July 2016 California Bar Exam Forum

[rhs67858]

About to start prep this weekend. I'm doing barbri self study and have the strategies and tactics book too. Anyone else starting yet?

[FinallyPassedTheBar]

About to start prep this weekend. I'm doing barbri self study and have the strategies and tactics book too. Anyone else starting yet?

I have been studying very lightly the past few weeks. Real study will start Monday for me.

[Law School]

Hi,

What do you guys think about adaptibar v. Kaplan PMBR? Is one better than the other for the MBE? I am doing self-study and wanted to practice on type of questions that are more likely to show up on the exam. From what I understand Barbri questions are not like the questions on the exam.

Any advice is appreciated.

[FinallyPassedTheBar]

Hi,

What do you guys think about adaptibar v. Kaplan PMBR? Is one better than the other for the MBE? I am doing self-study and wanted to practice on type of questions that are more likely to show up on the exam. From what I understand Barbri questions are not like the questions on the exam.

Any advice is appreciated.

I suggest Adaptibar because it uses real MBE questions. I believe Kaplan/PMBR are "simulated" questions.

[a male human]

Hi,

What do you guys think about adaptibar v. Kaplan PMBR? Is one better than the other for the MBE? I am doing self-study and wanted to practice on type of questions that are more likely to show up on the exam. From what I understand Barbri questions are not like the questions on the exam.

Any advice is appreciated.

I suggest Adaptibar because it uses real MBE questions. I believe Kaplan/PMBR are "simulated" questions.

Agreed.

Although fake questions can be good for drilling down on areas that you're having a lot of trouble with.

[BrokenMouse]

i am a low budget barebone prepper who passed on 2nd try. if you guys need some advice on how you might study effectively on a budget, post here and i'll share my experience. there's just too many supplemental and competing commercial material that "trying them out" could rob you of precious study time.

[Barebones]

i am a low budget barebone prepper who passed on 2nd try. if you guys need some advice on how you might study effectively on a budget, post here and i'll share my experience. there's just too many supplemental and competing commercial material that "trying them out" could rob you of precious study time.

Hey, I also PMd you (promise I'm not a creeper) but I'm especially interested in low budget prep since I'm a re-taker and I study better alone.

[rcharter1978]

i am a low budget barebone prepper who passed on 2nd try. if you guys need some advice on how you might study effectively on a budget, post here and i'll share my experience. there's just too many supplemental and competing commercial material that "trying them out" could rob you of precious study time.

Would you mind sharing your experience? I feel like you might get carpal tunnal from having to cut and paste. I think I'm going to self-study this time.

[BrokenMouse]

Would you mind sharing your experience? I feel like you might get carpal tunnal from having to cut and paste. I think I'm going to self-study this time.

Hey, I also PMd you (promise I'm not a creeper) but I'm especially interested in low budget prep since I'm a re-taker and I study better alone.

I will absolute help with a more thoughtful post later tonight. I am one of those people who find motivation from within and prefer to study alone. I'll just out myself and say that English is my second language and I came from an economically challenged background. I'm not smart. I say this to stress that this exam is about endurance and patience, not intelligence. I honestly didn't have $ to throw at bar preps and books. Understanding your personality, your goal, and being creative and resourceful are key here. Believe me when I tell you this. Too many supplements can confuse you, and honestly nobody has time to do more than 1 program.

I think the most important aspect of this exam is your mind and focus. It sounds super cliche but hear me out. This test by design attacks your focus, temperament, and resilience. It does not test how smart you are. A dean of Stanford law school can fail (and did fail) while the dumbest guy in class whom I always suspected of paying his way into school, pass. I apologize for the extreme and offensive comparison but this is a point I want to hammer on. You need to keep calm and work with ant-like mentality. Just chipping away at it little by little every day. This is a marathon not a speed dash. Just always remember that your fresh and mint mind will be the difference.

After that, you can apply some strategy. If your mind is clear and if you are determined, whatever plan you have will work. I'll post my experience later.

