2018 February CA Bar Forum

Discussions related to the bar exam are found in this forum
Forum rules
Anonymous Posting

Anonymous posting is only appropriate when you are sharing sensitive information about bar exam prep. You may anonymously respond on topic to these threads. Unacceptable uses include: harassing another user, joking around, testing the feature, or other things that are more appropriate in the lounge.

Failure to follow these rules will get you outed, warned, or banned."
onlythreemonths

New
Posts: 19
Joined: Mon Nov 20, 2017 5:06 pm

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by onlythreemonths » Mon Nov 20, 2017 5:11 pm

I really hate that I have to study for this exam again, but I keep telling myself it'll basically be over three months from now. We got this, guys!

Pema

New
Posts: 55
Joined: Sun Nov 19, 2017 4:46 pm

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by Pema » Mon Nov 20, 2017 5:29 pm

SFassociate wrote:
Pema wrote:New laptop recommendations specifically for ease of use with ExamSoft? What to avoid? Thanks.

I used my MacBook Air and it was great- no issues whatsoever. And they are just great laptops in general IMO

My friend used a cheap laptop (not Mac) and it freaked out on her during the exam and she almost had to hand write.

Thanks. Maybe my older MB Pro will be fine.

Got'eem

New
Posts: 15
Joined: Wed Feb 22, 2017 3:50 am

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by Got'eem » Mon Nov 20, 2017 5:40 pm

Scored 1434.5 and that’s with examsoft malfunctioning in the middle of the PT causing me to handwrite. I scored a 55 on it. Do I do what I did last time in feb and hope examsoft doesn’t crash or change something up? Do I pay to get the mbe handgraded? I got a 147 on the mbe.

InterAlia1961

Bronze
Posts: 286
Joined: Tue Feb 28, 2017 3:32 pm

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by InterAlia1961 » Mon Nov 20, 2017 6:10 pm

I passed this time around and wanted to share a little of what I did differently. This was my fourth attempt. This time, I didn't buy a bar review course. I used Adaptibar, the old books I had from Kaplan and Barbri, and a Civ Pro outline I purchased on Amazon. Then, I practiced, every day. I did 50 MBE questions one day. The next I did three essays. The next I did 50 MBE questions. The next I did one essay and one PT. I didn't deviate from my schedule, ever. I took Sundays completely off.

I wrote a rule statement for every MBE I did, even when I got them correct. I limited myself to one hour on each essay. When I checked the essay answers, I wrote out the rule statements, by hand and then re-wrote the essay correctly. I did this with the PTs as well. I did every PT on the NCBE's site (http://www.ncbex.org/study-aids/, scroll down for links), every essay on the Cal Bar Site as well as the older essays I found here: http://juraxbar.com/past-bar-exams/.

I used my outlines to help me with the essays, but I didn't do a deep dive into black letter law.

Also, I stopped using an outline format on my essays. One number for each call of the question, then underlining only...no more Roman numerals or formatting the essay like it's an outline. There's a cut rate bar review course out there that recommends a complete Roman numeral outline all the way through. Don't do it. None of the passing essays on the Cal Bar site use that system. You're writing an essay, not an outline.

I practiced under timed conditions, always. Time management is important on this beast. You have to commit to one-hour per essay and 90-minutes for the PT. I know many people who came up unsuccessful because they ran out of time, mostly on the PT.

The last practice MBE I took before the real test, I scored 68%. By practicing every day, I learned to slow down and lawyer my way through the questions, even the scary ones that I had no idea what the answer was on the first read.

I had a coach, as well. If anyone would like the link to her website, pm me. She called me often, kept me from feeling sorry for myself, and encouraged me to focus. Instead of talking me down when I was out on the proverbial ledge, she threatened to push me off it! She helped me to keep family issues at arm's length while I studied for this beast. It helped to have someone who wasn't emotionally vested in the outcome coach me and keep me centered. She has a military background and is a bit of a drill sergeant, apparently just what I needed.

Keep at it, people. You can do this. Focus, don't be pulled off your appointed task by feelings of inadequacy.

jman77

Silver
Posts: 627
Joined: Tue Feb 16, 2010 3:33 pm

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by jman77 » Mon Nov 20, 2017 8:18 pm

SFassociate wrote:
Pema wrote:New laptop recommendations specifically for ease of use with ExamSoft? What to avoid? Thanks.

