The Law School Toolbox Podcast: Tools for Law Students from 1L to the Bar Exam, and Beyond

Welcome back! Today we're talking about doing good works with Adrian Tirtanadi, founder of Bayview Hunters Point Community Legal, a non-profit legal startup in San Francisco. This is a great episode for anyone who is interested in how access to legal services can change a community and for everyone interested in entrepreneurial non-profit or public interest law.

In this episode we discuss:

• How Adrian started Bayview Hunters Point Community Legal
• A day in the life of a non-profit
• Advice for those seeking a path of social entrepreneurship
• How to get involved in non-profit
• What NOT to do in your cover letter and resume if you are seeking a job or internship at a non-profit organization
• The skills you need to succeed as a social entrepreneur
• What Adrian would have done differently in law school

If you enjoy the podcast, we'd love a nice review and/or rating on iTunes. And feel free to reach out to us directly. You can always reach us via the contact form on the Law School Toolbox website (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/contact).

Thanks for listening! And give some money to Bayview Hunters Point Community Legal, because they're a great organization.

Alison & Lee

Resources:

• Bayview Hunters Point Community Legal (https://bhpcommunitylegal.org/)

Welcome back to the Law School Toolbox podcast. Today, we're talking about law school Orientation. If you're getting ready to start law school, tune in!

In this episode we discuss:

• What happens at Orientation?
• Do you even have to go to Orientation?
• Lee and Alison share their Orientation experiences (including a city-wide blackout!)
• What should you aim to get out of Orientation?
• How to deal with different personality types
• How to adjust to being back in school after a professional job
• Surviving Orientation if you are an introvert
• Why you need an elevator pitch
• Who do you go to with post-Orientation questions?

If you enjoy the podcast, we'd love a nice review and/or rating on iTunes. And feel free to reach out to us directly. You can always reach us via the contact form on the Law School Toolbox website (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/contact).

Thanks for listening! Good luck in law school!

Alison & Lee

Resources:

• Start Law School Right Course (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/start-law-school-right/)
• Get Off to a Smart Start in Law School (podcast) (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/podcast-episode-56-get-smart-start-law-school/)
• Law School Toolbox Experts Share: Surviving/Optimizing Law School Orientation (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/law-school-toolbox-experts-share-suggestions-for-survivingoptimizing-law-school-orientation/)
• Reflections on my 1L Orientation (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/reflections-on-my-1l-orientation/)

Welcome back. Today, we're talking about how to study smart in law school so you can stay on top of your workload and do as well as possible academically, without undue stress and strain.

We talk to a lot of incoming 1Ls, and one of the questions we hear over and over is how to handle the huge workload in law school. It can be incredibly intimidating to start law school, especially if you have never had a job that required you to work a lot of hours on an ongoing basis. So, what can you do to keep things under control?

In this episode we discuss:

• Challenges that undergrads can face if they go straight to law school
• How working prepares you for law school
• Lee and Alison share how coming from the workforce helped them in law school
• Managing the expectations of family and friends as you start law school
• How to structure your time and get rid of distractions
• How much time should certain tasks take (reading, class prep, deep thinking tasks, etc.)
• The importance of creating a study calendar
• Practical techniques for managing your time productively
• How to stay accountable in law school
• Managing your life outside of law school (kids, significant others, emergencies, etc.)

If you enjoy the podcast, we'd love a nice review and/or rating on iTunes. And feel free to reach out to us directly. You can always reach us via the contact form on the Law School Toolbox website (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/contact).

Thanks for listening! Good luck in law school!

Alison & Lee

Resources:

• Need to Get More Done in Law School? Try the Circles! (http://thegirlsguidetolawschool.com/08/tips-time-management-awesomeness-with-the-circles/)
• How to Stick to Your Goals in Law School (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/how-to-stick-to-your-goals-in-law-school/)
• Start Law School Right Course (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/start-law-school-right/)

Today we're talking about BigLaw OCI, or on-campus interviewing. This is the annual rite of passage where thousands of law students try to secure BigLaw summer associate positions for the next summer. In this episode, we talk at a high level about all of the aspects of OCI, and you can listen to our earlier OCI episodes for a deeper dive into the specifics of callbacks and initial interviews.

