Continuing the tradition that seems to have emerged this week, I am going to build off Shane’s blog post and Amy’s blog post about how you can make the most of December—and wrap up the Fall semester with a bow.

A teaching challenge that I have encountered over the years comes from the on-off cycle. I teach a class one semester, but then I do not teach the same class in the next semester—sometimes maybe even for multiple semesters. So, for example, by the time I get around to preparing my Fall semester courses again I have forgotten some of the lessons that didn’t hit the way I wanted them to, or I forgot that I wanted to move things around. And just like we teach our students, the longer the time elapses between learning, the greater the chance of forgetting.

To avoid this lag and set yourself up for success, debrief your Fall semester courses now as you wrap up the semester and do final grading. Debriefing gives you an opportunity to ensure that you do not forget the things that went well or didn’t, and is used formally in military and corporate culture, and even in event planning.

Before I went to law school, I was an event planner and for some of our more major annual events, we would hold a debrief meeting the week or two after the meeting. All key planners, stakeholders, and team participants attended, and we were able to improve the event plan for the next year.

The same principles apply to us as instructors—even if we are a “team of one” when it comes to teaching our courses. Rather than waiting until just before we teach the course again, we can review now the assignments, lessons, notes we made in the margins of our teaching plans, and more to make a clear roadmap for adjustments for future semester. Doing this before the holidays and grading deadlines can also help you better prepare any Spring courses you will be teaching.

As students stop coming for support because they have begun to dive into their own final exams and before bar prep truly “kicks off” for the winter cycle, spend a purposeful hour or two making a short list of things you want to adjust in the classes you just finished teaching. Look at this as a self-reflecting exercise that can be done thoughtfully, but without a ton of pressure. Don’t let it overtake your schedule. But do allow it to take pressure off of future-you’s plate.

If you’re needing a list of helpful things to review in your course debrief, check out Dayna’s previous blog post on this topic.

Happy Wrapping!

(Erica M. Lux)

Fellow ASPers – the familiar churn of the end-of-semester rush is upon us. We are seeing, hearing, and feeling the crush of student demand ahead of final exams – or perhaps we are artificially rushing to fill an engagement void that seems an ill-fitting claim before the storm. In either case, we almost reflexively rush to support our students in their days, hours, and minutes of greatest need. The door stays open, the meeting calendar expands to blowfish-size proportions, and the supplies of tissues and candy receive one more re-up.

At semester’s end, it can seem very selfish to center ourselves, and to preserve our boundaries rather than to artificially inflate our capacities. Yet this commitment to boundary maintenance has to be at its strongest when the demand is at its highest, and when the upper range of our students’ struggle is at its peak. As many wise ASPers have said over the years, this is like putting your oxygen mask on before helping others. (Which is an ironic thing for me to type 5 days before embarking on a 19-hour travel day across an ocean and a continent.)

My fellow blog contributors have more than set the stage this week with short, numbered lists of excellent advice. So I’ll try to do the same.

1. Further Codify Your Individual Meeting Protocol

If you’ve held out on a meeting scheduler – or new to ASP, and you missed how we kept that relic of pandemic-compelled remote learning for ourselves – create one. If you already have one, customize your landing page to reflect exactly when you’re available. Create a new meeting type to account for your time restrictions during this period – that yields data on how many requests you had that you should share with stakeholders. Put a sign on your door indicating your availability and including a QR code so they can easily schedule a meeting if no one is around to do so.

Have two out-of-offices messages cued up! The first is for the exam period indicating your reduced/limited availability (both to students and other non-student stakeholders). The second is for when exams are over, and you’re on break and/or entirely focused on February bar takers.

2. Better Returns on Investment: Change Drop-In/On-Call/Office Hours to Hall/Library Walks

Some of you may be constrained by an extremely big “Return to Office” culture.[1] But the truth of the hunkering down our students do means they very rarely stray from their preferred on-campus study spots (for those even still on campus). The on-call nature of just sitting in our offices prevents us from, say, engaging in something that requires deep work and also comes with semester’s end (reports, conference prep, work product assessment, advance planning for next semester or bar season).