I used my MacBook Air and it was great- no issues whatsoever. And they are just great laptops in general IMO

My friend used a cheap laptop (not Mac) and it freaked out on her during the exam and she almost had to hand write.
I used a 2015 Macbook Pro and it froze up on me right after I'd finished writing up my first draft of Essay 5 and was about to start proofing/revising it. I had to hand write the CPT after repeated attempts to restart (with the "help" of the proctor) failed. On hindsight, it didn't really end up hurting me, but it certainly made an already stressful undertaking even more so. At least 2 other people that I know of who used Macbooks in my testing center (this was for the July 2017 exams) had their laptops freeze as well.

When I took the NY bar in 2014, I used a 4-year-old Toshiba that I bought at Costco for about $400 and had no issues whatsoever with it.

All of this as my way of saying there are no guarantees that your laptop won't act up on you, regardless of what brand it is. The better advice would be to brace yourself for any unexpected issues so that you are able to proceed with the test as needed regardless of what happens.

Want to continue reading?

Register now to search topics and post comments!

Absolutely FREE!


LockBox

Bronze
Posts: 480
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2008 8:05 pm

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by LockBox » Mon Nov 20, 2017 8:55 pm

InterAlia1961 wrote:I passed this time around and wanted to share a little of what I did differently. This was my fourth attempt. This time, I didn't buy a bar review course. I used Adaptibar, the old books I had from Kaplan and Barbri, and a Civ Pro outline I purchased on Amazon. Then, I practiced, every day. I did 50 MBE questions one day. The next I did three essays. The next I did 50 MBE questions. The next I did one essay and one PT. I didn't deviate from my schedule, ever. I took Sundays completely off.

I wrote a rule statement for every MBE I did, even when I got them correct. I limited myself to one hour on each essay. When I checked the essay answers, I wrote out the rule statements, by hand and then re-wrote the essay correctly. I did this with the PTs as well. I did every PT on the NCBE's site (http://www.ncbex.org/study-aids/, scroll down for links), every essay on the Cal Bar Site as well as the older essays I found here: http://juraxbar.com/past-bar-exams/.

I used my outlines to help me with the essays, but I didn't do a deep dive into black letter law.

Also, I stopped using an outline format on my essays. One number for each call of the question, then underlining only...no more Roman numerals or formatting the essay like it's an outline. There's a cut rate bar review course out there that recommends a complete Roman numeral outline all the way through. Don't do it. None of the passing essays on the Cal Bar site use that system. You're writing an essay, not an outline.

I practiced under timed conditions, always. Time management is important on this beast. You have to commit to one-hour per essay and 90-minutes for the PT. I know many people who came up unsuccessful because they ran out of time, mostly on the PT.

The last practice MBE I took before the real test, I scored 68%. By practicing every day, I learned to slow down and lawyer my way through the questions, even the scary ones that I had no idea what the answer was on the first read.

I had a coach, as well. If anyone would like the link to her website, pm me. She called me often, kept me from feeling sorry for myself, and encouraged me to focus. Instead of talking me down when I was out on the proverbial ledge, she threatened to push me off it! She helped me to keep family issues at arm's length while I studied for this beast. It helped to have someone who wasn't emotionally vested in the outcome coach me and keep me centered. She has a military background and is a bit of a drill sergeant, apparently just what I needed.

Keep at it, people. You can do this. Focus, don't be pulled off your appointed task by feelings of inadequacy.
Beyond happy to see you write this post. Congrats

InterAlia1961

Bronze
Posts: 286
Joined: Tue Feb 28, 2017 3:32 pm

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by InterAlia1961 » Mon Nov 20, 2017 10:27 pm

LockBox wrote: Beyond happy to see you write this post. Congrats
Thanks.

PorscheFanatic

Bronze
Posts: 159
Joined: Wed Oct 25, 2017 5:19 pm

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by PorscheFanatic » Tue Nov 21, 2017 2:11 am

Only scored 1311 on July CBX... feeling a little down/scared already for not getting over the hump in February.

Already signed up with a private tutor and also bought Adaptibar...got a 1280 MBE and 1343 Essays so MBE definitely needs work.

I went to a T10 law school and worked really hard studying for this exam the first time around (did the full Kaplan program, even hired a Kaplan tutor the last month cause the amount of work I was putting in wasn't getting me to the scores I needed--obviously, based on my performance in July).

FinallyPassedTheBar

Bronze
Posts: 485
Joined: Sat Nov 21, 2015 5:27 am

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by FinallyPassedTheBar » Tue Nov 21, 2017 2:52 am

PorscheFanatic wrote:Only scored 1311 on July CBX... feeling a little down/scared already for not getting over the hump in February.

Already signed up with a private tutor and also bought Adaptibar...got a 1280 MBE and 1343 Essays so MBE definitely needs work.

