Bar Prep Study Schedule

Schedule — “a procedural plan that indicates the time and sequence of each operation.”

-Merriam-Webster Dictionary

 

I’m back again with another post on bar prep!  If you’re taking the bar exam this summer, you’ve probably been on your bar prep journey for a bit.  It was about this time two years ago when during a lecture break, someone asked me if I studied at my apartment after lectures because I left the law school right after the lecture.  I was surprised that was even a question because of course I was studying, just not at the law school.  I tell you this because your bar prep schedule/habits should be your own and not based on how anyone else did, or is doing, their bar prep.  But I found it helpful when I first started studying to hear about other people’s bar prep routines and schedules so I wanted to share my own schedule.

 

	Weekday (Lecture)	Weekend	Weekday (Non-Lecture)
7:30	Wake Up / Breakfast / Drive		Wake Up / Breakfast
8:00		Wake Up / Breakfast
9:00	Barbri Lecture		Study
10:00		Review
11:00
12:00		Lunch / Break
1:00
2:00	Lunch / Break		Lunch / Break
3:00		Study
4:00	Review		Review
5:00	Dinner	Dinner	Dinner
6:00	Study / Prep	Study / Review	Study / Prep
7:00
8:00
9:00
10:00
11:00		Relax	Relax
12:00	Bed	Bed	Bed

 

I personally have always done better with studying when I was fresh when I was studying instead of studying for eight hours straight.  So every day, I built a decent break into my study schedule.  I’ve also always studied or done my homework at night, which I kept doing for bar prep too.  I’ve summarized my general timeline for each of the days in bar prep, with three major categories:  weekday (lecture), weekday (non-lecture), and weekends.

 

Of course, two years ago, bar prep was slightly different because in-person lectures were the norm for Barbri.  As a class administrator, I ran the lectures and had to be at the law school prior to the lecture.  I enjoyed in-person classes (which are live-streamed) because it forced me to get up by a certain time and felt more like a required law school class so I didn’t think I could skip and watch at a later time.  I followed the Barbri study schedule pretty closely with what I did each day.  Of course, some days I didn’t get to all of the assignments in one day and would push some to the next day.  So on my sample schedule, Study included the MBE questions, essay questions, reviewing outlines, and going over flashcards.  Review included the Barbri Knowledge Check, making flash cards, and reviewing my class notes.  I personally tried to focus on the easier assignments first and then do the harder assignments after I had gained some confidence about my knowledge.

 

As I mentioned in prior bar prep posts, I studied pretty much every day of the summer (except Memorial Day and July 4^th).  But I definitely didn’t study for 6-8 hours every single day; there were days I only did one or two hours of studying.  Others I know studied every day for longer and took one day off from studying a week.  Personally, I found doing bar prep related things every day, even if not intensely or as in depth, helped my anxieties related to the exam.  I definitely felt like I wasn’t doing enough in the beginning of the summer, but I studied more each day closer and closer to the exam.  As I went through the assignments, I would give myself a mini 5-minute break every 20-30 minutes so I really didn’t study straight for hours on end.  I definitely think knowing how and when you study is the best for you will really help in developing your own study schedule.

 

Hopefully, some of this was helpful for you!  Good luck in your studying and feel free to reach out with any questions about my processes and the actual exam!

 

Bar Prep Practice Exams

Practice — “To perform or work at repeatedly so as to become proficient; to train by repeated exercises.”

-Merriam-Webster Dictionary

 

I’m back again with another post on bar prep!  Today, my post is on simulated exams for the bar and how to get the most out of those exams.  This is coming pretty late in the bar prep process, but I think a lot of this information is great to apply in the last few weeks of bar prep.  I know that this year’s exam is a little different (okay, a lot different) than normal bar exams, but a lot of what I found to be helpful could still be helpful to you and for future years of exams.

 

In the bar prep process, there are two official simulated exams through Barbri (one for the MBE and one for the essays).  However, I used a lot of my time in the last two weeks working through my own “simulated exams;” like extra 100 question practice MBE exams and the full essay exams not assigned during the course.  I found the simulated exams to be a great way to work on my timing for the exams in addition to making sure I know the law in a time crunch.  Honestly, there’s no one perfect way to utilize the simulated exams but this is the way I found them to be helpful during my bar prep so I thought I’d share!

 

Barbri Bar Prep Review

Review — “Renewed study of material previously studied.”

-Merriam-Webster Dictionary

This is a crazy time to be taking the bar exam, and I’m wishing everyone who has to prepare/sit for the bar in 2020 the best as they tackle this last hurdle on the journey to become a lawyer.  I honestly can’t believe it’s been one year since I was studying for the bar exam, but I wanted to share some of my thoughts on the Barbri prep class and some tips I found helpful in learning material and prepping for the bar.  A lot of my tips don’t just apply to Barbri either!  Disclaimer:  I’m not getting paid for writing this review, but I did receive a free Barbri course in exchange for being a rep all three years of law school.  That being said, this review includes my unbiased opinions on the course and no one told me what to write in this review.