So, let’s steal a page from our bar season playbook, and meet our students where they are literally and geographically at. In as short as a half-hour walk, we gain valuable insight in return: the mood on campus; the proportion of folks who prefer/need to be here to get their prep done versus off-premises; the responsiveness of our students to our presence. Our students appreciate the visible support. And we’ll need the walk to stave off all that terrible stuff that comes from being hunched over at a desk, looking at a screen, for far too long.

3. Triage: Who to See for What … Not “You, for Everything”

The substantive/skills divide becomes your biggest boundary patroller. Redirect a “teach me X, please” ambush to the doctrinal professor (not even the TAs – they have exams too); help your student re-frame how you can help them. Refer out anything your spidey senses are telling you is a larger quality of life issue to Student Life.[2] Make clear what answers you will/won’t answer. Include this triage policy, or links to it, in any weekly newsletter to students; share it with your doctrinal professors.

Have a reading/exam period checklist of self-remedies students should consult before seeing you. Require a study schedule as a condition of meeting. Re-direct the student to any accumulated resource bank, student portal page, or LMS page. This all encourages resourcefulness and self-assessment – exactly the skill that needs a leg-day-like boost, since they should be gorging on timed practice exams and sample answer review anyway.

4. Plan a Trip, A Pro Tip That Is Not a Joke

I recently talked to a friend of a bestie who wanted advice on moving, post-haste, to the country in which I currently reside.[3] I must’ve said at least five times during the video chat, and again in the follow-up e-mail, that he needed to book a scouting visit. Among other practical reasons for doing so, I reminded him that it would provide “needed inspiration and motivation when things will get challenging.” There is a terrible, terrible norm in American work culture – and in the legal profession in particular[4] – that taking a vacation is a self-centered affront to productivity, provider efficacy, and putting students first. And sadly, our employers almost unanimously make it clear they expect us on-call, year-round.[5]

But all that couldn’t be further from the truth. Taking care of you is taking care of everyone else. If we can, our goal should be to exhaust our vacation allotment every year. Not doing so intensifies the burnout effect – ask those whose jobs literally (not figuratively) are matters of life and death![6] Many of our present – and many of our now-former – colleagues in ASP can attest to that.

So now that I’ve scrambled your algorithm just by mentioning it, it’s up to you to do it. (Maybe … after booking your AASE travel.) Come back recharged, with fresh perspective on your plate’s challenges.

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[1] There is mixed sentiment on the wisdom of this kind of mandate. See, e.g., Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, “The Real Reasons Companies Are Forcing You Back To The Office,” Forbes.com (Mar. 8, 2025), available at https://www.forbes.com/sites/tomaspremuzic/2025/02/28/the-real-reasons-companies-are-forcing-you-back-to-the-office (last visited Dec. 4, 2025). My current location makes obvious into which camp I fall.

[2] It’s only fair that if we preach the expertise model as support that we should be trusted in all things learning science and bar exam, that we use that same norm to direct student life issues to the experts our institutions hired in student affairs. Admittedly, this line isn’t as clear when the ASP educator is also a student affairs professional.

[3] Still waiting for a first ASP friend to come visit over here! We promise excellent lodging and even more excellent gastronomy.

[4] See, e.g., Jordan Rothman, “Lawyers Have A Harder Time Taking Vacation Than Other Professionals,” Above the Law (Nov. 14, 2025), available at https://abovethelaw.com/2025/11/lawyers-have-a-harder-time-taking-vacation-than-other-professionals  (last visited Dec. 4, 2025).

[5] Every year that I’ve done my presentation at NECASP for the national job posting data, I have not separate out how many openings specify the position is 9-10 months versus year-round; all of the postings check the latter box.

[6] Christine A. Sinsky, Mickey T. Trocke, Lotte N. Dyrbye, Hanhan Wang, Lindsey E. Carlasare, Colin P. West, Tait D. Shanafelt, “Vacation Days Taken, Work During Vacation, and Burnout Among U.S. Physicians”, JAMA Network Open, Vol. 7, No. 1 (Jan. 12, 2024), available at https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2813914 (last visited Dec. 4, 2025).

(Shane Dizon)

Whenever final exams roll around, I find myself inundated with requests for study help. Students come to my office wanting detailed study plans and advice on how to make it all click before the exam. It can be easy to get bogged down in these meetings. Shouldn’t the students have been studying this whole semester? I don’t have a magic wand that can make a semester’s worth of knowledge make sense!

