How to study for law school finals: sanity and strategy
How to study for law school finals: sanity and strategy
During my fall 1L finals, I was the first one to leave my multiple choice torts final. I later realized that was definitely not a good thing. After that exam, I understood why no law student in their right mind actually liked a multiple choice exam.
My HQ. I was working on some UCC Sales that day. Shipment/Destination contracts, to be exact.
It’s crazy and bizarre to think that my naïveté was just four years ago. I find myself in panic mode (and by panic mode I mean ready to stab myself in the eyes as my brains drip out of my ears) yet again. In two weeks I will be taking my last fall semester finals in law school. My emotions are simultaneously, “Thank God,” and “holy poop!”
I learned a TON about how to study for exams after my first semester finals. I still freak out but now it’s a more organized insanity and it’s worked out well for me.
So, here are five ways I attempt to keep my sanity while I study for law school finals:
1. You can never start to prepare too early. I usually start planning my study schedule the week before Thanksgiving. And I use Thanksgiving break to study as well. My family is not local, so it’s easy for me to get away with wanting to be left alone.
2. Make sure to give equal study time to all classes. Don’t fall into the trap of studying for exams in their consecutive order. It won’t work and you’ll end up cramming for the last few since you didn’t give them a few days of attention even though they we last.
3. Make a daily schedule. Schedule EVERY minute of your day. This is important because you absolutely must….
4. Take breaks. Not crazy 3 hours breaks. But enough time to rest your eyes, eat, make human contact (or don’t, depending on your mood and who’s around). Stand up, walk around, stretch, smoke, do a shot. Whatever. Just get away from the law stuff for a few minutes.
5. Get exercise. For the already fitness obsessed, this shouldn’t be hard at all, since fitness is usually a great stress reliever. But even if you aren’t running marathons of life, going for a 20-40 min walk can do wonders. Keep in mind that when you sit for over 10 or so hours a day, 30 minutes of exercise is not enough, so try to squeeze in more when you can.
