• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Bar Exam Toolbox®

Get the tools you need for bar exam success

  • I Failed!
  • Tutoring
  • Courses
    • Writing Help: Essays/PT
    • MBE Help
    • Self-Study Program
    • Options – California
    • Options – UBE
  • Bar Exam 101
  • About
  • Blog
  • Podcast
  • Login

Tools for Bar Exam Success: Our Review of the Critical Pass App

April 6, 2016 By Ben Nelson Leave a Comment

Critical Pass

I’ve been spending the past few days checking out an iPhone/Android app called Critical Pass. It’s a great way to supplement your preparation for the MBE.

How does it work?

At its core, Critical Pass is a set of flash cards for the seven MBE subjects (Constitutional Law, Contracts, Criminal Law and Procedure, Evidence, Property, Torts, and Civil Procedure). The numbers of available flash cards varies from 41 cards for Contracts to 71 cards for Criminal Law and Procedure. For the most part, each card corresponds to separate legal issue. The app doesn’t include cards on every legal issue that could appear on the MBE, but it covers the most frequently tested areas of the law.

Critical Pass

How much does it cost?

A set of 380 Critical Pass flashcards costs $149.99. This includes one year of mobile app access for Apple and Android devices. See here for more information.

Who will benefit from using it?

Critical Pass is geared towards people who don’t go anywhere without their phones, which I’m willing to bet is pretty much everyone studying for the bar exam. The real benefit to Critical Pass is that it literally gives you the law at your fingertips. You can review legal issues that you’re struggling with, highlight particular rules, and star items to return to later. The app will also quiz you on the cards of your choice. There’s a lot of value in finding a way to make use of those few free moments while waiting for the bus or for the judge to enter the courtroom (on second thought, maybe that last one will have to wait until you pass the bar).

On the other hand…

Critical Pass isn’t for everyone. At $149.99, it’s pretty expensive as far as apps go. Critical Pass breaks down the MBE rules into one area of the law per card, and that simplicity can be helpful to some studiers. Plus, Critical Pass offers the convenience of a stand-alone app that comes with highlighting and saving capabilities. These features make it particularly suited for the digital generation. But make sure you check it out before you purchase so you can feel good about spending money on it.  Check out the app here.

___ _ ___

Did you find this post helpful? Check out some other great articles:

  • What are  Bar Exam Graders are Really Looking For
  • Steps to Making Your Own Bar Exam Schedule
  • Are You Wasting Time Studying for the Bar Exam 
  • What are You Waiting For? It’s Time to Study for the Bar Exam

 


Ready to pass the bar exam? Get the support and accountability you need with personalized one-on-one bar exam tutoring or one of our economical courses and workshops. We're here to help!


 

About Ben Nelson

Ben Nelson is a law school and California bar exam tutor for Law School Toolbox and Bar Exam Toolbox. As the oldest child of two professors, he realized from an early age that he wanted to strike out on his own. He eventually settled on law school and graduated from Columbia in 2014 as a Kent Scholar and a Stone Scholar. While in school, Ben served as the Notes Editor for the Columbia Journal of Race & Law, helping eight 2Ls conceptualize and write law review notes. In 2016, he will be clerking for a federal district court judge.

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Let us know you are not a spammer! * Time limit is exhausted. Please reload CAPTCHA.

Primary Sidebar

  • Podcast
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Twitter

About Us

Want to pass the bar exam? Of course you do! We’re here to help. You’ll find lots of helpful free content at Bar Exam 101, in the Bar Exam Resource Hub, and on the Bar Exam Toolbox podcast. For more hands-on help, take a look at our courses and workshops and bar exam tutoring options. Please get in touch with any questions!

COVID-19 Updates

Please visit the COVID-19 updates page for the latest news on bar exam postponements.

Recent Posts

Podcast Episode 119: Listen and Learn — Anticipatory Repudiation (Contracts)

Welcome back to the Bar Exam Toolbox podcast! Today, in an episode from our "Listen and Learn" series, we're talking about anticipatory repudiation, … [Read More...] about Podcast Episode 119: Listen and Learn — Anticipatory Repudiation (Contracts)

Reading on Screens—Where will you encounter it?

Reading on Screens—Where will you encounter it?

As lawyers and law students, we are living in an increasingly digitized world. From law school to the bar exam to practice, many tasks that were … [Read More...] about Reading on Screens—Where will you encounter it?

Podcast Episode 118: More on Memorization for the Bar Exam

Welcome back to the Bar Exam Toolbox podcast! Today, we're revisiting the best memorization techniques for long-term retention of material. There are … [Read More...] about Podcast Episode 118: More on Memorization for the Bar Exam

I Failed the Bar Exam. Should I Wait Until After the Covid-19 Pandemic to Re-Sit?

Should I Wait Until After the Covid-19 Pandemic to Re-Sit if I failed the Bar Exam?

As 2020 closed and perhaps the most bizarre and uncertain bar exam season comes to an end, we are now faced with the reality of bar exam … [Read More...] about Should I Wait Until After the Covid-19 Pandemic to Re-Sit if I failed the Bar Exam?

Podcast Episode 117: Listen and Learn — Due Process and Equal Protection (Con Law)

Welcome back to the Bar Exam Toolbox podcast! In this week's episode, as part of our "Listen and Learn" series, we're talking about an important area … [Read More...] about Podcast Episode 117: Listen and Learn — Due Process and Equal Protection (Con Law)

Need to Pass the Bar Exam?

Sign up for our free weekly email with useful tips!

Footer

  • Podcast
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • I Failed!
  • Tutoring
  • Courses
  • Bar Exam 101
  • About
  • Blog
  • Podcast
  • Login
  • Privacy
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Refunds
  • Contact

Copyright 2021 Bar Exam Toolbox®™