These requests make me pause and consider what law students actually need. Law students don’t need more willpower; they need smarter systems. Behavioral science shows that small, strategic “nudges” can dramatically improve how people learn, plan, and follow through. In Academic Support, nudges can help students study more consistently, avoid procrastination, and engage in deeper learning without feeling overwhelmed.

The best part? Nudges are subtle, simple, and require almost no extra time from students or faculty. Here are some nudges I suggest as students come to discuss study plans, no matter where we are in the semester.

1. The Implementation Intentions Nudge

Most students say things like: “I’ll study Evidence this week.” But behavioral research tells us that vague goals like this rarely lead to action. Instead, an implementation intention can spur students into action.

The base model for an implementation intention is: “On [day] at [time], I will study [topic] in [location].” So now, our vague “I’ll study Evidence this week” becomes “On Tuesday at 4pm, I will work on my Evidence outline in the library.” This provides students with a much more specific plan of attack.

2. The Two-Minute Starter Nudge: Reduce the Psychological Barrier

We all know that big tasks feel intimidating. Yet students often set lofty goals for themselves like “outline for two hours” then feel disappointed when they don’t meet those goals.

The two-minute rule starts by reframing the larger task as something too small to avoid. So rather than setting a goal to “outline for two hours,” students should instead tell themselves to “open your outline and update one case.” Then, once students start, momentum often kicks in. This nudge is especially effective for students who shut down when the work feels overwhelming.

3. The Commitment Device Nudge

People are more likely to follow through when they tell someone their plan. Implementing “commitment devices” are ways to capitalize on this. ASPs can help students use commitment devices by asking them to share their weekly study goal with a peer or mentor; offering a study check in form on Mondays and Fridays; and building micro-accountability into workshops (e.g., “before we leave, write one thing you’ll do this week and who you’ll tell”). The magic in this nudge is the social signal, rather than the work.

4. The Environment Nudge

Students often believe their habits are about motivation, but they may be more about environmental design. Students may not be setting themselves up for success because they’re trying to study in an environment not optimized for that purpose. Small nudges can help create a more productive environment:

• Encourage students to create a study-only spot even if it’s a corner of their apartment.
• Suggest phone baskets, website blockers, or do-not-disturb settings during deep work.
• Recommend that students set out books and laptops the night before to reduce friction.
• Encourage using visual cues in the study space to prompt action, such sticky notes and printed study plans.

When good habits are built into the environment, students won’t have to fight themselves to do the work.

5. The Pre-Commitment Calendar Nudge

This nudge encourages planning before stress hits. Planning in a calm state leads to better decisions than planning in moments of stress. ASP can nudge students to pre-commit to key tasks each week by encouraging weekly “study preview” meetings; sending weekly email reminders that includes planning templates; and encouraging time blocking. The goal here isn’t perfection; it’s proactivity.

6. The Reflection Nudge

Students often repeat ineffective habits simply because they don’t pause to evaluate them. Weekly reflection can help students understand what is and isn’t working for them. Sample prompts include:

• What study strategy worked best for me this week?
• What didn’t work, and why?
• What is one small change for next week?

Build reflection into workshops, coaching, or even quick end-of-class prompts to encourage this practice. Over time, students will realize that reflection turns experience into strategy.

Behavioral nudges aren’t about forcing students to work harder. They’re about helping students work smarter. When ASPs integrate small, science-backed prompts and advice into programming, students naturally build stronger habits, follow through more consistently, and develop the kind of sustainable study routines that lead to long-term success. A nudge may be small, but the cumulative effect can be transformative.

(Dayna Smith)

Preparing for finals doesn’t have to be scary!

One of my favorite ways to study for exams, especially as a 1L but even sometimes for some of my advanced required courses, was to analyze hypos in shows I was watching.

Whenever I studied (or now when I write), I struggled to do so in total silence—so I always had a show on that I had already watched enough times to not have to pay attention to it. One of those shows was Grey’s Anatomy. However, once I started law school and began learning things like Torts, Property, and Contracts, I found that Grey’s Anatomy had another benefit—hypos for me to practice for final exams with!

