DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Judicial Branch data shows that more than three-fourths of those who took Iowa’s bar exam passed this year. The Des Moines Register reports the state had a 78 percent pass rate this year, compared to 68 percent in 2016. Of the 260 people who took the Iowa bar in 2017, 204 passed.

The percentage of people who passed the exam on their first try also increased in 2017. Data show that most of those who took the exam graduated from Drake University and the University of Iowa.

Jerry Anderson is the dean of Drake’s law school. He says the high passing percentage shows that programs are effectively admitting and training students. The exams include essays, multiple-choice questions and a review of fundamental tasks beginning lawyers are expected to know.