C|M|LAW Library Blog

The C|M|Law Library wishes all of our students the best of luck on next week’s Ohio Bar Exam.

We will still be here for your legal research needs as you begin your career.

Here are 5 tips for the last few days:

1. Get some exercise—it is a good break and may help you fall asleep quicker
2. Watch a movie as a break—make it something lighthearted
3. Review what you know—don’t try to learn a whole new subject the last few days
4. Have a nice conversation with someone you know—probably want someone who won’t talk about the exam
5. Get everything you need for the exam together now so you aren’t doing it at the last minute

Breathe… you can do it!

Good luck!

The bar exam is next week and you have been studying hard all summer, well actually for your entire law school career. With all the studying and pressure, it’s still important to be aware of and to manage your stress level. Most people experience some nervousness when faced with a big exam, but for some, those nerves can be overwhelming.

If you are having feelings of dread, and physical symptoms such as a racing heartbeat, nausea, shortness of breath, sweating and dizziness, then you may be experiencing a more serious form of stress called test anxiety. For people with test anxiety, the mind sees an exam as a threat and that triggers the body to produce the hormones and physical reactions usually seen when your “fight or flight” response activates. Don’t worry, there are many strategies you can practice to help reduce these effects. For example, while studying make sure you are still getting plenty of rest, staying hydrated, and taking breaks. You can also find a few breathing and meditation techniques that help calm your mind. Those breathing techniques will be useful during the exam.

Breathing exercises are actually beneficial for everyone. Regardless of your stress level, the bar exam is lengthy and you may find yourself becoming fatigued, or freezing on a question. It’s important not to panic when that happens, and take a few deep breaths instead. This will help slow everything down and reset yourself. It won’t take up much time, and may actually save you time in the long run by helping you unfreeze and move on. You can try the 4-7-8 Breathing Exercise, or some Belly Breathing. Use your lunch break to walk around and try some stretches to release the tension from your neck, shoulders, and back.

Check out our Work-Life Balance Pinterest board for more tips on stress management, easy and healthy meals, and short exercise routines that fit into your busy schedule.

Good luck! You’ve got this!

In the immortal words of one of my old profs, “What are we doin’ today, folks? We’re passin’ the bar today!” He would exclaim this at the beginning of every class, while simultaneously slamming his briefcase down, leaning back in his chair, and propping his cowboy-boot-clad feet up on the table. He wasn’t wrong. I include this little story to remind you that you have been passing the bar, every day, in class, for the last three years.

This is the time for review and for practicing strategies for the types of questions that appear on each portion of the exam. For the Ohio Bar, these portions are:

The Multistate Performance Test – two closed universe writing problems that you will knock out of the way Tuesday morning

The Multistate Bar Exam – multiple choice questions that you will crush on Wednesday

The Ohio-specific essays – six on Tuesday afternoon, and six on Thursday morning

Then you are free to cruise up the road to Cedar Point and cut loose. That’s what I did the day after my exam in 2012. Worth it.

The Law Library has a guide all about the Ohio Bar Exam. One particularly useful resource in the Law Library is the set of Ohio Bar essay questions, with published answers, covering 1992 to the present. Use these for extra practice with issue spotting, outlining, and getting an even better grasp of the Ohio examiners’ style.  You can also check out sample essay questions on the Supreme Court’s website, which include samples of the MPT. For tips on the essay questions and MPT, and a breakdown of the grading, see our Logistics page.

A few more tips:

Go to the Essay Advantage workshop.

Take a sweater or jacket with you every day. At my exam, it was uncomfortably hot and stuffy on the first day, then freezing the second day. Coincidence?

Bring extra pencils with good erasers.

Keep up with your review program.

And remember …

Even when you are taking Barbri, you still may want additional materials to help studying for the bar exam.  No matter what individual subject you are interested in delving into, the law library has plenty of study aids: books (in print and ebooks), flashcards, and CALI lessons.  Along with those, I thought it might also be helpful to point out to our readers specific titles related to the bar exam that may be of use:

The Bar Exam in a Nutshell

Multistate Bar Exam Questions

Bar Exam Survival Kit

If I Don’t Pass the Bar I’ll die : 73 Ways to Keep Stress and Worry From Affecting Your Performance on the Bar Exam

Scoring High on Bar Exam Essays

Even after you have completed your studies at Cleveland-Marshall, there are many ways in which you can continue to benefit from the law school and library.

Most importantly, you can continue to use the library’s resources if you apply for an alumni borrower’s card. The application can be found here.

Graduates will also be able to access Bloomberg Law, Lexis Advance and WestlawNext for 6 months after graduation.  If you have any questions on this, please direct them to Brian Cassidy, at b.e.cassidy@csuohio.edu or 216-523-7364.  You will also still be able to access important databases, such as HeinOnline, and others from the public computers in the library.

In addition, when you do come back to visit the law library you will be able to access our wireless using the free unsecured CSUGUEST network.

You will still be able to ask library staff for help with any reference questions you may have in person, by email (research.services@law.csuohio.edu), or by phone (216 687-6877).

Finally, we will do all that we can to help you prepare for the bar exam. CALI lessons will be available to you for up to six months after graduation to help you perfect your legal knowledge. While studying for the bar, you are also welcome to use the student lounge or any of our study rooms.

Best of luck in the future.