For example, there is an episode (S8:E23) where one of the residents, Alex Karev, who just accepted a full-time attending position at Seattle Grace Mercy West, gets offered a dream job at Johns Hopkins—so he tries to re-negotiate his contract. This was a great hypo for learning contract formation, validity, and defenses like Statute of Frauds.

In another episode (S8:E4), the doctors have to triage victims of a stampede from a comic con, where several nerds (and I say that supportively because I, myself identify as a nerd) are fighting over a TARDIS replica. This scenario (that lasts most of the episode) was great for me to test some of my personal property knowledge as I got ready for my Property exam.

There are lots of hypotheticals across subjects in Grey’s Anatomy—here are a few examples:

• Torts (plenty of fist fights and “apprehensions,” and of course LOTS of medical malpractice and battery)
• Criminal Law (battery, murder, fraud)
• Civil Procedure (they have a case that gets decided at summary judgment (S9:E11))
• Business Associations (after a horrific plane crash, many of the survivors form a new board of directors, which lasts several seasons, and includes decisions made by the board)

Of course, for criminal law and criminal procedure topics there are always a plethora of crime-based shows, including the many series of Law & Order and NCIS. If you’re curious, Reddit also has many of it’s own suggestions for show hypos across law school subjects.

So, as you get exam ready this fall—especially 1Ls who are always hungry for more practice problems—try to see if any of the shows or movies you’re currently watching help you to assess hypos. When you spot an issue, pause the show, write out or bullet point your rules and legal analysis, and then review it to see if you were on the right track. Bonus points if you and a friend do this together and help assess each other’s answers.

Happy Halloween & Happy Hypo-ing!

(Erica M. Lux)

Processing an unsuccessful bar exam outcome necessitates a grieving process. But unfortunately, in response to institutional and ABA standard demands, we may turn too quickly to offering repeat taker programming without creating space for the taker to process their grief.

If we don’t create the space for students to grieve then we merely serve to reinforce the increased stress, anxiety and mental health challenges in our profession.  The article, “Managing Stress, Grief, and Mental Health Challenges in the Legal Profession; Not Your Usual Law Review Article” by Deborah Rhodes begins with reference to a true story from the book Smacked.[1] The account details the death and funeral of a partner at a Silicon Valley firm. His life lost due to complications from substance abuse. While a young associate gave remarks at his funeral, many of the lawyers in attendance were on their phones, reading and tapping emails. A clear example that in the most important time for grief, lawyers are inclined, and perhaps programmed, to operate “business as usual.”

Support for an unsuccessful bar taker requires more than “business as usual” – repeater support programming, commercial provider free repeat courses, and supplemental study programs. This is our moment to work with the graduate to process the grief as part of the pathway to success. In a world where access to sustained mental health resources and counseling support is limited, we must fill this void when our graduates grappling with unsuccessful outcomes.

To institute good grief, here are some practical exercises to consider:

1. Engage the student in a perspective analysis.[2] Push the graduate to reframe their circumstances, explore their gratitude and compare their circumstance to a more challenging (and worse) life circumstance that they are not currently experiencing. This practice helps minimize the weight of the negative outcome.

2. Help the student identify an activity that they currently engage in or that they want to engage in that contributes to something more than themselves.[3] This exercise promotes well-being, brings fulfillment, and externalizes focus.

3. Identify key future deadlines in the overall “life” agenda. By mapping out the reality of the circumstance and intentionally incorporating time for grief, it can bring ease to the inherent tendency our graduates have to “study right away” after experiencing a bar exam loss. A “life” agenda generates opportunity for sustained achievement of short-term goals during the grieving process – which is more likely to yield long term success.   

(Amy Vaughan-Thomas)

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[1] Deborah L. Rhode, Managing Stress, Grief, and Mental Health Challenges in the Legal Profession; Not Your Usual Law Review Article, 89 Fordham L. Rev. 2565, 2566 (2021) (citing EILENE ZIMMERMAN, SMACKED (2020); Eilene Zimmerman, The Lawyer, The Addict, N.Y. TIMES (July 15, 2017), https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/15/business/lawyersaddiction-mental-health.html [https://perma.cc/N4MH-LXYR].

[2] Id. at 2573.

[3] Id.