Open Thread: Exam Tips for 1Ls

It’s final exam time again and the ATL community is always happy to help. Now more than ever, good grades are essential to getting the Biglaw job of your dreams.

If you are a future SCOTUS clerk, getting good grades is simple. You’ve already read everything and know everything and sacrificed all manner of human connections: finals will be a breeze.

But for the rest of you out there, now is the time for useful exam tips. I never liked to read “cases” or “go to class” as the kids say, but I take tests like a Jedi master. Here are some helpful ways for you to get great grades even if you have put forth negative effort throughout the semester.

1. You can learn a lot in eight hours.

An eight hour take home exam is like doing a book report based on its well adapted movie. You might miss some of the finer details, but all of the important points are right there in front of you. With the starting point of eight hours and a reliable outline, you’ve got your B right there. Never allow yourself to think that there is any question or issue that cannot be sufficiently read up on in eight hours.

2. Organization > Studying.

Don’t waste a second of your study time learning (or God forbid “memorizing”) any fact about anything. Instead make sure you organize all of the information you have so that you can quickly find it during the exam. Your “exam map” should contain simple notes like “Shoe – Minimum Contacts – Pg 268.” Anything more is an utter waste of time and energy. See point 1.

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More tips and Marin weighs in after the jump.


3. Issue spotters can be answered using the class syllabus.

People who score well on the LSAT generally get 100% of the logic game questions right. Similarly, people who get A’s on law school exams cut through issues spotters like a hot knife through butter. If there is only one issue spotter question, find it and answer it first. Take out your syllabus and play “find the issue that is not in this question.” (Hint, the ones that aren’t will be the subject of the remaining questions). Don’t find issues, eliminate them.

4. Don’t forget to pee and eat. And having a beer won’t kill you.

The law student brain responds well to normalcy. Use the bathroom when you have to go, eat when you are hungry. It’s amazing how many people think that a test is so important that they must ignore everything their brain is trying to tell them. Work with yourself, not against yourself.

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And while I wouldn’t suggest getting drunk during an exam, if a beer is going to help you loosen up a bit, have a beer. You need to be able to think clearly, but you also want to be able to think fluidly. Your brain knows what to do, don’t get in its way.

If you are dealing with an in-class examination, Marin has some helpful suggestions:

5. Don’t shower or shave for a few days. Bring in BarBRI pencils. The psychological battle is nearly won.

6. Keep up those rituals. If you’ve been drinking 10 Red Bulls every day prior to the exam, drink 10 on exam day. Also, I find surrounding oneself with lucky charms to be beneficial – my test desk was always littered with a rabbit’s foot, a four leaf clover, a hologram of Pope John Paul II (prior to his death), my birthstone and a Mariah Carey brand charm bracelet

7. For the love of Professor Charles Whitebread, stick to time constraints!

Law school exams aren’t nearly as hard as they seem. Everything is going to be alright.

Good luck out there. If anybody else has any helpful suggestions, please share.