Our students thrive
Since 1998, BARBRI Law Preview has been helping students find success in law schools across the country. Consistently, they attribute their law school success to Law Preview and the important difference it made for them during their first year and beyond.
"Law Preview really helped me in regards to exams. I had a hard semester, but when it came to exams, I followed the procedure set forth by Law Preview. I was able to out-perform my classmates by a considerable degree. My law school does not provide us our rank unless we request it, and I am still waiting for it, but judging from my grades, I am ranked highly."
Anonymous, Texas A&M University School of Law (formerly Texas Wesleyan University School of Law), Class of 2011
"Law preview provided me with the right mindset to approach day one of law school. I had an attack plan and knew what pitfalls to avoid because of the Law Preview course! [4.05 GPA after first semester]."
Anonymous, University of California, Hastings College of the Law, Class of 2023
"Perfect score on my Criminal Law midterm, 4th highest grade on Contracts final, second highest grade on my torts midterm, other grades not yet released."
Shreya S., Mercer University Walter F. George School of Law, Class of 2022
"The most important thing about Law Preview, and this was something Don mentioned in passing in one of the videos, is the preliminary exposure to the material. There is no way to learn all of a doctrinal class in one sitting or even one week. But being exposed to the materials before law school allows them to be more easily understood the second, third, and fourth time your professors say it, you read it, or practice it on an exam. This made the biggest difference because I was already able to connect different lessons from my classes before my classmates which made the big picture easy to understand and outlines easy to create. As a result, I got the third-highest grade in my contracts course and ended with an overall GPA well above median at my school. [3.63 GPA after the first semester]."
Anonymous, Duke University School of Law, Class of 2024
"Law preview helped me start off on the right note! It helped me set a schedule that allowed me to handle my reading load and provided time for weekly review. It was also great having an overview of classes! I attribute Law Preview for much of my first-semester academic success during a very challenging year of virtual law school."
Sabrina S., University of Michigan Law School, Class of 2023
"I had been out of school for 15 years, so LP gave me a good look at what I would be facing as well as techniques for studying and keeping up that I had lost since being out of school. The classes gave me an understanding of each course as whole, which helped a great deal in keeping a big picture in mind once I started law school. I managed to keep my head above the minutae, which is very easy to get lost in. The professors I was lucky enough to get at my LP week were phenomenal and it was so great to be introduced to the law by people who clearly loved what they did. It was not easy. It was one of the most intellectually challenging experiences I’ve ever had, but it made my entry into law school almost seamless and even as I am entering my 2nd semester, I am ever grateful I took it."
Petal H., New York Law School, Class of 2013
"I really feel like I was more prepared than anyone else in my class. This definitely gave me an edge. After the first year I did so well, I’ll be attending Washington University in St. Louis in the Fall! Thank you Law Preview! =) [Ranked #1 out of 63 students]."
Jonathan S., University of Akron School of Law, Class of 2013 (transferred to Washington University School of Law)
"By the time I got into classes I already knew how to read an analyze cases. I also knew the basic concepts so I was able to get up to speed about the intricacies introduced in class much faster. Other people struggled with the more complicated concepts, but I had already gone over them once in Law Preview and the second time just helped my clarify my understanding. Learning to brief the cases before starting was helpful because I did not need to spend an inordinate amount of time on each case. I knew what I needed to extract from the cases and had a template in which to place the information. Law preview helps you hit the ground running in your first year."
Anonymous, University of California, Hastings College of the Law, Class of 2011
"The schedule and study techniques helped me get A’s in every class except one, and I felt more prepared than some of my classmates in their classes. I had the best grades of my academic career and made the dean’s list for the first time."
