February 2016 California Bar Exam Forum

[Metal_Inquisition]

the ONLY thing you can do is channel your anger and turn it into mental energy to use to increase your speed when doing practice exams or in the few moments when you get the time to go to the gym (my squat and deadlift are higher than ever because of this, despite that I am underfed because the bar review process sucked away all my money).

but you can never forget what happened, especially since we are constantly reminded of our past failures. Everytime someone asks about our job status, the answer is "I am studying for the bar." then they ask, "I thought you took it already", then we say "yes but I didnt pass", then they say "what happened, were you close?" then we have to come up with some bs explanation.

and then its worse when we have to explain to people how the bar exam is causing us to be too broke to do just about anything, and how we have to live in the ghetto, despite that we are law school graduates AND went to undergrad at schools like stanford, uc berkeley, harvard, ect...

the social humiliation is the worst part of the bar exam. its a complete nightmare. Especially when you have to explain this to your significant other's family. its so embarrassing and awkward. Not to mention that your past failures are driving your signifcant other insane, because she has to explain this to all of her friends and family as well and has to put up with you not giving her any attention because you have to study.

You described it perfectly. This isn't my first repeat and during all this time, I've basically become a hermit. I skip all holidays because my family feels like they have to ask me 21,000 questions about the bar and why I haven't passed yet. I don't use social media at all because "friends" from law school message me to ask me if I passed when I know they already searched my name on the pass list.

I was so tired of telling people that I didn't pass the bar and feeling like I had to explain to them and having to listen to their "you'll pass next time!!" BS and their unsolicited advice that I just disappeared completely. Part of me missing having friends and an actual social life but a bigger part of me is like YES PEACE FINALLY. I'm also not telling anyone that I'm taking it again.

When people ask me where I work or what I do, I make up something depending on how I feel that day. I'm currently a kindergarten teacher.

Hang in there KatieSpades. You're not alone and we understand! Sending good vibes your way! And good vibes to everyone here today. Saturdays are officially over.

[rcharter1978]

the ONLY thing you can do is channel your anger and turn it into mental energy to use to increase your speed when doing practice exams or in the few moments when you get the time to go to the gym (my squat and deadlift are higher than ever because of this, despite that I am underfed because the bar review process sucked away all my money).

but you can never forget what happened, especially since we are constantly reminded of our past failures. Everytime someone asks about our job status, the answer is "I am studying for the bar." then they ask, "I thought you took it already", then we say "yes but I didnt pass", then they say "what happened, were you close?" then we have to come up with some bs explanation.

and then its worse when we have to explain to people how the bar exam is causing us to be too broke to do just about anything, and how we have to live in the ghetto, despite that we are law school graduates AND went to undergrad at schools like stanford, uc berkeley, harvard, ect...

the social humiliation is the worst part of the bar exam. its a complete nightmare. Especially when you have to explain this to your significant other's family. its so embarrassing and awkward. Not to mention that your past failures are driving your signifcant other insane, because she has to explain this to all of her friends and family as well and has to put up with you not giving her any attention because you have to study.

You described it perfectly. This isn't my first repeat and during all this time, I've basically become a hermit. I skip all holidays because my family feels like they have to ask me 21,000 questions about the bar and why I haven't passed yet. I don't use social media at all because "friends" from law school message me to ask me if I passed when I know they already searched my name on the pass list.

I was so tired of telling people that I didn't pass the bar and feeling like I had to explain to them and having to listen to their "you'll pass next time!!" BS and their unsolicited advice that I just disappeared completely. Part of me missing having friends and an actual social life but a bigger part of me is like YES PEACE FINALLY. I'm also not telling anyone that I'm taking it again.

When people ask me where I work or what I do, I make up something depending on how I feel that day. I'm currently a kindergarten teacher.

go all in, be an astronaut, or a ballerina

I'm so over unsolicited advice. I just try to get out of the situation as fast as possible. Its good you haven't told anyone you're taking it. I think thats a great idea.

