If anyone has the time & ability to give me some insight/perspective/advice, I would truly so appreciate it!!!

Here is my situation: I graduated in May, planned to take one gap year, took the LSAT in September, and am now recognizing that I need far more time to study for the LSAT if I want to have a legitimate shot at my goal schools. I would like to attend a T14, so I am determined to score in the 170s. I was BRing around this score (but..my score would fluctuate quite a bit). Thus, I was not too surprised when I scored a 163 on the September test.

Basically, I am certain that if I took more time, I could score much higher, which would give me a good shot at the schools I am hoping to get into. So (partly since I am 21 and am personally in no urgent rush to start law school as soon as possible) I want to just take the time to study more for the LSAT and wait another year to apply to schools. However, my parents are very against this, and they think that November should be my last shot, and whatever score I get..that's the score I get. They honestly do not have many reasons for this, aside from just wanting me to get started with law school and not take any more time than necessary. I do not think they fully grasp the significance of everything from the LSAT score to the ranking of the law school one attends, but they are also not particularly amenable to me trying to explain it to them (they are both attorneys themselves, but honestly I do not think their experience was the same as it is today).

Has anyone has walked a road similar to this one before? Or anyone have any insight on how I should go about this? I am keenly aware that this is a highly personal situation that is very specific to my life, but I also believe that many law school applicants have had to have gone through this before, and I would really love to hear some perspectives on the matter. Do you have any advice on how I should go about this with my parents? Thanks in advance to anyone who can help!!

Hey everyone,

Just wanted some thoughts on my situation. My last 10 PT's were averaging 168.5, and I made a 166. I'm definitely disappointed but test day penalty is definitely real.

On the bright side, I was fortunate enough to finish undergrad with 3.9+, so GPA will help me.

Any advice for schools such as UTAustin, Vandy, and others in the same range?

September scores are in! Feeling indifferent about my score. I was averaging average 157 on PTs and ended up getting a 155. LG is my biggest strength. I got super lucky and had 2 LG sections, ended getting 0 wrong which is great. LR I did much worse than my normal average per section and RC a few points better but still I think I can improve by November. I admit I was getting burnt out and ended up having a bunch happen in my personal life the week before. Now that I have my score I’ve been doing research and while I plan on retaking I’m concerned about when I should apply. I’m pretty confident my scores will get me into the schools I want as I’m right at the medians and I’m also a URM. However, I’m really wanting to get a scholarship. I plan on being in a public service position and really want to reduce my debt. When I look at my chances of getting in to the schools I want, the percentage is about 10% higher now than it is if I wait until December. I don’t know anything about scholarship negotiation but I’m thinking if I already have a good chance to be accepted then I can apply now, still retake in November and hopefully with a higher score be able to negotiate scholarships. Is that the right thinking? Any advice would be great!

Hello, I am applying to law schools this fall in Canada. I applied last cycle but stupidly rushed the LSAT with the wrong prep materials and not devoting much time while in school. I wrote in December 2017 and February 2018 and scored in the low 140's both times. I realize I screwed up big time in retrospect and I should've cancelled at least one of my scores. I found 7sage and it has been life-changing. I am nearly done the core curriculum (just some problem sets left) but yesterday I did my first test since February. I scored a 150 on the June 2007 test. Even though this is not very good, it was still an improvement which has given me some confidence that I can do it. I wanted to seek some advice as I am signed up for the November test date. I am working part time with just under 20 hours a week and not in school at present. The rest of the time I have been devoting to studying.

I am currently reviewing the test video explanations after blind reviewing the test. I got -11 on RC, -9 on 1 LR and -11 on the other LR. My logic games was the weakest section (-12) which makes sense as I have not spent using J.Y.'s fool proof method as of yet. I know once I learn from my mistakes and get familiar with LG, I can have a major hike in my score. I also feel I can improve in RC and LR because I sometimes make stupid mistakes and feel like I learnt a lot while blind reviewing. Speed is also an issue for me at present which I think I can improve on by employing 7sage techniques and practicing. I have not attempted the 9 preptests I have access to in the basic 7sage plan yet. Do you suggest I use those for drilling and then practice with the remaining tests I have (PrepTests 52-81 & 83/84). Finally, if somebody could just advise me on the best way to prepare for this test in my remaining time. I am aiming for 160+ on the test. I am not sure if schools will even consider me if I delay all the way until January especially with my atrocious previous scores. I apologize for the long post, any comments will be helpful!

