A TOTAL of 11,378 examinees on Friday showed up for the first day of the 2020-2021 Bar examinations given in testing sites across the country.

Supreme Court Associate Justice Marvic Leonen, chairperson of the 2020-2021 Bar exams, revealed this during the #BestBarEver2020/2021 virtual press conference.

According to Leonen, the examinees took the Bar exam in 30 testing sites across at least 20 provinces and cities in the country.

While 11,378 examinees showed up, Leonen disclosed that 11,790 actually paid for the application to take the exam or a turn out of 96.5 percent.

The magistrate claimed that this year’s examination has the largest number of examinees because “two (2) batches (2020-2021) were merged together” owing to the postponements brought on by the coronavirus lockdowns.

Leonen continued that of the 8,461 Bar examinees who took the SC administered antigen test, 1.36 percent of them tested positive for COVID-19.

On the other hand, the remaining 2,917 Bar examinees have opted to be tested in Department of Health (DOH) accredited testing centers.

Leonen, however, failed to confirm if there were positive cases in DOH-accredited testing centers.

Leonen added that vaccinated and unvaccinated examinees were segregated in testing sites.

There are isolation sites for those who suddenly “showed” symptoms during the grueling examination, he continued.

Leonen ruled out another isolation room for positive but asymptomatic examinees, saying “the SC doesn’t want to make the Bar exam a super-spreader event.”

With a heavy heart for those who failed to show up because they tested positive, Leonen mixed a “special exam” with another set of Bar questionnaires.

When asked for a date in releasing the results of the 2020-2021 Bar exams, Leonen expressed confidence for a speedy release given the advances in technology.