Thomas Jefferson School of Law - Preparing to Enter the Profession

Do as well as you possibly can in your law studies. Four of the six most-tested subjects on the bar exam – torts, contracts, criminal law, and property – are taught in the first year. If you can learn it once, it will be easier to recall.

Make sure you understand and record all deadlines and requirements of the state bar with whom you plan to register. Do this now, so you won’t end up paying late fees or missing deadlines down the road. California’s state bar website is: www.calbar.ca.gov

The website addresses for the other state bar admission offices are available at the National Conference of Bar Examiners website: http://www.ncbex.org/offices.htm

Register with the State Bar

If you are planning on taking the California Bar Exam, you should register with the Committee of Bar Examiners within 90 days of beginning law school. If you register after that, a late fee is imposed.

Many companies provide deep discounts if you sign up in your first year. After that, the price increases. Look into other ways to finance bar review courses, including bar loans.

Student Services has prepared a table comparing the different courses. Do a self-awareness survey to find out what type of teaching style will resonate best with you (in-class lectures? lecture tapes? private tutor? etc.). Contact the Financial Aid Office for information on bar exam loans.

Keep studying and don’t think too much—or worry at all right now—about the bar.

Second Year

The Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination is required for admission to the Bar in most states, including California. Most experts recommend that you complete Professional Responsibility course before taking the exam.

The process can take 8-10 months, so you should file the application no later than the beginning of your last year of law school. Your approval is valid for two years, so sooner is better.

Do a self-awareness survey and learning styles profile to find out what type of studier you are. Create a personal timeline, including study goals and a personal care regime so you can succeed.

Figure out whether there are any bar exam subjects that you will not take in law school. Identify any weak areas (e.g., IRAC, issue spotting, time or stress management, grammar and spelling, concentration, etc.) that you need to concentrate on. Use your remaining time in law school to address and resolve these so they don’t factor in to your performance on the bar exam.

Third Year

Applications for the July exam are usually available March 1 (timely filing by April 1; final filing deadline mid-June) and those for the February exam should be available October 1 (timely filing by November 1; final filing deadline mid-January). Space for those preferring to take the exam on a laptop fills up quickly, so the earlier you can file, the better!

Professionals trained to help our students pass the bar teach a Saturday course for credit. The program provides substantive review of some core subject areas common to most states’ bar exams, as well as instruction, practice, and detailed feedback on organizing materials and taking exams in multiple choice, essay, and performance formats.

This course is not intended to substitute for traditional post-law school commercial bar review courses. We still highly recommend that you take one of these as well.

A session will be held in mid-fall for December graduates and in mid-spring for May graduates to provide specific information about what you need to do for bar preparation. A follow-up schedule of small group meetings and workshops on specific topics are also offered.

As much as you possibly can, you want to remove all stresses and worries from your consciousness, so you can devote all your energies to studying for the bar. It is, then, prudent to dispense of one of the chief worry-inducers of all time: money. Sit down with your family and create a budget that includes:

Determine whether there are any bar exam scholarships or stipends or advances (most likely from a law firm that has already made you an offer) to offset prep course expenses.

Take care of any health-related issues now (e.g., minor surgeries, annual exams, eye exam—especially if you think you’re at all close to needing reading glasses!, beginning new prescriptions, etc.) so you won’t shake things up as you get closer to the exam.

If you don’t already have one, begin to establish an exercise, meal and sleep plan that puts you in the top physical condition you can be in a few months down the road.

Suggested Timeline

First Year

Second Year

Third Year