I went to a T10 law school and worked really hard studying for this exam the first time around (did the full Kaplan program, even hired a Kaplan tutor the last month cause the amount of work I was putting in wasn't getting me to the scores I needed--obviously, based on my performance in July).

IMHO, IAdaptibar will provide the most benefit in your situation. 50 questions per day with a goal of 2300+ total questions answered by late Feb is my suggestion. I had a similar MBE score the other times I took the bar. But Adaptibar helped me to get 160+ raw in my estimation. I will get confirmation on MBE score this week from NCBE.

Want to continue reading?

Register for access!

Did I mention it was FREE ?


jman77

Silver
Posts: 627
Joined: Tue Feb 16, 2010 3:33 pm

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by jman77 » Tue Nov 21, 2017 3:41 am

6TimeFailure wrote:
PorscheFanatic wrote:Only scored 1311 on July CBX... feeling a little down/scared already for not getting over the hump in February.

Already signed up with a private tutor and also bought Adaptibar...got a 1280 MBE and 1343 Essays so MBE definitely needs work.

I went to a T10 law school and worked really hard studying for this exam the first time around (did the full Kaplan program, even hired a Kaplan tutor the last month cause the amount of work I was putting in wasn't getting me to the scores I needed--obviously, based on my performance in July).

IMHO, IAdaptibar will provide the most benefit in your situation. 50 questions per day with a goal of 2300+ total questions answered by late Feb is my suggestion. I had a similar MBE score the other times I took the bar. But Adaptibar helped me to get 160+ raw in my estimation. I will get confirmation on MBE score this week from NCBE.
How do we get confirmation from the NCBE? Also, we can only get a range, right?

FinallyPassedTheBar

Bronze
Posts: 485
Joined: Sat Nov 21, 2015 5:27 am

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by FinallyPassedTheBar » Tue Nov 21, 2017 3:57 am

jman77 wrote:
6TimeFailure wrote:
PorscheFanatic wrote:Only scored 1311 on July CBX... feeling a little down/scared already for not getting over the hump in February.

Already signed up with a private tutor and also bought Adaptibar...got a 1280 MBE and 1343 Essays so MBE definitely needs work.

I went to a T10 law school and worked really hard studying for this exam the first time around (did the full Kaplan program, even hired a Kaplan tutor the last month cause the amount of work I was putting in wasn't getting me to the scores I needed--obviously, based on my performance in July).

IMHO, IAdaptibar will provide the most benefit in your situation. 50 questions per day with a goal of 2300+ total questions answered by late Feb is my suggestion. I had a similar MBE score the other times I took the bar. But Adaptibar helped me to get 160+ raw in my estimation. I will get confirmation on MBE score this week from NCBE.
How do we get confirmation from the NCBE? Also, we can only get a range, right?

We can get an MBE "score advisory" for $25. http://www.ncbex.org/ncbe-exam-score-se ... -services/

The report will only tell us if we are eligible to waive in to certain jx based on MBE score alone. North Dakota has minimum 150 MBE score requirement to waive in. So that is the state I chose for my score advisory report. If the report comes out positive then I know I scored at least 150. Won;t get to know the exact score though.

FinallyPassedTheBar

Bronze
Posts: 485
Joined: Sat Nov 21, 2015 5:27 am

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by FinallyPassedTheBar » Tue Nov 21, 2017 3:07 pm

I got my MBE score services report this morning. It indicates that I am am eligible to waive in to North Dakota because my MBE score "meets or exceeds 150."

Another user here (I forget who) said it is now possible to "auto-pass" the CA exam with a strong MBE, and that the exam is a somewhat harder version of the UBE. I believe that to be true.

onlythreemonths

New
Posts: 19
Joined: Mon Nov 20, 2017 5:06 pm

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by onlythreemonths » Tue Nov 21, 2017 5:14 pm

My scaled written was 1366 and scaled MBE was 1426. Going into the exam, I didn't feel like I was able to commit enough of the black letter law into memory. My plan is to go over the subject material again, condense them into outlines, and do a few essays/MBE questions for the next couple of weeks. After that, I plan on doing 2 essays and 50 MBE questions using BarEssays and Adaptibar as some of you have suggested. Any thoughts would be appreciated!

Register now!

Resources to assist law school applicants, students & graduates.

It's still FREE!


ooda

New
Posts: 5
Joined: Tue Nov 21, 2017 5:19 pm

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by ooda » Tue Nov 21, 2017 5:32 pm

1413 here. Mediocre essay scores and awful Civ Pro, Contracts, and Real Property percentiles.