But yeah, I already prepared my family for me not being around. I just can't

[InTheWideLand I Walk]

is adaptibar down right now? anyone else have it trying to log in?

[FinallyPassedTheBar]

is adaptibar down right now? anyone else have it trying to log in?

Yes I am getting errors when I try to login

[InTheWideLand I Walk]

good to know

[FinallyPassedTheBar]

good to know

It's back up now

[Raiden]

Just got adaptibar as well, seems pretty effective. Do you guys just do the MBE from adaptibar and forgo the ones from your bar prep? That would seem to be the most practical so that you have all the data about your MBE in one place.

PM if anyone wants the $50 off coupon code.

[InTheWideLand I Walk]

is civil procedure now the new "hard mbe subject" on the bar, e.g. like property? or is it just the testing companies are making harder civ pro questions because they dont know what to expect?

[MrMustache]

is civil procedure now the new "hard mbe subject" on the bar, e.g. like property? or is it just the testing companies are making harder civ pro questions because they dont know what to expect?

Wasn't Civ Pro only added to the MBE last February? I think they don't know what to expect yet.

[nerdalicious05]

Has anyone used SketchyLaw? Looks pretty cool but I just wanna make sure it's legit. Word.

[ilovetheatre]

Has anyone used SketchyLaw? Looks pretty cool but I just wanna make sure it's legit. Word.

Nine of your twelve posts are about sketchylaw (the other three just say "bump."). If you're not actually trying to promote the site, maybe you should just buy it and give a review after you get your Feb results.

[a male human]

Has anyone used SketchyLaw? Looks pretty cool but I just wanna make sure it's legit. Word.

Nine of your twelve posts are about sketchylaw (the other three just say "bump."). If you're not actually trying to promote the site, maybe you should just buy it and give a review after you get your Feb results.

Won't somebody just give that user a straight answer? S/he's been wondering how cool it is since May.

[nerdalicious05]

Has anyone used SketchyLaw? Looks pretty cool but I just wanna make sure it's legit. Word.

Nine of your twelve posts are about sketchylaw (the other three just say "bump."). If you're not actually trying to promote the site, maybe you should just buy it and give a review after you get your Feb results.

Won't somebody just give that user a straight answer? S/he's been wondering how cool it is since May.

Wow. Way creeper of a response than I was anticipating. Thanks?

[a male human]

Has anyone used SketchyLaw? Looks pretty cool but I just wanna make sure it's legit. Word.

Nine of your twelve posts are about sketchylaw (the other three just say "bump."). If you're not actually trying to promote the site, maybe you should just buy it and give a review after you get your Feb results.

Won't somebody just give that user a straight answer? S/he's been wondering how cool it is since May.

Wow. Way creeper of a response than I was anticipating. Thanks?

Indeed, you should be flattered given how people recognized you just by your post!

[nelife22]

Does anyone have any experience with Bargraders.com? I'm thinking about doing their failed exam review. Since we haven't received our essays from this past July, I was going to send in my past February exams so I can get going early since my essay scores weren't that great on this recent test. If anyone has any recommendations for an essay review/tutor, let me know.

Thanks! Good luck to everyone!

[BrokenMouse]

Anybody have experiences with different versions of Kaplan's PMBR? The reason I ask is Barbri's MBE prep is worthless and I've heard overwhelming responses indicating Kaplan is much superior for MBE.

I want to know if older versions of the PMBR, like from 2010/2011 has pretty much the same content as 2014/2015 except the civ pro. Someone chime in please!

[BuenAbogado]

by the way, I highly recommend the Jeff Tyler "nailing the bar" and outlines. I got mine pretty cheap from eBay. One of the best things about them is that they have these lists of triggers for issue spotting i.e. if you see paralegal in community property, almost always issue of unlawful practice of law. Memorize all of them, because issue spotting is very very important on the bar exam. You don't want to spend 15 minutes writing about an issue that is irrevelant, because the graders will be unable to give you points for that. Zero points, wasted time, and looks bad.

