What can I do in the last 24 hours before the NYS Bar Exam? What’s the best way to spend the final countdown?
The single more important thing you can do on the day before the NYS Bar Exam is to try and rest up. Check into your hotel, or if you are staying with friends or in your own home, treat it as if it were a hotel. Try to shut out the rest of the world as much as possible.
If bar exam preparation can be seen as a marathon, the sprint you will have to take in this final mile is often the most taxing both mentally and physically. Right before the NY Bar Exam, try not to study. If you did what you were supposed to in the weeks and months leading up to the Bar exam, then your work is done and trying to cram in those last few hours isn’t worth it. You will be in a much better place for the last leg of this race if you take some time to stop and relax.
In the last twenty four hours before the NYS Bar Exam, go for a walk, see a movie or just sit and people watch. Have your favorite meal, as long as it isn’t too spicy — you don’t want anything messing with your delicate pre Bar Exam stomach.
Finally, for those taking the NY State Bar exam at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City, try to stop by and scope it out the day before the bar exam. This site can be particularly overwhelming and just knowing where you are going can lessen that to some degree. Remember to reward yourself for making it this far and embrace what is to come. You’ve earned the right to sit for this bar exam and that is quite an accomplishment in and of itself. Well done!!
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What are the dos and don’ts in the week leading up to the NYS Bar Exam?
studying for the bar exam
The week you take the New York Bar Exam is a stressful one indeed. You have spent years in school, months studying, and this one exam is all that stands in the way of your career taking off. Here are a few pointers to help make it a little more relaxed.
First, you should plan on staying at a location close to your NY Bar Exam test site. A hotel is ideal since it offers privacy and quiet, but anywhere close to the New York Bar Exam site will do. Also, you should plan on arriving the day before the bar exam (Monday) as that will give you time to settle in and mentally prepare for the daunting task ahead.
Next, you should resist the temptation to bring Bar Exam study materials with you; however, if you simply cannot live without them, I would suggest only a list of New York law distinctions or some MBE questions. Don’t cart all your NY Bar Exam study materials with you: you won’t need them and chances are all that extra baggage will only create added anxiety.
Most importantly, in between Bar exam days you should try to relax and get plenty of rest. Make a point of eating a satisfying meal alone or with company that doesn’t care to discuss the Bar Exam. Don’t stay out too late or have too much fun in the day between the Bar exams, as there is still work to be done. After the second day of the Multistate Bar Exam, if you are not taking the Bar exam in a second state, you should celebrate your accomplishment in whatever way you see fit. Cheers to you for a job well done!!
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