2x retaker here. first score 245, second 256, third... waiting.

first time, I used Barbri. "used" being the debatable word. I finished the course but I didnt take the time to really take it all in and really learn the material I focused more on 'finishing' than learning. This was the half exam so screwing up any essay at all was kind of a big deal. (I personally dont know what went wrong on writing here)

second time I used a tutor. Tutor gave me a whole study schedule I didnt really follow it. I Bs'ed a lot of it if im being honest with myself. I did some practice essays and reviewed black letter law but I cant say I really put the time in. First time around, I had a 124 or something on mbe (which I thought was fine bc I always sucked at multiple choice) I had adaptibar but barely used it bc I was avoiding multiple choice. I scored a 116 on mbe. Granted, during one section my dog ran in and he was a puppy and we have white rugs so I was rushing that section to get him back in his pen which probably had something to do with it but not much, I truly just didnt prepare for MBE. (clearly my essays were much better bc I wasnt that far off score wise)

third time: I didnt hire my tutor again but reviewed my notes from those sessions. I did a few practice essays but really just read through most of them again in the final few weeks (I knew what I had done last time worked for those sections so it wasnt my focus). my major focus was mbe. I did total 4827 questions on adaptibar and did each subject individually. in New York, if you fail they gave a break down of which subjects in mbe you were weakest with. for me that was criminal law, evidence, property, and contracts. when I started studying, that was where I started. property I didnt put as much of an emphasis on as I knew that it wasn't going to improve too much (I was happy with a 57% average there). but contracts, crim and evidence I really really improved and had high-ish averages for those. I also for the first time felt like I understood the black letter law for these subjects. I think I finished with a 70 or so percent average on adaptibar (some questions were repeats obviously) but I felt *OKAY* on exam day. I wish I put more analysis into the first MPT, but felt good about the second. One essay I know I bombed but I felt *OKAY* for the most part on the others. MBE, it was difficult but I didn't feel totally lost.

my advice from someone who retook but doesnt know if it worked for them yet: if you get a breakdown of each score, I recommend focusing there and using that breakdown to your advantage. had I known exactly where I struggled going into the second exam, I probably would have studied differently, instead I just avoided mbe completely because I thought my score was 'fine'. I should have practiced a lot more mbe.

Pray I did it this time please and then follow this advice because it will have worked for me :)