It is widely noted that the #barexam is a test of minimum competency. This is true. It’s also true that studying for the bar is typically not fun. There's just so much material to review. This will be a challenging couple of months. But it is a doable challenge. #PracticeTuesday

Acknowledge that this won’t be a great experience. But also acknowledge that the majority of folks who take the bar pass on their first try. You just have to put in some time and effort. Study smart. Be efficient and effective in your studying. #PracticeTuesday

You just have to get enough points to pass the bar. It's okay to have high goals. But be realistic. Don't get discouraged when you don't meet those high goals. There's *a lot* of material to review, and getting around 65% correct on MBEs is enough to pass. #PracticeTuesday

Many of you have typically seen 85%-95% correct on your tests. The bar is different than the rest of those tests. There is no mandatory curve on the bar. And you are likely not going to know or feel good about everything you study. #PracticeTuesday

Get comfortable feeling uncomfortable with the material you study. You won’t know or understand it all, and that is okay. But you will know and understand enough. #PracticeTuesday

You just have to accumulate enough points in your bucket to pass the exam. You can give yourself a good chance at accumulating lots of points in your bucket by doing lots of practice MBE questions. #PracticeTuesday

The MBE is worth 50% of your bar score for UBE states. And 2 or 3 out of the 6 UBE essays will likely focus on MBE law. So, it’s absolutely worth it to spend time studying MBE subjects. #PracticeTuesday

Your bar vendor may initially ask you to complete assessment/definitional questions as part of the bar prep program (for example, “What are the elements to negligence?”). #PracticeTuesday

These assessment questions are helpful, but they are not practice questions--they don't require you to apply law to the facts of a hypo. #PracticeTuesday

Do practice questions early & often--do them even before you're comfortable with the law (do them now!). The bar asks you to apply law to facts. Why wait to start answering the type of questions that you will be expected to answer in July (or September)? #PracticeTuesday

Doing practice questions now will help you better understand the law—because you are working with the law (not just passively reading it or listening to someone talk about it). #PracticeTuesday

Doing practice questions will also help lessen some of the stress and anxiety that you might experience--because you will gain confidence in the substantive law, and you will soon identify the typical fact patterns associated with heavily tested topics. #PracticeTuesday

Doing practice question will also increase the speed to which you answer MBEs (remember--you typically only get about 1 ½-2 minutes to answer an MBE question!). #PracticeTuesday

You can learn the law by working backwards when you complete MBEs. If you don't know the answer to a question (and many of you likely won't at the start of the bar prep season), read the question & try to quickly identify the issue or potentially relevant fact. #PracticeTuesday

Then, read the answer and explanation. It is totally okay if you get MBEs wrong right now. All that matters is that you get as many MBEs correct as possible in July (or September). #PracticeTuesday

Your vendors will provide you a good set of practice MBEs. @AdaptiBar and Strategies and Tactics for the MBE have bunches of practice MBEs. They are also just really great bar prep resources. #PracticeTuesday

Each practice MBE answer has an explanation of the relevant black letter law, & each answer explains why the correct answer was correct and why the other answers were incorrect. Actively reading the answer/explanation will help you better learn the law. #PracticeTuesday

As you do practice questions and while you study, keep a bar diary or notebook that includes annotations to yourself--questions or hypos that you missed; rules that you want to revisit later; notes on "light bulb" or "aha!" moments. #PracticeTuesday

Many of us will forget our "light bulb" or "aha!" moments 2 or 3 weeks from now. If you had some sort of light bulb moment--jot down on your bar diary whatever it was that lit that light bulb. You can use the diary as a cheat-sheet during the last weeks of prep. #PracticeTuesday

Use/create mnemonics and memorization tips to help you better understand and recall the law. My students know that I am a big user of mnemonics and memorization tips. #PracticeTuesday

You're stuffing so much law down your brain, you need ways to help categorize the material. You need ways to help remember the material. You need ways to find that studied material in the back of your mind and bring it to the forefront when you need it. #PracticeTuesday

It doesn’t matter if the mnemonics or memorization tips are silly—mine often are. That’s fine. If they help you get a question correct, that is one more point closer to the passage mark! #PracticeTuesday

And remember that the bar is a closed book exam. You will need to have all the black letter law in your head for the essays. Mnemonics or memorization tips can help you remember the few sentences of black letter law you will need for your essays. #PracticeTuesday

Continually assess your understanding of the law. Repeat (out loud) a paraphrased version of the law to yourself. Create concept maps or flashcards of the law. Be an active learner and keep working with the law! Working with the law creates better recall! #PracticeTuesday

Don’t feel guilty taking breaks. They help your studying (& your overall physical & mental health). Make sure to take care of yourself throughout the bar prep season. This will be a challenging couple of months. But it is a doable challenge. You can get it done! #PracticeTuesday