Four Tips For Law School Midterms Prep

Four Tips For Law School Midterms Prep

Midterms in law school do not play as major of a role when compared to final exams. Final examinations will determine almost all of your grades, however, midterms can factor into your final grade, even if minimal. On top of potentially acting as the difference between an A- and B+, midterms also serve several key purposes. So, while most would say that midterms aren’t as important as law school final exams, they still matter! To maximize your final examination success, you should treat law school midterms as serious exams that require attention. Doing so will ensure that your midterm grade is an accurate representation of your progression at that point in time. With that out of the way, here are JD Advising’s law school midterms prep tips

Four Tips For Law School Midterms Prep

Outline

Our first recommendation when studying for law school midterms is to outline. Midterms and outlining go hand in hand. Midterms provide a good opportunity to update your outlines (or start them) and interact with course material. Doing so can help immensely when it comes time for final exams! As we’ve mentioned before, effective outlining is important for success not just on midterms, but in law school generally. Depending on what material is prevalent on each midterm, you can go back and tailor your outlines accordingly. Reviewing course material and incorporating it into an outline is a great way to study and prepare for midterms, and it puts you in a much better position when you begin studying for final exams.

Review Older Tests/Midterms

Our second recommendation when studying for law school midterms is to review old final exams and midterms. Like we mentioned above, law school midterms give you a sneak peek of your professor’s testing style. For example, some professors prefer long essay questions, some worship multiple-choice questions, and some select short answer format. All will be revealed on the midterm…but what do you do until then? A great way to prepare for midterm exams is by reviewing previous final exams and midterms administered by your professor. Sometimes these are available from the law school library. Other times, professors will make them available for students to download and save. If your professor hasn’t mentioned previous exams as a study resource, don’t be afraid to ask. The worst thing they can say is no.

Avoid A Study Frenzy

Our third recommendation when studying for law school midterms is to avoid treating them like final exams. While midterms are important and do serve a purpose, at the end of the day, they simply aren’t final exams. They are usually not as important to your grade. For example, midterms almost always make up a small percentage of your overall grade. Usually, between ten and twenty percent of your overall grade is dedicated to a midterm (if your professor administers one). When compared to final exams, which comprise eighty to ninety-five percent of your overall grade, midterms are minimal. Moreover, midterms test less material than finals, which means the time and effort studying for them shouldn’t match final exams. So, don’t go crazy pulling an all-nighter at the law library in preparation for a midterm.

Show Up To Office Hours

Our final recommendation when studying for law school midterms is to take advantage of office hours. Sure, office hours may have not played a front and center role during the first half of the semester/quarter. However, midterms are a great opportunity to check in with your professors with any questions or concerns you have. Office hours are a notoriously underutilized resource in law school, so don’t forget about them. You can ask your professor questions about midterm structure, material, grading, and a whole host of other subjects. Plus, it’s a great way to introduce yourself to a professor and form a relationship, which might be helpful in the future. For example, professors can provide letters of recommendation, connections to internships and clerkships, and other resources.

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