What do you think of the LSAT Answer Watch? The website says it's LSAC compliant and it's not a chronograph.

https://lawschooli.com/lsat-watch-what-is-the-best-lsat-analog-watch/#comments

Jy Should invent a course for Florida Bar exam. he's the real MVP. :)

Hello Everyone,

This is my first post on the 7Sage Discussion forum. Just today I signed up for the 7Sage course. I'm posting just to ask for some advice from you all, as many of you seem to have this whole process figured it, while I still feel like an outsider.

I have been studying for the LSAT since last December. At that time, I was only using various LSAT prep books that I had purchased from bookstores and from Amazon. After a couple months of this I came across the heavily populated field of LSAT prep programs. I chose Kaplan Prep because it was a name I was familiar with and thus trusted. I was and still am a full time student working 21hr weeks, so the self-paced online course was really and still is the only option for me. Unfortunately, the Kaplan course just did not click with me at all, I found myself mindlessly watching hours of their videos and never actually doing the LSAT. On test day (June 2018) I still felt like a stranger to the test, unsure of how I was even going to tackle it. I recieved a 151.

I was disheartened by this score but still determined to improve. I knew I could no longer show up on test day feeling unfamiliar with the actual test. I signed up for the September LSAT, but this time around I completely self-studied, apart from watching 7Sage LG explanations on Youtube (LOVED these). So, from July till September all I used to study was the actual test. However, I rarely ever took full-length/proctored PT. Perhaps I felt that I couldn't find the time, or I was just scared of how poorly I was going to do, but I almost only did timed sections in batches of either 1,2, at most 3, at a time. I think I realized that this was not enough to get me to where I wanted to be in terms of my score, but I still felt better knowing that I was doing a lot of these timed sections, getting familiar with the test, better at completing sections on time, identifying questions types and patterns, etc. I felt like my score was going to significantly improve, I got a 152.

Fast forward to today and I am officially a 7Sage student and am extremely happy that I am, but after seeing other's success in this forum this September, I am kicking myself for not enrolling back in July. I'm also registered for the November LSAT. That leaves me with about a month and a half to dive into 7Sage. I am certainly no stranger to the LSAT and have been studying for this test, although using different startegies, for almost a year. My goal since freshman year of college was to get a 170 on the LSAT but it seems that goal is evading me much easier than I ever would've imagined. However, if I could boost my score by 10 points by November I feel I'd have a decent chance at some T25's (3.67 GPA). I have also come to have a different perspective on taking another year to study for the test after reading other similar post on this forum, and wonder if I should give myself another cycle to get closer to that glorious 170 everyone wants. I am still only 21, but the idea of spending an enitire year out of school, working, and studying for one test still seems foreign to me, and my parents...

I apolgize for such a long post, and thank you if you read this far, I just have not gotten the oppurtunity to really talk to anyone about this entire process. I think I am heading in the right direction by signing up for 7Sage and posting here, but besides that I am running out of answers. Thank you for any and all helpful responses/thoughts/comments!!!

Hello!

I will be graduating next semester in spring 2019, but I plan to take a year off to really focus on LSAT while working a part time job. Is it okay if I ask professors to write me recommendations for the cycle of 2020? (I will be asking in spring semester 2019 before I graduate)

I am really nervous about this because I do not know who else to ask for recommendation letters when I do apply.

Hey everyone! I’ll just get right to it. I took the LSAT Dec 17 (159), Feb 18 (156) and Sep 18 (157). The first time my score came back lower I was crushed but I figured that it was bad luck and I could bounce back. Signed up for 7Sage after that, did the CC, did fresh PTs and I was consistently scoring between 161-165 on my PTs in the weeks leading up to this LSAT. When my score came back, I kind of broke down. I wish I could chalk it up to test anxiety but I don’t normally suffer from it. I have no clue what to do. Would a 4th attempt look bad? Should I even bother to attempt again? I would really appreciate your thoughts.

