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jswranch

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Virginia July 2018 Bar Exam Thread

Post by jswranch » Tue Mar 20, 2018 4:28 pm

I didn’t see an official July 2018 thread yet, so I figured I’d start one for questions/discussions specific to this exam date.

Anyone have any good online resources? Themis recently ticked me off with their increased prices, so I am looking for a free alternative.

shwng

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Re: Virginia July 2018 Bar Exam Thread

Post by shwng » Fri Apr 27, 2018 1:03 pm

Two time bar taker here. Just found out a couple weeks ago that I passed! I found the prep course from Barbri to not be sufficient after my first attempt. The second attempt I passed and scored high enough to waive into the D.C. bar as well as being licensed in Virginia. Barbri really fell short on the virginia essay test i thought. The resources I used the second time were:

MBE:
- Barbri
- Emmanuels - for MBE practice questions
- Critical Pass flashcards for the MBE questions

VA Essay test:
- Barbri (the practice essay equestion book)
- Lexbar (an online supplemental course for the essay portion)
- VEE Flashcards

The study aids that I think had the biggest impact for me was Emmanuels, Critical Pass flashcards, practice essays printed from past bar exams and some from the VA essay book, and the VEE Flashcards helped a ton. If i had to do it over, id pay for Emmanuels, Critical pass, and VEE Flashcards. Those three bar prep study aids made things so much easier the second go round. Felt like I had a really good grip of both the MBE and the essay portion. Look into all three.

Either way, study hard, stick with it, and I hope you do great and that this helps you at all!

Lili8

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Re: Virginia July 2018 Bar Exam Thread

Post by Lili8 » Sun Apr 29, 2018 4:30 pm

shwng, thanks for that helpful post! Where did you get the VEE flashcards? I'm guessing VEE = Virginia Essay Exam?

Lili8

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Re: Virginia July 2018 Bar Exam Thread

Post by Lili8 » Thu May 03, 2018 11:48 am

Interesting. Found the website and facebook for VEE flashcards and it turns out that the very first set was just made last month and the product launched last week. How is it then possible that these then-nonexistent cards helped you passed the bar. :roll:
3 Pinocchios - would not read again.

mraemorris

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Re: Virginia July 2018 Bar Exam Thread

Post by mraemorris » Thu May 03, 2018 12:38 pm

Lili8 wrote:Interesting. Found the website and facebook for VEE flashcards and it turns out that the very first set was just made last month and the product launched last week. How is it then possible that these then-nonexistent cards helped you passed the bar. :roll:
3 Pinocchios - would not read again.
He posted the exact same thing in the VA Feb 2018 thread, too! Top notch investigation here, lol!

On a more serious note, you'll have plenty of materials with Barbri or the other big bar prep programs. I think it's more worthwhile to supplement using the things that worked well for you in law school (i.e. outlining, making your own flashcards), doing more practice questions/reviewing the explanatory answers, and doing additional essays. If you finish all the multiple choice questions on Studysmart/in the book, Barbri has a few extra exams on the "other materials" section of the Enrolled Student Center site. You can also try the Adaptibar free trial, or supplement with the whole Adaptibar if it gives you peace of mind. As for essays, if you email Barbri, they'll assign more graded essays, and once you get the writing style/structure down, you can work through the whole book of essay prompts. You can also look at past essay questions and the 10 point answers or William and Mary's model answers. As long as you work through the materials with a focus on quality learning, rather than just getting the green check mark, you'll be more than prepared--the supplemental materials I mention aren't necessary, but doing extra may give you more peace of mind.

Also, to anyone interested, I have a full set of (well-loved) Barbri Feb. 2018 books that I'm hoping to unload for the cost of my deposit & shipping - PM if you're interested! Thanks!

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Lili8

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Re: Virginia July 2018 Bar Exam Thread

Post by Lili8 » Fri May 04, 2018 9:48 am

mraemorris wrote:[

He posted the exact same thing in the VA Feb 2018 thread, too! Top notch investigation here, lol!
I mean, he could have put a little bit more thought into the fraud.
mraemorris wrote:[

He posted the exact same thing in the VA Feb 2018 thread, too! Top notch investigation here, lol!

On a more serious note, you'll have plenty of materials with Barbri or the other big bar prep programs. I think it's more worthwhile to supplement using the things that worked well for you in law school (i.e. outlining, making your own flashcards), doing more practice questions/reviewing the explanatory answers, and doing additional essays. If you finish all the multiple choice questions on Studysmart/in the book, Barbri has a few extra exams on the "other materials" section of the Enrolled Student Center site. You can also try the Adaptibar free trial, or supplement with the whole Adaptibar if it gives you peace of mind. As for essays, if you email Barbri, they'll assign more graded essays, and once you get the writing style/structure down, you can work through the whole book of essay prompts. You can also look at past essay questions and the 10 point answers or William and Mary's model answers. As long as you work through the materials with a focus on quality learning, rather than just getting the green check mark, you'll be more than prepared--the supplemental materials I mention aren't necessary, but doing extra may give you more peace of mind.

