I know this is a slightly older post, but I'm writing anyways in case I can still help!
AS others have said, it is completely normal to have fluctuating PT scores! So you're definitely not alone.
With that in mind, try not to ride an emotional rollercoaster based on your PT scores. There are 150+ PTs for you to practice, and you can't let your emotions go wild for every single time you take one.
In my case, I used to be emotionally reacting to my PT score whenever I get it after completion. When I scored terribly, I felt terrible throughout the day. However, I realized that this was not helping me at all.
I know this won't be easy, but I highly recommend you seeing wrong answers as gold; they are actual opportunities to fix your mistakes or refine your logical gear. If you have seen that exact question on the real exam, you would've lost your point, so how wonderful is it to catch it in practice instead?
I hope this helps, and best of luck! You're doing great.
Like others said, 5 points is completely normal. LSAC gives an 8-point range; my variation was 10 points when I was taking PTs. One PT is just another data point. Adjust model weights as necessary, but no need to over emphasize a single score. As humans we tend to focus more on the negative than the positive. Know that bias and fight it when it creeps in.
This is really normal, even if it feels terrible. There could be a few different reasons for this, depending where you're on in your studying.
One of the more extreme examples usually happens between your diagnostic and your first PT after you've put some time in studying. You're thinking more logically about how to arrive at the correct answer, rather than intuitively going "this seems right." Ultimately, approaching it correctly will raise your score ceiling in the long run, but in the short term, it can be really demoralizing. This also plays a factor in timing: when you're doing things correctly, they take more time than the vibes-based intuition approach. I'm not sure what your process was, but if you were feeling rushed in the end, that could be a contributing factor.
Another reason regardless of where you are in your studying could be burnout, or genuinely just having a bad day. If we've learned anything from studying this test, it's that one instance isn't very good support. One crashout isn't a pattern. :)
It's completely understandable to be frustrated. But when you're ready to lock back into logic, know that this isn't actually as bad as it feels. It's not a pleasant feeling, but it's normal, and doesn't necessarily mean anything.
6 comments
Hello!
I know this is a slightly older post, but I'm writing anyways in case I can still help!
AS others have said, it is completely normal to have fluctuating PT scores! So you're definitely not alone.
With that in mind, try not to ride an emotional rollercoaster based on your PT scores. There are 150+ PTs for you to practice, and you can't let your emotions go wild for every single time you take one.
In my case, I used to be emotionally reacting to my PT score whenever I get it after completion. When I scored terribly, I felt terrible throughout the day. However, I realized that this was not helping me at all.
I know this won't be easy, but I highly recommend you seeing wrong answers as gold; they are actual opportunities to fix your mistakes or refine your logical gear. If you have seen that exact question on the real exam, you would've lost your point, so how wonderful is it to catch it in practice instead?
I hope this helps, and best of luck! You're doing great.
Like others said, 5 points is completely normal. LSAC gives an 8-point range; my variation was 10 points when I was taking PTs. One PT is just another data point. Adjust model weights as necessary, but no need to over emphasize a single score. As humans we tend to focus more on the negative than the positive. Know that bias and fight it when it creeps in.
Hey!
This is really normal, even if it feels terrible. There could be a few different reasons for this, depending where you're on in your studying.
One of the more extreme examples usually happens between your diagnostic and your first PT after you've put some time in studying. You're thinking more logically about how to arrive at the correct answer, rather than intuitively going "this seems right." Ultimately, approaching it correctly will raise your score ceiling in the long run, but in the short term, it can be really demoralizing. This also plays a factor in timing: when you're doing things correctly, they take more time than the vibes-based intuition approach. I'm not sure what your process was, but if you were feeling rushed in the end, that could be a contributing factor.
Another reason regardless of where you are in your studying could be burnout, or genuinely just having a bad day. If we've learned anything from studying this test, it's that one instance isn't very good support. One crashout isn't a pattern. :)
It's completely understandable to be frustrated. But when you're ready to lock back into logic, know that this isn't actually as bad as it feels. It's not a pleasant feeling, but it's normal, and doesn't necessarily mean anything.
@PhoebeHopp Thank you so much for the encouragement. I genuinely appreciate it.
you're good for it, keep your head up and the results will come!
@Bchaudhry223 thank you! I’ll keep going