Steward L., Northern Illinois University College of Law, Class of 2023
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Looking back as I finish my 3L year, I wholeheartedly believe that Law Preview is the best antidote to the curse of assumed knowledge. Getting a primer on important doctrinal subjects in digestible but focused sessions—and being introduced to the Socratic method in a realistic but low-stakes environment—was exactly what I needed to prepare for my 1L year. Law Preview taught me concepts that soon become central to my life as a law student: how to brief, what an outline looks like, how to write an exam, and what a tort (disappointingly, not the dessert) is. And, as someone who had not known the ins and outs of law journals before Law Preview, I can confidently say that the program helped earn my spot on the Stanford Law Review. I honestly can’t imagine delving into my 1L year without having participated in the program. Beyond the academic head start, Law Preview helped me build a strong professional network. I met other law students committed to success headed to my school and schools across the country. I got a taste of several different first-rate professors’ teaching styles. And I became a part of the larger Law Preview network: I finally had folks in my corner. If I had to boil it down, Law Preview helped me start out on the right foot. Law school is intimidating. Maybe you can’t change whether you were born into a family of lawyers or whether you’ve spent years working as a paralegal, but you can change how prepared you feel to start. The key to that, in my experience, is Law Preview. If starting over, I would choose Law Preview again every time.
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Kat G., Stanford Law School, Class of 2021
"Law Preview laid the foundation for my study routine. Coupled with Barbri Mastery, I tried to adhere as closely as possible to Don’s schedule for reading, briefing, etc. Demystifying 1L was immensely helpful and I encountered many of the cases I read during Law Preview. It goes without saying that reading cases in advance is tremendously beneficial. Moreover, having a concrete process for briefing allowed me to hit the ground running for the first semester."
Anonymous, Georgetown University Law Center, Class of 2024
"The week long course provided by Law Preview allowed me a glimpse into the world of being a first year law student. I knew ahead of time who I needed to talk to, when to buy books, what resources to look for, EXACTLY what to expect from class, and how to approach exam preparation."
Douglas H., University of North Carolina School of Law, Class of 2011
"Law Preview helped ease my anxiety tremendously. I walked into class knowing how to case brief, using many of the same cases I’d see later in my textbooks. It prepared me for the workload, helped me set realistic expectations, and it really was a preview of what my 1L experience would be like. At the end of this first semester, my GPA is 3.87 on a 4.0 scale and I know Law Preview helped me hit the ground running!"
Samir C., Loyola University Chicago School of Law, Class of 2023
"The suggestions were really helpful about how to spend breaks and prepare for midterms and finals. The calendar was really useful to see how to spend my time. It was a good feeling to know walking in to school that I had seen some of the cases before and knew how to brief a case."
Jessica R., Touro College Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center, Class of 2011
"Dear Don, I hope you are doing well. I wanted to thank you so much for all of your guidance and encouragement last semester. I am proud to report that I received 4 Hs and will be working as a 1L summer associate at [an AmLaw Top 5 firm] in New York this summer. I am so grateful to you and Barbri for helping me achieve these goals!"
Anonymous, Havard Law School, Class of 2024
"Using the tools provided by the Law Preview course, I was able to attain a ranking in the top 25 students of my 145 student class. With the first semester under my belt, I hope to use what this summer course provided me with a more efficient way to climb to rank among the top 10 students in my class."
Jack H., University of Richmond School of Law, Class of 2022
"Law Preview helped me understand the big picture of what I was studying in class. As a first-get student, it was challenging to understand the method in which law school content is taught and having Law Preview available was extremely helpful in helping me digest and understand the important concepts."
Marlenee B., University of California, Berkeley, School of Law, Class of 2023
"If I hadn’t taken this course I would have been absolutely railroaded by my classes."
Matt E., Stanford Law School, Class of 2021
"Latham & Watkins’ genuine commitment to diversity, inclusion, and excellence has had a tremendous impact on both my academic and professional career. In 2019, Latham gave me a scholarship to attend Law Preview prior to entering Stanford Law School — a truly unique opportunity that gave me the foresight to succeed in my first year of law school. The program armed me with the key concepts of the first-year curriculum and taught me how to prepare for classes and exams early, efficiently, and effectively. Based on my academic achievements, not only was I invited to join the Stanford Law Review, but I also joined Latham as a 1L Summer Associate and received an offer to return next summer (as well as Latham’s 2L Diversity Scholarship). I will be forever grateful that Latham invested ~$1000 in my academic success prior to starting law school — their initial investment in me has paid dividends. Law Preview clearly had a significant impact on my success at Stanford Law School. If law school were karate, Don Macaulay would be the Mr. Miyagi of the legal community."
