Tag Archive for: first year

Figure Out Your Law School Goals: Make a Law School Bucket List

Written by the #1 law student

When I went to law school my only goal was to graduate at the top of my class. I figured if I graduated as the #1 student in my class, I would have the maximum number of opportunities available to me. (Ironically, I was never interested with most of the opportunities that come with graduating at the top of your class—i.e. working at a big law firm. I didn’t even want to practice law after law school!).

I don’t regret making that a goal because I did find to be very worthwhile to achieve the top class ranking. (And to teach others how to follow suit, we developed this law school prep course that teaches students skills to graduate at the top of their class.) However, there are plenty of other worthy law school goals to think about as you get ready for law school. We recommend you compile them into a law school bucket list—a list of things you may want to do when you are in law school. Read more

How do I answer law school exam questions? (an in-depth guide)

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How do I answer law school exam questions? (an in-depth guide) Here, we give you an in-depth guide on how to answer law school exam questions. This is a step-by-step process for approaching law school exams. Law school exams are very different than exams you may have taken in undergrad. Because they are different from […]

Law School Oral Argument Tips

1 Comment/in Law School

Law School Oral Argument Tips

Do you have oral arguments coming up in law school? Oral arguments can be intimidating to everyone – even those fairly comfortable with public speaking (and most of us aren’t!).

Below are some oral argument tips that might help you increase your law school oral argument grade (and your confidence!). Read more

What Should I Do Over my Law School Study Period?

in Law School

What Should I do over my Law School Study Period?

If you are overwhelmed thinking about your law school study period, you are not alone! Many students ask us what they should be doing to make the most of their law school study period.

We have plenty of tips – but we will start by giving you two simple guidelines to help structure your law school study period: First, figure out your weekly schedule; and second, figure out your daily schedule. Read more

How to Write a Law School Outline Using Diagrams

2 Comments/in Law School

diagram contracts outline how to write a law school outline Are you a visual person? Do you prefer colors, pictures, and diagrams over black-and-white words? It might be worth it to try incorporating some diagrams into your law school outlines.

For example, contract formation can be broken down using words. This can help you memorize the elements of contract formation and become familiar with the words. However, you can put the same exact outline into picture format, as is pictured to the left.

Even if you are not a “visual” person, sometimes it helps to break things up and use a visual method to memorize a concept. This can be especially helpful with trickier concepts, for example, UCC 2-207. Most students struggle with UCC 2-207 quite a bit. If you put it into a picture format (as pictured below) it can really help you memorize it. Read more

What Should I Do Over My Law School Thanksgiving Break?

in Law School

What Should I Do Over My Law School Thanksgiving Break?

Thanksgiving break is a nice time to study for your law school classes but it may also be a very busy time. You may either be traveling or you may have relatives or friends coming into town who expect you to spend time with them. You also probably certainly crave a break since (most of you have your legal writing memos turned in!) and you finally have a second to breathe!

The temptation to take time off is usually countered with a feeling that you should be studying, outlining, or practicing exam questions. Indeed, most law students feel a very real tension between relaxing/spending time with family and outlining or studying for their law school final exams. Family and friends who are not in law school can make this worse since they will wonder why you are not partaking in every activity. Read more

1L Final Exam Tip: Print Law School Exams with Model Answers This Weekend!

in Law School

1L Final Exam Tip: Print Law School Exams with Model Answers This Weekend!

With all of the other assignments you have, the last thing you probably feel like doing is answering mock final exam questions. It is just another thing to add to your to-do list.

Not only is it more work but it is scary to see what a law school final exam actually looks like. So many students never look at exams because they are afraid. They don’t know what is awaiting them so they purposely bury themselves in case-reading, case-briefing, and outlining and never pick up an exam. This is unfortunate because many of these students do work very hard – they are simply inefficient.

The first step to getting over this is to get your resources together and print a bunch of practice exams so you can have them at your disposal. If you have a pile of practice exams sitting on your desk, it will be easier for you to make it a habit to regularly look at law school final exams. It will also be less intimidating because they are sitting right there! (On the contrary, if you don’t have any exams readily available, you are even less likely to practice answering one for not only is it more work, and kind of scary, but it is also a hassle to search for every time you build up the courage to try one!) Read more

Where can I find law school outlines?

in Law School

Where can I find law school outlines?

The best way to prepare for law school final exams is to learn the law, then figure out how to apply it.

