Why Us?

“My legal journey started off cumbersome and unpredictable. As a non-traditional student, I had to work full time during the day and travel two hours one way to attend law school at night. I would wash, recycle and repeat this routine for 3 days each week for 3 years. However, I was able to hold my own in law school earning myself a membership with Sigma Delta Kappa Intercollegiate Law Fraternity. It was tough because as a married father of four, I still had responsibilities and obligations to meet.

Shortly before graduating law school, I became very ill and as a result I was not capable of studying for years after graduating. I lost a lot of legal knowledge and was unsuccessful at my attempts to pass the bar. Many of my contemporaries and friends had gone on to become judges and very accomplished attorneys and there I was still miserable and studying. I tried every bar prep course from Barbri to JD Advising, with tutors, to no avail.

I decided to take the bar one last time after failing twice, not to mention I had not taken it since the pandemic. I decided to search google for bar coaches and found Michele. After a couple emails and a phone conversation, I was convinced that this program sound different from anything I had ever done. I knew I needed a change and something/someone that would push me and squeeze until I had nothing left to give....after all this was my last shot at a new life! Michele gave me everything I needed and then some. My new journey has just begun, because I decided to take a chance on Michele’s tactics and habits...I finally passed the bar this year 2023!

Thanks forever Michele...”

“Dear Future Lawyer,

9 and 1. These are the numbers that stand out saliently in my bar exam journey. 9 is the number of times I took the bar exam and failed before finally passing on the 10th try. 1 is the number of times I took the bar exam after using Michele’s Take On Bar Exam Coaching method of studying. Coincidentally, 9 and 1 are also the last two digits of my passing score of 291 – a score I wholly attribute to having discovered this course. I’d like to share with you a little bit of my story and how Michele’s individualized teaching methods and the support of our small group helped me rediscover my own ability, refine my study skillset, and earn back the confidence needed to succeed on the February 2023 UBE with a score of 291.

I went to a t14 law school and thought I would just take Barbri like everyone does and hopefully pass. As it turned out, the Barbri method did not work for me and I ended up failing my first try with a score in the 240s. I proceeded to live my life in 6 month intervals of attempting to study for the bar, panicking, taking the bar extremely unprepared after failing to study effectively yet again, anxiously awaiting scores to confirm my worst fears, and signing up for the misery all over again. Over the course of 2018 to 2023 I failed the bar exam 9 times, having tried various standard bar prep courses to no avail. While I was stuck on this hamster wheel of bar exam misery, my peers and friends around me moved on with their new careers, began starting families, and generally got their lives together doing what they loved. During this stagnant Sisyphean journey riddled with unshakable and anxious uncertainty over my future, I would get into cycles of self-doubt, anxiety, and hopelessness each time I tried to rectify my study habits and approach to this life-impeding exam.

Then I found Michele. After one phone call with her I was confident that she would be able to work with me to achieve my goal and break the stagnancy of my ineffective study habits. She did not try to sell me anything, upcharge me, or tell me I needed to take her course to pass the bar exam. To the contrary, Michele encouraged me that I had what it took to pass on my own and offered me some general tips on how to refine my approach if I were to try that again solo. While I was appreciative of her optimism and felt the determination to prove her (and myself) right that I could do it, I felt very strongly that the added structure, guidance, and support that Michele and the TOBEC program offered would give me the best chance of success.

The course was not cheap. I’ll be up front about that fact. However, neither was taking and failing so many bar exams prior to the course. Nor was the 4 years I spent making far less than I would as an attorney (even a public defender) as I flailed around trying to pass the exam using methods that just didn’t work well for me. The time, guidance, discipline, and care that Michele offers through her course, small group classes, and one-on-one sessions were invaluable to me.

The course was not easy either. You have to put in time and effort day after day to succeed in this program. That is because time and effort is what it takes to gain the knowledge and practice the skills required to pass this test. We met three times a week with Michele and the small group, a fourth meeting with just the small group, and a fifth meeting with Michele one-on-one each week. Each week we analyzed multiple choice questions, practiced writing essays, and worked through the practical component of the exam. At the individual meetings, Michele would listen and work with you to modify your schedule in a way that met you where you were at while also driving you forward. She was patient, kind, knowledgeable, and an excellent coach throughout the course.

