Studying for and taking the bar exam can be one of the most stressful experiences of a person's life. If you are concerned about the bar exam or worried that stress or anxiety is interfering with your ability to focus, below are a few resources to help you deal with the stresses of the bar exam process.
- General Stress Management Tips and Resources, including everything from quick tips to counseling resources.
- These books deal specifically with test anxiety and can be found in the William A. Wise Library.
- Bar Exam Mind: A Strategy Guide for an Anxiety-Free Bar Exam | Matt Racine
- The Zen of Passing the Bar Exam | Chad Noreuil
- Daily Reflections for Bar Exam Study | M.G. Groopler
- The Bar is Easy | Kris Rivenburgh
- Talking to someone can help. A recent graduate recommended David Robinson, Ph.D, Clinical Psychologist, a specialist in test anxiety – David.workerrehab@gmail.com | (303) 581-9778
- Brainstorm possible test scenarios that are causing you anxiety and develop a plan that addresses these fears:
- If you have anxiety about not being able to finish the MBE in the allotted time, you could develop a recovery plan in case you fall behind during the exam. The recovering plan might be to guess on the next 5 questions to get back on track and only return to skipped questions if you have time after completing all of the remaining MBE questions.
- If you have anxiety about reading a MEE question and not remembering anything about the topic, you could develop a plan for moving on so you don’t waste time on that question. The plan might be to take three deep breaths, skip the question, and only return to it if you have time after answering all of the remaining MEE questions.
- If you have anxiety about your computer crashing in the middle of the exam (which means that you are forced to handwrite), you could develop a plan to feel confident about handwriting the exam. The plan might involve practicing handwriting every fourth practice MEE and MPT that you complete.