Previous Illinois Bar Exam Takers Forum

[unidentifiable]

I'm taking the February 2017 Administration.

I've previously passed another jurisdiction.

It is being administered at University of Illinois of Chicago Forum.

I've never been to Chicago.

For those of you who have taken the exam at that location:

• 1. Which hotel would you recommend?
  2. How did you get to the testing site? (drive? walk? cab?)
  3. Do you have any tips for the logistics of the whole thing?

[thomzzz]

I'm taking the February 2017 Administration.

I've previously passed another jurisdiction.

It is being administered at University of Illinois of Chicago Forum.

I've never been to Chicago.

For those of you who have taken the exam at that location:

• 1. Which hotel would you recommend?
  2. How did you get to the testing site? (drive? walk? cab?)
  3. Do you have any tips for the logistics of the whole thing?

1. (I live in the city so I have no idea)
2. Uber. There is a parking lot if you want to drive, but uber cuts down a lot of stress over things that could go wrong.
3. The only things that aren't explained in your entry ticket are that there's an area to put your stuff (bag, lunch, cell phone, etc) in the hallway outside the testing room. If you don't want to worry about packing lunch, there's tons of fast food restaurants in the area and plenty of time to eat at them. Also, the room was FREEZING, like 60 degrees- dress accordingly. Also also, maybe I just got lucky, but my processor was really helpful with answering stupid questions throughout the process and the proctors during the exam were really nice and helpful.

[trebekismyhero]

1. Live here as well, but I had a lot of friends stay at the Crown Plaza. It was a little stressful with lots of law students, but I am guessing February exam will be less filled. If you have some money to pay for it, the JW Marriott and W are nice hotels not too far from UIC. Still need to cab or train though.
2. Either uber or if you have a friend driving go with them.
3. Like Thomzz said, it is cold. Also, it will be cold outside so bring a lunch because the food options there were pretty limited.

[unidentifiable]

I'm taking the February 2017 Administration.

I've previously passed another jurisdiction.

It is being administered at University of Illinois of Chicago Forum.

I've never been to Chicago.

For those of you who have taken the exam at that location:

• 1. Which hotel would you recommend?
  2. How did you get to the testing site? (drive? walk? cab?)
  3. Do you have any tips for the logistics of the whole thing?

1. (I live in the city so I have no idea)
2. Uber. There is a parking lot if you want to drive, but uber cuts down a lot of stress over things that could go wrong.
3. The only things that aren't explained in your entry ticket are that there's an area to put your stuff (bag, lunch, cell phone, etc) in the hallway outside the testing room. If you don't want to worry about packing lunch, there's tons of fast food restaurants in the area and plenty of time to eat at them. Also, the room was FREEZING, like 60 degrees- dress accordingly. Also also, maybe I just got lucky, but my processor was really helpful with answering stupid questions throughout the process and the proctors during the exam were really nice and helpful.

fantastic info. thank you so much. go cubs. i'm from st. louis, so they'd tar and feather me for saying that.

[unidentifiable]

1. Live here as well, but I had a lot of friends stay at the Crown Plaza. It was a little stressful with lots of law students, but I am guessing February exam will be less filled. If you have some money to pay for it, the JW Marriott and W are nice hotels not too far from UIC. Still need to cab or train though.
2. Either uber or if you have a friend driving go with them.
3. Like Thomzz said, it is cold. Also, it will be cold outside so bring a lunch because the food options there were pretty limited.

gracias mucho.

as far as packing a lunch goes: were you able to access said packed lunch at halftime?

[trebekismyhero]

1. Live here as well, but I had a lot of friends stay at the Crown Plaza. It was a little stressful with lots of law students, but I am guessing February exam will be less filled. If you have some money to pay for it, the JW Marriott and W are nice hotels not too far from UIC. Still need to cab or train though.
2. Either uber or if you have a friend driving go with them.
3. Like Thomzz said, it is cold. Also, it will be cold outside so bring a lunch because the food options there were pretty limited.

gracias mucho.

as far as packing a lunch goes: were you able to access said packed lunch at halftime?

Yes

[Nebby]

I'm taking the February 2017 Administration.

I've previously passed another jurisdiction.

It is being administered at University of Illinois of Chicago Forum.

I've never been to Chicago.

For those of you who have taken the exam at that location:

• 1. Which hotel would you recommend?
  2. How did you get to the testing site? (drive? walk? cab?)
  3. Do you have any tips for the logistics of the whole thing?

1. Hotel Chicago Illinois Medical District (it was the cheapest hotel close to the test center)
2. Uber
3. Hotel check in is at 4PM, so plan accordingly. I recommend getting to the hotel before 7pm, just so you have time to relax, get some food, and get to bed early. I arrived at 11am in O'Hare because I booked my flight before realizing check in time was so late, which meant I had to kill time downtown until I could check in. I stayed at the hotel on Monday night and Tuesday night, and booked an 8:30pm flight on Wednesday (test ends around 4pm-ish). I went from the test center to the airport, which is about an hour-ish public transit commute.

There is a coffee shop that is a 15 minute walk from the UIC Forum called the Coffee Alley. It's shitty, but during the 1hr lunch I walked there in order to clear my head and drink and espresso before heading back to the test center. I wanted to get away from people and use the lunch break to get a good mental reset.

In terms of food, I usually fast during the days and only eat dinner. For the bar exam I decided to fuel myself up with some food, since I knew it would assist in cognition. I had two Quest bars for breakfast and another two Quest bars for lunch. They are food that will give you energy but will not give you a crash due to them being low in carbs. They are also yummy.

In terms of bags, my administration was at the UIC Pavilion, and it is a big basketball arena. We were allowed to just sat our bags anywhere we wanted in the stands and then head down to the testing area that didn't allow bags. I assume the Forum had something else, as a coworker of mine who took it there didn't say anything about not being able to take his bag.

[justtrying]

Wear layers. If UIC cranked up the AC in the summer, they're likely to crank up the heat in the winter. You never know, so plan accordingly. I personally took it at the Crowne Plaza and the temperature in the room I was in would swing by about 5-10 degrees every 20 minutes. It was a killer, and I was really glad I had a sweater I could remove at the times it got hot.

[AMilfordMan]

1. Which hotel would you recommend?

I stayed at an Airbnb on UIC's campus. Private room, no anxious bar takers like at the Crowne Plaza, felt a little more homey during that stressful time. Also I think it was like $60/night, which was obviously much cheaper than hotels.


2. How did you get to the testing site? (drive? walk? cab?)

It was about a 10 minute walk, which was a nice way to decompress. The weather will probably suck in Feb though, so I would Uber.


3. Do you have any tips for the logistics of the whole thing?

I went to a grocery store and bought some relatively healthy foods to pack for lunch both days. It was nice to have a good meal and not have to wait in line at the restaurants/more time to clear your head for the afternoon. If you want to take a bag with lunch/cell phone/whatever else, definitely do it. It's a secure building and no one will mess with your stuff. As everyone else has said, layers are key. I generally like a cool environment, and I was pretty cold the first day. Prepare for any temperature in February.