We are huge proponents of the idea that the best law school outlines you can acquire are the ones you write yourself. Outlining will help you internalize, organize, and become familiar with the concepts in a way that simply looking at someone else’s outline will not. Read more

I Feel Lost in Law School. What Should I Do?

in Law School

So many students describe feeling lost in law school. They don’t like the Socratic-method-y learning style. They don’t feel comfortable with questions without answers. They aren’t used to the new legal language that they slog through in old cases. Nor the constant feeling of too-much-to-do-and-not-enough-time. Many students feel as though they are on a high-speed treadmill – working really hard but not getting anywhere.

So if you are feeling lost in law school you should know that you are definitely not alone! Here are some tips that have helped our law students feel more oriented and in control of their classes: Read more

Alright, my law student friends, time to stop briefing cases! (And start outlining…)

in Law School

Alright, my law student friends, time to stop briefing cases! (And start outlining…)

Fact: I forgot how to brief cases. I have to re-learn how to brief cases every time I teach law students or prelaw students how to brief cases. Why did I forget? Because I hardly ever briefed cases in law school!

However, briefing cases is not a bad skill to have . . .

Briefing cases can be helpful, especially in the beginning of the semester. Briefing cases helps you become detail-oriented and it is helpful for dissecting somewhat complicated fact patterns. It helps you to remain focused when you read. Perhaps it makes you less nervous if you’re called on. Briefing cases also helps you get comfortable with legal language if you regularly put the facts and law into your own words when writing your case briefs.

But there are two major downsides of briefing cases:

National Suicide Prevention Week – for Law Students and Lawyers

in Law School, Lawyering

September 7-13, 2015 is National Suicide Prevention Week. Given the high rate of depression among law students and lawyers, we felt compelled to write a post increasing awareness about suicide and depression.

Suicide is the tenth leading cause of death in the United States and the second leading cause of death among individuals between the ages of 15 and 34. Last year, CNN reported that the proportion of lawyers that were committing suicide was much higher than in the past. In fact, lawyers rank fourth (behind dentists, pharmacists, and physicians – in that order) in the highest per capita suicide rate. CNN also reports that lawyers are 3.6 times more likely to suffer from depression than non-lawyers. Read more

How do I create a law school outline? (an in-depth guide)

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How do I create a law school outline? (an in-depth guide)

Writing your law school outlines (and starting early in the semester!) is one of the most important things you can do to maximize your chances of graduating at the top of your class. Many students struggle with outlining because they do not know where to begin.

Below is a step-by-step process on how to write a law school outline. To do so, you will need to gather your materials together. We recommend you have the following on hand:

Syllabus
Class notes
Casebook
Any supplements you use
Laptop

We also recommend you have a cup of coffee in hand since outlining can be grueling! (But it can also be fun!)

Note: if you haven’t yet downloaded our free guide on how to succeed in law school, do so here!

Even better, join our FREE law school prep course here! Read more

Socratic Method Tips – Tips for Answering Questions when You’re “On Call” in Law School

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Without even engaging in the debate about whether the Socratic Method is a good method of teaching or not (that is a different blog for a different day), the fact is that it does cause a lot of anxiety in law students. This has both a negative effect on students who are actually called on by the professor and those who are nervous about being called on (but ultimately not called on).

As a student in the class, this anxiety inhibits your ability to understand and learn new information. Thus, having Socratic Method tips for being on call will help you not only answer questions better but also help to lessen your anxiety in class and therefore help you learn new information. Read more

Five Legal Writing Tips for Students Starting Law School

in Law School, Prelaw

Many students have trouble tackling their first legal writing assignments. Your legal writing class will require you to think, write, and structure your assignments in a different way than you are used to. Many students have difficulty grasping this new way of writing. We recommend that you do your best to improve your legal writing right from the beginning of law school. Your efforts will shine through not only in your legal writing class but also in your other substantive law classes. Thus, below are five legal writing tips for students starting law school. Read more

Law School Tip: Make an Appointment with your Law School Career Counselor ASAP!

in Law School, Prelaw

Law school is competitive and the legal job market is even more competitive. This doesn’t mean you can’t carve out your own path in life and get a fulfilling job after law school. But it does mean that in order to do so you have to have a game plan from the beginning.

Your law school career counselor can be integral in assisting you to get a job after law school. The law school career counselor at the school I attended was one of the smartest and most caring people I have ever met. She helped current law students as well as already-graduated law students with their job search. She was full of invaluable insight that I never would have known had I not scheduled an appointment with her! Her insight and ideas led me directly to one of my first jobs after law school. Many of my colleagues said the same. Read more