Tag: Study Tips

Categories
Advice Daily Dose

Stress & Bar Prep

We’re about four weeks into BarPrep. Are you kinda-sorta-totally losing your mind already? You’re not the only one. Honestly, I’d be more concerned for you if you lacked panic and fatigue in your daily routine. Studying for as long and as hard as we do, it makes complete sense that you’re a frazzled ball of nerves. I am, too. It’s okay. You will be alright and you’re not going through this alone. I promise.

At the start of bar prep, I found myself dazing out for several minutes at a time listening to lectures but not actually hearing the information. During these times, I realized the need to go back and rewind to collect my thoughts and my notes. It frustrated me so much. I think it was a combination of forcing myself to listen to a recorded lecture, which never worked for me as an undergrad or graduate student. So, why the hell did I think it would work now?

Instead of grinding out the lecture time, I reached out to a professor who suggested I toss the video lectures and only read through the outlines. She also encouraged shorter reading sessions followed by a necessary break. It seemed entirely wrong, but I tried it. In having done this for a week, I can say that this version of my studies experienced a positive effect. My MBE practice scores are in a good to better range and I am on track. I was feeling off-kilter and am thrilled to settle on a studying approach that works! If the method your bar prep program suggests doesn’t work for you, don’t be afraid to change it up. Work with your learning style and their tools!

Between studying, the breaks are crucial. My friend Dax (who already aced the Bar in February) keeps posting kind, motivating words on our class facebook page. It’s incredibly thoughtful to hear from a friend, as well as have the reminder that “hey, there’s life after the bar exam.” It may seem silly, but those words – offering peace and a gentle reminder to step away from the books – are wonderful. Do what you can to take a break and give your mind some ease.

I took time off for a [much-needed] three-day weekend with some of my best friends. We plan an annual Girls’ Weekend and, holy cow, was I desperately in need of seeing these phenomenal ladies!

We visited Colorado Springs, went hiking, and talked about everything under the sun. I let go of so many thoughts I’d put energy into. I took deep, steadying breaths atop amazing cliffs and enjoyed deep-belly laughs with members of my support system.

You must deal with your stress. Figure out a way to get rid of it so you can focus the entirety of your energy on preparing for this exam. You’ll feel rested and ready to tackle the next subject when you’re not filling your mind with other stressors and situations you have no control over. You can control the effort you put into preparing for the exam, so get it done!

Here’s hoping you have an excellent study week!

Categories
Daily Dose Law School

Practice. Review. Repeat.

Bar exam essays are the 12 cruel mistresses on the Texas Exam. As an avid writer, and someone who does well under pressure, I still think it’s easy to muck up the whole experience. Don’t do yourself the injustice of feeling confident on essays, and find yourself in the predicament of having failed to properly prepare yourself for Day 3 of the Exam.

This year we got a curveball from the Board of Law Examiners. They will not pair our essays this July. This is super crummy, in my opinion. Now, you have to remember all the content for both portions of the AM/PM exam. Rather than confidently rest in the knowledge that if you opened your exam to a Wills Essay, the next one was inevitably Wills, too. C’est la vie, right?

This craptastic news simply means you need to practice those Bar essays and treat them like you’re a freaking LAWYER (because, you ARE) and just answer the damn question!

Remember, if you don’t know or recognize every issue in an essay question, answer as MANY OF THEM as you can. Practicing the essay questions and reading through sample answers, or model answers from that session’s examinees, will do wonders for your retention results.

If you haven’t done so already, download the past ten years worth of exams. Be able to pull them at random and set aside 30 minutes to tackle them. I’m sure your Bar Prep program has several for you to practice already, but it certainly doesn’t hurt to practice more of them. A classmate of mine told me that on the February Bar there were at least 3 completely recycled questions. Verbatim. Seriously, folks. Go back and at the very least – read through them and, at the very least, outline your answers. Personally, I’ve added a weekly MPT and four essays per weekend in addition to my own BarBri study plan.