Daniel K., Stanford Law School, Class of 2023 (President of the Stanford Law Review)
"Law Preview gave me the background of legal education that I didn’t learn right away at law school. It gave me a head start and made me feel confident in knowing what to expect by showing me the big picture of legal education. I probably would have felt very lost my first few weeks at school if it weren’t for my experience at Law Preview."
Katie P., University of St. Thomas School of Law, Class of 2011
"The [Law Preview] program allowed me to start law school with a game plan. It helped me to set a weekly schedule, stay disciplined and gain a leg up on my fellow students. I had been out of school for a while before going back to law school, and the Law Preview helped me refresh old, and gain new study skills. We are not ranked after our first semester, but I ended with a 3.81 GPA."
Nicole G., University of Miami School of Law, Class of 2011
"Law Preview helped a lot. Wish I would have taken it even more seriously [3.77 GPA after the first semester]."
Anonymous, Washington University School of Law (St. Louis), Class of 2023
"Law Preview helped me feel more confident beginning law school, making the transition much smoother [ranked #20 out of 200 after first semester]!"
Anonymous, University of Southern California Law School, Class of 2011
"It drilled into me the fact that grades are the most important thing the first semester–otherwise, I would have been lured into all kinds of activities that were advertised by the school. I’m so glad I didn’t–truly, grades are the only things employers seem to care about when it comes to the first semester. I also appreciated Don Macaulay’s lectures–they were super entertaining and all the study skills he shared came in very handy to me. I have a young child, so I didn’t quite ever do 12 hours a day, but I probably did study 8-10 hours every day because Don scared me into believing I wouldn’t be successful without spending those kinds of hours. And he was right! [4.3 GPA after the first semester]."
Anonymous, Santa Clara University School of Law, Class of 2023
"Law Preview really gave me a head start on the subject matter as well as some helpful advice on how to navigate law school. Being not only a first-generation law student, but also a first-generation college student, I have often had to figure out higher education on my own. Having the Law Preview experience before beginning my first semester gave me peace of mind and showed me what to look out for in my 1L year and what things I needed to prioritize. This definitely got me off on the right foot and led me to achieve a 4.0 GPA my first semester."
Jared G., American University, Washington College of Law. 2019
"It made scheduling and not getting overwhelmed so much easier. [3.6 GPA after the first semester]."
Anonymous, Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law Yeshiva University, Class of 2022
"Law Preview was tremendous in helping me shoot out of the gate strong. From the first day I walked on campus I had a plan and a purpose thanks to LP. In addition to the organizational and structural advantages I had thanks to the schedule and preparation materials, I left LP with a sense of confidence. Law Preview really helped be demystify the law, in breaking it down into something practical and manageable. I also believe that the long hours during the program set my expectations for the amount of time and effort I needed to be successful, which led to a smooth and natural transition into the real thing. I would recommend this program to anyone who is entering law school, especially in this market where grades are EVERYTHING. [Ranked 5 out of 339]."
Anonymous, St. Mary’s University School of Law, Class of 2012 (transferred to SMU Dedman School of Law)
"Law Preview really helped to acclimatize me to law school and put me on the right track to performing very well on my first-semester law school exams. [4.0 GPA after the first semester]"
Anonymous, New York University School of Law, Class of 2024
"Law Preview provided me with an overview of how 1st year grades impact future employment and suggested strategies and techniques that helped me perform at my individual best. The substantive overview of 1st year courses provided invaluable context on what to expect prior to arriving in class. I referenced my notes from Law Preview frequently to remind myself of big picture concepts."
Josh H., Belmont University School of Law, 2019
"You owe it to yourself to protect your $100-200K investment in law school by taking Law Preview. Law Preview taught me how to study and take exams successfully, how to budget my time effectively, as well as a general overview of my core IL courses. More than anything, Law Preview gave me the confidence to know what to expect in law school the very first day I started. I finished my first year of law school near the top of my class, which allowed me to earn much-needed scholarship money as well as several summer associate offers from BigLaw firms. I truly believe Law Preview was a big part of my success during the first-year and I would recommend it to anyone going to any law school."
Omar O., University of Texas School of Law, Class of 2011