[rcharter1978]

Would you mind sharing your experience? I feel like you might get carpal tunnal from having to cut and paste. I think I'm going to self-study this time.

Hey, I also PMd you (promise I'm not a creeper) but I'm especially interested in low budget prep since I'm a re-taker and I study better alone.

I will absolute help with a more thoughtful post later tonight. I am one of those people who find motivation from within and prefer to study alone. I'll just out myself and say that English is my second language and I came from an economically challenged background. I'm not smart. I say this to stress that this exam is about endurance and patience, not intelligence. I honestly didn't have $ to throw at bar preps and books. Understanding your personality, your goal, and being creative and resourceful are key here. Believe me when I tell you this. Too many supplements can confuse you, and honestly nobody has time to do more than 1 program.

I think the most important aspect of this exam is your mind and focus. It sounds super cliche but hear me out. This test by design attacks your focus, temperament, and resilience. It does not test how smart you are. A dean of Stanford law school can fail (and did fail) while the dumbest guy in class whom I always suspected of paying his way into school, pass. I apologize for the extreme and offensive comparison but this is a point I want to hammer on. You need to keep calm and work with ant-like mentality. Just chipping away at it little by little every day. This is a marathon not a speed dash. Just always remember that your fresh and mint mind will be the difference.

After that, you can apply some strategy. If your mind is clear and if you are determined, whatever plan you have will work. I'll post my experience later.

Thanks. I agree with there being too many supplements/books. I think I was trying to do a bar repeaters program and a tutor at the same time and the tutor had his stuff, the bar repeater program had its stuff and none of it really meshed with me. I had AdaptiBar and BarEssays...but given that I already had all this other stuff it was hard to really get good usage out of anything. I'm just one of those people....I think like you....that studies better alone.

So, I'm thinking of just using my Barbri stuff, using the PT book I purchased last time, using BarEssays and AdaptiBar this time. Maybe a grading service towards the end.

But I'd be interested in hearing your approach. Thank you.

[teabreeze]

Would you mind sharing your experience? I feel like you might get carpal tunnal from having to cut and paste. I think I'm going to self-study this time.

Hey, I also PMd you (promise I'm not a creeper) but I'm especially interested in low budget prep since I'm a re-taker and I study better alone.

I will absolute help with a more thoughtful post later tonight. I am one of those people who find motivation from within and prefer to study alone. I'll just out myself and say that English is my second language and I came from an economically challenged background. I'm not smart. I say this to stress that this exam is about endurance and patience, not intelligence. I honestly didn't have $ to throw at bar preps and books. Understanding your personality, your goal, and being creative and resourceful are key here. Believe me when I tell you this. Too many supplements can confuse you, and honestly nobody has time to do more than 1 program.

I think the most important aspect of this exam is your mind and focus. It sounds super cliche but hear me out. This test by design attacks your focus, temperament, and resilience. It does not test how smart you are. A dean of Stanford law school can fail (and did fail) while the dumbest guy in class whom I always suspected of paying his way into school, pass. I apologize for the extreme and offensive comparison but this is a point I want to hammer on. You need to keep calm and work with ant-like mentality. Just chipping away at it little by little every day. This is a marathon not a speed dash. Just always remember that your fresh and mint mind will be the difference.

After that, you can apply some strategy. If your mind is clear and if you are determined, whatever plan you have will work. I'll post my experience later.

Thanks. I agree with there being too many supplements/books. I think I was trying to do a bar repeaters program and a tutor at the same time and the tutor had his stuff, the bar repeater program had its stuff and none of it really meshed with me. I had AdaptiBar and BarEssays...but given that I already had all this other stuff it was hard to really get good usage out of anything. I'm just one of those people....I think like you....that studies better alone.

So, I'm thinking of just using my Barbri stuff, using the PT book I purchased last time, using BarEssays and AdaptiBar this time. Maybe a grading service towards the end.

But I'd be interested in hearing your approach. Thank you.

