Examination Tips

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Examination Tips
Created by Ruta Stropus, Assistant Dean of
Educational Services and Director, Academic
Support Program, DePaul University College of
Law Presented and adapted by Clifford Zimmerman,
Clinical Associate Professor of Law and Director
of Academic Counseling, Northwestern University
School of Law
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Examination Tips - Overview

• What do I do . . .
• Before the Exam
• During the Exam
• After the Exam

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Before the ExamPreparation is the Key

• Read/Brief/Take Notes
• Outline
• Condense - Flowchart
• Research Your
• Professor
• Practice Exams
• Converse with your
• colleagues
• this is crucial - for spotting the issues

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Why Research Prof?

• What kind of questions does she ask?
• Multiple Choice?
• Issue Spotting?
• In Depth Analysis?
• Policy?
• What is she looking for?
• Caveat

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How to use Practice Exams

• From your prof
• From other profs
• Mimic exam conditions
• Exchange answers
• Take them often
• Retake to gauge improvement

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During the Examthis really starts sooner

• What do I do . . .
• During the 2 week exam period
• During each 3 hour exam

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During the 2 week exam periodyou must stay
Focused

• Sleep, visualize success
• Eat, exercise, keep your health
• Be prepared (water, snacks, watch, earplugs,
  pens, lucky charms)

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During each 3 hour examyou must use a Strategy
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Strategy for Essay Exams

• Pre-reading
• Prioritize Budget time
• Organize Outline
• IRAC

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• LAW SCHOOL EXAMINATION
• Directions  Do exactly as instructed.  Under
  no circumstances are you to speak or ask a
  question.  Be sure to keep your eyes on your own
  papers. When you have finished, sit quietly
  until everyone has finished this drill. 
• Read everything before you do anything.
• Proceed carefully and cautiously.
• Put your name in the upper right-hand corner of
  the paper.
• Draw five small squares in the upper left-hand
  corner of the paper.
• Put an "X" in each square.
• Sign your name in the lower right-hand corner of
  the paper.
• Put an X in the lower left-hand corner of the
  page.
• Draw a triangle around the X you put down.
• When you get to this point in the test, snap the
  fingers of your left hand. 
• If you think you have followed directions up to
  the point, write "I have" in the space below.
• Shut your eyes for just a few seconds. Then
  proceed to line 12.
• Now that you have finished reading carefully, do
  only what is asked in the directions that appear
  before the numbered list.

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Pre-reading

• Brain dump
• Read the exam twice, quickly
• Find the call of the question

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Brain dump

• Before you even get the exam, jot down the key
  words, concepts, checklist, or a skeleton version
  of your flowchart

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Read the entire exam 2X

• Once - all you need to do is circle the time
  allotted each question and the call of the
  question
• Twice - Note the general area of the law

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Find the call of the Q

• Issue spotting
• Full or limited?
• Analysis
• Policy oriented

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Prioritize Budget Time

• Decide which question to answer first
• Read the question slowly, line by line, issue
  spot line by line
• Be sure to use only that Qs proportional amount
  of time

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Organize Outline
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Ways to Organize Your Answer

• Parties
• Claims
• Date/chronology of events
• Keep your eye on the call of the question !!

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Outline your Answer

• I. Parties (Mary v. Joe)
• . Claim (Battery)
• . Subissue (Intent)
• Facts in favor
• Facts against
• This is good for Torts

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Write using IRAC

• Identify the issue 1st
• Articulate the rule
• Apply the rule - give the
• Prof. MOR
• Main argument
• Opposing argument
• Rebuttal (if applicable)
• Conclude - tell who will win
• and why!
• Dont forget about relief/damages

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More on Writing

• Start answer strong and clear
• Reread your answer
• Grammar, spelling, punctuation
• Edit and amend
• Insert outline?

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• A Crim. Law Exam Example (first only)1
• One night Al and Barb were sitting in a bar in
  the US discussing the situation in Northern
  Ireland. They admired the fighters in the long
  struggle and were disturbed by reports of a
  possible peace settlement. They decided to try
  to get additional arms to the resistance
  fighters. Neither of them had an experience with
  such activities, however, so they had no idea of
  how to begin. Charlie was sitting next to them
  at the bar and overheard their conversation.
  Charlie asked if Al and Ben were serious about
  their plans and they responded that they were.
  Charlie said he thought he could help them out.
  He told them about a stash of weapons kept by a
  private militia in a barn located several miles
  outside of town, explained how to avoid the
  guards stationed there by the militia, and drew
  them a map of how to get there.
• 1 This and the next 4 slides are from materials
  created by Prof. Judy Rosenbaum.

