Self-study
I've been feeling pretty discouraged lately with my LSAT studies. I cannot seem to improve my real score (mid 150s) despite my blind review being really good (usually 170+). I thought it was because of timing struggles but, for LR at least, my timing has gotten a lot better recently but my score still hasn't improved. RC is my hardest section for sure and that hasn't improved at all—both timing and accuracy wise. I've done the core curriculum, drills, reviewed, but nothing seems to help. Has anyone gone through something similar/have any tips that I may not have tried?
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Rule #1: Don't neglect the RC section!! If that's currently your worst section, you can make significant improvement by changing your approach. In my case, I also struggled with RC. One day, I literally just spent a few hours going through anecdotal videos on Youtube and seeing how others were tackling RC - I did this not with the intention of copying their methods, but more so to see if there were any tips that could be applicable to me, considering how my mind functions. Literally overnight, I went from averaging -11/-13 on RC to averaging -4/-5 on RC literally with just one mindset change. I obviously still have a lot of room for improvement so take whatever I say with a grain of salt. Before, I really was just reading just to read and hoping that I could figure out the answers when the time come. Honestly, the second I changed my mindset and begun to actively think about and look for the author's voice, formatting cues, and the main paint as I was reading, everything changed. For example, as I'm reading, I'm continuously taking mental notes. Certain words, for instance, will automatically jump out at me if the author is interjecting, showing disapproval/skepticism, etc etc. The beginning of every paragraph is super important as well. If you truly look to understand these things before moving on to the answer choices, they really should only take you 20-40 seconds to answer on average... which means that it might be worth it to spend an additional minute or two reading the passage rather than rushing through it to jump through the answer choices. Chances are: if you don't have a grasp of the author's tone, the problem/hypothesis being presented, the main idea and how the paragraphs connect at the high level, it's going to be a painful process going into the answer choices. If you do the necessary work up front, it's easier to hunt for the right answers or eliminate the wrong ones.
@Jascard Honestly you have to look at RC as if you're a detective. When you're looking at a passage, you're asking yourself as you read what even is the main point (why is the author writing about this topic? is it to address a problem? is it to propose an alternative way of doing something? is the author wanting to share the implications of a recent study, etc), the author's tone (do they approve of this approach? are they optimistic about the implications? are they just providing us with info? are they conceding any points and making their own proposal about something, etc), how the paragraphs connect (are we starting with a problem and being told about a study that looks to address the problem/ ramifications of the study?) For convoluted sentences, , as long as you understand the purpose their placement in the paragraph is supposed to serve, you can sometimes even get away with not fully understanding the granular details. Not always the case, but sometimes. For comparative passages, have you tried the split approach? That's been very helpful for me as well
@Jascard Could you link some of the specific videos you watched that help you?
@nlmqvp @Jascard I also am interested in the videos you watched that helped you!
@Jascard Thanks so much! I'll definitely try this.
@Jascard Please send those videos in here!
YOU GOT THIS! Just keep it up. Studying for this test is like an endless hellish marathon but plateauing is very common. I'm not a very high scorer but what's helped the most for me is daily drilling the first thing I do when I get up.
R u nervous?
@GigaChad probably a bit... I've always had a hard time with tests. But I don't think I'm nervous enough that it would affect my score THAT much.
@sydneybouwman Not sure the full extent of your situation, but you might enjoy listening to Neville Goddard clips on YT or reading David Hawkins. Letting Go is a book by David Hawkin's that helped me a lot. I used to be very awkward then got a sales job and sold millions over zoom thanks to a lot of the ideas from David Hawkins.
Hope it helps and good luck retaking the test :)
Do you do the live classes? they are very helpful specifically Bailey's RC classes.
@SimoneLewis No... they cost extra right?