So, I recently came across a concept some of you are probably familiar with known as "hindsight bias." For our purposes, it probably translates to seeing a question you got wrong and then immediately discounting it thinking it was just a simple mistake that you won't repeat? I am trying my best to have a healthy relationship with it which I believe boils down to simply being honest, after all there's no gain when I am not, especially when I am doing drills or PT'S. Can anyone else relate?

Hi everyone,

I want a rough idea for how long it took some of you guys to complete the core curriculum; logic games section / Reading Comp and practice testing?

Also, Is there anything I can do to improve my focus? Sometimes I do one logic game and feel like I need a break....I want to be mentally stronger so I can sit there and get through more of the CC faster.

Any feedback is appreciated! Thanks everyone in advance.

I scored ~6 points below my PT average so I will retake in November for sure, but right now I have no idea how to get prepared.

I got 156 in Sept. (RC -12; LR-11/-9; LG -1), but I was consistently scoring between 161-163 for the last 10 timed PTs. My average performance for each section is at -6 for LR, -0.4 for LG and -10.9 for RC. With that being said, I am aiming for 166 in Nov...is it possible?

RC is always my weakest section, and I feel I actually made no improvements since cold diagnosis ;-(. Can anyone give me some recommendations for extra reading materials? Reading for scale helped me a little bit, but I am still having trouble with science passages cuz I usually got lost with those professional terminologies.

At this point I don't know if I still need to focus on LG as improving from -1 to -0 probably results in no score increases anyways? And I am considering redo CC for LR but this seems to be a huge amount of work...is it worth the effort to redo CC? Or is there any good supplements for LR?

Any inputs are appreciated!

Hey all,

I'll keep this short and sweet. I joined 7sage at a point when my PT scores were stalled and I felt very discouraged, like I couldn't make anymore improvements.

After working through the CC, lots of time spent reading through the forums, and writing literally every PT, I got my score back today: a 173.

This is totally life changing, I didn't think it could ever happen. I want to thank JY for becoming the voice inside my head for the last few months and for the care and dedication he put into his invaluable lessons and explanations. Also a huge thank you to the rest of the community for their periodic support and advice.

Seriously, this place is amazing. Thank you. I would (and will) highly recommend this site to anyone considering taking the LSAT.

Hi all,

I got my September mark back and am just so mad at myself. I completely choked after seeing the first RC passage. I stubbornly went through the section in order, completely running out of time and didn’t even get to read the last passage (this has NEVER happened on any of my 20+ PTs). I freaked out at the fact that I choked on the first section and did not get out of that horrible headspace until the 3rd section.

Despite all the choking and the freaking out, I decided well, I paid the money, might as well see what I got wrong. (Also egotistical me was saying ah you may have done ok despite messing up 2 sections)

Aaaaand here we are with the exact same score that I received in June.

I guess that means even when I choked, I still improved somewhat considering despite choking I still got the same as June.

I’m just super down in the dumps and trying to decide between

Any tips? Suggestions? Life wisdom to share?

Thanks for reading this far! :) this group is honestly the best

Hi!

Looking to hear from those out there (if any?) who don't keep track of their own time (i.e., a watch) while PTing/when you've written the exam? Why do/have you chosen to do so?

I would never use a watch during PTs and it worked fine, but for some odd reason (maybe because I was wearing one? --___- I decided to use my watch during the September exam. Think it knocked the hustle/flow I'm used to and trying to assess if I should stick to just not using it or, switch to using a watch during PTs to become more familiar with it).

Question: is it normal to be missing a couple of questions on each of the comparative and context identification quizzes? Also, when do I move on from the grammar? I feel like I grasp the concepts, but I'm still getting, especially the harder, questions wrong.

Hey 7 Sagers!

I'm not a good test taker - at all. I've consistently scored mid to high160s on my PTs. But when test days rolls around, I am unable to achieve my full potential for whatever reason. For the 4th time, today I found out I scored below a 160. So I now find myself at a crossroad.

I have a 158 on record as my highest score. This is a score that will get me into the schools I am looking at, but I am unsure about how much scholarship money I will receive for this score. I know I am capable of scoring over a 160, but I'm wary of taking the LSAT for a 5th time, especially if I only would gain a few more points.

Should I just go ahead and plow forward with my 158? Should I apply with my 158 and retake, and notify law schools if I have an increase in score? Or, should I start buckling down and go for my 5th attempt and submit applications assuming that score would be my highest?