Grading service as in BarGraders?

[rcharter1978]

Would you mind sharing your experience? I feel like you might get carpal tunnal from having to cut and paste. I think I'm going to self-study this time.

Hey, I also PMd you (promise I'm not a creeper) but I'm especially interested in low budget prep since I'm a re-taker and I study better alone.

I will absolute help with a more thoughtful post later tonight. I am one of those people who find motivation from within and prefer to study alone. I'll just out myself and say that English is my second language and I came from an economically challenged background. I'm not smart. I say this to stress that this exam is about endurance and patience, not intelligence. I honestly didn't have $ to throw at bar preps and books. Understanding your personality, your goal, and being creative and resourceful are key here. Believe me when I tell you this. Too many supplements can confuse you, and honestly nobody has time to do more than 1 program.

I think the most important aspect of this exam is your mind and focus. It sounds super cliche but hear me out. This test by design attacks your focus, temperament, and resilience. It does not test how smart you are. A dean of Stanford law school can fail (and did fail) while the dumbest guy in class whom I always suspected of paying his way into school, pass. I apologize for the extreme and offensive comparison but this is a point I want to hammer on. You need to keep calm and work with ant-like mentality. Just chipping away at it little by little every day. This is a marathon not a speed dash. Just always remember that your fresh and mint mind will be the difference.

After that, you can apply some strategy. If your mind is clear and if you are determined, whatever plan you have will work. I'll post my experience later.

Thanks. I agree with there being too many supplements/books. I think I was trying to do a bar repeaters program and a tutor at the same time and the tutor had his stuff, the bar repeater program had its stuff and none of it really meshed with me. I had AdaptiBar and BarEssays...but given that I already had all this other stuff it was hard to really get good usage out of anything. I'm just one of those people....I think like you....that studies better alone.

So, I'm thinking of just using my Barbri stuff, using the PT book I purchased last time, using BarEssays and AdaptiBar this time. Maybe a grading service towards the end.

But I'd be interested in hearing your approach. Thank you.

Grading service as in BarGraders?

I think that BarEssays has a reading service.....I hadn't heard of BarGraders but I'll check them out too

[teabreeze]

Would you mind sharing your experience? I feel like you might get carpal tunnal from having to cut and paste. I think I'm going to self-study this time.

Hey, I also PMd you (promise I'm not a creeper) but I'm especially interested in low budget prep since I'm a re-taker and I study better alone.

I will absolute help with a more thoughtful post later tonight. I am one of those people who find motivation from within and prefer to study alone. I'll just out myself and say that English is my second language and I came from an economically challenged background. I'm not smart. I say this to stress that this exam is about endurance and patience, not intelligence. I honestly didn't have $ to throw at bar preps and books. Understanding your personality, your goal, and being creative and resourceful are key here. Believe me when I tell you this. Too many supplements can confuse you, and honestly nobody has time to do more than 1 program.

I think the most important aspect of this exam is your mind and focus. It sounds super cliche but hear me out. This test by design attacks your focus, temperament, and resilience. It does not test how smart you are. A dean of Stanford law school can fail (and did fail) while the dumbest guy in class whom I always suspected of paying his way into school, pass. I apologize for the extreme and offensive comparison but this is a point I want to hammer on. You need to keep calm and work with ant-like mentality. Just chipping away at it little by little every day. This is a marathon not a speed dash. Just always remember that your fresh and mint mind will be the difference.

After that, you can apply some strategy. If your mind is clear and if you are determined, whatever plan you have will work. I'll post my experience later.

Thanks. I agree with there being too many supplements/books. I think I was trying to do a bar repeaters program and a tutor at the same time and the tutor had his stuff, the bar repeater program had its stuff and none of it really meshed with me. I had AdaptiBar and BarEssays...but given that I already had all this other stuff it was hard to really get good usage out of anything. I'm just one of those people....I think like you....that studies better alone.

