t pass because she was suddenly smarter the second time. She passed because she didn’t give up.
Sometimes, that’s the entire secret.
What Her Story Says About Character
Kamala Harris’s journey through failure reveals something bigger than just career success.
It shows that character isn’t built during your wins. It’s built in that awkward, painful, uncertain middle; when you’re not sure if trying again is worth it.
She failed once. She faced criticism. She fought through doubt.
And that pattern; of persistence through discomfort; became her political DNA. The same resilience that helped her pass the bar is the same resilience that helped her climb through the toughest, most public jobs in the country.
The Bigger Picture: Failure as a Filter
I started realizing something. Failure doesn’t stop you from success… it filters out the people who give up too soon.
The bar exam didn’t stop Kamala Harris. It shaped her. It stripped away the illusion of perfection.
It’s like life asking, “Are you ready to try again even when it hurts?”
And when you say yes; that’s when things start to change.
The Numbers Don’t Lie
Just for perspective, look at how tough the California Bar really is:
| Year | First-Time Pass Rate | Repeat Pass Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 (Harris’s Year) | ~50% | ~35% |
| 2000 | ~55% | ~38% |
| 2010 | ~54% | ~40% |
| 2020 | ~60% | ~45% |
| 2023 | ~62% | ~47% |
Those numbers tell you everything. Even brilliant students don’t make it through the first time. So if Kamala Harris didn’t pass at first, she was in good company.
What This Means for You
If you’re standing in front of something that scares you; whether it’s a test, a dream, or just the next version of yourself; remember Kamala’s story.
It’s not about never falling. It’s about refusing to let one fall define you.
That’s the real exam… not the one on paper.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many times did Kamala Harris take the bar exam? She took the California Bar Exam twice. She failed the first time and passed on her second attempt.
Where did Kamala Harris study law? She studied at the University of California, Hastings College of the Law, now called UC Law San Francisco.
When did Kamala Harris finally pass the bar exam? She passed in 1990 after retaking the exam.
Is it common to fail the California Bar Exam? Yes, it’s known as one of the hardest bar exams in the United States, with pass rates around 40–50%.
Did failing the bar exam hurt her career? Not at all. That early failure became the foundation of her resilience and growth, shaping the leader she is today.
Key Takings
- Kamala Harris took the California Bar Exam twice… failing once and passing the next time.
- The exam’s difficulty doesn’t define intelligence… it tests endurance.
- Failing once can actually strengthen your mindset for bigger challenges ahead.
- Her story proves that success isn’t linear… it’s built through perseverance.
- Failure isn’t an ending… it’s a filter that reveals who’s truly ready to keep going.
- Your setbacks might just be preparing you for your breakthrough.
- If Kamala Harris can fail and still become Vice President, maybe failure isn’t the opposite of success; it’s the foundation of it.
Additional Resources
- Understanding Bar Exam Challenges: A resource explaining how bar exams test endurance and why many capable students fail on their first attempt.
