Barbara Barber
excerpted from: Barbara Barber, Chase College of Law,
'97, How I successfully Prepared for the Bar Exam (April 21, 1999)
April 21, 1999
Two years ago, I sat for the July Ohio Bar Exam. Then, I was an evening
student at Chase College of Law, carrying about twelve semester hours,
and working full time in Cincinnati, Ohio. I dreaded the prospect of sitting
for the bar exam, as I did not believe that there was any way possible
to pack into my brain all of the information I would need for the bar exam.
I did not believe that the two short months after graduation from law school
would be ample time for me to adequately prepare for the bar given my work
schedule. I also worried about the fact that it had been nearly four years
since I had taken the major bar exam subjects in law school, like Torts,
Contracts, etc. Privately, I feared that the stakes were insurmountable.
Right away, I realized that the bar exam experience was more about
time-management, discipline, and perspective.
These were things within my ability to control. I developed a long-range
study plan for myself, which, in the beginning, felt like "over-kill."
In the end, however, my approach to studying for the bar resulted in success
beyond what I had anticipated.
I share my approach to preparing for the bar exam as a law student,
only as a means of furnishing ideas on how others might want to
prepare for the exam. My approach may work for some – as it did for me,
but may not work for others. My approach to preparing for the bar is being
offered merely for whatever value the reader might deem it to have.
What follows is an outline of how I managed my time, studied the
law, and eliminated fatal stress factors. If I were being asked how to
study for the bar by a family member or friend, the advice I would give
is presented below.
Barbara L. Barber
Chase ‘97