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Somewhere in your condensed Crim. Law Outline

• Conspiracy
• Agreement
• Mens rea
• Overt act
• Liability for crimes of others
• Multiple parties
• One conspiracy or several
• Multiple parties
• Withdrawal or abandonment
• Plurality

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• One night Al and Barb were sitting in a bar in
  the US discussing the situation in Northern
  Ireland. They admired the fighters in the long
  struggle and were disturbed by reports of a
  possible peace settlement. They decided to try
  to get additional arms to the resistance
  fighters. Neither of them had any experience
  with such activities, however, so they had no
  idea of how to begin. Charlie was sitting next
  to them at the bar and overheard their
  conversation. Charlie asked if Al and Barb were
  serious about their plans and they responded that
  they were. Charlie said he thought he could help
  them out. He told them about a stash of weapons
  kept by a private militia in a barn located
  several miles outside of town, explained how to
  avoid the guards stationed there by the militia,
  and drew them a map of how to get there.
• Yet to come overt acts, several agreements,
  withdrawal

Intent
Agreement conspiracy
Depend upon the idea of another-?
Intent
Charlies involvement
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And as you read on

• You keep in mind your checklist and look for
  other facts that relate to conspiracy
• Overt act
• Liability for crimes of others
• Multiple parties
• One conspiracy or several
• Multiple parties
• Withdrawal or abandonment
• Plurality

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Your Answer

• Al and Barb
• Crimes
• Issue Conspiracy Al and Barb could be charged
  with conspiracy.
• Rule A conspiracy is an agreement between two or
  more persons to do either an unlawful act or a
  lawful act by unlawful means. The act element is
  the agreement or unlawful combination. Some
  jurisdictions may require proof of an overt act,
  or some slight act indicating the agreement is
  operative. This can be proven through prepatory
  acts. The mental state is the intent to agree
  and the intent to commit the target crime. Both
  the act and the agreement may be proven through
  circumstantial evidence, but evidence of the
  prepatory acts can satisfy both elements.
• Application Here, there certainly seems to be
  the necessary agreement to do an unlawful act,
  namely acquiring weapons by theft or burglary and
  send them to Northern Ireland. It should not
  matter that Al and Barb never fully indicated the
  precise details of how this would be carried out,
  because an agreement can be tacit. Further, the
  objective was clear because we are told that they
  decided to get the arms to the resistance
  fighters.
• Al and Barb also both showed the necessary
  mental state since all that is needed to show
  mental state is intent to agree and intent to
  commit the target crime, and if this is not plain
  on the facts, as it appears to be, then it could
  be established by showing that there were
  prepatory acts. The facts are more than enough
  to show the necessary prepatory acts. They
  researched custom regulations, tried to make
  contact with groups in Ireland, borrowed a truck,
  and actually began to drive toward the weapons
  stash.
• Conclusion Al and Barb can thus be charged with
  conspiracy.

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Strategy for Take Home Exams

• Do you outline the course ahead of time?
• Read, re-read, and outline the answer.
• Begin your analysis in IRAC.
• Add case comparisons.
• Explain THOROUGHLY!
• Writing counts.

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Strategy for MC Exams

• Try to think of the answer before you look at
  options
• Think of all MC Questions as True or False - if
  there is more than one part , i.e. I. II., A B,
  all of above, none of above, etc. take each
  option separately as T/F
• Guess intelligently - Eliminate as many wrong
  answers as you can using T/F method and beware of
  absolutes always, never, cannot, must
• Never skip questions

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After the ExamMove on

• Dont talk to anyone about the exam (do not worry
  about what you cannot change)
• Take some time to relax
• Get a good night sleep
• Get ready for the next exam (focus)

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Examination Tips - Overview

• Before the Exam we prepare
• During the Exam we focus and use a strategy
• After the Exam
• we move on

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Good Luck on your exams!