u/Either-Ant1739

Hi everyone. I recently passed the CA Bar Exam on my second try as someone with insane test anxiety and who has never been the strongest test taker. The first time around, I used Themis and did not have the best experience. I think Themis, Barbri, and other big-name bar prep programs may be helpful for some people, but the material just did not stick with me.

During my second attempt, I purchased the GOAT Prep CA modules. For the first time, I actually felt like I was understanding the material, which also boosted my confidence. I took notes on the modules and honestly did not even start practicing MBE problems until after I finished going through all the modules (I do not recommend this approach, just being transparent). However, once I started practicing timed MBE questions while reviewing my notes, I went from scoring around 68% to consistently hitting 70–80%. From the very first 30-question practice set I did, I never scored below 70%. I am NOT a naturally strong test taker. Sure, the exposure from the first attempt probably helped, but at the beginning of studying the second time around, I genuinely felt like I did not remember anything.

For essays, I used Mary Basick’s Essay Book. It was exactly what I needed because I wanted to learn how to write essays the way bar examiners are looking for. To be honest, I did not spend much time practicing under timed conditions because I did not want to waste time reinforcing bad habits. Instead, I would read through the fact pattern while highlighting and annotating, quickly issue-spot, and then read through the sample essay. I also practiced writing out the rules and analysis for issues I struggled with.

For subjects I had to learn for the first time (like Community Property), as well as subjects I took in law school but realized I did not fully understand, I created my own outlines. I know some people say outlining is a waste of time, but this is how I learned in law school, and it helped the material stick. Sometimes during essays, I could actually visualize the structure of my outlines and work through the issues and analysis from there.

On test day, while I felt better than I did the first time, I definitely did not feel like I crushed it. As time passed, I actually became more and more convinced that I had failed. There were even MBE questions I looked back at afterward in my GOAT notes and realized I got wrong. But I still passed.

I credit all of this to God. And I am not saying that if this has not happened for you yet, God is not working in your life. I just want to encourage you to trust Him, stay the course, and keep going. He will carry you through the finish line.