So, I'm thinking of just using my Barbri stuff, using the PT book I purchased last time, using BarEssays and AdaptiBar this time. Maybe a grading service towards the end.

But I'd be interested in hearing your approach. Thank you.

Grading service as in BarGraders?

I think that BarEssays has a reading service.....I hadn't heard of BarGraders but I'll check them out too

I didn't realize BarEssays has a reading service. I was planning on enrolling in it anyway so I'm glad to hear that! I haven't heard much about BarGraders so I'm not recommending it, but it might be worth looking into and asking around about.

Anyway, I'm jumping on board the bandwagon with you and everyone else here! Failed the Feb bar and am absolutely determined to pass the next one. I'll be changing up my entire study schedule to be smarter and more efficient. Good luck to us... WE CAN DO IT!!!

[Raiden]

Thank God, I passed. I cannot tell you the anxiety I had leading up to putting my information in...even though I imagined seeing my name in green, I could only think of seeing red text.

My heart goes out to all of you that didn't pass this time around, especially for my repeaters out there. Really take some time to understand what has happened, sulk in the sadness of reality for a little bit, and take ownership over what has happened. Then sit down and really learn from all there is to learn about the bar. I know that this second time around I really learned a lot about how to take the bar itself, how to answer PT's, essays, MBE.

Really focus on getting to do 50 MBE every day. Slowly work up to it, but you need to be doing 30-50 MBE a day, preferably mixed. When you do MBE everday, the patterns of the questions become more and more obvious, the fact patterns and sometimes the answers. You have to be using real questions from previous Bar's, no exception. I can't tell you how much easier the February bar MBE felt for me than the July one. This time around I focused all my MBE energy on real questions from AdaptiBar, and it really made the difference. Just about everyone that has used adaptibar has no complaints PM if you want the discount code.

Shoutout to A Male Human, and the many other legends on here that help make this experience less dreadful than it already is.

[BrokenMouse]

Here's my guide to low budget/self studying

http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 7#p9344867

[a male human]

Here's my guide to low budget/self studying

http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 7#p9344867

I skimmed it, and it looks like a solid guide

[Barebones]

Does any one know if there have been updates to the Barbri CMR? I have the S'15/W'16 version.

[Barebones]

Here's my guide to low budget/self studying

http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 7#p9344867

I skimmed it, and it looks like a solid guide

Agree. Thanks BrokenMouse for keeping morale high as we start this journey again!

[AntiHuman]

I know this is a repeat post from another thread, but see my following message below. You all can do it no matter where you started from.

PM me for tips.

Long time lurker on the threads. I've helped several people pass their 2nd/3rd time around on the exam. Some of my stats:

1. Took LSAT at 18 years old. Failed. High GPA combined with low LSAT I ended up at a good school.
2. Horrible law school grades. Never used IRAC or learned how to spot issues. Did virtually no studying in law school.
3. Took bar exam at 22 years old and failed first time. Studied about 30 hours total and attended no barbri classes or did any homework. So far from this story you can tell I am not a good test taker(aka didn't know wtf I was doing).

Scores my first time:

Essays: 55, 55, 60, 60, 85, 55
PTs: 55, 60
MBE: Slightly below passing

The 85 may jump out at you. This isn't an intelligence test. You will do well if you know how to approach the exam and study smart(not hard). Most importantly, you must know how to spot ALL the issues(or as many as you can). I asked a professor why the huge discrepancy on my essays. On the contracts essay, I spotted every issue and got an 85. I failed the rest because I didn't spot several minor issues. Issue spotting DETERMINES your score. Not analysis. People might bash me on this. Everyone will know the rules and have analysis. Shoutout to Injun on this for commending me, but I am big on spotting issues.

2nd time: I walked out of the exam and went straight to the bar to buy everyone shots because I knew I passed. It was that easy. No matter your score the first time, you can pass the 2nd time. It's just a matter of knowing how to approach the exam. I just put the first exam behind me, took a deep breathe and started researching strategies on what to do differently.

