What to do if you fail a midterm:

Dear 1L, I got a 35 on my Contracts midterm.

(35 out of 100.)

It was Oct 1993.
It was my first & only feedback.
I thought the world was going to end.
And it forced some intense soul-searching.

To be sure, like most 1L midterms, mine was merely a “practice” exam. But to me, it was devastating.

My initial, angry disbelief quickly became embarrassment. I also didn’t know what I’d done wrong.

I had done all the reading.
I had attended every class.
And I had studied SO much.

I knew the material by heart. I really did.

Really!

Some takeaways:

I failed because the point was to apply the material I knew to brand new situations. I had no idea how to do this. Most 1Ls do not either—in early October.

You can learn. It just takes practice.

So, do your soul-searching. Kick and scream, get mad, cry. But get it out of your system and MOVE ON.

Get someone to teach you how to write an IRAC essay* and start practicing on sample exam questions.

A poor midterm grade should not matter.

I ended up with a flat A in Contracts.

You can, too!

Let’s GO!!!

💌 Amanda

#Dear1L

* Most teach IRAC as Issue->Rule->Application->Conclusion, but I like to think of the “A” as “Arguments.”

—> After you describe the Rule (i.e., the legal standard or test that applies), you always need to present two sets of Arguments—one for the aggrieved party (Plaintiff) and one for the party that did the aggrieving (the defendant).

It is only after you lay out both sides’ arguments that you can arrive at a reasoned conclusion that one side has the better case.

P.S. All of my IRAC & exam tips are collected in chapters 4 & 7 of my “Dear 1L” book, and I’ll have additional material coming up here.

P.P.S. Back in 1993, I had a practice midterm in only one class, but they are far more common today.

📫 In how many law-school classes did you have a midterm?