In my bar preparation, I am giving the essay questions short shrift. This is a sensible strategy for a few reasons: Most importantly, the essays are not weighted as heavily as the multiple choice questions (25% vs. 50%). For another thing, it's hard to practice for the essay test because the grading is not objective--I have model answers to my practice questions, but those are "ideal" answers. They don't really tell me if my crummy answers would pass or fail. This lack of feedback on practice essays may be the biggest disadvantage to blowing off a commercial prep class. Lastly, let's not kid ourselves, it's easier to fake it on an essay test than on a multiple choice test. After three years of law school, I should be able to write a plausible essay on even a branch of law I've never heard of.
With all that in mind, I picked up a book from the library that contains practice questions and short outlines (most are under twenty pages) of the essay subjects not covered on the multiple choice test. I also got copies of longer outlines of subjects I didn't study in school (commercial paper, conflict of laws) or did poorly in (family law). For the last week I have been reading quickly through one or two outlines per day, then writing two or three practice essays. To date I've written thirteen such essays. Most have been pretty poor, but my expectations are low. One day this week I plan to wrap up my essay prep by giving myself a complete practice test, meaning six essays in three hours. After that I'll spend a maximum of two days practicing for the "performance" portion of the bar (a test of one's ability to interpret and draft legal documents), then it's back to multiple choice drills.
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