Advice for a 0L hell bent on being near the top of his class?

[Weezer1223]

I second kilroy's advice on relaxing. I went to into law school expecting to have to work my butt off 24/7 in order to make good grades. I soon found out that's not only NOT necessary, but also counter productive. Treat law school like a job. Put in 8 hours a day and call it quits. I had enough time to start a blog and write posts everyday and I'm in the top 10% of my class.

I did some reading the summer before 1L started. I felt it help in some classes and in others not so much. For example, my torts teacher's lectures went along perfect with Example's and Explanations, while my Contracts teacher was all over the place. Plus she had her OWN interpretation of contract law that was in many cases completely different than the E&E. When using supplements, remember that they're just that- a supplement. If you want to succeed in law school, tell the teacher what they want to hear, not what commercial outline says.

My final bit of advice is to do as many practice tests as you can starting in the middle of the semester. Law school exams aren't not only about what you know, but whether you can tell your professor what you know in a certain amount of time. This skill takes practice. So do as much of it as you can.

[kilroy55]

I second kilroy's advice on relaxing. I went to into law school expecting to have to work my butt off 24/7 in order to make good grades. I soon found out that's not only NOT necessary, but also counter productive. Treat law school like a job. Put in 8 hours a day and call it quits. I had enough time to start a blog and write posts everyday and I'm in the top 10% of my class.

I did some reading the summer before 1L started. I felt it help in some classes and in others not so much. For example, my torts teacher's lectures went along perfect with Example's and Explanations, while my Contracts teacher was all over the place. Plus she had her OWN interpretation of contract law that was in many cases completely different than the E&E. When using supplements, remember that they're just that- a supplement. If you want to succeed in law school, tell the teacher what they want to hear, not what commercial outline says.

My final bit of advice is to do as many practice tests as you can starting in the middle of the semester. Law school exams aren't not only about what you know, but whether you can tell your professor what you know in a certain amount of time. This skill takes practice. So do as much of it as you can.

I forgot to mention practice tests.  I do those as well.  If at all possible, never go into an exam without seeing a previous exam your professor has written.  This isn't always possible.  I had a professor during the fall that outright refused to make old exams available, because he believed you should go into it not knowing. 

You are spot on about too much time being counter productive.

[vaplaugh]

tag

[Alamo79]

I'm in agreement with pretty much everything I've seen.  I used 0 supplements this semester, did my reading consistently throughout the semester, saved most of my outlining for the last month or so, took a bunch of practice tests during the day or two before the exams, and ended up top 5% for the semester.

My biggest point of emphasis from last semester (where I was "only" top 20%) was focus.  When I set aside a block of time to work this semester, I would work--not surf the net, not daydream, but read, focus, and make sure I understood everything I was reading.  I switched from typed-up briefing to book-briefing second semester (although for some classes, I briefed the cases during class while professor was rambling or asking obvious questions), and I think it really helped, because I wouldn't decide to check email or surf the net or play poker while I was working.

I think relaxation is very important--for me, the key to relaxation was feeling prepared.  If you've gotten behind on your reading during the semester, it's hard to relax because the test is going to be throwing things at you that you feel like you should know, and it breeds a cycle of freaking out, losing concentration during the exam, then freaking out because you've lost concentration.  If you feel like you know the material well, and get a little practice applying it to new issues (taking practice tests) in the few days before the exam, this will really help you relax.

Believe in yourself, not in the hype.  Good luck.

[the royal We]

tag

[MiamiLaw]

thanks for the awesome advice guys.  While it may be true that 9 out of 10 students won't be in the top 10%, who is to say I can't be that one person that is? I think that is the kind of mindset you need, not getting yourself freaked out or discouraged by daunting statistics like this.  I will definately be taking all the advice in here very seriously.

[paul1454]

So you guys think LEEWS really helps? 

Would you recommend the audio version or the live one-day session.

[Budlaw]

Dude...this question gets asked EVERY year. There's probably 50 threads of this over on the Pre-law side. It's like there's a script or something.

1: Here's my LSAT score and GPA what are my chances at X school?
2: I've been accepted at generic Tier 1 school but I've got a scholarship at Average Tier 2 school...what should I do?
3: I want to practice in Crappy City, but I've been accepted to a school in Sub-par city all the way across the county - will effect my chances of getting a job after graduation?
4: If I tell one school that I've got a scholarship at another school will they match it?
5: Damn Yale didn't accept me.
6: Why is BIGLAW so awesome? 
7: What can I do to make sure that I'm in the top 10% of the class?

[Strong]

That -40 is awesome.

[plex]

Wow, I am in awe of your -40