Where's a Good Nap Time When You Need One? Law School Exam Day EssentialsJun 20 '01 Write an essay on this topic.
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The Bottom Line In this second of the three part series, I’ll give you a guide to supplies essential to taking a law school exam. If you’re ready, we’ll begin …
A semester of work has brought you to this moment. It all seemed so much simpler in college – a couple of days before the exam, you’d get your notes together, read them for a few hours and then wait an hour before your exam to read your notes again. However, as I explained in part one of this three-part series (see the Self-Aggrandizement section or the copy of that essay that I kept on my hard drive for details), preparing for a law school exam is an extended process. It can often seem like a never-ending experience, that you will spend the rest of your life preparing for a class or an exam. However, what matters right now is the exam that you are taking at the moment, not the exam you’ll be taking two days in the future. So, here you are – you’ve spent the semester preparing, you studied your professors’ old exams, and generally devoted yourself to this moment. What’s next? Well, unfortunately, now you will actually have to take the exam. But, if you go in prepared, the process won’t be half as painful as it can be. So, in this second of the three part series, I’ll give you a guide to supplies essential to taking a law school exam. If you’re ready, we’ll begin … Stocking Up: A Bottle of Water Never Seemed So Essential There was a time in your life (and mine) when all you needed to take a test was a pen or pencil. Sorry, those days are gone. Because of the length of each exam period (3 to 4 hours), one must be prepared for many of the eventualities that can occur. It may seem overly cautious but when you get a headache in hour two of your exam, don’t say Cate didn’t warn you. Pens and Lots of Them I am the unluckiest test-taker. During my Civil Procedure exam in my first year, I had three pens run out of ink during the final ten minutes of the exam. Three pens. My final pages of the exam looked like the sample test pad next to the Bic display at Staples. I was horrified and just a little scared. I imagined the look on my professor’s face when he saw the exam and I thought my law school career was over before it had started. I was wrong but it wasn’t an experience that I wanted to repeat. So, here’s what I recommend (and it’s rather simple, really): Buy many, many pens. Don’t use the pens you have in your home, in your backpack, or any place that has pens not packaged by the manufacturer. You don’t know how much ink is left and any that is left could have dried out. Go buy pens. I recommend taking in five or six pens with you to the exam (overkill, it may be. But better safe than sorry). And, if you’re interested (and as fascinating an individual as I am, who wouldn’t be), my pen of choice is the Pilot Precise Rollerball Fine Point Pen in Black (Yes, I have a favorite pen. I’m secure with that.) Your Pain Reliever of Choice. When They Say Law School Is a Headache, They Mean It. Literally I am, by nature, a worrier. I plan for every eventuality, believing firmly that Murphy had it right: whatever can go wrong, will go wrong. So, I try to circumvent fate by preparing and preparing and preparing. This kind of mindset will surely give one a headache. However, my headaches tend to hit in a moment when I am completely occupied with something other than worrying. In my case, during an exam. I do get headaches during other times in the year. Nonetheless, my studying-until-you-can-study-no-more headaches hit when, well, I’m studying no more. So, I am always prepared with two Advil caplets when that headache hits. People do get headaches for other reasons (eye strain, tiredness, pressure of the exam, the guy behind you whose nervous habit is kicking the back of your seat), so I do recommend that you bring your pain reliever of choice. A headache should be your last worry during an exam and, if you have a persistent headache, it will lower your concentration level. Water, Soda, and Candy. Your Exam Food Groups As I mentioned in my previous section, a headache is as sure a concentration-killer as any. And, another source of headaches is dehydration. One can become so intent on what they are doing, they forget to drink or eat. That’s when a headache can occur. Always, always bring a bottle (not a gallon) of water with you into the exam with you. Then, every half-hour or so (or when you feeling thirsty) take a couple of sips – enough to ward off dehydration but not so much that you will need to leave the exam room to make use of the facilities. Being hydrated will provide you with more energy and it can prevent any headaches that result from dehydration. Sometimes, though, that bottle of water needs to be supplemented (but not replaced). That’s when you need sugar. I am, personally, not a regular consumer of highly carbonated, highly caffeinated and extraordinarily sweetened drinks (I am currently engaged in a long-term relationship with Snapple Lemon Iced Tea – my other exam drink of choice.) But there are times when a person needs sugar. This usually occurs during the final hour of the exam. At this point, your energy level is probably dipping and you are not as focused as you were earlier in the exam. This occurrence can be offset by eating breakfast (if a morning exam) or lunch (if an afternoon exam). While you are certainly nervous on the day of an exam (which usually limits my appetite) and believe you could be doing more important things, like alphabetizing your index cards, I do recommend you eat something, anything, even if it’s only a muffin. But even with these precautions, a three-to-four-hour exam will certainly drain you. That’s why I recommend sugar. I could recommend something like nuts, which will provide you with energy for a longer period. However, nuts are slower in building this energy. You need a energy resurgence now. That is why I recommend you bring either a can of Pepsi (sorry, Snapple) or two candy bars. You need enough sugar to re-energize you but not too much or a sugar rush will make you so jumpy/hyperactive that you will completely scatter any remaining concentration. Moderation is the key. Spread your sugar supplies over the last hour of the exam to maintain a consistent energy level and a more focused level of concentration. Your Exam Number: Separating You From The Rest of the Faceless Masses Most, if not all, law schools engage in anonymous grading. This method allows the professor to grade an exam without knowing the identity of the student. This anonymity is preserved by assigning exam numbers to the students, with different numbers for each exam. So, no matter how you are given your numbers (whether on an index card or by email), always leave a copy in your backpack (if you take a backpack to your exams). Leave it there. After you finishing writing it down on the cover of your exam book, put it back. This way, you will never leave it at home and you won’t have a panic attack when you realize you can’t turn in your exam without an exam number. However, if your law school (as opposed to the University Registrar) provides you with the exam numbers, you might be able to get a copy of the number on the day of the exam. Still, I have no personal experience with this type of situation and would err on the side of caution. The last thing you need on the day of one of your exams is a situation to panic over. You’ve Prepared For the Battle. The Time Is Now You have all your supplies. All you need is a game plan, a way to take the exam a method to restrain the madness of law school exams. So, tune in next time for the game plan and the exciting conclusion to this series. Until then. Self-Aggrandizement Studying/Preparing For Law School Exams http://nylawgirl.epinions.com/content_1683660932/tk_~CB005.1.3  |
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