by Marilyn Lindblad

Created on: February 02, 2008

Attention law students: Knowing how to prepare for the bar examination can make the difference between passing the first time, when your chances of passing are best, and having to take the test a second or third time, or worse.

Now that you've taken a few law school finals, you probably laugh when you think back at how much you stressed over the LSAT. Now you know that taking the LSAT was child's play compared to taking law school finals.

Similarly, the intensity and difficulty of taking law school finals shrinks when compared to taking a state bar examination.

That said, most applicants who take the bar exam pass their first time. Even if you're still in law school, there are plenty of things you can be doing to prepare for the bar examination and improve your chances of passing as you move toward graduation.

KNOW WHAT THE "BAR COURSES" ARE

If you are taking the bar anywhere in the U.S. except Louisiana or Washington, your state's bar exam will include the Multistate Bar Examination, the most difficult all-day 200-question multiple choice test you will ever take.

The Multistate Bar Examination is referred to interchangeably as "the multistate" or "the MBE." The MBE covers standard first-year subjects: Contracts, Evidence, Criminal Law, Constitutional Law, Property, and Torts. Other subjects tested vary from state to state.

In addition to the MBE, all states require students to complete essay questions on certain topics. Decide early in your law school career which state bar you will take after graduation, and visit the web site of the bar association for that state. Look for the Admissions section, and you will find a list of topics covered on that state's bar exam.

LOAD YOUR SCHEDULE WITH BAR COURSES

Use your list of "bar courses" to plan your law school curriculum. Take as many bar courses as you can. If Family Law and Secured Transactions are on your state's bar exam, you are going to have to study them anyway, and when you turn the page on your bar exam essay question booklet and find a question about a topic you studied for a full quarter or semester, your confidence will soar.

Get a head start on your bar exam study by loading your schedule with as many "bar courses" as you can. Save your study outlines from these courses, as they will form the basis of your bar review study outline for these topics.

GET TO KNOW THE MULTISTATE

Visit the official web site of the Multistate Bar Exam at http://www.ncbex.org. Read the entire site to familiarize yourself with what kind

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