Hello everyone,
My name is MJ or Madi, I am writing the LSAT for the first and only time in October. Although I live close enough to a testing centre to write there, due to accommodations, I am writing online from home. I have just taken another practice test (PT122 without experimental) and I am feeling quite discouraged. I was doing pretty well for the first section (LR) and half of the second section (RC), but by the time I got to the second half of RC, I felt tired and stressed. I finished the first LR section with only a few minutes remaining, and that led me to absolutely blaze through the second half of the test, hardly even reading passage four, and not diagramming anything for the third LR section.
I know I can do this, I know I'm smart, and I know I'm capable. However, the school I want to go to only takes into account two things: Your LSAT (50% of the decision) and your GPA (50% of the decision). To get into this school, which is the only one I want to go to and is the closest to me, I believe I need around a 165 or so. Currently PTing at about 151.
This leads me to my call for help. I am looking for effective ways to increase my stamina with taking the LSAT. I tend to lose my sustained focus about half-way through, and it leads me to not think as hard. I truly appreciate any and all advice given. I have been studying since June 1st, and took a week off at the end of July as I felt burnout creeping up on me.
Sincerely,
MJ from Canada
1 comments
Hi MJ from Canada!
I'm going to link a response that I wrote a few days ago to someone who is having similar frustrations to you.
I can't help but notice that you seem very set on taking the LSAT only once and in October, and also very set on your top choice school. It's really normal and advantageous to have this level of steadfast ambition, but it can put a lot of pressure on you (which may be contributing to your burnout). If your circumstances allow you to take more than one exam or pushing the October exam, I would at the very least consider it as an option.
That being said, I am happy to give some of the practical tips for endurance!
You mentioned you have accommodations, have you asked about removing the experimental section? Some students qualify for a shorter exam, meaning they only have to do three sections on the real day. If you believe that you qualify for these accommodations, it may be worth looking into!
If you choose not to go this route, you absolutely need to practice full PTs with the experimental section. It's okay every once in a while if you're under a time crunch or busy; but in general, it is recommended to practice with the experimental section.
What you can do instead is practicing full timed sections first. You mentioned that you burned out completely during the RC section; is this a common occurrence? Have you taken back-to-back LR sections and not burned out? Or is it always just around the middle of section two when you start to lose focus? Asking yourself these questions can help diagnose the underlying weaknesses.
(You may have different breaks depending on your accommodations, but I think this still holds!) There is a minute break in between each section: take the minute break. Close your eyes, reset your mind, and take a few deep breaths. It seems like it won't do much, but I have found that it helped me center myself (especially if I feel like I did poorly on the previous section). And of course, do this during your mid-exam break too.
Read more, even if you don't like reading. Just read anything, and start forcing yourself to absorb the information given to you. This can be a cereal box, a newspaper clip, billboard ads, waiting room posters.
Delete short-form content and social media. Remove any distractions that can interfere with your attention span. If you're addicted to your phone (like I am), download the Kindle app or other reading apps and read on your phone.
Practice practice practice. Practice being tired and burnt-out, and practice pushing through it. Practice having good days, and off-days.
And lastly, I would just like to reiterate my point I made earlier, about putting too much pressure on this one attempt. It's certainly possible for you to reach your goal score by October, some people are able to jump points very quickly. But if you are still set on October, I would recommend making a week-by-week schedule from now until October. It could help to have checkpoint goals over the course of the next several weeks, and you'll be able to study in a digestible manner. Wishing you the best, MJ! DMs are always open if you would like more advice.