California February 2016 Bar Exam (Westside For Life) Forum

[ResIpsa21]

work work. work work work work.

work work work work. work. work? work.

[a male human]

How much have you guys spent on preparing for the bar? Excluding rent, food, and living costs. And also excluding administrative fees like registration for the bar, SofTest, etc.

[fadedsunrise]

In hindsight, I should have taken the day off to be with my friends who are graduating. Managed to finish my one pending project but now my blood is running perpetually cold under a huge sweater.

Edit:

How much have you guys spent on preparing for the bar? Excluding rent, food, and living costs.

Are we including registration fees?
1.8k for Kaplan during bar 1. ~500 for misc materials including Adaptibar during bar 2, strategies and tactics, and a set of critical pass flashcards. ~2.2k for barbri during bar 2 plus ~300 for some tutoring/diagnostic thing which turned out useless.

4.6k if not including bar registration, about 5.5k if including.

[a male human]

Whoaaa you signed up for another prep company? At least you got it at a big discount. I thought Barbri was like $4k.

Yeah not counting reg fees, just whatever you used for preparation only. I guess 4.6k isn't too horrible when I think of people who paid the full 4k just for Barbri.

[CAbarexamtaker]

I liked Kaplan the first time. I thought they did a good job prepping me. I didn't pass. I didn't blame Kaplan.

If I don't pass this time, I'm blaming myself, but I am wondering if Kaplan has left something out that would have helped me.

That said, I just can't pay thousands of dollars for Barbri.

[minkylowlife]

$900~ for bar registration, $600 moral character and other fees, $240 on the MPRE and retakes, $1.8k for Kaplan, $500 for the Kaplan retake because I didn't do enough of the first program to get it free, then ended up cashing about $1k worth of PTO to take the damn thing. So...like $5k total. Part of why I'm hoping I pass this time around is because after six months of counting every penny, I've managed to save up $4000 - and I don't want to flush that away on taking this exam AGAIN.

[a male human]

I liked Kaplan the first time. I thought they did a good job prepping me. I didn't pass. I didn't blame Kaplan.

If I don't pass this time, I'm blaming myself, but I am wondering if Kaplan has left something out that would have helped me.

That said, I just can't pay thousands of dollars for Barbri.

I didn't like Kaplan when I first took it with them. I was just deluding myself thinking it was better than Barbri because I was a Kaplan rep. So when I failed I just self-studied with Barbri CMR and a few other supplements. The MBE bootcamp with Chris at Kaplan was helpful, though. I reactivated my Kaplan account just for that and nothing else.

[a male human]

$900~ for bar registration, $600 moral character and other fees, $240 on the MPRE and retakes, $1.8k for Kaplan, $500 for the Kaplan retake because I didn't do enough of the first program to get it free, then ended up cashing about $1k worth of PTO to take the damn thing. So...like $5k total. Part of why I'm hoping I pass this time around is because after six months of counting every penny, I've managed to save up $4000 - and I don't want to flush that away on taking this exam AGAIN.

Jesus bar registration is $900 now? I forget--do repeaters get a discount on reg fees?

[MailboxCrusher]

Rd 1 - 2000 Barbri - 100 critical pass - 50 bucks lean sheets - 700 hotel

Rd 2 - adaptibar 215 - tutor 4,200 - hotel - 600

About 6,500 just on materials

[ResIpsa21]

Do applicants get access to the entire pass list at 6:00 p.m. PDT, or only to our own results? The website says "Applicants will be able to access the pass list" but my colleagues are telling me I will only get my own results until the whole list goes public.

[CAbarexamtaker]

I think the pass list is made public Sunday, right?

[minkylowlife]

Bar registration is $677, iirc, plus $153 for the computer, and it was $119 for my law student registration iirc, so about $900 in total for registration.

I'm serious when I say I count pennies.

[fadedsunrise]

Whoaaa you signed up for another prep company? At least you got it at a big discount. I thought Barbri was like $4k.

Yeah not counting reg fees, just whatever you used for preparation only. I guess 4.6k isn't too horrible when I think of people who paid the full 4k just for Barbri.

I may not be remembering correctly, but it was south of 2.5k I'm sure. I didn't dislike Kaplan, but I also didn't trust it, and didn't like the way the materials were presented in either the lectures or the outlines. I only liked Fromm, in the end, and even referred to his stuff when the Barbri evidence guy bored me. I think Barbri taught me the law a a lot better, but time will tell...

[CAbarexamtaker]

Fromm is definitely the best part of Kaplan. They should get him to teach the whole thing. I felt well-prepped because I put a lot into it, but Fromm is lightyears ahead of most of their instructors.

[ResIpsa21]

I think the pass list is made public Sunday, right?

I don't know . . . I just saw on the website (http://apps.calbar.ca.gov/exam/) the following:

"Results from the February 2016 California Bar Examination will be mailed to applicants on Friday, May 13, 2016. Applicants will be able to access the pass list that evening, beginning at 6:00 PM (PDT) using their applicant number and file number."

This makes me think applicants get the entire pass list, but people in my office (who haven't taken the bar in many years) are saying it's just my own results. I'd love to know whether my friends passed tonight without having to send the ever-awkward "so, how'd it go" text . . . .

[MarcZero]

I think the pass list is made public Sunday, right?

I think it's been discussed earlier that the pass list is now NOT going to be made public due to recent changes in CA law. I could be mistaken but that's the general consensus I've heard. Although that means things could change and we could just get access to the whole pass list, I don't expect any more changes than necessary and will only expect to only be told if you number is on the pass list or not tonight.

