Congratulations, you’ve made it to the final week of bar exam prep. This week always brings some relief for students knowing the end is finally in sight. For others, the time can evoke a sense of panic, which can be quite difficult when you want to focus before the big day. Here are some of the common scenarios we’re hearing from students during this time. If you’re on the verge of having a bar exam freakout, read on for our suggestions for conquering the anxiety and getting through the final push.
My Bar Exam Practice Scores are Going Down
Remember that you don’t want to fixate on practice scores. This can send you to a bad mental place, which in the end becomes detrimental to your studying. But if the scores are taking a turn for the worse, take a look at your study regimen. Are there things you can change in this last week that will help you? If you’re working and studying for the bar exam, you may want to consider taking the next two weeks off work and focus solely on studying.
You should also make sure you’re not practicing self-sabotaging behavior. This is likely to result in disappointing practice scores, making you more frustrated and depressed and in turn less confident when you get to the exam. Remember, you have the power to change this!
I’m Feeling Panic and Anxiety When I Study
The bar exam study panic is the moment when you decide that things are going all wrong. This happens to everyone at one point or another during bar preparation. The key is not to ignore the panic, but just be honest with yourself about it, deal with it and then get back to work. If you feel a moment of panic coming on, remember that a few bumps in the road does not mean you will fail. Make time to take a break and step away from the books. Take some time to breathe, go for a walk or practice yoga. It will calm your nerves, make you feel a bit better (hopefully) and allow you to evaluate your situation as best you can.
I’m Constantly Studying But Feel Like I Don’t Know Any Law
What do you do if you have been studying diligently but still don’t know the law? This is such a common feeling among bar students. Many students also come the realization that they’re not sure if their bar prep course is working. In our opinion, this happens when you haven’t been studying correctly or spending time actually learning the law. There is nothing wrong with realizing that you need to change how you are studying to get the results you want. Even though the bar exam is just over a week away, there are still things you can do to help with this feeling.
Create fun mnemonics (or even songs) to help you remember certain law and learn it. Practice essay questions to work on applying the law and writing out your analysis. Then test yourself as to whether you could change the facts in the fact pattern to change the outcome. To do this, you need to understand the law and how it is applied to the facts. Or get together with someone else and take turns “teaching” the law to each other. Remember if you can explain it to someone else, you likely understand it yourself.
Your Plan for the Final Week of Bar Prep
If you’re feeling overwhelmed and you don’t know how to get it all done, then make a plan. Create a daily study schedule where you attack the subjects you have left and review the subjects you have covered already. And make sure you do tons of practice. You aren’t learning the law just to learn it, you must simplify the law in order to make it memorizable and you must practice applying it. Having a plan can help calm the anxious feeling that there is not enough time. There is still time if you are smart about how you study.
Good luck this week! You can do it!
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Did you find this post helpful? Check out some other great articles:
- 4 Steps to Conquering Self-Doubt During Bar Exam Study
- Two Simple Non-Woo-Woo Ways to Calm Your Nerves and Boost Your Score on the Bar Exam
- Help! I Can’t Afford a Therapist – 4 Things to Try
- Just Decide You’ll Pass
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This is a really interesting article on reducing anxiety with the bar exam. Law school in general induces anxiety. The bar is what makes it the end all. Thanks for the great tips.