How Do You Prepare for the Bar Exams?

The 2013 Philippine Bar Exams has just wrapped up a few days ago and barristers heaved a sigh of relief after hurdling the 4-week, month-long exams. It is a daunting place to be in, right? I know I will get to that spot soon and it would really help to prepare for it. And no, that's not me in the picture below, but, prepping for the bar is somehow like preparing for a big fight, ala Manny Pacquaio.

Wikimedia Commons photo

The thing is, I don't have a strategy to tackling this 'monster' called bar exams yet. Last month, I have managed to do some sketches (what sketches?) and diagram on how, what, where, etc. without filling in the details and stuff. See, I love planning and drawing them or putting them on paper makes my plan all too real and urgent. On top of this I intend to do some research on the dos and donts and as the end of the school year draws near, I might be able to put them all together in a nice understandable form and share it here.

Surprise, surprise, bar preparation for the most part, starts even before you warm your seat in your chosen law school. For the meantime, here are some of the tried and tested ways to prepare effectively for the bar exams and they come from my lawyer friends and cool law professors too!

Prepare early. 
A word of warning goes that the first day of law school should be the first day of your preparation for the bar. Scary right? I've been in and out of law school for heaven knows how long and I am sure a lot of working law students can relate that being a working person with a host of other priorities can botch your seamless study of the subjects. But reading and udnerstanding what your reading and of course studying like your life depended on it is greatly helps!

Good that I had some really great mentors during my basic law subjects in 1st year and 2nd year which helped me remember the important tenets. So,  definitely not forgetting what you learned in those years will do you good during review and the exams itself.

Buy Law Books
Many law students grimace at the price of law books these days, but the sacrifice is definitely worth it come review time and of course, the bar exams itself! These books are your weapons of destruction to slay that bar exams 'monster'. Of course I know not everyone can buy all  law books each time but for the major subjects, it is definitely a must and you won't regret it.

There are times before that I had to scrimp on buying make up hence, not wearing mascara for a few weeks or to the point of buying a nice pair of shoes to be able to purchase a single law books. Sometimes I would not use my car for a week or two cause I am saving the gas money for buying a book. Yay, the thick ones can set you back by a thousand of more! So you might have to forego buying that branded bag or shoes for now. Law education is not cheap even in the Philippines but, I'm telling you, come review time, you will give yourself a pat in the wherever. It is definitely worth it!

Be Updated About New Laws and Current Events
The study of law is a dynamic process and you need to keep abreast with the times. It helps if you would be reading not just your dear law books but also newspapers and new magazines, or law reviews, etc. So instead of spending too much time on Facebook, posting selfies on Instagram, and posting tweets on Twitter, take time to surf the sites of national dailies as well and keep yourself abreasted with what's going on in the world around you.

So far, this are the really golden advise that my friends and mentors try to hammer into my head and hopefully it gets internalized into my heart to help me well prepare for the exams. I have a few insights myself but that is another topic for another post.

In case you have a few bursts of wisdom to add, why not click on the 'Comment' button and share it to us!

So fellow law students, be prepared, starting NOW na!


The Blogger

Hi! I'm a law student from Manila, Philippines.  I did Political Science, then Industrial Relations major in H.R. (postgrad) studies from UP.  I vlog, weightlift, experiment with new makeup looks, try Bollywood and bellydance steps, and rant about my cray life in my YouTube channel.  Once in a blue moon, I create content for another YT channel,  10+ blogs,  20+ FB pages and in HubPages.  Check out my official site.