I also really, really liked Adachi's Bar Breaker book, which I also got on ebay for much cheaper than I saw it on Amazon. It is more expensive, but has really really good sample essays and methods on how to write. Highly highly recommend these books. Worth every dollar.

[nerdalicious05]

Has anyone used SketchyLaw? Looks pretty cool but I just wanna make sure it's legit. Word.

Nine of your twelve posts are about sketchylaw (the other three just say "bump."). If you're not actually trying to promote the site, maybe you should just buy it and give a review after you get your Feb results.

Won't somebody just give that user a straight answer? S/he's been wondering how cool it is since May.

Wow. Way creeper of a response than I was anticipating. Thanks?

Indeed, you should be flattered given how people recognized you just by your post!

A bit perturbed, but I'll just do my best to roll with flattery

[layaann]

Hi All! Wishing you all the best of luck on the February bar. I took July as an out-of-state student for the first time and passed [somehow]. I wanted to pass on some tips and some of my own work that will hopefully help you!

1. Get Adaptibar. I used Themis AND Adaptibar. Yes, you will see some of the same questions, but SO WHAT?? You want to do as many questions as you can (the same or different) so you get the format and can spot the answer when you're down to two. Also, it's $$$, but you can find $50 off (PM if needed) and why take shortcuts now on this exam that is seemingly just getting harder? By day one, I did >2000 questions between Themis and Adaptibar. Although, I have no doubt Adaptibar is mostly to blame for how I ended up with an MBE >150.

2. Read sample essays. Know what a 55 looks like vs. a 75. Something that was thrown around as I was studying was the fact that "If you put anything, you're sure to get at least a 55." From seeing others' scores, I think I can comfortably say that this is not true. You really must put more than words on paper (i.e. write as if you expect to get a grader that actually looks at your essay).

3. FORMAT! I cannot help but thank "2807" on here for helping me with my essay format. Barbri/Themis/Kaplan are not going to show you how to format your essays properly or efficiently. Below is an example of how I formatted my essays. The goal is to get the reader to glance at your essay and say, "She/He looks like they know what they are doing. Pass. MOVE ON--I've got more money to make!" Do that with whether statements that incorporate KEY WORDS!

Essay Format:
1. QUESTION TOPIC

Whether Statement (i.e. Whether shareholders, B and C, may create an enforceable shareholder agreement in regards to votes)

PARAGRAPH OF LAW

PARAGRAPHS OF APPLYING FACTS TO LAW

Conclusion
[Simple statement that applies base of law to main fact(s).]

This is continued (2-??) until all provided questions have been answered. Keep the same format that the question gives you, so if you see 2(a), make a bold/underlined 2(a). It will further promise the reader that you are aware of the question and have "delicately" answered the right question--DO NOT MAKE UP YOUR OWN SYSTEM. As you can see, it's very methodical, and the reader can see that I hit all aspects of IRAC without searching for anything. I hope all of them skimmed it for four minutes thinking nothing more than: "Looks like she knows enough of what is going on here to pass. NEXT!"

4. Regime. It was not necessary for me to study 10+ hour days. Every morning, I woke up around 6:30 AM, went to the gym until 9, showered/breakfast, studied, yoga at noon, and studied again until about 6:30 PM. I completed 100% of the Themis coursework this way and never burned out. This set schedule helped me stay on track and kept me accountable to the point where I felt comfortable walking into the exam on day one.

5. Study how you study best. Don't stray from what you did in law school and undergrad. I study best making blank handouts and filling them out until I know them without notes + making notecards (but not ever reviewing them again). I did this throughout the summer. My handouts are below if any are interested. I only did handouts for the MBE subjects. I also made concise three-page outlines for every subject. Happy to send these out if needed--just PM. However, it's likely the time I put in making those outlines that mattered--not the hours spent reading them on the treadmill.