For your enjoyment, I’ve included the first Wills essay I practiced writing, below, which I wrote in 30 minutes. I went ahead and typed it on Word, then read through the sample answer, and included commentary where I needed improvement and what I forgot to include. It’s complete shit. But, ya know…learn from my mistakes. Do better and heed this advice.

This method works wonders for me. The practice helps, and the kicking myself for forgetting stuff is a point of pride, so I remember what I forgot to include for the next essay. Remember, we’re striving for progress, not perfection. Check out my approach, here:

WillsEssayFeb2013_compressedDownload

Now get yourself back to studying, friend. You’ve got a Bar exam to conquer! Keep up that hard work and impress those graders!

Categories
Advice Law School

Dean’s List Advice

Tips for Class.png

 

As a 2L, I feel it’s my duty to give you advice I wish I’d known through 1L. Your first year in law school is going to be hectic, and everyone will experience the learning curve. But, I’m here to share a few tips. These are some of the best tools I found throughout the year, and I personally believe (if you set up your study schedule and plan accordingly) they just might help you land a spot on the Dean’s List!

 

about-to-go-down

  • Quizlet

    • Check out the Quizlet link above, and add me to your circles (BearLaw) – you can get access to some of the card sets I’ve already created, or start your own deck!
    • My favorite quality about this tool is that I can access my cards via the Quizlet App, and work on my studies even when I don’t have all my books with me. Quizzing myself on legal jargon, case information, or even class hypos can all be done via these digital flashcards. Since I am a multiple-modality learner (meaning, I learn by using many different senses) having to flip a card and read the info hits at least two of those modes [visual & tactile]. 
    • ProTip – For you audio-learners: You can use the speaker symbol to have Quizlet read your cards for you!

 

  • LearnLeo 

    • Ok, y’all – this is my newest obsession. I actually took time out of my day to send an email to a professor about how amazing I think LearnLeo is. Just so you know, I stumbled across this app – and have since created notebooks and study tools for the semester.

Powernotes
The extension allows you to mark-up any website!

OrganizeLeo
Outlines Made Faster!

 

Using PowerNotes helps you with case-briefing and smart-highlighting skills by walking you through a skills demo, and essentially teaches you how to brief a case. This is pure. freaking. gold! Use it, people!

In addition, the chrome extension allows you to live-edit any document or website online, and then compiles the notes into a word document that is available for download! This is amazing, and I love it. You’ll save sooooo much time up front by using this to brief and compile your case notes, because a majority of your outline will be created for you.

The bonus?
You will have to go back and correct/edit the document that you download; which means, you’re automatically required to read your notes and that’s a great way to make the material STICK!
There is a phone app and ipad app, but the online extension is most user-friendly, in my opinion.

LeoTools

 

  • OneNote & EverNote

    • These platform ideas are similar, and both provide great ways to keep track of class notes. If your school offers you a free Microsoft Office package, then take it! I prefer OneNote to Evernote, mainly because I don’t have to pay for using it (aside from tuition, of course). Plus, the OneNote option allows me to access my notebooks when offline, which has come in handy while studying and limiting my internet access (to avoid distractions). This way, I’m actually working instead of thinking I’m working by reading a page or two and surfing the internet for most of the hour. Let’s face it, you get distracted by reddit, CNN, or Twitter, too!

evernote

 

  •  LibGuides

    • Technically, not an app – but available online! 🙂 
    • These are library study guides that our law school provides. If you’re at UNTDCOL, stop by the circulation desk, or send me an email (cerebellumchef@gmail.com) & I’d be happy to point you in the right direction. These course guides pretty much rock my socks, because they’re jam-packed with study aids, practice questions, and even essay samples! Be sure to check out the study aids your library provides. Your librarians welcome the interruption in their day, I promise!

  • Law Dojo

    • I can appreciate that you may want to spend your time face down in a book, reading every word and hoping to soak in legal knowledge through mere proximity to your text, but I can’t learn that way always. I try to give myself a few brain breaks, whether by walking away to process the information, or by quizzing myself while playing the role of a Stealth Ninja making my way through maze. 
      • That’s exactly what this game is about. You’re a ninja. You must answer rapid-fire legal questions in order to live. 
      • What’s not to love about this?
      • There’s different levels, and different class topics – most basic concepts are covered, but the material gets more difficult when you answer questions correctly. 

