Get the tools you need for bar exam success
The month leading up to the exam can be nerve-racking. So much goes through one’s mind as the exam date approaches. You may be asking yourself: how did the time fly by so quickly? Am I ready to sit for this administration?
Working consistently and diligently will get you to the finish line. If you are fretting, there are helpful things you can do in the weeks ahead of game day:
[Read more…] about What to Keep in Mind One Month Before the Bar
On the Multistate Bar Exam (MBE) portion, you will have a three-hour timeframe to answer 200 multiple-choice questions. Of the MBE portion, 175 questions are scored and 25 are experimental and unscored questions. You will see 25 questions across the following topics: Evidence, Real Property, Torts, Civil Procedure, Constitutional Law, Contracts, Criminal Law and Procedure. While it can sometimes feel like there is no way to prepare for the curveballs on the MBE, there actually is a lot in your control to increase your chances of success.
Confronting the bar exam again is difficult. You may be feeling overwhelmed with thoughts of failure and second-guessing whether passing is possible for you. Know you are in good company. During each bar exam administration, re-takers from all walks of life sit for the exam again, and they do pass.
If you are a re-taker and courageously going at it again, here are some tips to get you on the right track so you can make this your final round:
Daily efforts to keep positivity around you can make all the difference in your studies, especially on challenging days. There are small steps you can take today that can make a lasting impact on your studies such as inspiring motivation to achieve your goals. There are worthwhile benefits to prioritizing and incorporating positivity into your studies. Positivity can improve mental and physical health and your overall well-being.
Here are some ideas to incorporate positivity into your study routine: [Read more…] about Ways to Bring Positivity into Bar Studies
Let’s be honest— studying for the bar can feel like a drag sometimes. The great news is that there are learning methods out there to help you get through those bumps in the road.
Studies show how listening to podcasts can improve your health and well-being while also helping you learn. Tuning into podcasts reduce stress and anxiety, and engages you in the learning process. Such podcasts can serve as a learning tool to supplement and enhance your studies.
Moreover, podcast usage has been shown to improve exam scores after listening on a given topic. I have benefited from utilizing podcasts for learning in a pain-free way by reviewing a Constitutional Law essay with the guided help of the Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast.
Here are some of the benefits of and ideas around podcast usage:
You recall studying for your law school exams with your professor’s thought process and priorities in mind. To do well in many law school courses, it was important to think like your professor in a sense. For example, if your professor emphasized the public policy implications of the law then you may want to be prepared to discuss this aspect in your essays.
A similar approach is required for the bar exam. While the bar exam is not at all like a typical law school exam, it is critical to know the National Conference of Bar Examiner graders view of your essays, which have more leeway than multiple-choice questions. For example, if you forget the name of the legal doctrine, but can effectively describe it and make your point, then you will likely receive partial credit. In other words, there are ways to gain points, and get partial credit for less than perfect answers. On the other hand, you will not receive any points for a wrong multiple choice answer on the MBE portion.
It is beneficial to practice under timed conditions keeping the NCBE’s scoring rubric in mind for essays (MEE) and the Multistate Performance Test (MPT).
To successfully meet the expectations of the NCBE, it is important to understand what graders look for in a successful answer.
Here are some tips on how the graders score or grade your work:
[Read more…] about What the NCBE Looks for in a Passing Score