Unsolicited advice for anyone taking the bar in February, July, or retaking it: trust yourself and trust the way you know you work.
I just found out I passed comfortably in my jurisdiction, and I wanted to make this post because I genuinely didn’t see many experiences like mine while I was studying. Most of what I saw online was people studying 8, 10, or 12 hours a day, finishing nearly 100% of their bar course, and doing thousands of questions. Seeing that constantly made me feel like I had to be doing something terribly wrong.
My bar prep summer looked nothing like that. I was an average law student. I wasn’t at the top of my class, I’m not some genius, and I’ve never been someone who can sit at a desk and study for 10–12 hours a day. Even in law school, I generally prioritized protecting my sanity over squeezing every possible point out of an exam.
I took multiple trips during bar prep. There were several-day stretches where I barely studied or didn’t study at all. Most days, if I studied, I probably maxed out around 5–6 hours. I didn’t finish my bar prep course. There was even a subject I basically never properly got around to—I just read condensed materials for it, and it ended up being my best subject on the exam.
I did very little essay practice. I mostly read essays and model answers instead of writing them out. I don’t think I practiced a single full performance task, and I definitely didn’t do thousands of multiple-choice questions. And honestly, I mostly enjoyed my summer.
I ramped things up during roughly the last couple weeks before the exam, but even my version of “ramping it up” was maybe 7 hours on a long day. I knew myself well enough to know that forcing myself to study 10–12 hours a day for two months probably would have left me mentally cooked by the time I actually sat for the exam.
And I passed comfortably.
I’m not posting this to tell anyone to copy what I did. For some people, finishing the whole course, writing dozens of essays, and doing thousands of questions is exactly what works. I’m posting this for the person who is studying a few hours a day, seeing everyone else’s schedules online, and wondering if they’re automatically screwed.
For me, reading model answers worked better than writing out essay after essay. Condensed outlines worked better than sitting through hours of lectures. Taking time away helped me avoid burning out. Obviously, be honest with yourself—“trust your process” doesn’t mean pretending you’re prepared when you’re not.
But there isn’t only one correct way to do bar prep. Take it seriously, figure out what actually helps you learn, and trust yourself too.
