Are we humans becoming obsolete? The buzz around ChatGPT, an artificial intelligence (AI) platform, has reached a fever pitch. It can write everything from poetry to press releases. Everyday brings a new article about what ChatGPT did or what jobs it might replace. Researchers recently have made this AI tool take the bar exam. According to the ABA Bar Journal, while prior versions of ChatGPT had fallen short, ChatGPT-4 passed—scoring high marks in the MBE and doing well enough on the Multistate Essay Examination and Multistate Performance Test (no studying required). If you are preparing for the bar exam, this may discourage you at first. Will the future need human lawyers? Why am I preparing so hard for this exam? Is all of this study and anxiety worth it? I argue that it is worth it and that you should find motivation in ChatGPT’s bar exam success. [Read more…] about ChatGPT Can Do It and So Can You
About John Passmore
Regrouping After A Bar Exam Failure: Simple (but Profound) Wisdom
One hurdle to successfully regrouping after failing the bar exam is dealing with the unavoidable advice of all of your family, friends, and mere acquaintances. They will probably serve up common, go-to platitudes — e.g., “you’ll get’em next time,” “hang in there,” etc. Instead of letting yourself be endlessly frustrated by such comments, try to mine them for actual bar prep advice that can help you get back on your bar-prep feet. Here are a few cliches that actually have some kernels of simple wisdom to hold on to after a bar exam failure. [Read more…] about Regrouping After A Bar Exam Failure: Simple (but Profound) Wisdom
North Carolina to Become a UBE Jurisdiction
Beginning in February 2019, North Carolina will join the ranks of jurisdictions administering the Uniform Bar Examination (UBE). Thirty-one jurisdictions now administer the UBE—twenty-nine states and the District of Columbia and Virgin Islands. Late last year, the Board of Law Examiners of the State of North Carolina announced their state’s switchover. The Board explained that new rules will “provide for the adoption of the Uniform Bar Examination in North Carolina, and apply to all applications for admission filed in North Carolina on or after June 30, 2018.” If you are planning to take the North Carolina bar exam down the road or find yourself in another UBE jurisdiction, hopefully the information below can answer some questions and get you started in preparing for your bar exam! [Read more…] about North Carolina to Become a UBE Jurisdiction
Your Dog as Your Study Buddy (and 4 Other Tips for Building Bar Prep into Your Daily Routine)
When you are studying for the bar exam full time, building a routine that makes the most of your bar prep period is vital. Keeping to your bar prep schedule and continually reinforcing your study through repetition takes discipline, especially as bar prep drags on. If you are like me, you may find your daily activities like brushing your teeth and walking the dog begin to take longer as you subconsciously know that a day full of bar prep outlines and practice tests awaits you. Passive learning techniques are by no means a replacement for nose-to-the-grindstone study and practice, but at least I found them to help me reinforce my other prep work and build confidence that I was doing all I could to immerse myself in the material. Here are five tips to build in some bar prep around your daily routine so you can keep yourself honest and make the most of your precious few bar prep days: [Read more…] about Your Dog as Your Study Buddy (and 4 Other Tips for Building Bar Prep into Your Daily Routine)
Know Your Audience — Who is Grading Your Bar Exam?
From grade school through law school, any writing course you take advises you to first “know your audience.” It is good guidance. If you know who will be reading or evaluating your work, you can better compose your work to align with their tastes and perspectives. Given all the hard work you are putting into preparing for the bar exam, shouldn’t you take a few minutes to know your audience? Just who will be grading your bar exam? For specific answers, you will need to investigate your jurisdiction’s bar exam. While bar exams are trending toward uniformity, grading and scoring is still dominated by the jurisdiction administering the exam. That said, here are some general answers that may help get you started in knowing your bar exam audience — [Read more…] about Know Your Audience — Who is Grading Your Bar Exam?
Working and Studying for the Bar? 5 Reasons to Be Confident
The bar exam can intimidate anyone. The law is challenging, the scope is daunting, the prep time is short, and the stakes are high. If you are working while studying, it can be easy to feel sorry for yourself and to feel like you are trying to do the impossible. You have taken a tougher road to bar success than others to be sure, but you can’t let those feelings take too much of a psychological toll. You have to be confident going into the bar or you will not be at your best. Here are five reasons to be confident as you work and study and study and work and study some more — [Read more…] about Working and Studying for the Bar? 5 Reasons to Be Confident