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As if you didn’t already have enough to deal with, right? Self-isolation, the accompanying stress that goes along with that, inaccessibility of your usual coping mechanisms like the gym or hanging out with friends. . . And, piled on top of that, you just found out you failed the bar exam! What a recipe for disaster.
If you’re dealing with bad news about the bar during the Coronavirus, this post is for you! [Read more…] about Failing the Bar Exam During COVID-19
Most bar students I work with study for two to three months before the exam. Now that COVID-19 is pushing more and more July bars around the country to Fall 2020, it’s time to start thinking about how, where, and when you will study if your exam dates change.
Even if you work with a bar study program or tutor, it will be crucial to pace yourself. One thing I’ve noticed over the years as a bar tutor is that most students are smart enough to pass. What gets in the way are other things: [Read more…] about Coming Up with a COVID-19 Contingency Plan for Bar Study
It’s been a common question from our students over the past few weeks: “Are they going to postpone the bar exam?” And the answer is, we don’t know for sure, but it’s headed that direction, at least in some jurisdictions.
As you know, the National Conference of Bar Examiners (NCBE) is in charge of developing and producing bar exam content around the country. They are the people in charge. However, each jurisdiction is deciding on its own whether to proceed with administering the bar this summer. [Read more…] about Bar Exam Postponement Due to COVID-19
We at Bar Exam Toolbox are closely monitoring the COVID-19 situation, and it’s on all our minds. In the span of a few short weeks, it has changed our everyday lives in unimaginable ways. Even those of us who considered ourselves germ-conscious before are now hyper-aware whenever we have to venture outside: “Did I just touch my face after hitting the elevator button?” “Did I sanitize my phone after putting it on the counter at the store?” [Read more…] about How to Deal with COVID-19 Uncertainty
First things first, I’m sorry you failed the bar. I really am. I know it’s horrible and frustrating, it really is. But if you’re serious about passing this time around, you’re going to have to let that go completely or risk getting hung up on it and wasting time. Take your time to feel bad, grieve, stay in your pjs all day, maybe even listen to our podcast about what to do if you failed the bar, but then get over it because you’ve got a lot of work to do. I mean that with love, but seriously, get past this so you can move on productively.
I try to be as optimistic as possible with my bar students, but there are some hard truths that you’re just going to have to face if you want to conquer this exam once and for all. I’ve seen it all, and I can tell you that there is no comfortable, easy way to study for this exam as a re-taker. It’s going to be difficult. You will be exhausted sometimes. You’re going to have to do things you don’t want to do and you can’t cut corners. The students I’ve seen who embrace this idea perform better. What do I mean about cutting corners? How exactly should you attack this test? Here are my top tips:
Quite a few students have come to me with concern over the new format of the California bar exam scheduled to go into effect this summer. For starters, the new exam will be just two days instead of three. The first day will be comprised solely of writing (five essays and one PT) and the second day will include two three-hour sets of MBEs. One major component that has captured bar-takers’ attention is the new performance test, which has been cut down significantly. In this blog post, let’s explore some of these amendments to the exam, what they mean, and how to prepare: [Read more…] about Changes to the California Bar Exam as of July 2017