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

Welcome back! Today we have one of our most experienced bar tutors, Ariel Salzer with us to talk about the essay portion of the bar exam. Many students dread (and even put off) practicing for the essays. We dig into why this is and give helpful tips on how to tackle those essays and find bar exam success.

In this episode we discuss:

• Why are the bar exam essays so challenging?
• The favorite strategy for preparing for the bar exam essays
• Why is practice so important?
• Why students refuse to practice
• Is re-writing worth your time?
• Why you need to do what makes you uncomfortable
• Preparing yourself mentally and emotionally
• Ariel and Lee share their bar essay experiences
• The importance of self-evaluation
• How to study the law to make your essays easier to write
• What the graders are really looking for
• How and why to take your timed practice tests
• How to make the bar exam graders' job easy and get maximum points

Resources:

• How to Pass the Bar Exam By Doing What Makes you Uncomfortable (http://barexamtoolbox.com/how-to-pass-the-bar-by-doing-what-makes-you-the-most-uncomfortable/)
• Sketchy Law (http://barexamtoolbox.com/tools-bar-exam-success-sketchy-law/)
• Lean Sheets (http://barexamtoolbox.com/review-of-lean-sheets-bar-exam-outlines/)

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). And don't forget about our bar exam site: Bar Exam Toolbox! (http://barexamtoolbox.com)

Enjoy! And best of luck with the bar exam.

Alison & Lee

Welcome back! Today we're discussing the top five mistakes students consistently make when preparing for the bar exam, with special guest Ariel Salzer. Ariel is one of our most experienced bar exam tutors, so we're very excited to have her here today to give us a rundown of the biggest mistakes she sees students making – so you can avoid them!

We'd like to thank this episode's sponsor, one of our favorite MBE bar prep products, Adaptibar (www.adaptibar.com). With Adaptibar, you can practice with licensed questions released directly from the NCBE and used on past exams, and the program will automatically adjust to focus on your weakest areas. Students also tell us that they love studying on their mobile devices and laptops, and leaving the heavy MBE books at home. Interested? Use code C8UX at checkout for a $55 discount.

Let's get to the show!

In this episode we discuss:

• The single biggest mistake students make when preparing for the bar exam
• How to take a "training wheels" approach to bar study
• Why you should do what makes you most uncomfortable
• Why you need to outline your essay on scratch paper
• Whether you should practice in exam conditions
• What does "minimum competency" mean in relation to the bar exam?
• Fixing your problem areas
• How you should be tracking what you personally need to work on
• Why it's valuable to come up with your own attack plans
• Memorizing in broad strokes vs. finer detail
• The importance of mindfulness

Resources:

• Bar Exam Tutoring with the Bar Exam Toolbox (http://barexamtoolbox.com/private-bar-exam-tutoring/)
• Adaptibar (https://www.adaptibar.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). And don't forget about our bar exam site: Bar Exam Toolbox! (http://barexamtoolbox.com)

Enjoy! And best of luck with the bar exam.

Alison & Lee

Welcome back! Today we're talking about some surprising LSAT myths with Nathan Fox, founder of Fox LSAT.

In this episode we discuss:

Nathan shares his top myths about the LSAT (some of which are pretty surprising!):

1. You should only take it once

2. You need to finish the sections to score well

3. You should closely monitor your time

4. The logic games are hard

In addition:

• Nathan shares his personal story about why he shouldn't have gone to law school
• How scholarships work in relationship to how well you do on the LSAT
• What do law school admissions people really care about?
• Alison shares her story about the LSAT and the mistakes she made
• How to build up endurance for the LSAT
• Why you need to practice the easy questions as much as the hard ones
• The importance of the practice exam
• When you should take the LSAT
• Why you shouldn't fear the logic games
• Tips to improve your LSAT score

Resources:

• Thinking LSAT Podcast (www.thinkinglsat.com)
• Fox LSAT (www.foxlsat.com)
• Nathan Fox on Twitter (https://twitter.com/nfox)
• Don't Go To Law School Just Because Your Good at the LSAT (http://thegirlsguidetolawschool.com/07/dont-go-to-law-school-just-because-youre-good-at-the-lsat/)

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 with the LSAT.

Alison & Lee

Welcome back to the Law School Toolbox podcast! Today we are talking about writing effectively in a summer legal job. Joining us as a guest is Doretta McGinnis, who has taught Legal Writing for many years and is now a Law School Toolbox tutor.

If you are working this summer in a legal context, tune in for tips on how to shine!

In this episode we discuss:

• How does writing in a legal job context compare to writing in law school?
• What will you be writing (and what you probably won't be doing)
• Handling things you may be asked to do but haven't seen in law school
• Getting guidance on your assignment and clarifying what you need to produce
• The importance of maintaining a record of what you do for research assignments
• What is an employer looking for in a summer employee?
• What should you be able to do in your summer job?
• What should your writing look like?
• Objective writing vs. persuasive writing
• The importance of asking questions
• Deadlines and how to meet them!
• How to anticipate the needs of your supervisor and why it's important to check in
• What to bring to meetings
• Getting the backstory on a case
• Is it ever OK to turn in an incomplete first draft?
• Behaving like a professional

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 at your summer jobs.

