Bar Exams

My 6 Keys To Crushing The Last Two Weeks Before The Bar Exam

Columnist Zach Abramowitz gives bar takers 6 tips to survive the home stretch.

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I try to write about things I know: startups, sports, conversation platforms etc.  ATL readers will note that I do not, for instance, share advice about how to take law school exams or be the best junior associate.  Why? Well, because I have know idea how one is supposed to do those things.  In fact, my first ever published conversation with Professor Barry Friedman was basically an admission that I had no clue how to get higher than a B in law school.  I was hoping he could help students as clueless as myself.

But I do consider myself something of an expert when it comes to studying for, taking, and passing the Bar.

What are my credentials? I am not some savant test taker, see, e.g., my lackluster GPA.  But, the summer I studied for the Bar was the single best summer of my life.  Not only did I not kill myself studying and pass with flying colors, but I did it with a newborn child who refused to sleep or stop screaming.  If I can do it, so can you.  And, now, I would like to pass on that wonderful knowledge and experience to all the recent graduates who are stressing out about passing the upcoming exam.  This advice is not only about doing well on the bar, it is about enjoying this time in your life.

1.  Get out of your home or apartment.  Some people are very good at working from home — I am one of these people — but this is not the time to figure out if you are too.  Go anywhere that is not your home — cafe, library etc.

2.  Study for eight hours a day.  The old 9-5 schedule makes a lot of sense, but especially so for Bar study because there is so much memorization involved.  I found that the days in which I studied more than eight hours a day, I was actually retaining less information.  This was true during June and in the dreaded two weeks before the Bar in July.  Which brings me to my next point…

3.  Bingewatch movies and TV shows.  I do not speak for all humans, but after all that rule of perpetuities talk, my brain needed white space, both for my mental sanity and so the information I had studied could sink in.  My wife and I binge watched The Wire and several other series.

4.  Use the Bar to get out of unwanted social engagements.  If you are a social butterfly who loves parties and talking to people with loud music pumping in the background, then skip this step. In fact, skip the whole article.  We are probably too different and my advice will not work for you.  If you’re like me though, you get invited to events you dread attending and can never find a polite excuse to say no.  Well, now you have the ultimate get out of jail free card.  “Sorry, I can’t come to your baby’s six month party.  I would love to, but I am studying for the Bar.”

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5.  Exercise.  Exercise is awful, everyone agrees.  But, you have a flexible schedule, and exercise does release endorphins and studying is better when you feel good.  I used to break up my eight hour study schedule with a game of basketball or weight lifting.  And just to remind myself that I was not exercising to lose weight, I would eat an unhealthy lunch afterwards.

6.  Go to the recap class. The most effective time I spent studying for the Bar were the hours I spent watching BARBRI’s recap class at the end of the summer.  You will be tempted to not go since the class is over, your friends are not going and you are busy writing note cards.  Avoid the temptation.  I am not sure why it works so well, but it helped crystalize everything I had learned over the course of the summer, and I felt exponentially more confident walking into the exam.

I will do a post before the bar with some of my killer exam-day tips.  Till then, hit me up by email or on Twitter if you need any sanity checks.

Zach Abramowitz is a former Biglaw associate and currently CEO and co-founder of ReplyAll. You can follow Zach on Twitter (@zachabramowitz) or reach him by email at zach@replyall.me.

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