I've been studying for almost a year now, and am becoming very frustrated with this test. It feels absolutely insane to have taken it so many times. Any advice or input would be greatly appreciated!!!

Hey 7Sagers,

We're posting on behalf of a 7Sager. They would like to get advice from you all!

I have a 3.9 GPA and took the September LSAT. I knew I wasn’t ready because I had only had about 2.5 months to study but I had a lot of people pressuring me to take it and I thought I could convince myself it would be fine.

After studying with 7sage for about two months, I was hitting the mid to low 160s. I just got my score this morning, and got a 152. I am completely devastated and do not know what to do. I feel because my score is so low that law schools won’t even look at me now.

It has always been my dream to go to Harvard because of family legacy and also because I know I can do it with my grades and extracurriculars, but mostly because I want to help the most people possible with law and feel that a compelling education is a key part of that.

I am seeking 7sager’s advice about what to do. I think at this point I should not take the November exam and take a lot more time studying for this exam that I hugely underestimated. I don’t know if I should take another year off because my applications are already going to be late and I regret very much not cancelling my score. I don’t know what to do and am open to any suggestions or resources you have.

Hey fellow LSAT'rs!!

I'm looking for a study partner to each other motivated, accountable, and problem solve. Basically someone who'll be my buddy every step of the way on our LSAT prep. One of the deficiencies with online courses is that you don't have the same accountability as in-person courses have. This, I believe, can be somewhat mitigated by a steady partner--especially someone local to periodically meet up.

Goals: I've done some study before, but I'm starting afresh with the full Ultimate+ syllabus. My diagnostic score was 156, however, 170+ is my ultimate goal (really 175+ so I get into Harvard problem-free, but that's just a touch delusional :-)). I'm serious and committed to doing whatever it takes to get a high score.

If you're interested, please message me here or via txt @347-770-5573 to discuss times etc.

So I am about to resume prep for the Nov. test after getting my results today. Unfortunately, I have used all of the pt's at KHAN. Should I restart my account fresh there to go along with 7 sage's core curriculum?

Hey guys, this may be a stupid question, but for the admission ticket photo, must I actually go to Walgreens or CVS and get an actual passport photo to upload to the LSAC site?

Or can I just take it with my smartphone (meet all the requirements laid out by LSAC) and upload that?

Thanks.

LSATers,

As I'm sure all of you are studying extremely hard, I would expect that many of you haven't heard all that much about the Congressional hearings on Dr. Christine Ford's allegations against Judge Brett Kavanaugh. For those of you that have, as prospective law school students, what are your thoughts on them? (Dr. Ford's testimony, Judge Kavanaugh's fitness for the Supreme Court, the way sexual assault allegations are handled going forward, the bitter partisan divide, etc.) All points of view are welcome!

Hi all,

I took September and, upon reflecting, found that the pressure of test day--the environment, being around other test takers, the proctors, etc.--certainly through off my game. I'm curious if anyone has come up with strategies to practice and ultimately overcome pressure on test day. Just so you know what I have already tried:

I had been practicing in the same test center location several weeks leading up the exam, so it was not because it was a foreign/unknown environment;

I have practiced most types of meditation and mindfulness practices, and even did one before the exam.

Open to other suggestions as I prepare for Nov 2018!

Thanks!

Hey guys!

I've seen lots of great posts about listening to podcasts, reading books, or watching informational youtube videos on subject matter that you struggle with. However, I have yet to come across something that deals with agriculture. I don't know what particularly it is about this topic that just baffles me and I'm trying to familiarize myself with it. If anyone has any suggestions for books or podcasts or any other media form I can engage with for my benefit, it would be much appreciated!

https://i.gifer.com/RFCG.gif

longtime submarine here. just had to share. almost wish I were making this up.

first night, I dreamed that my score was six points lower than my target score.

second night, I dreamed that my score was SEVEN points lower than my target score.

last night, I dreamed that I got the email, opened the mail app on the phone, but the message was corrupted/glitched and crashed the app, forcing me to check the LSAC website on the computer, only to find out that I messed up the bubbling for biological information and the test score was cancelled as a result.

pretty worried what the dream will be tonight lolol.