Alison & Lee

Resources:

How to Behave Like a Professional in the Legal Workplace (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/podcast-episode-25-behave-like-professional-legal-workplace/)

Welcome back to the Law School Toolbox podcast! Today we are talking with special guest, Fairuz Abdullah, Associate Director of Public Interest Programs and Judicial Clerkships in the office of career and professional development at UC Hastings, about how to get a judicial clerkship! As some of you may know, the clerkship process (at least for federal clerkships) has changed a lot in recent years and Fairuz has just returned from the NALP conference with some very useful information.

If you are contemplating a judicial clerkship, be sure to tune in!

In this episode we discuss:

• What the clerkship process looked like in the past vs. now
• How much have things really changed and what prompted the changes to the clerkship process?
• What do you need to do at various stages (1L, 2L, 3L, alum) to position yourself for a clerkship
• How your school can help you find a clerkship
• What the clerkship application numbers look like lately
• Who should be applying as early as possible
• What judges are looking for in their judicial clerks
• How to build relationships with professors (for letters of recommendation and phone calls on your behalf)
• What do clerkships pay?
• The questions you may be asked in your clerkship interview
• Alternatives to federal clerkships, like state and international courts
• Fairuz and Alison's advice for someone who really wants a clerkship

Resources:

Federal Courts

U.S. Courts (http://www.uscourts.gov/)

Online System for Application and Review (https://oscar.uscourts.gov/)

State Courts

National Center for State Courts (http://www.ncsc.org/)

Vermont Law School State Court Clerkship Guide (http://forms.vermontlaw.edu/career/guides/) (paid subscription by your law school)

California Supreme/Appellate Court info (http://www.courts.ca.gov/careers.htm)

Insight and Information for State Court Clerkships on NALP Connect (http://www.nalp.org/nalpconnect) (law school career office can access)

Federal ALJ Post Graduate Clerkships Guide on NALP Connect (http://www.nalp.org/nalpconnect) (law school career office can access)

International Courts

International Justice and Resource Center (http://www.ijrcenter.org)

Opportunities with International Tribunals and Foreign Courts (https://www.law.yale.edu/system/files/area/department/cdo/document/CDO_International_Tribunals_Public.pdf) (Yale Guide)

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 securing a clerkship!

Alison & Lee

Welcome back to the Law School Toolbox podcast! Today we're talking about how to get mentally prepared for the challenges of starting law school. These challenges might be academic in nature, or more personal. Luckily, there are techniques you can use on any type of challenge to ensure you're moving forward and keeping things under control.

Not sure what you really need to be worrying about this summer? Tune in and find out!

In this episode we discuss:

• Is law school really that challenging?
• Handling the volume of work you will see in law school
• The importance of time management
• How to plan your schedule
• Ariel's tip for finding self-motivation after a tough day
• Why mindset matters and failure is OK
• The importance of self-reflection
• Getting a support network in place before a crisis situation
• Planning ahead for difficult situations

Resources:

• The Rise of Gentleman's As and the GPA arms race (https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-rise-of-the-gentlemans-a-and-the-gpa-arms-race/2016/03/28/05c9e966-f522-11e5-9804-537defcc3cf6_story.html)
• Mindset- The Key To Success in Law School Podcast (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/podcast-episode-1-mindset-key-success-law-school/)
• The Gifts of Imperfection by Brene Brown (http://www.amazon.com/Gifts-Imperfection-Think-Supposed-Embrace/dp/159285849X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1461348008&sr=1-1&keywords=The+Gifts+of+Imperfection)
• Rising Strong by Brene Brown (http://www.amazon.com/Rising-Strong-Bren%C3%A9-Brown/dp/0812995821/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1461347962&sr=1-1&keywords=Rising+Strong)
• Mindset by Carol Dweck (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0345472322/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0345472322&linkCode=as2&tag=lawschtoo-20&linkId=WWLQ67H3M3IHO4NT)
• What Grit Looks Like in the Classroom (http://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2015/07/what-grit-lookslike-in-the-classroom/399197/)
• Take an Exam With Us Podcast (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/podcast-episode-22-take-exam-us/)
• Start Law School Right Course (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/start-law-school-right/)
• Free Start Law School Right Workshop (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/join-the-free-start-law-school-right-workshop/)

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 starting law school!

Alison & Lee

Welcome back! Today we are discussing the Law Review write-on competition and why you should (or shouldn't) participate. We've also got tips for success, should you decide you want to do it.