Also, to anyone interested, I have a full set of (well-loved) Barbri Feb. 2018 books that I'm hoping to unload for the cost of my deposit & shipping - PM if you're interested! Thanks!

Thanks for this. I passed another bar several moons ago, and this strategy sounds legit. VA has me a bit apprehensive, with its specialness and all.

I'm leaning towards Themis this time, but not committed yet. Q to any and all: Do people who buy the BarBri books (rather than signing up for the entire program - what I did years ago) just rely on their books and other printed supplements for prep, given that they don't have the lectures (live or recorded) or simulated exams, etc.? Or are there other resources?

shwng

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Re: Virginia July 2018 Bar Exam Thread

Post by shwng » Thu May 17, 2018 3:54 pm

No deception intended. I know the guy who started making them, a former bar taker and I got his set that he used himself and is printing and selling. Sorry, should have been more clear on that. He is starting his own business by selling them, so I was just informing OP of the different prep materials I used, which also happened to include the new product VEE Flashcards. So I apologize for the misconception/miscommunication. I did use them though, they helped a ton. Emmanuel's was also the best for MBE, as was the barbri practice essays. Couldn't have passed without them. Critical pass flashcards are also awesome. Also if the essays are giving you trouble, check out Lexbar. I found his course helped me a lot.

Again, no deception intended! Just offering up my prep materials that helped me pass the bar. Technically they werent VEE Flashcards when I got to use them, but they are for sale now for the new bar season.

No matter which way you guy, find the things that work best for you and just put in the time. I found that a mix of flashcards, practice MBEs, and practice essays were the edge I needed after the first time. All three helped with just simple memorization, which I for sure struggled with the first go round.


Good luck bar takers!!!

shwng

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Re: Virginia July 2018 Bar Exam Thread

Post by shwng » Thu May 17, 2018 3:58 pm

Lili8 wrote:Interesting. Found the website and facebook for VEE flashcards and it turns out that the very first set was just made last month and the product launched last week. How is it then possible that these then-nonexistent cards helped you passed the bar. :roll:
3 Pinocchios - would not read again.


Def. should have been more clear. I was a guinea pig for when i took the Feb bar this year with them before they went on sale for the July bar "season". No fraud intended or actually here. Just mentioning all the resources that I found helpful. Good luck friends!

shaq23

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Re: Virginia July 2018 Bar Exam Thread

Post by shaq23 » Fri May 25, 2018 5:28 am

If anyone is interested in a good set of Virginia Bar Exam resources, here's a helpful site.

https://www.virginiabarprep.com/virgini ... resources/

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ScurryRay

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Re: Virginia July 2018 Bar Exam Thread

Post by ScurryRay » Wed Jun 06, 2018 11:47 am

Virginia Civil Procedure is brutal.

Anyone doing Themis? This J.R. Zepkin guy is the absolute worst. I did Barbri for NY and Themis now for VA. By far the worst lecturer. Guy is basically just reading off the outline with no context and no inflection or any attempt to make it interesting. Just droning on and on about obscure rules. Not great way to teach a complicated subject.

Sojourner2

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Re: Virginia July 2018 Bar Exam Thread

Post by Sojourner2 » Fri Jun 22, 2018 9:04 pm

I'm doing Themis. Just started VA Civ Pro. My school is a quarter system and we didn't get out until early June, so I am a little behind. :/

Has anyone decided how they are going to attack all the state subjects, especially Civ Pro? The sheer amount of material is overwhelming.

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Re: Virginia July 2018 Bar Exam Thread

Post by Lili8 » Wed Jun 27, 2018 10:34 am

ScurryRay wrote:Virginia Civil Procedure is brutal.

Anyone doing Themis? This J.R. Zepkin guy is the absolute worst. I did Barbri for NY and Themis now for VA. By far the worst lecturer. Guy is basically just reading off the outline with no context and no inflection or any attempt to make it interesting. Just droning on and on about obscure rules. Not great way to teach a complicated subject.
I came back here to complain about the same thing.
MOST BRUTAL DAY EVER. They couldn't have picked a worse subject to have this lecturer. No tone/context/inflection/interest. And it is the most tested essay subject in a state where the essay portion counts for 60%. What was Themis thinking? Christ. I'll have to invest another couple days to get this stuff down because I feel I retained f*** all from that extremely time consuming lecture series.