Looking back on the past year, for it was about one year ago that I first met Michele, I cannot understate how much my life has changed for the better. In October, I was gearing up for my 10th bar exam with the usual fear but also with a newfound optimism and hope. Over the next few months as I participated in small group sessions, one on one meetings, and practiced, my fear shifted. Instead of being afraid and anxious, I was confident (and still a little anxious, but 9 failed bar exams will do that). I was confident that I had put in the work required to achieve my goal. The endless cycle of bar exams concluded this past April when I received my passing score of 291. But more than just coaching me to achieving a passing score, Michele enabled me to restore my self-confidence and once again feel proud of who I am and what I can accomplish. The bar exam is not a measure of self-worth, but when you spend over a decade of your life working toward a goal with only the bar exam to continually deny you that goal, it can feel like one. If you’re asking yourself if you’re good enough, I want you to know that you are. I encourage anyone reading this to take an hour of your time and talk to Michele if you think this course may help you, or even if you think an hour long conversation with a kind and insightful person would help. Take a course with Michele or don’t. That’s up to you. I can say wholeheartedly that I cannot recommend someone higher than I can Michele.

It is now officially a year since I first spoke with Michele feeling desperate and lost in my attempts to pass the bar, and I am working full time as an attorney in the public defender’s office where I had aimed to work since sitting for my first exam several years ago. I hope that everyone seeking to pass this exam can achieve their goal with or without this course, but for those of you who do choose to take it and truly put the work in, I look forward to reading your letter of thanks and endorsement someday as well.

Best,
Mike, (finally) esquire
”

“After graduating law school, I felt like I had all the tools needed to be successful on the bar exam. But 3 years and six attempts later, I was devastated and had lost all confidence in myself.

As I had done all the times before, I was scrolling through my LinkedIn feed - congratulating and trying my best to be sincerely happy for the latest round of bar passers - when one story spoke to me. I don’t even remember whose post it was, but their story was very similar to mine, that is until the part where they announced that they’d passed and credited their success to Michele @TakeOnBarExamCoaching.

Before I knew it, I was looking up more information on the program and how to sign up. I hadn’t yet decided to retake the bar, but something urged me to reach out anyway. I had no idea what to expect after my initial conversation with Michele, but that call was the reassurance and encouragement I needed to give the bar exam one more try. I had the support of family and friends each time before, and I had tried the top commercial bar prep courses, to no avail. My scores would always be in the same range, no matter what I did differently.

Michele’s approach to bar exam preparation is like no other, and for that reason it works! I recommend Take On Bar Exam Coaching to any repeat tester. If the pre-recorded lectures and rigid study schedule aren’t working for you, sign up for coaching with Michele. You’ve probably already learned what you need to know for the bar exam and Michele will help you demonstrate and articulate that knowledge . ”

— Essence C., passed Maine UBE exam, July 2022

“The first time I sat for the NY Bar Exam, I opted to use Barbri as this was the most popular course I had heard about during law school. I completed 75% of the program and truly believed that my efforts were sufficient to meet the “minimum competency” requirement. Unfortunately, I did not pass on the first try as I had hoped, and I was truly devastated.

I decided to try again and began studying for the February 2022 exam. This time, I focused heavily on memorizing the rules by constantly rewriting them. Although I felt like I developed a better grasp of the rules, I couldn’t recall them when I needed them most during the exam due to crippling test anxiety. When I didn’t pass the exam again, I began to question whether I would ever overcome this hurdle.

I stumbled upon Take On Bar Exam Coaching by chance on LinkedIn and from our first conversation, I found Michele’s presence to be comforting and helpful. At the outset, she reviewed my score reports and developed a personalized study plan which maximized my strengths and minimized the areas where I struggled on the exam.

I was very impressed by the test taking strategies I learned during my first Circle session and Michele’s step-by-step approach to applying those methods to MEE and MBE questions. I also enjoyed the supplemental study materials she provided because they were comprehensive but not overwhelming which was helpful when studying and reviewing the rules I learned in our study sessions. Additionally, I really appreciated Michele’s feedback on each MEE and MPT I submitted for her weekly review because it truly transformed my legal writing and analysis.

Every time I expressed that I felt overwhelmed, anxious, stressed, and uncertain about bar prep and the actual exam, Michele always reassured me that I could pass the exam because I was well equipped and prepared with the tools and strategies I learned throughout the process.

And I’m proud to confirm that she was right—I passed the July 2022 NY Bar Exam and my score increased by 29 points!

The Take On Bar Exam Coaching program is intense, time-consuming, and an investment but well worth the results. I made a personal investment in my future by choosing to work with Michele. Not only did she teach me how to successfully write MEEs and MPTs and strategically approach MBE questions, but she also helped me restore my confidence in my abilities.

I can’t thank Michele enough for her unwavering support and commitment to helping me achieve my goal of passing the bar exam and becoming a practicing attorney. As a bar exam coach, she is very knowledgeable and diligent. She is also a personal cheerleader who will root for you every step of the way on your journey to passing the bar exam. I’m grateful for her and her methods and happy to recommend her services to future bar examiners. ”

— CB, passed NY Bar Exam, July 2022