Law school graduation has come and gone and now you are wondering where to start. The looming bar exam has many wishing they could do just about anything else besides take the test. While most law school students start preparing their first year of law school, there is still time to get prepared.
The first item you can check off your list is graduating from law school. Now that you have your degree in hand, you are ready to take on a career as a lawyer, but first you need that to actually pass the bar exam to set you off on the right foot. The first reaction may be to panic but the truth is, bar review can actually be enjoyable.
Preparing for the bar exam is a big step that requires more than just a few hours a week of studying. Many suggest taking a few months to devote all of your time, as if it were a full-time job, to study for the bar exam. With the bar exam offered only twice a year, it can be easy for the exam to sneak up on you. Don’t let this happen so you end up bombing the test and have to wait another six months until you can take the test again. Taking a bar review course is a great way to receive a little extra instruction with your studies. You may have even started a bar exam review course, and if so, nice work! Either way, keep reading to learn what you should look for in a good bar review course.
See the following articles for more information:
- 8 Popular Bar Review Courses That Will Help You Pass the Bar
- 7 Critical Tips to Prepare Yourself to Take the Bar Exam
- How to Pass the Bar Exam
- Last Minute Reading for Bar Exam Takers
Now that law school is over, what and how you study can completely change. Studying for the bar can often be done from the comfort of your home instead of in a cold dark classroom. Even though you feel like you just went through three years of constant studying, there is a little more studying that needs to happen before you can fully relax. What you are studying for will also become more focused. Depending on your studying style and areas of weakness you can focus on a comprehensive bar review course or a more focused approach to a specific area. So what should you be looking at when comparing courses?
- Online vs in-person instruction
- One-on-one tutoring or a group setting
- Fixed or flexible schedule
- Bar passage rate for the program
- How does the program get its material to study from?
- Method to measure progress and areas of needed improvement
Here are some programs to look at when considering the above factors:
AdaptiBar – An online program for the MBE that adjusts depending on your strengths and weaknesses.
Bar Graders – A supplemental program that helps with the essay writing part of the exam.
Bar Made Easy – A personalized program to help with the first year law student’s exam and the bar exam.
Bar Outlines.com – A program with outlines and other study material to help experienced attorneys with New York, California and other specialized exams. The program is for self-study and in addition to other bar review programs.
Bar Secrets – Materials for a personalized program or in addition to another bar review program.
BarBri Bar Review – A nationwide review course with outlines, multistate and essay testing programs, and guidance from law school professors.
BarEssays – A California bar exam targeted database of searchable essays from past exams. The program is intended to be a supplement to the bar exam.
BarMax – A bar review course that can be used on devices to provide an affordable option. They also offer a guarantee of bar passage or you may be entitled to your money back.
BarNone Review – Receive personalized feedback with this bar review course. They modify the study for multiple bar exam takers.
BarPlus Bar Review – Personal tutoring on multistate and local parts of the bar exam.
BarRev – A California bar review with individualized tutoring sessions and a bar exam skills boot camp.
BarReviewSolutions.com – A specialized bar review for California, New York, and Uniform Bar Exams, focusing on essay and performance test support.
BarWinners – A California bar review course with comprehensive one-on-one tutoring sessions.
Celebration Bar Review and Test Preparation – A bar review course where you can study at home with test preparation courses.
Internet Bar Exam Review – A self-paced bar review for multistate bar exams that even offers a free trial.
Emerson’s Bar Review – An eight-week course using lectures donated for public use.
Fleming’s Fundamentals of Law – A bar review course with personalized tutors focused on legal research, essay writing, and multiple choice test taking.
Kaplan Bar Review – Kaplan provides instruction for a variety of bar review courses including LL.M. bar review and MPRE prep.
LawTutorial.com – Individual one-on-one tutoring for a variety of packages delivered over different platforms like FaceTime, Skype, or Google Chat.
LawTutors – A bar review course that helps bar students, law students, MPRE students and LSAT students with one-on-one tutoring.
LLM Bar Exam - With over 1,400 NCBE questions, consistent personal detail adds to a high pass rate with a money-back guarantee. The program specifically targets international LL.M. students.
MyBarPrep – Also with a money back guarantee, this bar review course has a little bit of everything.
Open Book Bar Prep – A customized curriculum delivered with one-on-one instruction.
PassTheBar.com – Scott Pearce, a bar exam tutor, runs this site. He has articles with strategies on how to pass the exam plus hours of free professional bar review materials.
Pieper Bar Review – A bar review class to help people with the New York and Multistate Bar exams. There is also a free MPRE course for working professionals and foreign trained LL.M. students.
ReedBarReview.com – The course is a performance-based interactive program.
Rigos Uniform Bar Review – An international provider of resources for professional licensing exams such as the bar exam.
Skillman Method – A year-round bar exam prep course that also has law school course resources.
Southwest Bar Review – The course is an advanced review just for the Texas bar. They offer a tutor for each student.
The Bar Coach – A one-on-one program that offers support on the essay and performance parts of the California bar exam.
The Bar Code – The program was designed by former bar graders intended for repeat and out-of-state California Bar Exam takers. They offer workshops, private tutorials, small classes, and other resources.
The Bar Exam Doctor – A supplemental online bar review program that focuses on essay and performance tests for subsequent test takers.
The Writing Edge – A course on the writing portion of the California Bar Exam that is taught by a former bar grader.
Themis Bar Review – An online bar review that aims to be an affordable option.
United States Virgin Islands Bar Review – This review course is specifically designed for bar exam takers in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
