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Did anyone here completely screw up their first semester of 1L and then recover in the 2nd?


GGrievous

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SNAILS
  • Law Student

@Barry

It's simple. Hit the books a bit harder next term and you'll be fine.

I also envision myself working in criminal law. I'm not sure if your original post was talking about your Fall CRIM exam in particular, but I'll address that.

People that did not study hard were shocked after the exam at how good they had to be in navigating the criminal code and quoting relevant sections. People who did study hard were shocked before the exam and acquired the appropriate skills to nail the exam. 

(Disclaimer: the above reflects only my impression of how the exam went for people based on taking to people).

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Dad
  • Law Student

@Barry My midterm grades were pretty average. My lowest mark was a B-, then I had a B, a few B+'s and 2 A-'s. The midterm experience itself was brutal. I couldn't think straight and did not at all perform to the best of my abilities. I felt like I absolutely bombed everything, and I was researching alternative career paths before marks came out. I changed my strategy in 2nd semester and ended up finishing 1L on the Dean's List.

 

What I'm saying is: 

(1) It is normal to feel this stressed out, but you truly don't know how you did until you get grades back. You might be pleasantly surprised.

(2) Grades are just feedback on your study strategies. They are not an accurate reflection of you or your abilities as a student. No matter what the result is, you should stay humble and look for strategic improvements to make. 

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On 12/3/2021 at 10:12 AM, Barry said:

Well no I really don't, but it's probably inevitable at this point. Honestly this was my way of taking a breath. To come here and try to commiserate with someone that went through it. You should probably expect a "did anyone fail the bar and then recover" post from me in a few years. 

Hey, I don't know how much of your posts about anxiety are tongue-in-cheek, but as someone who has diagnosed anxiety, which really came out in full force during law school, I hope you consider talking to someone about it. People have mentioned in this thread some great self-help methods (meditation, exercise, etc.) but there is no shame in seeking professional help to give you the tools to manage anxiety and stress. 

Law school should be intellectually challenging and exams are stressful for most people. People worry about grades and finding jobs. But this post is classic catastrophic thinking (which is a symptom and cause of anxiety), where you hadn't even written your exams yet and are thinking your entire legal career now ruined. 

I'm not trying to call you out, just wanted to put it out there for others who are feeling the same way and say you don't have to manage it alone. 

 

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GGrievous
  • Law Student
1 hour ago, azure said:

where you hadn't even written your exams yet and are thinking your entire legal career now ruined. 

I appreciate your concern (sincerely) but that wasn't at all my worry.

Side note: I have my own opinions about "professional help".. they would certainly be unpopular here and everywhere in most of western society now, so I won't go into it too much because I really don't want to get into that during my midterm recovery (I feel good about how they went for the most part btw), but I will say that I think people are too casual and quick about recommending it. 

Edited by Barry
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Professional help might not be what you need or what you're looking for. But people being responsive towards other people's perceived or actual struggles and being casual about seeking help is a good thing in my books. I think it helps alleviate some of the stigma around mental health.

Hope your exams went well and may the Holidays allow you to recharge your batteries!

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GGrievous
  • Law Student
10 minutes ago, borisviandu said:

Professional help might not be what you need or what you're looking for. But people being responsive towards other people's perceived or actual struggles and being casual about seeking help is a good thing in my books. I think it helps alleviate some of the stigma around mental health.

Hope your exams went well and may the Holidays allow you to recharge your batteries!

I mean that's not really my perspective on it, but again not really interested in getting into it. I don't fault people for trying to help me out in that way. 

Anyway, thank you for the exam well wishes, they did go ok and I'm wondering if mods could actually lock this and splice it without me in it so people can have the mental health discussion without me being tagged or used as an example. @Hegdis @Ryn or other mods that I can't remember at this moment. 

Edited by Barry
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2 minutes ago, Barry said:

I mean that's not really my perspective on it, but again not really interested in getting into it.

Oh, I might have misunderstood your take then. Apologies. And no worries, I won't push any further.

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