In this episode we discuss:

• How does OCI work, in general?
• How different schools handle bidding
• How do you know what firms to bid on?
• How many interviews should you do?
• What are the interviewers looking for?
• The callback process
• How to decide which offer to accept
• Why you should understand the NALP rules

If you enjoy the podcast, we'd love a nice review and/or rating on iTunes. And feel free to reach out to us directly. You can always reach us via the contact form on the Law School Toolbox website (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/contact).

Thanks for listening! Good luck in the job hunt.

Alison & Lee

Resources:

• Podcast: Mastering the OCI Process (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/podcast-episode-3-mastering-campus-interviewing-oci-process/)
• Podcast: Callback Tips for BigLaw Summer Associate positions (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/podcast-episode-4-callback-tips-biglaw-summer-associate-positions/)
• Podcast: Maintaining Authenticity in the Legal Profession (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/podcast-episode-5-maintaining-authenticity-legal-profession/)

Welcome back! Today, we're talking about how to evaluate your summer legal job experience, and how to make sure you leave on good terms. As your summer law job is drawing to a close, here are some ways to ensure you learn as much as you can from the experience.

In this episode we discuss:

• What you need to be thinking about as your summer job comes to a close
• Handling summer evaluations
• Are there experiences you still want to have at this job?
• Lee and Alison share their summer job experiences
• Evaluating if this type of law or firm is right for you
• The importance of references from your summer job
• What type of feedback are you getting, if any?
• What can you take away from this job?
• Is it OK to reach out after you have left and gone back to school?
• How to leave gracefully and without burning any bridges

If you enjoy the podcast, we'd love a nice review and/or rating on iTunes. And feel free to reach out to us directly. You can always reach us via the contact form on the Law School Toolbox website (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/contact).

Thanks for listening!

Alison & Lee

Welcome back! Today we're discussing the role of the oral arguments and Moot Court in legal education, with special guest Megan Canty. Megan is a law school tutor with the Law School Toolbox and she is also Director of Academic Success and Bar Exam Preparation at Wayne State University Law School.

In this episode we discuss:

• The role of legal arguments in a law school setting
• How oral arguments are useful for exams and practice
• The difference between thinking like a lawyer and communicating like one
• Lee and Megan's advice for students intimidated by oral arguments
• How to figure out what facts matter, and which don't
• The basics of Moot Court
• What will distinguish you from the rest of the class in oral arguments
• How Moot Court competitions work
• Why honing your oral argument skills are important, even if you never practice appellate law

If you enjoy the podcast, we'd love a nice review and/or rating on iTunes. And feel free to reach out to us directly. You can always reach us via the contact form on the Law School Toolbox website (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/contact).

Thanks for listening!

Alison & Lee

Resources:

• How to Approach a Moot Court Argument (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/how-to-approach-a-law-school-moot-court-argument/)
• Surviving Law School Moot Court (podcast) http://lawschooltoolbox.com/podcast-episode-37/

Welcome back! Today we're talking about how to conquer the bar exam, specifically the MBE. Taking six hours of multiple choice questions is challenging for just about everyone. For some, however, it can be a major speed bump on the road to bar exam success.

Don't let the MBE prevent you from passing the bar exam. We've got some tips and strategies!

In this episode we discuss:

• An overview of the MBE
• How to find out exactly what's covered
• What to expect during the MBE on test day
• Why is the MBE so challenging?
• What is the best way to study for the MBE?
• Lee and Alison share their MBE experiences
• Why practice is so important
• The right way to practice
• How much should you worry about timing?
• What to do if you are really struggling with the MBE

If you enjoy the podcast, we'd love a nice review and/or rating on iTunes. And feel free to reach out to us directly. You can always reach us via the contact form on the Law School Toolbox website (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/contact). And check out our Bar Exam Toolbox website (http://barexamtoolbox.com) for more bar exam advice.

Thanks for listening! Best of luck on the bar exam!

