Bar applicants are especially worried about what to do during the
last week before the exam. Although there are significant individual
differences between applicants, here are some general guidelines that
some students have found invaluable.
It's helpful to examine several different aspects of bar preparation:
black letter law knowledge, test-taking skills, physical health and
emotional balance. Successful applicants are not always the smartest
ones -- they're the ones who are best prepared to perform on the days of
the examination.
BLACK LETTER LAW KNOWLEDGE
Experts agree that short-term memory is less than two weeks, and many
contend it is less than one week. The last week before the bar exam is
the ideal time to memorize the law. This is the perfect time to jam into
your memory all those "three-part tests" and
"common-law." Also, this is the time to memorize essay
approaches for each subject, to create the most complete, well-organized
answers possible under time constraints.
TEST-TAKING SKILLS
Many bar review experts recommend that applicants do their daily
allotment of MBE practice right through the weekend before the bar
examination. Experience suggests that many students reach a point of
diminishing returns a few days before the exam, and not all experts are
preoccupied with making sure students are doing a lot of MBE work a week
before the exam. Similarly, students should outline essays and other
exams rather than write them out entirely in the week before the exam.
Because students spend much of their previous work developing and
sharpening skills, by the week before the exam they are ready to
memorize material and concentrate on their physical and emotional
health.
PHYSICAL HEALTH
Everybody agrees that the mind-body connection can be crucial to success
on the bar examination. The most knowledgeable and skilful applicant
will under perform if he or she doesn't get plenty of good rest the week
before the examination. Often, it's useful for bar applicants to take
more time to exercise during the last week of their preparation, even if
that only means taking the family dog out for longer walks than usual.
Many students get better rest after they have worked away some of their
excess nervous energy. Night owls should reorient their schedules the
week before the exam, so they are prepared to do their best at nine or
ten in the morning. Finally, the week before the exam is a good time to
lean away from the processed sugar and caffeine, particularly late in
the day.
EMOTIONAL BALANCE
"Know Thyself" is the best general advice on this subject. It
is very important that a bar applicant feel like taking the bar
examination when it's time to start writing or picking MBE choices. This
is the wrong time to try to resolve profound interpersonal conflicts,
and it's the wrong time to pick fights. It's sensible to recognize,
however, that there is a significant emotional or spiritual element at
the root of a poised performance on the bar exam, and to act
accordingly.
SETTING THE STAGE FOR SUCCESS
Many successful bar candidates treat the two to three days of the exam
as if they were a space shuttle mission. They have an hour-by-hour
agenda for the entire bar exam experience. They know the exact route to
the exam from the hotel, or they have a couple of backup rides available
if they are commuting. Often, it makes sense to visit the site of the
exam a few days before the test is given, so the surroundings are more
familiar when it matters most. Students who are staying in a hotel
should get a room on the lowest floor possible, so as to avoid potential
tort or criminal liability for incidents that are foreseeable during
extended elevator rides with uptight and neurotic bar applicants.
THE DAY OF THE EXAM
Get up early enough so you don't have to hurry. Have a decent breakfast.
Consider doing a few MBE questions to warm up your brain, but don't look
up the answers. Follow your plan. Use earplugs. Have a little chocolate
or candy on you, along with spare pens and pencils. Do not make small
talk with people who have obvious psychological problems.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The bar examination is one of the most traumatic events in the life of a
lawyer. During the last week before the test, focus on memorization and
attend to your physical and emotional health to best ensure peak
performance. Your professional license is at stake.
TOP FIVE THINGS TO DO
1. Memorize black letter law details and essay approaches;
2. Outline essays and performance tests;
3. Exercise well and get proper rest;
4. Eat well;
5. Reflect on how close you are to realizing one of your dreams.
TOP FIVE THINGS TO AVOID
1. Pull an "all-nighter" before walking in for the first day
of the bar exam;
2. Engage in emotional / erotic soap opera scenes with loved ones;
3. Begin new bad habits or quit old bad habits;
4. Reflect on the most painful events in your personal and professional
life;
5. Visit your doctor for a major physical examination.
Scott Pearce is an experienced bar examination tutor in Los Angeles.
He provides bar examination tutorial and home study services for bar
students throughout the country. Previously, Pearce lectured and tutored
at Bar/Bri, Barpassers, and PMBR. For more information, visit Pearce's
Web site at http://www.passthebar.com.
