I know, I know I promised! And it's still the weekend! On mountain time. Which I am not on. So we'll call this Monday's post. I guess.
Anyway, in my mad rush to study (I'm pretty proud that I've learned the basics of business organizations class in less than a week, thanks Barbri!) I made an glass-half-empty promise that I would put up my best exam tips.
Note: These have nothing to do with your class material. I cannot actually help you pass your exams. They are not proven by any sort of scientific study, and as such would not pass the Daubert test.* One size does not fit all. This works for me, and may work for you. So without further ado:
THE THINGS THAT HELP ME PASS:
5. Get a good seat. At my school, seats are not assigned, but they try to set up the classroom so that everyone will have empty space on both sides. If you get there late, you will have to sit next to people. They will get in your way, especially in an open book exam.
4. Just wear the damn earplugs. So they look ridiculous? So what! Have you ever heard rain on a tin roof during a really strong storm? Can you at least imagine it? That's the sound of 50 other people, typing furiously in hopes to get there exam done before the time is up.
3. You know this. Go into the exam telling yourself that you know the material. Because here's the thing: even if you don't, it doesn't matter. You're taking the exam right then, no matter what, and you can't study anymore anyway. Especially in a closed-book exam where you can't go hunt down a clue either. Just tell yourself you know it and it's not a problem.
2. Find your zen. Most law exams consist of 2-4 essay questions over a 3 hour period. This seems like a lot of time. It IS a lot of time. Or at least it's a lot of time in that you can take a breather. Read the question, read it again and mark it up, outline it, write it. Then close your eyes and count to five while taking deep breaths. Clear that question out of your mind, you don't want to get confused. And you have 5-10 seconds to do it! Don't just keep rushing through! If you don't have the extra minute to zen yourself, you weren't going to finish anyway.
1. Get up and go. I generally finish exams early, though not everyone does. When I feel like there's nothing left for me to say, like I've explored every fact pattern and possibility, I pack up and leave. There's no reason to sit there and torture yourself. If you did your best, you did your best. At this point, either go home or go wait for friends to get lunch/dinner together in celebration for finishing another exam. But don't talk about the exam! Remember, you did your best. Don't second guess yourself.
Above all, just remember: Stay calm. You haven't studied this hard all semester to fail now, so YOU'RE NOT GOING TO.
Now, I need to remember all of this for tomorrow's (today's) exam in Business Organizations...
Do you have any exam tips? Comment below!
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*Did I mean the Frye test? I don't start studying Evidence until Wednesday....
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