The MPRE is coming up in mid-March, and we’re starting to get questions about MPRE study aids at the reference desk.  Our research guide, Guide to Bar Exam Resources, can be found online on our ClaraNet Page, and it has a section on Heafey’s MPRE study resources.  As noted in the research guide, we have a copy of MPRE Sample Questions V and MPRE Sample Questions VI (the latest set of sample questions from NCBE) in the Stauffer Collection.  You can also register to access a free online copy of an MPRE sample exam with an answer key at the NCBE website.  Good luck to everyone who is taking the MPRE on March 11!

It’s that time again!  Exams begin in less than two weeks, so I thought it would be a good idea to provide some helpful law school exam prep info on Heafey Headnotes.  Professor Dionne Koller at the University of Maryland has a very useful seven-page guide to taking law school exams.  Despite the crazy graphics in the background, her guide offers really solid advice for mastering essay exams.  And for those who are getting ready for the oh-so-fun experience of studying for the California bar exam, Professor Vernellia Randall offers tips on taking multiple-choice exams.  You can find a wealth of additional exam prep resources on the Law School Academic Support Blog.

With the proliferation of free blogging software, it seems like everyone has a blog devoted to their personal trials, tribulations, and triumphs.  The singular experience of preparing for and taking the bar exam is a particularly popular blog topic, and for those of you steeling yourselves for the next two months of bar prep, we’ve prepared a mini-guide to blogs about the bar exam experience.  If you’re looking for blogs about the California bar experience, check out California Bar Girl.  The author is embarking on a self-study program for the July 2006 exam.  Phubar and go west, young (wo)man both took the Febuary 2006 CA bar exam, but you can read all about their journeys through bar prep and the exam itself.  Sua Sponte originally began as a blog about being a transfer law student, but the author also blogged the July 2005 California bar exam in great detail.  Livefromblogdahd just started his California bar exam odyssey, and he’s also going the self-study route.  If we find more that are particularly worthy of mention, we’ll post them here throughout the next few weeks. 

The bar exam is just four weeks away, which means we have a lot of graduates putting in long study hours in the library.  For those seeking to minimize distractions from environmental noise in the library, we have a few suggestions.  First, the library is usually at its most serene during the evening hours after 5 p.m.  Also, where you sit in the library makes a big difference.  The study areas on the first and second floors opening onto the main reading room typically have the highest level of noise.  If you’re sensitive to noise and movement, you’ll want to steer clear of these areas because both of the library’s service desks will generate some sound while the library is open.  Not surprisingly, the quietest study areas are the stacks located in the back of the library on the first and second floors.    If you want to ensure that you won’t be distracted while you’re studying, you might want to invest in a MP3 player.  These days, iTunes offers lots of study-conducive tracks, including jazz, classical music, and nature sounds.  My own recommendation -- anything by John Coltrane.  My handful of John Coltrane CDs and tapes got me through law school finals and the bar exam.  (Yes, I took the CA bar before the sleek and compact iPod was invented and had to haul my clunky Walkman and cassette tapes to the library.)  Also, for those of you who prefer chirping birds or surf sounds to instrumental music, Christopher Breen has a useful article on finding really long nature sound tracks on iTunes.  Finally, don’t forget that Heafey always has a bin of free ear plugs available at the Circulation Desk.

We are only two months away from the July bar exam.  If you are looking for bar exam materials in the Heafey Law Library please read our research guide.  It contains links to bar exam materials/resources, a list of study materials, and other information about the exam.  We also have materials on how to psychologically prepare for the exam, how to deal with exam anxiety, and strategies for success.

Bar Exam Research Guide -- Heafey Law Library

Check out this hilarious YouTube video made by the law students at NYU.  It is a parody of the song, "Barbie Girl", from the Danish dance group, Aqua.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0h_5URNi9lE -- I'm a Bar/Bri Girl (YouTube)

News is coming out of Los Angeles that the bar takers presently taking the bar exam in Los Angeles were affected by yesterday's earthquake.  The quake struck shortly before noon, during the morning session of the exam's first day.  The State Bar of California is in the process of gathering information about the disturbance, and how the quake may affect test scores.

Quake rattled bar takers -- Business Associations Blog