Friday, June 28, 2013

The Strongest Study Techniques For The Bar Exam

Use flashcards to help prepare for the MBE portion.


If you thought the LSAT was difficult, you have another thing coming with the bar exam. Brilliant individuals such as Hillary Clinton, John F. Kennedy Jr. and the former dean for Stanford Law School have all failed the bar exam at least once. Use strong study techniques like notes, flashcards, practice essays and outlines to increase your likelihood of passing this rigorous test.


Time Management


One of the most effective approaches to studying for the bar exam is to allot the necessary time. Plan to actively study for three hours a day for at least six weeks. Minimize distractions, take off work if possible and study in a quiet location. Leave your home and electronic devices if it is too easy to become distracted in your home environment.


Flashcards


Although many people may hate them, flashcards are effective in helping you retain information on a lot of subjects in a limited timed frame. Using flashcards will help you to remember facts for the 200 multiple-choice questions on the Multistate Bar Examination. Use traditional cards that you write out or an electronic service like Quizlet.


Review Work


After you complete a section of multiple choice answers thoroughly review the questions. Analyze both the right and wrong choices. Write a note about an important concept you missed during your review. Calculate how many questions that you miss for each subsection, such as torts, constitutional law, evidence or contracts.


Write Essays


Put forth the effort to write out your essays. You may be tempted to think about a theoretical answer, but nothing replaces the act of actually doing the practice essays. Your time will be limited on the day of the test, so try to stay within the time frame for each practice essay. By the end of your studying, you should be able to complete the essay in a few minutes less than you are allotted on the test.








Use Notes








Use notes and research when you complete the practice essays. You won't be able to use notes on the actual day of testing, but using notes during your study preparation lets you analyze legal documents and codes and present it in a concise format. This technique also will help you learn more facts that you can apply to the MBE portion of the test.


Outline


Creating an outline during your study time as well as on the actual exam is a technique that encourages you to organize your thoughts and create a map of where you are going. Make the outline detailed with specific court cases or rules of law for support. Address the other side of the issue so your argument does not seem one-sided. Be sure to review both your essay and outline if you have time left over to ensure you communicated all of the important points.

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