 

LawDojo
Stealth. Ninja. Hiiii-ya!

 

  • iTunes U

    • I am not great at picking up information solely through listening, but I know some of you are gifted with this ability – so this is for you! 
    • Check out iTunes U in your iTunes store, and search “Law School” or “Contract Law” – or pretty much anything you need for class, and sift through the titles!
    • There are some great law school professors who host podcasts, or even record their own lectures (Like Professor Glannon!) to help students grasp the concepts. 
    • The topics are plentiful, and you can get many of them for free! 

 

I use all of these tips in my daily studies, and enjoy working with different mediums in which to learn. I search for ways to make my life easier, while not sacrificing my learning. Law school is hard, there’s no way around it. However, you can lessen the burden on your own shoulders by learning what helps you retain information. If you need anyone to bounce ideas off on, feel free to send me a message at cerebellumchef@gmail.com

Happy Studying/Law School Prepping!

 

Categories
Law School

5 Tips for a Great Study Space

organized

 

Sometimes [ok, more often than I care to count] I find myself procrastinating. I think we all do it, from time to time.

One of my best friends says she “can’t seem to study until the entire house is clean, [she’s] prepped her next three meals, and there’s nothing left to distract her.”

Another one of my law school besties forces herself to come to the library because then “it’s just you, your books, and zero excuses.”

shocked
Amazing self-discipline, right?

My point is – every student has their own moment of distraction. Many times, my moments last a few hours.

What? Baking brownies for friends that might come over later obviously takes precedence over studying Civil Procedure…right?

oprah
We’ll have none of that, Oprah. 😛

In all seriousness though, sitting down to study takes some serious focus. Here are five tips that will help you find [or make] the perfect study space!

  1. Desk space!
    • Studying law is a hefty experience. There’s so many books! You need to find an area that can hold up all those books. I’d say a good, sturdy table, about 3 feet by 2 feet, will serve the purpose well. Anything larger would be wonderful, but not wholly necessary.
  2. Lighting
    • This is KEY. Lighting is important. I don’t do well with yellow lights, so my study space requires white light. It’s a must. Thankfully, the beau purchased an adorable Pixar-esque lamp. I love him. The lamp – just to be clear. He’s perfect, and I’ve named him Trevor. He’s adjustable and, combined with my other lighting, can lighten or darken my study space.
  3. Comfortable Walking Area
    • I am a firm believer in taking BREAKS! Which means I don’t always like to study in the library. There’s almost always someone wanting to kick me out of a study room (which can only be reserved for two hours) or there’s simply too many fantabulous friends around; we distract each other and can quickly turn to different (more like cute cat videos on youtube) activities.
    • That said, find a space you’re comfortable walking away from for a bit, somewhere you’re comfortable leaving your belongings for a quick minute or two. Personally, I frequent some nearby coffee shops and eateries. The staff know me, so I’m comfortable taking a call and walking away from my laptop and books (let’s face it, the books cost more than my macbook.)
  4. Sounds
    • Ambiance, people. The sounds has to be perfect. I have found a perfect study combination. Spotify’s Instrumental Pop Songs playlist and (judge me, if you must) Hogwarts Rooms. I’ve personally been hanging around in the Hufflepuff common room lately. The chirping birds and raspy quills add to my study mood.  #HermioneRocks
  5. Perfect Distraction Level
    • As I’ve told you, studying new material with friends is always a non-starter for me. I need to capture the material before reviewing it. So I prefer to study alone and then review with a few people. It keeps my study group small and everyone is easily held accountable.
    • Find a spot that doesn’t necessarily have all your comforts, or maybe even one that does. Just know, you need to find your middle ground and keep yourself focused. Law school is only three short years. Put in the effort and you will pull off the grades you deserve.

 

Happy Studying!