[blindLaw] Bar prep course accessibility

[Seif-Eldeen Saqallah]

I personally found Barbri to be more accessible than Themis.
I had some issues with their platform that, backin in 2019, they said
were not a problem (perhaps they fixed them by now).

To gain an idea of their accessibility and teaching style, I
recommend, as you did Lauren, trying all barprep courses for the MPRE.
Since they are free, you can simulate a little how their barprep
course would be like without paying/committing first. I did that and
was able to choose the one most preferred and accessible for me.

Barbri was, for me, more engaging than Kaplan and Themis;
Themis did not, but Barbri and Kaplan both were able to provide me
with downloadible content - I preferred watching the videos with my
media player:
Barbri mailled me a flashdrive containing MP4 files of their videos;
word or txt (I like txt) files of their books;
had their microsoft-word books have differentiating headings;
droppoxed new updates/material to me so I could download them;
provided copies of the lecture handouts that already contained the
blanks filled in with the answers;
and contracted with a third-party to send me brailled copies of the
review material I found most helpful (especially the smaller
10/print-page or so overview outlines for each subject).

My contact at Barbri was Christina DeSimone (or similar spelling), at
adarequests at barbri.com;   1800-621-0498.

Some do not like Barbri because of the large-amount of (overwhelming)
material they have. I personally prefer more material than less; you
can also choose to skim/not review that material, or focuss on the
smaller chunks of material provided. Themis breaks their videos in to
moduels, which is good; Barbri does that too, but the moduels are
within the large hour-blocks (you can take a break) and so makes the
breaks less apparent.

Curious to know what you prefer in themis? (I am asked and would like
to pass along that information.)

I also used Michigan's Bureau of Services for Blind Persons (BSBP) to
help pay for the barprep course:
I needed to write my counselor a letter explaining why I needed it and
a cost-projection;
sign up for the course;
present an invoice/bill;
and BSBP paid Barbri directly. I also told Barbri that a third-party
would be paying for me and they coordinated.

For specific questions, I found adaptibar helpful (https://www.adaptibar.com/):
I asked to have a trial period because their platform was workable but
not the most accessible. They use real MBE questions and I think one
can choose a practice area from which to choose specific questions as
well.
(Many courses use unofficial/company-created test questions. I found
Barbri's harder than actual MBE questions (good for me), but that
NCBE-official questions also had some tricks to them - like riding a
river with unexpected, but not capsizing, currents/streams.)

Lastly, I quite liked the Crushendo outlines:
It condensed the subjects into an hour-or-so long outline;
had audio mp3 files (helpful when moving around or for background
tasks), one with sound background music and the other without;
a good visually-formatted pdf which also had headings delineating
between subjects;
and, importantly, memorable mnemonics and an attack outline I found helpful.
It is also not limited for the bar; they are good for general exam studying too.
You can download a free subject to see how it works:
I suggest choosing a subject with which you are least familiar (to see
how it teaches you), or one you know more (to see how its learning
compares to what you know/how you learn).
Property and Civpro were helpful for me.
Shop - Crushendo®
https://crushendo.com/shop/
Code: 5687freetrial.
(I do not work for them; I wanted to pass along what I found helpful.)

Lastly, for accommodations on the bar (New York and michigan, both
remotely during Covid), I requested an electronic copy (html or word),
JAWS, extended time, use of a braillenote, a flashdrive to transfer
between computer and braillenote, and computer--with word and without
the inaccessible exam software--to write my multiplechoice answers and
essays.

Happy to talk to anyone about the bar too, including listening to
rants about how it is. :)

Sincerely,
Seif


-- 
Seif Saqallah
(Mr.)
University of Michigan
Juris Doctor/
Masters in Middle Eastern and North African Studies
J.D/M.A Graduate | 2020

International Studies, Arabic Studies, and Judaic Studies;
Law, Justice, and Social Change
B.A | 2017

248-325-7091 | seifs at umich.edu

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