TYLA Project

TYLA Presents: Passing the Bar: A Study Guide
By: Sharesa Y. Alexander, Esq., LL.M.

The thought of taking on the Texas Bar Exam is likely to invoke fear and anxiety for most law students. Just days before embarking upon training to slay this giant, many students have barely stumbled off their law school’s emotional roller coaster. An apparatus equipped with a double loop of final exams and graduation, which invoked high levels of stress, elation, and fleeting relief.

The bar dictates students’ futures. IT IS the very thing that stands between what they have been striving diligently to become: a lawyer. The sheer fear of failing this marathon may cause some to reconsider whether to begin the process at all. Like a marathon, preparing for the bar takes discipline, dedication, and efficient training. Taking on the bar may feel impossible, but with adequate preparation, it can be conquered.         

TYLA understands the emotions related to preparing for and taking the bar. It wasn’t too long ago that many of us experienced the same feelings of fear and anxiety. Although those feeling are typical and valid, we know that learning more about your opponent will assist you with demystifying it and building a strategy to tackle it.       

As a result, we have created TYLA’s Passing the Bar: A Study Guide, which attempts to break down the exam structure to help students get more comfortable with the exam. Specifically, the guide (1) identifies the bar examiners and what they are looking for when grading exams; (2) breaks down the exam’s structure and subjects and how they are tested; and (3) proposes strategies and tools for studying for and taking the bar. Moreover, the guide highlights the realities of preparing for such an extensive exam and offers students strategies for addressing issues that may arise before and during their studies.

Passing the Bar: A Study Guide may be accessed online at tyla.org under the “Resources” tab. Of course, this guide is not intended to be a substitute for adequate study time or a bar review course; but, it provides useful and cost-effective tips to minimize fear and help students begin the process of preparing to meet the challenge of passing the bar.

SHARESA ALEXANDER is the founding member of The SYA Firm, PLLC, a general practice firm, and is also a prosecutor for the TDLR. She is the minority-at-large director for TYLA.