In this episode we discuss:

• The variety of "law reviews" of different types
• Who has to do the writing competition, typically
• Alison and Lee share their law review experiences
• Why you may want to do law review and why it can be important for your career (and why you might not want to!)
• The basics of the writing competition
• How to prepare for the writing competition
• Why you need a Bluebook (and need to be familiar with it)
• Why citations make a difference
• What the graders are looking for, and how you can make them happy
• What you should do when you get your law review writing competition packet
• The importance of backing up your work
• How to handle the diversity essay

Resources:

• How to Write a Law Review Note Worthy of Publication (http://thegirlsguidetolawschool.com/how-to-write-a-law-review-note-worthy-of-publication/)
• Ms. JD partners with NYU Law Review (http://ms-jd.org/blog/article/ms.-jd-partners-with-nyu-law-review-to-re-launch-our-annual-law-review-dive)
• What You Need to Know About Getting Onto Law Review (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/what-you-need-to-know-about-getting-onto-law-review/)
• How to Get Answers From the Bluebook (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/get-answers-bluebook/)

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 with the writing competition.

Alison & Lee

Welcome back! Today we're talking about avoiding exam disasters, even when you're not as prepared as you might want to be. It's not too late to pull things together, but there's no time to waste!

In this episode we discuss:

• What can you do if you just aren't ready for finals?
• How to catch up on your outlines and other study aids
• How to make the most of the time you have left (whether it's weeks or even days)
• How to triage and make the most of the time you have
• Making a study schedule
• Looking at your learning style and using it to make the most of your studying
• Evaluating what's most important to memorize
• How to be distraction-free
• Avoiding the drama
• Dealing with situations that could pop up during the exam
• How to regroup and reenergize after one exam to get ready for the next

Resources:

• Need to Get More Done in Law School? Try the Circles! (http://thegirlsguidetolawschool.com/08/tips-time-management-awesomeness-with-the-circles/)
• Ancient and Proven Ways to Improve Memory (http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/24/upshot/an-ancient-and-proven-way-to-improve-memory-go-ahead-and-try-it.html?smid=nytcore-ipad-share&smprod=nytcore-ipad&_r=1)

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 on your exams.

Alison & Lee

Welcome back! Today we're talking about what incoming law school students should be doing or thinking about this summer to get ready for law school (if anything!).

Before you go overboard and pre-read supplements for every class, stop! Take a breath, and use our strategies to get ready for your first year of law school in style, without ruining your whole summer.

In this episode we discuss:

• Lee and Alison share their experiences getting ready for law school
• Finding housing that fits your lifestyle and needs
• Thinking about your creature comforts
• What do you really need to buy? (It's less than you think!)
• Why you may not want to run out and buy a new laptop right away
• Preparing the people in your life for your new law school life
• Setting boundaries for loved ones
• The right way to leave your current job
• What academic preparations do you need to make?
• What supplements should you read (and which ones not to)?
• Why it's important to start thinking about your legal career now, before school starts

Resources:

• How to Conduct Great Informational Interviews (http://thegirlsguidetolawschool.com/how-to-conduct-great-informational-interviews/)
• Fast, Healthy, and Cheap Eating in Law School (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/fast-healthy-and-cheap-eating-in-law-school/)
• Law School Confidential (http://www.amazon.com/Law-School-Confidential-Complete-Experience/dp/0312605110)
• Start Law School Right Course (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/start-law-school-right/)
• Start Law School Right - Free Workshop Series (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/join-the-free-start-law-school-right-workshop/)

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.

Alison & Lee

Welcome back! Today we’re talking about everyone’s favorite topic – Test Anxiety. Okay, not really anyone’s favorite topic, but a really important one because so many law students deal with test anxiety in law school and on the bar exam.

In this episode we discuss:

• Lee and Alison discuss their experience with exam anxiety
• Your physiological response during exam prep and exams
• Why stress isn't all bad
• The importance of taking care of yourself in law school
• The correlation between anxiety and lack of sleep
• How to calm your mind and focus
• Coping mechanisms when you're blanking on a test
• How meditation and mindfulness can help alleviate stress and test anxiety
• Why it's important to control how you talk to yourself in stressful situations
• When you may need to explore other options for alleviating anxiety with an expert
• Meditation is not just for hippies - snipers and other elite athletes, soldiers, and high profile people do it, too!

Resources:

• Performing Under Pressure Before and After the Exam (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/performing-under-pressure-before-after-exam/)
• Caution Law Student Pressure Ahead (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/caution-law-student-pressure-handling-law-school-stress/)
• Defending Law School Pressure - Leading Up to the Exam (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/defending-law-school-pressure-leading-exam/)
• Law School Pressure - The Night Before and Morning of the Exam (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/law-school-pressure-night-before-morning-of/)
• Podcast: Handling Pressure in Law School (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/podcast-episode-29-handling-pressure-law-school-guest-dr-hank-weisinger/)
• Tips for Surviving Exam Anxiety (http://lawschooltoolbox.com/tips-surviving-exam-anxiety/)
• Law School and Mental Health http://lawschooltoolbox.com/law-school-and-mental-health
• Pema Chodron – The Places that Scare You (http://www.amazon.com/The-Places-that-Scare-You/dp/1570629218)
• HeadSpace App for Meditation (https://www.headspace.com/headspace-meditation-app)
• Warrior One (http://warriorone.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!

Alison & Lee