I only really began to figure out how to crack the exam about a month before July. If I can put in some good deliberate essay practice and shore up those weak MBE subjects, I'll be feeling okay for February.

Planning on checking into this thread occasionally. I struggled a bit during the isolation of bar prep this summer so I'm hoping we can forge a solid re-take community here.

User avatar
goldenflash19

Silver
Posts: 548
Joined: Wed Sep 21, 2011 11:15 pm

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by goldenflash19 » Tue Nov 21, 2017 5:51 pm

A couple friends and I used this strategy, and I think it is worth sharing. The PT is worth twice as much as an essay, but you’re only supposed to spend 1.5 X the time to complete it. We instead allocated 1:50 on the PT and 50 minutes a piece on essays 4 and 5. We outlined for 15 minutes and wrote for 35 minutes on these essays, instead of 20 and 40.

Our logic was that every 5 points we gained on the PT equaled 10 essay points. A score of 80 on the PT would give 30 points to spread on the essays. If you score even a 65 on PR (definitely doable even with 50 minutes), then you could survive with scores of 60, 60, 55, and 55 on the other essays.

The PT requires no outside knowledge, and time is the biggest challenge. It is low hanging fruit, especially compared to an essay topic you don’t feel comfortable or a curveball crossover. Having an extra 20% of the time to complete the PT can pay huge dividends. So many facts are included in the library can be used, and this extra time allows you to incorporate these in your answer.

User avatar
horriblegb

Bronze
Posts: 412
Joined: Tue Nov 03, 2009 3:43 pm

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by horriblegb » Tue Nov 21, 2017 6:35 pm

goldenflash19 wrote:A couple friends and I used this strategy, and I think it is worth sharing. The PT is worth twice as much as an essay, but you’re only supposed to spend 1.5 X the time to complete it. We instead allocated 1:50 on the PT and 50 minutes a piece on essays 4 and 5. We outlined for 15 minutes and wrote for 35 minutes on these essays, instead of 20 and 40.

Our logic was that every 5 points we gained on the PT equaled 10 essay points. A score of 80 on the PT would give 30 points to spread on the essays. If you score even a 65 on PR (definitely doable even with 50 minutes), then you could survive with scores of 60, 60, 55, and 55 on the other essays.

The PT requires no outside knowledge, and time is the biggest challenge. It is low hanging fruit, especially compared to an essay topic you don’t feel comfortable or a curveball crossover. Having an extra 20% of the time to complete the PT can pay huge dividends. So many facts are included in the library can be used, and this extra time allows you to incorporate these in your answer.

that is really interesting way to go on this, though I would be nervous cutting that much time off an easy, especially if one of the two is a racehorse question by itself.

PorscheFanatic

Bronze
Posts: 159
Joined: Wed Oct 25, 2017 5:19 pm

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by PorscheFanatic » Tue Nov 21, 2017 7:05 pm

When should I start practicing MBE questions?

My tutor has me starting December 4th with my study plan. But I only scored 1280 scaled MBE, so should I start doing Adaptibar questions sooner?

Get unlimited access to all forums and topics

Register now!

I'm pretty sure I told you it's FREE...


FinallyPassedTheBar

Bronze
Posts: 485
Joined: Sat Nov 21, 2015 5:27 am

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by FinallyPassedTheBar » Tue Nov 21, 2017 7:10 pm

PorscheFanatic wrote:When should I start practicing MBE questions?

My tutor has me starting December 4th with my study plan. But I only scored 1280 scaled MBE, so should I start doing Adaptibar questions sooner?

I don't think December 4th is a bad start date. But imo it's never too early to start MBE practice.

FinallyPassedTheBar

Bronze
Posts: 485
Joined: Sat Nov 21, 2015 5:27 am

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by FinallyPassedTheBar » Tue Nov 21, 2017 7:19 pm

PorscheFanatic wrote:When should I start practicing MBE questions?

My tutor has me starting December 4th with my study plan. But I only scored 1280 scaled MBE, so should I start doing Adaptibar questions sooner?

If I remember correctly, Adaptibar advises students to first do 50 questions in a single subject before doing mixed questions. So you might want to do your single subject questions now, and complete all the subjects, so that by Dec 4 you are doing all mixed questions.

