Advice #1: Sign up for bar/bri the first semester of your 1L year

Today was the last day of bar/bri. The last day of the bar prep class I paid $3500 to take. On the one hand, I know I couldn't have done it all on my own, especialy considering that I hadn't taken a number of bar subjects -- my school didn't even offer one in Community Property. But on the other hand, I wonder if it was really worth over three grand. I received poor feedback on my graded essays with often illegible comments and watched video lectures only -- no in person, live lectures. So was it worth it? Probably not. I say this not because of my five hundred complaints about bar/bri, but because of the fact that I overpaid for my course.

Aside from the fact that there are a number of "botique" bar prep courses out there that charge a lot less (I'm still glad I took bar/bri . . . most people take it and it has a decent reputation), I overpaid because I didn't sign up for the class my 1L year. Had I signed up the first semester first year of law school instead of the summer before my third year, I would have locked-in the 2005 rate of $2800. Instead, since I signed up last summer (just in time for the MPRE!) the course cost me $3436.50 (why such an odd number? Because, apparently the bar prep is taxed). And my friends who waited until their final semester of law school to sign up for bar/bri? They ended up paying $3800. By signing up our first year, they could have saved themselves $1000. With those savings, they could pay for their post-bar trip (that pretty much everyone I know is taking).

At the time, I thought signing up for bar/bri was too expensive. How was I going to afford $2800 my first year of law school when you're supposed to focus on school? I planned to work my third year of law school (and ended up with two jobs) to help defray costs so why not wait until my 3L year to sign up for bar/bri? Also, I didn't know if I was going to take the bar in California, Massachussetts, New York, etc... and thought it would be a hassle to switch states.

As it turns out, I should have researched my options a little better. There is no hassle to switch states. You make one phone call to bar/bri (their corporate office is super nice) and it's done. You'll lock in whatever price the course for that particular state was at the time you signed up for bar/bri, even if you end up switching to another state. Also, you don't need to pay the full course amount all at once. You only need to make a $200 deposit and end up receiving additional material such as the first-year review books, an MPRE book, and a couple of upper-level outlines as well. You can make payments throughout law school or can simply pay the remainder in March (before they start applying late fees in April).

So, if you're still in law school, SIGN UP FOR BAR/BRI TODAY. Do NOT wait until the month before you graduate. All it takes is $200 which ends up going to the cost of the course anyway.

Speaking of costs and finances, Brunette on a Budgette has some fantastic advice on student loan debt. She has some great financial advice generally and you may want to check it out (erm . . . post-bar, that is . . . after all, I know no one else is wasting time during these valuable 2 remaining weeks, right?)