Failing sucks, but nobody has ever asked me my law school grades or how many times I took the bar exam. It will all be laughable in a few years.

PM me for exact details on what I did differently the 2nd time around on each section of the exam(MBE, essays, PTs).

[teabreeze]

Just wanted to say... thanks to those of you who passed the Feb exam and are still coming in here just to send the rest of us encouragement and advice. It's pretty amazing that you guys are willing to take the time to help us when you're getting nothing in return. All of your posts and PMs are helping more than you realize!

[BrokenMouse]

About to start prep this weekend. I'm doing barbri self study and have the strategies and tactics book too. Anyone else starting yet?

I have been studying very lightly the past few weeks. Real study will start Monday for me.

Can u elaborate on how u been studying? Im curious to know if i can help.

[RVM321]

Hey guys,

Anyone have a Adaptibar Discount Code?

Thanks in advance!

[Justpassed2016]

Long time lurker, first time poster. Thankfully I passed! I have bar materials that I'm looking to get ride of. Pm me if you're interested in them

[Fivethumbs]

I passed the Feb. 2016 Bar Exam on my first try. I will give you my preparation and exam taking experience. I took only Barbri. Barbri gave me a personal study plan with daily assignments. I did my best to follow study plan but found that I immediately fell behind in my studying. Barbri said their statistics show that when a test taker has completed 75% of the Barbri program, they have a 100% pass rate. So my goal was to complete 75% of the Barbri study plan. I was able to complete 79% total. Barbri breaks it down to MBE studying and California subjects. Although I tried to get at least 75% in both areas I was only able to complete around 85% of the MBE and 55% of the State subjects. Here is my experience. The Barbri lectures helped me a lot for stuff I forgot from law school. In fact I answered several issues using information directly from the lectures. I also did a lot of practice PTs and essays and a couple thousand MBEs. These practice tests and MBE were invaluable for writing practice and time management. Time management is huge. On my first practice essays and PTs I was so slow that I did not finish any and I often did not finish MBEs in the alloted time. Also, the on the practice essays that I turned in to Barbri for grading, I got failing scores. I thought I was going to be screwed on the Bar Exam. However, after doing several, I was able to better gauge my time and was able to finish. I also found that the Barbri graders were overly harsh. I found that when I self graded my practice essays I was able to miss some issues and still get enough points to pass. So my goal on the Bar Exam was to not leave anything on the exam unfinished. I felt that I knew enough law so that if I wrote quickly for an hour (or 3 hours for the PT) I would put enough stuff down to pass. I think a lot of people don't finish the PTs or the essays and I know a lot don't finish the MBEs. PTs are really important because a good PT score can compensate for a couple of poor essays. Practicing writing essays and especially PTs suck big time but it will be rewarded when you take the exam.

On the essays I think issue spotting is big but you can pass even if you miss some. I know I missed issues on almost every essay and still passed. I don't know for sure but I feel like my PTs probably bailed me out to some extent. On the essays I did not run into anything that I could not answer. My problem was that I was so stressed that I rushed though questions and missed facts and misread facts. Be ready for this because it happens to a lot of people. Stress is really detrimental so it is important to read the question carefully. I missed issues because I read the fact pattern incorrectly on more than one occasion and even misread facts so I thought they said something entirely different. Also remember they don't put meaningless words in the questions. When you read a fact pattern ask yourself why they chose those words. I missed a laches issue because I flew through the reading of the question and did not notice that an insurance company took 6 months to deny a claim. I should have used by Mnemonic CLUELESS for my remedies question (clean hands. laches, unconscionability, estoppel, legality, election of remedies, speech, slavery). If I had wrote CLUELESS down on my paper I would have checked off each issue and made sure I did not miss any. Using mnemonics can help as an issue checklist. Hope this helps.

[teabreeze]

Ugh. Just forked over the $1,136 to register for the July exam... so painful

Just one more sleep away from Monday. Already dreading telling everyone at the office that I failed the Feb bar.