Doobydoobydoo

New
Posts: 9
Joined: Sat Nov 18, 2017 12:13 am

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by Doobydoobydoo » Wed Nov 22, 2017 3:37 am

1382 essay score, 1387 mbe score... I thought I killed the essays but evidently not, but what really surprised me is the range of successes/failures in my results, 68th percentile for contracts mbe questions, 9th percentile for torts...and I got an A in torts, I thought I knew torts... I need to figure out this test is really about, Just thinking out loud, trying to crack this thing because I don’t think I fully get this beast yet

krispymenudo

Bronze
Posts: 230
Joined: Thu Nov 21, 2013 8:59 pm

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by krispymenudo » Wed Nov 22, 2017 12:33 pm

Doobydoobydoo wrote:1382 essay score, 1387 mbe score... I thought I killed the essays but evidently not, but what really surprised me is the range of successes/failures in my results, 68th percentile for contracts mbe questions, 9th percentile for torts...and I got an A in torts, I thought I knew torts... I need to figure out this test is really about, Just thinking out loud, trying to crack this thing because I don’t think I fully get this beast yet

I was in 78th percentile in Con Law and 8.8th percentile for torts. I felt the same, that torts was my strongest. And ever since law school Con Law, I always thought the subject was a convoluted mess. No clue how that worked out

My essays got a second read. On both, my PT got a 65, and I was sure that I bombed since my section on why the evidence would be inadmissible was literally 3 sentences.

Not sure what to do with this information either. Thinking out loud here as well. What even is this test

Communicate now with those who not only know what a legal education is, but can offer you worthy advice and commentary as you complete the three most educational, yet challenging years of your law related post graduate life.

Register now, it's still FREE!


misterX

New
Posts: 3
Joined: Mon Nov 21, 2016 9:00 pm

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by misterX » Wed Nov 22, 2017 1:33 pm

krispymenudo wrote:
Doobydoobydoo wrote:1382 essay score, 1387 mbe score... I thought I killed the essays but evidently not, but what really surprised me is the range of successes/failures in my results, 68th percentile for contracts mbe questions, 9th percentile for torts...and I got an A in torts, I thought I knew torts... I need to figure out this test is really about, Just thinking out loud, trying to crack this thing because I don’t think I fully get this beast yet

I was in 78th percentile in Con Law and 8.8th percentile for torts. I felt the same, that torts was my strongest. And ever since law school Con Law, I always thought the subject was a convoluted mess. No clue how that worked out

My essays got a second read. On both, my PT got a 65, and I was sure that I bombed since my section on why the evidence would be inadmissible was literally 3 sentences.

Not sure what to do with this information either. Thinking out loud here as well. What even is this test
Same thing here, you guys. 2 reads, upper 1300s on both, 82% on Con Law but only 18% on Torts (and Torts did not feel difficult at all during the exam). I don't get it.

nsv

New
Posts: 48
Joined: Tue May 31, 2011 3:36 pm

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by nsv » Wed Nov 22, 2017 2:19 pm

PorscheFanatic wrote:When should I start practicing MBE questions?

My tutor has me starting December 4th with my study plan. But I only scored 1280 scaled MBE, so should I start doing Adaptibar questions sooner?
I am 100% sure my MBE score pushed me over 1440. Every single day I would do 50+ mixed questions (over 3,000 questions towards the end of bar prep) on AdaptiBar. The key thing to remember is that you want to review the question right after you answer it.

laballermvp9

New
Posts: 70
Joined: Fri Aug 09, 2013 3:58 am

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by laballermvp9 » Wed Nov 22, 2017 3:44 pm

nsv wrote:
PorscheFanatic wrote:When should I start practicing MBE questions?

My tutor has me starting December 4th with my study plan. But I only scored 1280 scaled MBE, so should I start doing Adaptibar questions sooner?
I am 100% sure my MBE score pushed me over 1440. Every single day I would do 50+ mixed questions (over 3,000 questions towards the end of bar prep) on AdaptiBar. The key thing to remember is that you want to review the question right after you answer it.
Second this. What really helped me improve my MBE score was reviewing each incorrect answer one by one. What I would do with the BarBri practice sets is complete 5-10 questions at a time (instead of the full 20-30) and review the incorrect answers individually. It's easier to absorb more information and avoid the tricks that you will see on the exam. I scored 104/200 (20 percentile) on the final practice exam, but improved gradually and I felt good walking out of the Bar exam.

Just keep working at it and you'll get there. Good luck!

AntiHumanJr

New
Posts: 6
Joined: Wed Nov 22, 2017 8:02 pm

Re: 2018 February CA Bar

Post by AntiHumanJr » Wed Nov 22, 2017 8:08 pm

Missed the bar by about 100 points. Anyone know how difficult it is to close the gap on this and how significant 100 points is for CA?

Seriously? What are you waiting for?

Now there's a charge.
Just kidding ... it's still FREE!


Post Reply Post Anonymous Reply  

Return to “Bar Exam Prep and Discussion Forum”