Alison & Lee

Resources:

• General MBE Information (http://www.ncbex.org/exams/mbe/preparing/)
• Subject Matter Outlines (http://www.ncbex.org/pdfviewer/?file=%2Fdmsdocument%2F182)
• Can Taking a Break Save Your MBE Score (http://barexamtoolbox.com/can-taking-break-save-mbe-score/)
• Yikes I need to Improve My MBE Scores (http://barexamtoolbox.com/yikes-I-need-to-improve-my-mbe-scores/)
• A Slightly Counterintuitive Way to Study for the MBE (http://barexamtoolbox.com/a-slightly-counterintuitive-way-to-study-for-the-MBE/)
• Top 5 Study Tips for Conquering the MBE (http://barexamtoolbox.com/top-5-study-tips-for-conquering-the-MBE/)
• There is Just too Much MBE Law To Learn (http://barexamtoolbox.com/there-is-just-too-much-mbe-law-to-learn/)
• Bar Study Tips - Preparing for the MBE (http://barexamtoolbox.com/bar-study-tips-preparing-for-the-MBE/)

Welcome back! Today we've got an entertaining topic – the eccentric characters you'll meet in law school, along with some tips on law school etiquette (if you don't want to find yourself on this list in the future).

Now, you might be wondering what we're talking about. Isn't law school just a bunch of students studying the law? Haha, as if.

For whatever reason, law school tends to attract a rather eccentric cast of characters, some of whom you're likely to run into, for better or worse!

In this episode we discuss:

• What is the most notorious law school character type?
• Other personality types you will meet in law school and how to deal with them
• The characters Lee and Alison encountered in law school
• Basic rules of law school etiquette
• The importance of finding your people
• Avoiding relationship drama in law school
• How "not to behave" in law school

If you enjoy the podcast, we'd love a nice review and/or rating on iTunes. And feel free to reach out to us directly. You can always reach us via the contact form on the Law School Toolbox website (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/contact).

Thanks for listening! Best of luck with law school.

Alison & Lee

Resources:

• Survive Law School: Find Your People (http://thegirlsguidetolawschool.com/08/surviving-law-school-find-your-people/)
• The People You Will Meet in Law School (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/the-people-you-will-meet-in-law-school/)

Welcome back to the Law School Toolbox podcast! Today we are focusing on the bar exam performance test. Joining Lee is guest Doretta McGinnis, one of our highly experienced bar exam and law school tutors.

The performance test portion of the bar exam can be challenging for people, but with these tips you can conquer it and score well. Good luck!

In this episode we discuss:

• Why is the performance test so hard?
• The importance of following directions closely
• Is practicing enough? How should you evaluate your work?
• Why do students put off practice or refuse to do it?
• Why you should have a performance test plan
• The link between legal writing and the performance test
• Lee and Doretta share common mistakes students make
• How to improve your time management
• How to make the grader's job easy

Download the Transcript (https://lawschooltoolbox.com/episode-50-how-to-ace-the-bar-exam-performance-test-with-doretta-mcginnis/)

If you enjoy the podcast, we'd love a nice review and/or rating on iTunes. And feel free to reach out to us directly. You can always reach us via the contact form on the Law School Toolbox website (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/contact). And check out our bar exam site: Bar Exam Toolbox (http://barexamtoolbox.com).

Thanks for listening! Best of luck with the bar exam.

Alison & Lee

Resources:

• How Your Legal Writing Class Prepares You for the MPT (http://barexamtoolbox.com/how-your-legal-writing-class-prepares-you-for-the-mpt/)
• Read More of Doretta's Advice at Bar Exam Toolbox (http://barexamtoolbox.com/author/dorettamcginnis/)

Welcome back! Today, we're talking with Jeremy Blachman and Cameron Stracher, authors of "The Curve," a new novel set in a sinking ship of a law school. It addresses a number of critical issues in legal education today (and might make some people think twice about signing up to pay full tuition at a low-ranked law school offering limited job prospects!).

Join us for a wide-ranging discussion on the realities of law school today.

*This post contains an affiliate link

In this episode we discuss:

• Why law school isn't a panacea for not knowing what to do with your life
• Jeremy and Cameron's law school, and post-law school, stories
• Should you go to law school? What if you really want to be a writer?
• What should students be thinking about before they commit to law school?
• Why you should read this book before you go to law school
• Words of Wisdom for law students and young lawyers

Resources:

• The Curve (http://amzn.to/1U0cQv2)
• The Curve Novel Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/thecurvenovel)
• The Curve Novel Satirical Website (http://www.seemanhattanlawschool.com/)

Thanks for listening!

If you enjoy the podcast, we'd love a nice review and/or rating on iTunes. And feel free to reach out to us directly. You can always reach us via the contact form on the Law School Toolbox website (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/contact).

Enjoy! And best of luck in law school (if you decide life as a novelist isn't for you).

Alison & Lee