What Should I Do After The First Day Of The Bar Exam?

What Should I Do After The First Day Of The Bar Exam?

Whether you’re taking the Uniform Bar Exam (UBE) or a bar exam for another jurisdiction, the Multistate Bar Exam (MBE) is (usually) administered on day two. After months of study and preparation, candidates may face anxiety or have indecision regarding whether they should relax, review, or continue studying after the first day of the bar exam. In this blog post, we provide recommendations that should help leave you refreshed, confident, and poised to pass as your head into day two of the bar exam.

What Should I Do After The First Day Of The Bar Exam?

Pat yourself on the back for getting through day one and relax

Try to put your study materials away. Eat a healthy meal, drink a refreshing smoothie, watch a good movie, read a book, listen to calming music, and/or do some light exercise. Increase your confidence by reflecting on the fact that you completed all or most of your materials, memorized all that you can, and practiced enough MBE questions. (Review our blog post, Is my MBE Score Passing, to find out whether your practice scores are considered passing scores.) So, instead of studying the night before, we recommend that you take the night off and rest your brain so it’s ready to go for the MBE!

Try not to talk about the day one exam material

It is quite natural for some candidates to want to discuss questions they were expecting or not expecting.  Some candidates even like to discuss questions they believe they aced or where they may have missed the mark. Considering that no two candidates answer questions identically, discussing the exam could easily lead to undue fear, disappointment, and panic! So, in order to keep your bar exam anxiety at bay as you move into day two, try not to talk about the day one materials after the first portion of the bar exam.

If you must study after the first day, keep it light

If setting aside your study materials is more stressful than reviewing material, be sure to have a plan for revisiting material after day one of the bar exam.  Do not study throughout the night, and do not complete full-length practice exams. If you must study, merely review, and review intelligently. Consider answering only a small set of MBE practice questions. Rely on your outline or notepad to quickly revisit topics.  If you want to feel like a rock-star going into day two, go over what you already know! Furthermore, be sure to end your studies a few hours before bedtime so that you could get a good night’s sleep. Walk into day two alert and ready to perform!

Practice mental health exercises

Exam preparation can take a physical, emotional, and mental toll on candidates. Make a conscious effort to unwind and calm your nerves so that you can recover from day one, and feel confident and ready for day two!

Make sure you are logistically prepared for day two

Now that you’ve been to the testing site and gotten through day one, make sure your day two outfit is appropriate and comfortable. Determine whether you will need to bring extra masks. Plan an easy and nutritious breakfast and lunch. If you’re not sure where to start when packing for the bar exam, check out our general bar exam packing list. Most importantly, congratulations on getting this far, and good luck on day two!

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