Law School Prep Books Update

Fact-finding--"The process of taking evidence to determine the truth about a disputed point.”

-Black's Law Dictionary

I’ve been planning this update about these books for a while, and ironically, my law school assigned readings from these books for the 1Ls.  If you’ve been with my blog since the beginning or have read all of my posts, you’ve probably read my post on What I’m Reading to Prep for Law School.  Now that I’m going into my 3L year, I felt that it was a good time to look back on these “law school prep books” and see if they were worth buying and reading.  So, if you are starting law school soon (maybe in the next few weeks!) and just want to feel a little more comfortable with the journey, check out one of these books to see what they have to say about law school!

Tackling Finals

Tackle — “To set about dealing with.”

-Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary

I’m knee deep into finals (three down, two to go) so I thought I’d give you an overview of how I approach taking exams.  I have a typical way of approaching my exams, but as with any of my posts, find what works for you and stick with it.  This is a similar way that I approached taking exams in college as well.

The Best Apps for Law School

App — “A computer program that performs a special function.”

-Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary

Since basically everything I do involves my phone in some capacity, it’s only right that I have a whole folder on my phone dedicated to law school.  Here are my votes for the best apps for law school!

Class Preparation Update

Preparation — “In anticipation of a future event, preparation helps to make something ready to be utilized."

-Black’s Law Dictionary

In prior posts, I’ve talked a little bit about how I get ready for class.  However, I’ve changed some things that I do before class because some of my classes this semester have necessitated it.  I still keep the same basic routine, but I thought I’d update you on the changes I’ve made.

Orientation Essential Posts

Advice — “Recommendation regarding a decision or course of conduct."

-Merriam Webster's Dictionary

It’s that time of year again, orientation and the start of a new school year!  Starting something new can always be a bit overwhelming, and I personally read almost anything related to law school that I could get my hands on.  So for your reading pleasure, here are some of my posts from last year when I was just starting out my 1L year and going through orientation!

Finals Study Plan

Examination — “An exercise designed to examine progress or knowledge.”

-Merriam Webster’s Dictionary

 

With finals quickly approaching, (my first one is Friday!) I thought I’d share with you about how I prepare for my own finals.  This might be a shorter post since I’m knee deep in outlines, textbooks, and supplements to study for my finals. 

Outlines, Outlines, Outlines

Outline—“A list of the key items in a document or plan, presented in the order they appear in the main document, or in some other logical sequence."

-Black’s Law Dictionary

Less than one month and I can officially say that I’m a third of the way done with law school.  What???  I honestly cannot believe how fast my first year went and how soon I will actually be a lawyer.  But with the end of the semester comes the dreaded end of semester finals.  And with finals comes writing outlines, memorizing outlines, working on practice problems, etc.  As I said in my post here on my review of last semester, I only started my outlines during reading week, which was definitely not the best study plan.  This semester, I definitely started on them earlier, but not as early as I resolved to do so earlier this year. 

A How-To Guide to Law School Classes

Class—“The period during which a body of students meeting regularly to study the same subject meets.”

-Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary

 

So you’re probably wondering what makes me take forever to post a new blog post on here.  Sometimes the day-to-day of school, plus the extras of trying to find a summer internship and writing my legal writing motion, have me so crazy by the end of the week that all I want to do is sleep and that’s pretty much how spring break went too!  But, now I’m back and hopefully, once my motion is turned in on Monday, I can have more time to devoting to my blog (comment below on what you’d like me to write about next!).  Since my daily class preparation has been consuming my life, I’ve decided to let you in on how I get ready for class and how I make the most of my actual class time.

Casebooks Galore

Casebook—“A book containing a selection of source materials on a particular subject, esp. one used as a reference work or in teaching."

-Black’s Law Dictionary

 

If you’re in law school, then you’ve come to have a love-hate relationship with what we call casebooks.  If you’re not in law school, then you’re probably wondering what a casebook is.  Well, it’s basically a giant book (in the case of my Con Law book, almost 2000 pages!) that’s filled with court opinions that teach you the law.  In addition to being giant, they can be very expensive so read on to see how I save some money on them.

New Year, New Planner

Calendar—“The established order of the division of time into years, months, weeks, and days; or a systematic enumeration of such arrangement.”

-Black’s Law Dictionary

  

How ironic that my post about utilizing a planner comes after not sticking to my posting schedule!  I promise I will be better about posting this year and in this coming semester.  I didn’t realize how crazy busy I would get towards the end of last semester with my final memo and finals, but now I’m one-sixth of the way to having my JD!