Moving on, we are.
I'm going to put up our Christmas lights, then I'm heading to the office for a few hours of study time. Good luck to all the other folks out there who find themselves studying this weekend instead of nursing a bar passing celebratory hangover.
Cheers!
10 comments:
Good luck GP! Keep on keepin' on.
Keep your head in the game and don't care what these haters say!! Their opinions don't mean anything anyway.
Have a good study session!!!
GP - would you be willing to advise which recent tutors you considered/used offline?
Okay, here is the truth...
I have read your blog since I studied for my first bar exam in 2008. I went to a fourth tier law school, graduated at the bottom of my class (hated law school and studying for it), but I passed the CA bar on my first try, and it was a February exam. I also took NY and MA and passed those on the first try too, and they were also February exams (took them concurrently - stressful!). So how did I do it?
First, I did not start studying until after the holiday season. I enjoyed the holidays with my friends and family, and then I was ready to buckle down and actually focus on studying.
Second, I took Barbri for the CA Bar and then I bought used Barbri books for NY and MA when I needed them, since I already knew the method of how to study. Barbri was truly worth it - I learned everything that I needed to know and what I didn't learn as a law school slacker who graduated in 2 1/2 years just to be done with it. The lectures are to the point and memorable for all the law you need to know (which isn't all the law in the world). I followed the study schedule, but added more practice where I needed it and took out some practice where I didn't. The last 2 weeks before the exam were all about practice, as the law should definitely be in your head after the first 6 weeks.
Third, if you still need PT help, take John Holtz' Maximizer PT - it was tremendously helpful for learning how to organize and write your PTs, which was great for me, since I handwrote the exam (yes, my arm was killing me after the exam). He is worth the money. It is all about what you write and not how much you write. I only took a 1 day class, but he also has 3 day workshops.
Fourth, study smarter, not harder. It's not about how many hours you study, but how well you use the time that you choose to study. I still had a life when I was studying, because I knew that 4 hours of focused studying was better than 8 hours of distracted studying. If I felt distracted, then I went with it, until I got it out of my system and was ready to really study every day.
Fifth, and lastly, stop studying by noon the Monday before the exam. Spend time with your family, watch TV, whatever, as long as it has nothing to do with the law or the exam. Those few hours of relaxation for your brain can do wonders for your memory and focus come exam day.
I know that if I could do it, then really anyone can.
Good luck this February, and enjoy your holidays!
GP - you're nowhere near the record. Someone passed on their 24th try this July and apparently there was a Southern California man who took the bar 48 times before passing.
http://www.sacbee.com/2010/11/28/3215984/marcos-breton-on-24th-try-he-cracks.html
When you do pass, I hope its in a better job market than the current one.
Good Luck
How many times one takes the bar in California matters little because unlike 18 states and 2 US Territories, there are no limits in California. Iowa and New Hampshire cuts you off at 2 times and the others 3 to 6 times. What is important is to get as much legal experience while you keep trying to pass because even with a license getting hired, even in a good economy with little or no experience, is difficult if not impossible.
yeah 9:38,
plus don't forget this one little thing that the 'haters' who passed neglect to state out loud-
That sooo many 'less competent' lawyers are bound to cut into their bottom lines!
Waaa Waaa,
they're all a bunch of crybabies
lol
Is there something about the legal profession that breeds arrogance. Amazing how many self-absorbed posters on this blog tell us how they went to a top tier law school and passed the Bar on this first try. All I can say is wow I am really impressed. Could I have your autograph? Any chance you can teach me the secrets? How did you find time to write all four Gospels and win the Olympic Decathalon while studying for the Bar Exam? Oh, I know, you didn't need to study and you spent most of the time watching Man vs Food.
I really have serious doubts that anyone who looks at this blog more than once went to a top tier law school. They cannot relate to anything written here, at all. I think 95% of readers here are online students just like gp.
I am looking to form a 4 person study group, based out of Orange County, for the upcoming February 2011 exam.
Important that you are not a first time taker, but rather a multiple exam taker.
Seeking the following 3 individuals:
1) First individual should be a 72%or better Essay writer, who lacks MBE and PT strenght.
2) Second individual should be a 72% or better MBE taker, who lacks Essay and PT strenght.
3) Third individual should be a 72%or better PT writer, who lacks Essay and MBE strenght.
I personally have a good grasp of the black letter law, but I am a terrible writer and have been average on my multiple choice part of the exam.
I think you are getting the hint here, if we can come together as a group and if we are all willing to bust some butt and not waste any time, perhaps this would be the key ingredient in all of us passing come next May.
I have tried just about everything in my past attempts, so I have nothing to lose, do you?
Please respond if you are seriously interested in being part of a group, as described above.
Thank you and good luck to all who are moving towards the next exam in february 2011.
Hey, this is great feedback, and I like the blog.
Can you also add
ipassedmybarexam.com to your list of bar exam blog resources?
Thanks!
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