If you failed the bar exam, you are definitely not alone!

Remember that even if you think “all of my classmates passed” — they didn’t! Many state bar exam passage rates are low and getting lower. Further, nobody advertises on Facebook when they fail the bar exam (they only advertise passing the bar exam!). Please keep in mind that you are not alone!

Also remember that even if you failed the bar exam, it does not mean you cannot pass it in the future and become a lawyer. We know that taking the bar exam again is probably the last thing you want to do now. But if you come up with a plan, it will be much more bearable! Read more

Failing the bar exam can be a sad, lonely, sick feeling. We understand this deeply and have a note to those who fail the bar exam.

We also know that sometimes a good quote can change a perspective, or reflect one, or, if nothing else, make you feel less alone. A good quote is sometimes motivational. Sometimes understanding. Sometimes it convinces you to move on, or to stay where you are, or to keep fighting. Sometimes it convinces you of nothing but just reflects how you feel in an eloquent way when you cannot exactly wrap words around your feelings.

We have copied a few Rainer Maria Rilke quotes that we love below. Rainer Maria Rilke was a bohemian Austrian novelist and poet who was alive in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s.These quotes are, by and large,  not motivational one-liners. They are sentences or paragraphs that express hard truths well. They are true and difficult and lifey. And that is why we love them.  Although he was not writing to people who didn’t pass the bar exam, many of my bar exam students have found these quotes especially helpful and eye-opening. Some may resonate with you. Some may not. I’ve listed a few of my favorite quotes here and bolded portions I like the best. Read more