Two weeks to go! Make them count. Is that the light at the end of the tunnel you see ahead of you--or is it an onrushing freight train? What you do in the next two weeks can make all the difference!

Barbri's written sim

We're hosting our full-day version of Barbri's written sim on campus tomorrow in rooms 201 (standard time; start at 9am) and 104 (accommodated time; start at 8am). Last week's blog described how to turn Barbri's half-day sim into a full-day sim (which I recommend). Bring your Barbri Written Exam Workbook ("UBEW"); we will not provide copies of the exam materials.

Note that if you double-up and complete BB's "Summer" and "Winter" half-day sims, you'll get two Secured Transactions essays. To avoid that, do this Family Law essay instead of the first "Winter" essay (it's the second of the two Secured Transactions essays). 

Work on Your Weaknesses

In these last two weeks, you have two goals: (1) Keep all the exam-tested topics circulating through your brain and (2) work on your weaknesses.

First, now that all of the substantive lectures are in the rearview mirror, make sure you're cycling through all the topics on a regular basis. It's like juggling: The exam topics are the balls, and you don't want to drop any balls before exam day! You should review and practice every topic over the course of two or three days.

Second, now is the time to work on your weaknesses. You should know by know which topics and subtopics are strengths and which are weaknesses. Keep chipping away at those weaknesses!

MBE

You've done thousands of multiple-choice questions by now, so your weaknesses should be apparent. The best data sources are the simulated exams and the 100-question sets in Adaptibar and QBank. Every time you complete a 100-question practice exam, recalibrate your strengths and weaknesses by reviewing the results--and attack the weaknesses with focused practice. MBE weaknesses can be a moving target, with different strengths and weaknesses on different days. But some topics have likely been weak all along (Real Property, anyone?), and those deserve special attention. Be sure to complete CPE1 and CPE2 in Adaptibar or "Block 1" and "Block 2" in QBank, with CPE2/Block 2 falling at least 5-7 days before the exam so you will have time for focused practice on whatever weaknesses it reveals (and time to recover your self-confidence if your score dips on that assessment--it happens!).

MEE

On the essay side, it can be more difficult to identify weaknesses because you've completed far fewer essays than multiple-choice questions. So ask yourself: What topics are you hoping don't show up on exam day? Those are your weaknesses! Review more essays and spend more time memorizing rules on those topics. Otherwise, cycle through all the essay topics (including the MBE subjects like Torts) on a rotating basis. Over the course of three days, aim to complete at least one essay on every topic.

MPT

As I wrote last week, you're probably as good at the MPT as you're going to get. Maybe do one more MPT next week and call it a night.

Grinding Through More Essays: Why & How

Between now and exam day, review as many practice essays as possible. This is important for two reasons: First, the more essays you attempt, the more bar-tested rules you will see and memorize. Second, reviewing essays exposes you not just to the rules but the contexts in which the rules are tested. You should start to notice patterns, e.g., "When I see this phrase in the facts or the question, it triggers that rule."

Read-Think-Review

If time were not a limiting factor, writing out every essay would be optimal. Outlining (with a verbose rule statement) is seond best. But in the interest of processing as many essays as possible between now an exam day, here's a new method: Read-Think-Review. Read the prompt. Close your eyes and think in detail what you would write in your answer--really elaborate that rule statement just as though you were writing it. Then review the sample answer. If you knew the rule 80% or better, good enough; go on to the next one. Less than 80%? Commit the rule to a flashcard (or your Excel sheet or whatever you're using to keep track of troublesome rules), contextualize the rule by finding it in the outline, and go on to the next one. You can get through more essays in less time using this method.

Questions of the week

Q: Do I have to complete the Texas Law Component before exam day?

A: No. Don't worry about the Texas Law Component until after the exam.  Complete it before the results are released. You can create an account on the Texas Bar CLE website before you have a license. The program lasts about 12 hours and is trivial (compared to the bar exam).

Q: I'm using Barbri/Adaptibar, and I've completed all 1,608 questions in Adaptibar. Should I keep doing Adaptibar questions or . . . ?

A: Yes, you should continue to do Adaptibar questions. Adaptibar will prioritize the questions you missed the first time through, so it's a good way to review. But you can also start answering questions from Barbri's "MCQ Bank," which comprises 3.5k questions you haven't seen before. They may not be the best-written questions, but they will keep the MBE rules percolating in your brain. So maybe split your MBE practice time 66% on Adaptibar and 33% Barbri's MCQ Bank.

Q: I'm worried that I'm not going to pass. What metrics should I be looking at? How do I know whether I should defer? What are the pros and cons of deferring?

A: Scoring 62.5% on a 100-question mixed-subject practice test (ideally, one of the Adaptibar Study Aids or CPEs, or QBank's Block 1 or 2--but the Sim MBEs count, too) taken under exam-time conditions is a good predictor of passage. Scores in the mid-to-low 50s (or lower) are predictive of failure. In between is "on the bubble"; could go either way, and the last two weeks can make a big difference. Program-completion rate is also significant, but it often goes hand in hand with MBE scores.

Whether to defer depends on several factors, including employment status ("I decided to defer because [reason]" is much easier to sell to employers than "I failed the exam"), what January and February will look like for you (will you have to work, or will you have all your time available to study?), and the unique challenges of the February exam (Feb preppers need to study in December, and nobody wants to study in December). Please contact me or Prof. Deutsch if you're thinking about deferring; we can guide you through the decision and loop Dean Artie in to make sure the employment side is covered. Deferral is not a sign of weakness or failure; sometimes life gets in the way of bar prep, and deferral is the mature and reasoned decision. 

Week 11 incentive targets

To be eligible for next week's incentive drawing, by 10pm on July 20, complete 85% of Barbri or 80% of Themis AND 1465 questions in Adaptibar or QBank.

That's all for this week. As ever, if you have questions or need talked back from the ledge, email or call me or Prof. Deutsch. Our contact info is on this blog's home page.