Sojourner2

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Re: Virginia July 2018 Bar Exam Thread

Post by Sojourner2 » Thu Jun 28, 2018 10:26 am

Lili8 wrote:
ScurryRay wrote:Virginia Civil Procedure is brutal.

Anyone doing Themis? This J.R. Zepkin guy is the absolute worst. I did Barbri for NY and Themis now for VA. By far the worst lecturer. Guy is basically just reading off the outline with no context and no inflection or any attempt to make it interesting. Just droning on and on about obscure rules. Not great way to teach a complicated subject.
I came back here to complain about the same thing.
MOST BRUTAL DAY EVER. They couldn't have picked a worse subject to have this lecturer. No tone/context/inflection/interest. And it is the most tested essay subject in a state where the essay portion counts for 60%. What was Themis thinking? Christ. I'll have to invest another couple days to get this stuff down because I feel I retained f*** all from that extremely time consuming lecture series.
I'm curious how much you're planning to memorize. Are you going to try to commit to memory every one of the SOLs he talked about? That seems almost impossible. I was planning to just try to memorize the stuff in the shorter handout he made that Judy sent out, but I don't know if that's enough material.

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Lili8

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Re: Virginia July 2018 Bar Exam Thread

Post by Lili8 » Thu Jun 28, 2018 11:19 pm

Sojourner2 wrote:
I'm curious how much you're planning to memorize. Are you going to try to commit to memory every one of the SOLs he talked about? That seems almost impossible. I was planning to just try to memorize the stuff in the shorter handout he made that Judy sent out, but I don't know if that's enough material.
I'm just going to focus on the shorter handout, or else I'd drive myself crazy since this isn't just the Virginia Civil Procedure Bar Exam. There's just way too much stuff to memorize all of them.

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Re: Virginia July 2018 Bar Exam Thread

Post by Sojourner2 » Sun Jul 01, 2018 10:06 pm

Any VA bar exam takers making flash cards of the state subjects? I started to but stopped after trying it for two subjects. It took me way too long. But I don't know how else to tackle the mountain of material. I can't learn from the lecture handouts. There's too much in all of them.

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Re: Virginia July 2018 Bar Exam Thread

Post by ScurryRay » Mon Jul 02, 2018 10:28 pm

Way too many VA state subjects. I don't understand how we're supposed to remember this. NY bar was cake compared to this madness. We're three weeks away and I feel like I know 20% of the state subjects. Every essay is something I didn't know.

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Re: Virginia July 2018 Bar Exam Thread

Post by Sojourner2 » Tue Jul 03, 2018 9:31 pm

I feel the same way. No idea how to attack it/memorize it.

Any readers here who took the VA bar last year who have tips on how to get a handle on all this/how much we need to know (re: the state subjects).

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Lili8

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Re: Virginia July 2018 Bar Exam Thread

Post by Lili8 » Wed Jul 04, 2018 12:11 am

ScurryRay wrote:Way too many VA state subjects. I don't understand how we're supposed to remember this. NY bar was cake compared to this madness. We're three weeks away and I feel like I know 20% of the state subjects. Every essay is something I didn't know.
This! I did not have this kind of grief with NY Bar. Don't know why VA has to be so extra. I've just decided to focus on getting the most tested really well, or I'd not learn anything well enough.

ScurryRay

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Re: Virginia July 2018 Bar Exam Thread

Post by ScurryRay » Fri Jul 06, 2018 10:49 am

Anyone know what parking is like at the Berglund Center? My hotel is 4 miles away and I was planning to drive over early each day and park. Is it a pay lot or what?

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Re: Virginia July 2018 Bar Exam Thread

Post by Sojourner2 » Fri Jul 06, 2018 8:33 pm

I don't. I was just planning to uber so I didn't need to deal with parking.

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Re: Virginia July 2018 Bar Exam Thread

Post by hanner22 » Mon Jul 16, 2018 1:10 am

ScurryRay wrote:Anyone know what parking is like at the Berglund Center? My hotel is 4 miles away and I was planning to drive over early each day and park. Is it a pay lot or what?
There is plenty of parking at the Berglund Center and it’s free! If your law school doesn’t have lunch planned for you, I would recommend bringing a lunch in a cooler and keeping it in your car. There aren’t many options nearby and it’s a pain to try to leave the parking lot to go grab lunch a couple miles down the road.

ScurryRay

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Re: Virginia July 2018 Bar Exam Thread

Post by ScurryRay » Mon Jul 16, 2018 6:50 pm

Thank you so much. Very helpful.

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