Honestly, I wrote that title and immediately thought, “I have no earthly idea.” The world is absolutely batshit crazy right now, and I spend most of my days working from a panic fort that I built out of pillows and blankets on the floor in my office (that’s a story for another day). Who am I to be telling anyone how to cope with bad news? Well, I’ve had years of experience helping law students through stressful times and even more experience coping with my own stress and anxiety. So, I’m going to put my skills to good use and do my best to help you through this.
First, I want to virtually validate your feelings. Are you relieved? That’s fine. Scared? That’s fine. Angry? That’s fine. Sad? Also perfectly fine. Whatever it is you are feeling is 100% fine. You may be hearing a lot of “what’s the big deal? It is just a test” or “you are lucky that you aren’t sick” or some version of “be grateful for what you have.” While I’m sure the people who say these things have good intentions, the effect of statements like that is invalidating your very real feelings. I want to make one thing abundantly clear: your life, career, and future have been flipped upside down, and you do not need mine, or any else’s permission to grieve that.
Next, you have to keep in mind that the situation is rapidly evolving. My opinion, which is worth little on a good day and next to nothing right now, is that the decision to postpone the New York bar exam until the fall is just New York’s way of buying themselves some time. We can’t possibly know whether New York, or any other jurisdiction, will actually offer a fall bar exam or whether they will ultimately choose some alternative way to license new lawyers this year.
Finally, and here is the real kick in the pants, you don’t have control over any of it. You don’t decide if and when there will be a bar exam. You don’t decide if there will be emergency licensing. And you don’t even decide when these decisions will be made. You can choose to see that as frustrating or as freeing. These are real problems that need real solutions, but it is not YOUR responsibility to solve them. And worrying about them constantly certainly will not help.
Over the past few days, I’ve been flooded with questions from students about what postponing the bar exam means for them and what they should be doing. While most of us have more questions than answers, I’ve put together a few dos and don’ts that have been helping me and that I hope will help you.
Do allow yourself some time and space to process your emotions. Your instinct is to act. I get that. Mine is too. But the truth is there really isn’t very much action you can take right now. Take the time you do have to try to process your feelings so that when the time comes to act, you’re ready.
Don’t panic. Trust me. I tried it, and it didn’t help. Going down the rabbit hole of “no bar exam, no job — no job, no money — no money, no anything” isn’t going to help you right now. Try to recognize yourself getting caught in these thoughts and redirect them whenever possible.
Do stay informed. Keep yourself up to date with what is going on from the National Conference of Bar Examiners and your state’s board of law examiners. These are the people making the decisions, and they will be the first to update you on any changes. On that same note, keep in touch with your law schools and bar prep companies as they will also be resources for reliable information.
Don’t become obsessed. There is a fine line between informed and obsessed (again, one that I know from first-hand experience). There is no need to check websites twenty times a day or refresh hourly. Checking in on things a few times a week is probably sufficient to stay informed.
Do remember that it is not just your life being affected. In New York alone, more than 10,000 people take the bar exam each July. There are many, many people focused on what this issue means for them. While this is a big scary thing, you are not going through it alone.
Don’t try to work out a million contingency plans. Did you hear that New York was postponing and immediately start making plans to take the test in another UBE jurisdiction? Yeah. I would have done that, too. But, it will probably cause you more frustration and wasted time than anything. Remember, this situation changes daily, sometimes hourly. I would strongly advise that you wait until we have more information before you start making new plans.
Do try to see this as a positive. I know. You didn’t see that one coming. Maybe a little extra time to let this all play out, to let the economy start to come back, to let you adjust to your new life without throwing studying for the bar exam on top of that, is actually a blessing in disguise.
I’ll end by saying that this sucks, and I am so incredibly sorry that you are going through it. I’m a proud New Yorker and our motto is #NYtough, but that’s nothing compared to being #LawSchoolStrong. You’ve done many hard things in your life and education, and you can handle whatever the coming weeks and months throw your way.
Kerriann Stout is a millennial law school professor and founder of Vinco (a bar exam coaching company) who is generationally trapped between her students and colleagues. Kerriann has helped hundreds of students survive law school and the bar exam with less stress and more confidence. She lives, works, and writes in the northeast. You can reach her by email at info@vincoprep.com.