Academic Achievement Program

• Be sure to attend weekly Dean’s Fellows Study Groups.
• If you’re in a personal study group with friends, below are additional tips.
  • Take practice exams with a study group, and write out your responses to discuss.
  • Give the group 15 minutes to read and outline a response to a hypo and then talk about your analysis.
  • Reserve study rooms at the law library or the undergrad library and set time limits and goals for group study sessions.
  • Talk through your outlines in your study group(s) and make sure everyone understands the main concepts.
  • Use flash cards to quiz each other on rules and concepts.

• Capture your professor’s voice.
• During class, write down questions that your professor asks during class.
• During class, write down hypos and examples during class.
• During class, write down any summary or overview by your professor.
• After class, incorporate rules and concepts from your case brief into your notes.
• After class, review your notes to ensure that you understand concepts.
• After class, revise your notes to emphasize important concepts.
• Keep your notes dates and organized separately from your case briefs. 

• Organize you lecture notes, case briefs, examples, hypos, and other helpful resources in a way that helps you to understand topics covered in your course.
• Organize your outline around rules and not cases.
• Create your own outline that helps to answer an issue spotter essay exam.
• Work on updating your outline throughout the semester.
• Finalize your outline by the end of the Reading Period.
• Create an “attack” outline that covers the major concepts covered during class. An attack outline is a condensed version of your outline (2-3 pages) that uses a checklist or analytical framework to answer an issue spotter essay.

• Create flashcards and self-quiz on a weekly basis.
• Memorize rule statements from your outline.
• For open book exams, many students find issue-spotting worksheets and other types of check lists to be helpful.
• Many professors have old exams or practice exams on file at the circulation desk of the law library. Check them out and copy them. Be sure to write out or type your answer to the exam using a structured format (e.g., IRAC) – don’t just talk through the issues in your head or out loud. You’ll get much more out of practice exams if you practice them by treating them like a real exam.
• Prior to a student’s first exam, it may be useful to sit for a full three or four-hour practice exam to know what to expect from such a long exam. Think about how to manage time and the order in which one would do the exam components.
• Mimic exam conditions when taking practice exams.
• For open book exams, memorize major concepts, but also spend time making one’s outline user-friendly: Tabbing, highlighting, color-coding, cross-referencing to other sections and textbook page numbers.

Treat exam-prep and the exam period as a “marathon" and not a "sprint." Be sure to take one day at a time. Remember, thousands of students have gone through this experience for hundreds of years. so please take care of yourself and be as prepared as possible.

• Take breaks (a movie or quiet dinner after an exam) but then be prepared to get back into studying for the next exam.
• Get enough sleep, take your vitamins, eat well, exercise and generally take the time to keep one’s immune system strong.
• If a student is really ill and feels they cannot sit for the exam, contact the Dean of Students' office (305-284-4551) BEFORE exam time.
• Know that USUALLY one cannot make up a missed exam until the course is offered again. So stay healthy.

• Familiarize yourself with the exam classroom and dress appropriately—bring a sweatshirt, in case it's cold, but wear a t-shirt underneath.
• Prepare for any contingency on exam day (dead battery in car, rainstorm, no parking spaces, etc.) and have a good back up plan. Contact the Dean of Students if there is an emergency.
• Don’t discuss or "de-brief on the Bricks" after the exam. You can’t change your answer so focus on your next exam.
• Consider wearing earplugs. 
• Write down important numbers such as your C-number and AGN. It’s also helpful to know the number to the registrar’s office.
• Click on the following link for more details regarding exam day procedure. https://student.law.miami.edu/exams-grades/exams/
• Gather your testing materials the night before the exam and arrive 20-30 minutes early. It’s better to be too early than too late.
• Stick to your normal routine, and don’t do anything out of the ordinary (e.g., drink a large cup of coffee if you don’t drink coffee).
• Don’t stay up late cramming the night before an exam. Get some sleep, eat healthy, and stay hydrated because unhealthy habits may lead to you getting sick or feeling lethargic on exam day.
• Create a final exams schedule to stay on task, and after completing an exam, take some time to decompress before the next one.

• Carefully read your test directions.
• Stick to the recommended time for each question.
• Don’t start typing right away. Give yourself time to read the call of the question, outline, and organize your answer. This includes making a checklist of issues and identifying key fact.
• Be sure to answer the question that is ASKED.
• First answer questions worth the most points, if possible.
• Look over the entire exam before starting, so that you don’t overlook any questions.
• Don't assume anything.
• Use 'because" to connect facts with law and explain why.
• Analyze both sides of all issues to maximize points.
• Abbreviate names/concepts when appropriate. At the beginning, be sure to "clue-in" the reader with an explanation of abbreviations.
• If necessary, take a small break -- walk outside for a breath of air, to use the restroom or get some water.
• Don’t leave early. What’s the rush? Review your answer for issues, correct rules states, and additional facts to bolster your arguments/counterarguments.  
• For more tips on exam day strategies, read Law School Exams: A Guide to Better Grades by Alex Schimel.