If the pass list isn't made public now, I doubt law students would get special access to it.

[CAbarexamtaker]

Whoever writes this blog says the same thing I thought I had read somewhere: http://www.cabarexamrepeatersresource.c ... reju2.html

"The February California Bar Exam pass list will be available here via the Good Luck Portal after 6:00 p.m. (CA time) on Results Friday, May 13, 2016. Your admittance ticket will provide the numbers to access the online pass list.

The official results are mailed to candidates on this same day.

On Sunday, May 15, 2016, it is possible to search the pass list by inserting the candidate's name."

[a male human]

I think the pass list is made public Sunday, right?

I don't know . . . I just saw on the website (http://apps.calbar.ca.gov/exam/) the following:

"Results from the February 2016 California Bar Examination will be mailed to applicants on Friday, May 13, 2016. Applicants will be able to access the pass list that evening, beginning at 6:00 PM (PDT) using their applicant number and file number."

This makes me think applicants get the entire pass list, but people in my office (who haven't taken the bar in many years) are saying it's just my own results. I'd love to know whether my friends passed tonight without having to send the ever-awkward "so, how'd it go" text . . . .

Q: How do you know someone has passed the bar?

[+] Spoiler

A: They'll tell you.

Watch out for unoriginal FB status updates like "Esquire!" or nonchalantly, "I passed the bar"

Today is your own results. Sunday is the public pass list, although someone said they won't be public anymore at some point?

[MarcZero]

Jesus bar registration is $900 now? I forget--do repeaters get a discount on reg fees?

Yep. Well, it's $677 for non-attorneys and $153 to use a laptop which is ~90% of test takers now so you are paying $830 to register.

There is no discount for repeaters, BUT we do get a window past the initial deadline to register without paying a late fee.

[InTheWideLand I Walk]

$900~ for bar registration, $600 moral character and other fees, $240 on the MPRE and retakes, $1.8k for Kaplan, $500 for the Kaplan retake because I didn't do enough of the first program to get it free, then ended up cashing about $1k worth of PTO to take the damn thing. So...like $5k total. Part of why I'm hoping I pass this time around is because after six months of counting every penny, I've managed to save up $4000 - and I don't want to flush that away on taking this exam AGAIN.

Jesus bar registration is $900 now? I forget--do repeaters get a discount on reg fees?

If you do the math, The bar administration gets an extra 1 to 2 million per year by raising the fee to 900. They are already making over 10 million per year between the july and feb bars. They are also deliberately decreasing the pass rate so they can keep more people paying the fee- this will probably add an extra 1 million dollars in there. i see right through this... Its greed.

[Metal_Inquisition]

What's everyone drinking tonight? I'm about to go get a bottle of gin and a tonic water. Either way I know ginny will be there for me.....

[CAbarexamtaker]

What's everyone drinking tonight? I'm about to go get a bottle of gin and a tonic water. Either way I know ginny will be there for me.....

I'm about to start drinking now.

[MarcZero]

Whoever writes this blog says the same thing I thought I had read somewhere: http://www.cabarexamrepeatersresource.c ... reju2.html

"The February California Bar Exam pass list will be available here via the Good Luck Portal after 6:00 p.m. (CA time) on Results Friday, May 13, 2016. Your admittance ticket will provide the numbers to access the online pass list.

The official results are mailed to candidates on this same day.

On Sunday, May 15, 2016, it is possible to search the pass list by inserting the candidate's name."

I'm not sure where that website is getting its info. The state website currently states: "How do I know if I passed the exam?
If you took the February 2016 bar exam, your results will be mailed to you on Friday, May 13. You can also determine whether your name is on the pass list through the State Bar of California website beginning at 6 p.m. that evening. You will need your applicant and file numbers to log in and see your results. It will show only whether your name is on the pass list."

So the above makes it seem as if tonight will be just like it has been every other time recently where you put in your numbers and it just says if the name appears on the pass list or not. The state's website (as far as I can see so far) doesn't make any mention of the pass list going public. That's not definitive proof it won't go public, but I don't see any info from the state right now about if and when it would be.

[juniormint33]

What's everyone drinking tonight? I'm about to go get a bottle of gin and a tonic water. Either way I know ginny will be there for me.....

I'm about to start drinking now.

Now this is a discussion I can get behind. I'm thinking red wine and leftover pizza. I had forgotten how shitty these last few hours are.

[CAbarexamtaker]

Whoever writes this blog says the same thing I thought I had read somewhere: http://www.cabarexamrepeatersresource.c ... reju2.html

"The February California Bar Exam pass list will be available here via the Good Luck Portal after 6:00 p.m. (CA time) on Results Friday, May 13, 2016. Your admittance ticket will provide the numbers to access the online pass list.

The official results are mailed to candidates on this same day.

On Sunday, May 15, 2016, it is possible to search the pass list by inserting the candidate's name."

I'm not sure where that website is getting its info. The state website currently states: "How do I know if I passed the exam?
If you took the February 2016 bar exam, your results will be mailed to you on Friday, May 13. You can also determine whether your name is on the pass list through the State Bar of California website beginning at 6 p.m. that evening. You will need your applicant and file numbers to log in and see your results. It will show only whether your name is on the pass list."

So the above makes it seem as if tonight will be just like it has been every other time recently where you put in your numbers and it just says if the name appears on the pass list or not. The state's website (as far as I can see so far) doesn't make any mention of the pass list going public. That's not definitive proof it won't go public, but I don't see any info from the state right now about if and when it would be.

Agree. Can't find anything definitive. I read it on something official previously, though. One of the umpteen info sheets from Calbar.