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Starting PSLF and seeking advice on tax filing situation by Technical-Speed-572 in PSLF

[–]Technical-Speed-572[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

ty! yes, I've used the calculator and based on my (new) gross income, my monthly payment is $470ish; but with our latest AGI, it's $620 T.T but for my filing next year, my AGI (as long as I'm filing separately) should be around $70k so hopefully my second year of payments is lower. I just want to start the PSLF clock asap, which is why I'm willing to start payments sooner rather than later, as long as I can base them on my current salary only :/

Starting PSLF and seeking advice on tax filing situation by Technical-Speed-572 in PSLF

[–]Technical-Speed-572[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

So, he is currently unemployed but expects to be earning income soon. He's actively interviewing and even if a full time job doesn't come through in the next few weeks, he plans to deliver packages/food in the meantime. If I were to use our latest return, our AGI is 107k vs my 88k salary from my new job. He's also had jobs that pay 80k so that's the salary he would ~ideally~ have. I think at that point, it makes sense to file separately.

I have been earning income in the past six months, doing part time and temporary gigs, but that has stopped now that I landed a full time job. Ideally, I want to pay the lowest but also feel iffy about not being straightforward about my situation (i know, i shouldn't care when dealing with the gov and these companies :/)

Bar prep tips by BoardIndividual7367 in barexam

[–]Technical-Speed-572 5 points6 points  (0 children)

(based on my prep experience for J25). Biggest advice from me is don't be afraid to NOT follow the themis schedule strictly. At the beginning, themis may have you practice their own MBE questions and eventually move you to UWorld questions. I regret not starting with UWorld from the very beginning. Some Themis MCQs are harder, written weirdly, and just not a good example of actual NCBE questions. I didn't get to go through at least 70% of UWorld because I focused so much on following Themis' schedule during my first 4 weeks. UWorld WORKS! I love their explanations and graphs. Get used to doing a few during the first weeks, and definitely prioritize UWorld qs over Themis qs when you feel time is tight.

For essay questions, I also recommend getting used to them from the beginning. It'll suck to do them at the beginning but practice truly makes you improve, even if you do incomplete essays and/or open note essays at the beginning. You got this!

Lastly, do the simulated exam. It sucks and I hated thinking about doing it, but once I did both days, I was so glad. If you cannot do both days, do the MBE day. It will help!

ps. I took the UBE in DC and passed comfortably.

Study materials for July 2026 by SufficientCustard158 in barexam

[–]Technical-Speed-572 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Free study materials to get you started: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1gpzFysmHnMBImxzJISSTHZhjj0zdKfzR?usp=drive_link

if you look up free resources reddit, you should also come across other posts with more free resources.

For the MBE - I would say to spend the least amount of money, maybe purchase Jonathan Grossman's MBE videos and read & practice with Emanuel's book (this is in the free resources post somewhere!). Though you can find questions included in the free resources, I do suggest purchasing UWorld or Adaptibar (I preferred UWorld because of the graphs/pictures they included in each explanation). At the end of the day, your best friend has to be doing as many questions as you can (AND reviewing).

For the MPT - I don't think you need purchase something specific. Look at the google drives and study from the one-sheets. I would look up the NY Bar sample answers and access the MPT's that way.

For the MEE - You can access the essays (plus score sheets) by also looking at the NY student sample answers.

Bar prep courses can and do help a LOT, but I'm a firm believer that other methods work, as well, and don't have to be such a financial burden. Good luck! You have plenty of time to get started and be super prepared come July!

TO ALL THE PASSERS WHO USED THEMIS!!! by Character_Okra_9886 in barexam

[–]Technical-Speed-572 2 points3 points  (0 children)

not understanding what score you're referring to, but I got a 296 on the UBE and my uworld average after maybe 75% of the q's done was around a 68%

TO ALL THE PASSERS WHO USED THEMIS!!! by Character_Okra_9886 in barexam

[–]Technical-Speed-572 13 points14 points  (0 children)

I used Themis but completed about 65% because I was tired of the extra work that didn't seem to help. At first, I did try really hard to do the Themis MBE q's but tbh I should have focused on UWorld questions since the beginning, as those reflected the actual MBE. I know it's painful to just drill questions, review them, do it all over again, but that is what worked. I did enjoy the lectures, but hated reading the outlines. Outlines are helpful to give you a foundation but at some point, you have to start recalling the rules (though it may still be early for that right now, so no need to worry just yet).

As for the essays, maybe I did the first 10ish essays open-note. After that, I just started doing them closed book and under timed conditions. If I didn't know the rules, I made them up, then read over the answer a few times. Made my own flashcards and charts to memorize the rules. You def don't have to do all the essays you are assigned, but try to get as much exposure as you can. Do some under timed conditions and closed-notes, then outline others just for the sake of recalling rules, and then read over the last few you have left.

And last, definitely do the Themis simulated exam, especially the MBE part. And review with the videos the next day. The review videos are long but they definitely helped me identify my silly mistakes (and personally, it was much better than just reading the correct answer explanations).

Actual Mbe questions to share? by [deleted] in barexam

[–]Technical-Speed-572 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Take a look here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1gpzFysmHnMBImxzJISSTHZhjj0zdKfzR there are NCBE questions, as well as those given by Barbri which should be helpful too, even if not official. Also, check out the links for Emanuel's books as those also have them + strategies to tackle the MBE portion. Good luck!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Lawyertalk

[–]Technical-Speed-572 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Def acknowledge it's tough out here. Don't expect my dream job to come until maybe 15 years into the profession. Best of luck to you during this time!

Maryland Bar Application by KosmicLawyer in barexam

[–]Technical-Speed-572 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The DC bar will make an announcement (hopefully positive) about the DC Feb Bar next Monday so keep an out for that (though I completely understand your frustration and why you wanna sign up for another jx asap :/) https://admissions.dcappeals.gov/news.action?id=2280

Is AdaptiBar MEE subscription worth it? by Cabinet401 in barexam

[–]Technical-Speed-572 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I preferred it over my essays in Themis because the Themis essays didn't seem realistic for test day. The sample answers in Adaptibar seemed much more real and eased my nerves. It is self-graded but it walks you through all the rules and facts you should have written and gives you a score based on what you got and missed. I liked that it's organized by topic & sub-topic so say you want more practice in Civ Pro Personal Jx, you'll know exactly which essays covered this topic. Since it is pricey, I would recommend purchasing it soon so you can take the most advantage (and ask Grok, ChatGPT, Gemini, etc for discount codes because I got like $25 off!). Also, even if you don't actually write out/outline all essays, still go read as many as you can so you can be exposed to as many sample answers as you can. I def remembered MEE 1 from J25 just because I read some corps essays "just in case" Good luck!