6. Turn your life off, but be mindful of the support you will need. After a choppy year, I broke up with my boyfriend of seven years in May and moved back to California to study. YOU CAN DO IT! However, it required me to cut him out completely and delete things--get off of FB, Instagram, etc. but don't feel guilty about texting and keeping up with friends. They will keep you sane! I remember thinking in July, "Should I turn off everything and go black? Will that be the difference between passing or failing?" NO! You will need your friends to keep you mindful of what really matters in life and likely to keep you on track with positive thoughts. If a friend calls midday, take the call, enjoy the conversation, and get back to studying after. It is a preparation for a three-day marathon, so you're not expected to run your best pace on week three or seven of prep.

7. Be a sheep. http://www.swlaw.edu/pdfs/RebeccaSimonDailyJournal My dad gave me this article week two or three during bar prep when he realized I was likely getting slightly ahead of the Themis program. Looking back, I totally agree with it! (Although I did have FOUR dreams during the waiting game of myself failing the bar, calling my dad, and him yelling at me, "YOU WEREN'T A F-ING SHEEP!!! I TOLD YOU TO BE A SHEEP!"--you've been warned!)

That's all I have for now! Good luck! Remember that it's more mental preparation and format than how much you actually know! It is JUST a test and not a characterization of who you are.

MBE Handouts to fill out: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/dec2k4tm6hik ... Qd2Ja?dl=0

Hope this helps! Would love to give back in any ways that I can as a thread similar to this for July 2015 often kept me sane during the summer!

Thank you so much for the detailed information. I download your mbe fill in the blanks! And wanted to know if I could get a copy of your 3 page mini outlines? I will pm you.

Ps congrats on passing!!!

[lacrossebrother]

Can anyone confirm that we are not to use the new frcp discovery rules?

[jdnumbersgame]

Does anybody have a $50 off adaptibar coupon I can use?

[rcharter1978]

Does anybody have a $50 off adaptibar coupon I can use?

PM'ing you with $65 coupon code

[cyrilchen]

Hi there! I'm also studying for the Feb 2016 bar exam. I'm looking for a study group around Long Beach/Orange County. Are you interested or do you know someone who would?

Hello Julie.

I am in Arcadia. Perhaps we can meet around downtown LA or KTown where there are a bunch of students like us? Have you found a study partner?

[newusername]

Let's get a headcount on folks living in or near Los Angeles who want to have a once in a while study session strictly just for practice exams. Please also state if you are a repeater so we can gauge where everyone's at in life.

Yes I would be interested in joining the study group

I am a repeater looking to join for the Feb 2016 bar

(I had a 1370 overall) MBE's were horrible

Hi, there! Also interested in joining the study group. 1392 overall; MBE was horrible as well I was doing well according to Barbri so messing up on that portion was the last thing I expected. I must admit to having spent a disproportionate amount of time on the writing portion during the last month, though.

[FinallyPassedTheBar]

Let's get a headcount on folks living in or near Los Angeles who want to have a once in a while study session strictly just for practice exams. Please also state if you are a repeater so we can gauge where everyone's at in life.

Yes I would be interested in joining the study group

I am a repeater looking to join for the Feb 2016 bar

(I had a 1370 overall) MBE's were horrible

Hi, there! Also interested in joining the study group. 1392 overall; MBE was horrible as well I was doing well according to Barbri so messing up on that portion was the last thing I expected. I must admit to having spent a disproportionate amount of time on the writing portion during the last month, though.

Try Adaptibar.com. I find it very helpful. It uses actual MBE questions and has good tools to track progress. Honestly, I find it sort of fun versus just using book materials. Using the interface simulates a personal "real-time" evaluation of answers....which works for me. It keeps me engaged. Yeah i know all the answer explanations are pre-written and stored in a database, but the interface creates a more "real-time" feeling versus lugging around a thick MBE book with all the answers explanations at the end.

Let me know if you need a $50 discount code.