I've signed up for the Premium plan and plan to study with 7sage (and other methods of self studying) for 6-7 months and then have a tutor for 3 months. I'll be taking the October 2015 test. I currently work at a top 3 NYC law firm as a paralegal, so I have long hours and a fairly unpredictable week. My plan is to leave work one day a week at 5:30 to study until 11 and then study on Sat/Sun each week.

Of course, I'm worried about burning out, but this elongated schedule is the only way I can see myself actually being able to get in enough time for studying.

A bit about what else will be in my application:

I gradated from a top 15 liberal arts school Summa Cum Laude with a 3.95 GPA, and I studied on a scholarship to Oxford for a year (my GPA was a bit lower at Oxford which will bring my overall down a tad). I have set myself up so that I have 0 concerns about getting in anywhere (great professor letters of rec, I'm a good writer, etc) based on all of that, but the LSAT is my kryptonite. I studied logic at Oxford and I still freak out when reviewing the test.

I'm dying to break 170. My eyes are set heavily on Stanford, but I also think UChicago, NYU, Berkeley, UMich would be good fits (obviously Yale and Harvard aren't out!)

Any and all advice is VERY welcome. Any advice from people with long schedules like this?

I was about to purchase a bunch of Cambridge packages for LR and LG, but I'm wondering... does anyone have any they want to pass along? I have a few I would be willing to share! MSS, Flaw, NA, SA, Point at Issue, Humanities passages, and Social Sciences passages (RC).

Not sure if we're allowed to do this, but if we are, is anyone willing?? E-mail me! Harrismegan@live.ca

Hi Guys,

Just got the Cambridge set for LR and RC. How would you recommend I drill those in the most time efficient manner. Should I do every single question?

Currently, Im just going through every single question but doing 1500+ questions for LR purposes might take too long.

Let me know what you guys think

Thanks for all the help

Hey Everyone.

My name is Melissa! I tried to study and take the LSAT December 2014. I crashed and burned two weeks before the test. Between working full-time and studying 30+ hours a week I couldn't take it. I am looking to take this LSAT study plan much more calmly, but am looking for someone to study with either in person ( I am in the greater Los Angeles area..think CSUN) or am willing to via Skype. My email is [removed]

Note from Student Services: Don't include emails! PM instead. :)

I'm not doing too bad on the PTs, not quite where I would love to be but I am definitely seeing improvement in my blind review scores. The problem is I consistently have about 5 problems leftover each section as the time runs out. I am becoming more accurate but not any faster. I was wondering if anyone had any tips or ideas on how to be quicker? Thanks!

I took the LSAT and I didn't do well. Now I need methods on how to improve my score.

did everyone receive the score email?

I live in Canada (Alberta), and still have not received the email yet.

Any idea?

Thanks@

I got 7Sage for Christmas and began studying immediately after. My plan is to study for 6 months and then be as prepared as possible for the June LSAT and just in case I don't do as well as desired I still have the option for the October test. I was wondering if it is just a completely stupid idea to go and sit for the February LSAT even though I won't remotely be prepared enough - just to kind of get a feel for the environment so that I would be surprised by anything on the actual day of. The school I want to get in to only takes the top score so I wouldn't think that this could hurt me in any way, but I may be wrong. I was just wondering if anybody had any additional thoughts on this idea? Why it be good or bad? Thanks! - Mack

I'm planning on sitting in June 2015 and I just began studying Dec 26, 2014. My raw score for the very first prep test that we were told to do was a 149 - so not too bad but definitely need to improve. I was just wondering how often I should be doing the practice tests. I'm in school full time and I work full time so I don't exactly have the 4 hours a day to study like this calls for, but I was just wondering if anyone had any advice on the best way to optimize my time??

Thanks!

Hellooooo. I need some advice.

Sadly, I did not do well on the LSAT this December. I got a 155. I started studying in May, but I didn't start with 7Sage and I had zero idea what I was doing or the best method to study. I found 7Sage in August, but I took a trip to England at the end of August, so I didn't really start studying for real until September. Needless to say, I only really started improving towards the end, so I think I started improving when it was too late. I took the test anyways and decided not to cancel.

I don't think I'll get in for this cycle. But I'm looking at my options. I live in Canada.

My GPA isn't the best. I struggled in my first two years with what I wanted to do with my life, so I went the Science route and took some pretty tough courses. I thought I wanted to go into Medicine. Regardless, it's around a 3.58 for the U of A (they take your last 20 courses and + if it cuts a year in half) and about a 3.3/3.4 for U of BC and U of Vic. I can take courses additional to my degree, but doing so would mean I was working full time, taking courses, studying for the LSAT, ect.

My Mom and I both think that trying to achieve the best possible LSAT score would be better than trying to increase my GPA. Just because I would have to get really great marks AND studying for the LSAT at the same time. What do you guys think?

People can be admitted at the schools of my choice with the GPA that I indicated, although it's not the best. I know I have LSAT potential, but I'm scared of "putting all my eggs in one basket" and writing the LSAT next June or next October to get no further ahead and to regret not taking additional courses.

Addditionally, I thought that if I brought a stronger application that might help. I am going to be teaching people in my community english once a week and my sister and I are going to go to Italy to teach children english next October (after the LSAT).

What do you think I should do? Thanks :)

Hi all,

Flipping through the threads on the 7sage site helped me see that I am not the only one who ever had a "fear" of this test and then found every possible way to psych themselves out or make it feel so much worse than it really is.

If any of you know your abilities are in the high scorer range (170+) but you find yourself feeling angsty worrying about time while taking the test (a sure focus killer) - just try this.

Relax. Sit down to take a section and practice questions for that section for a few hrs. Snack for a quick 15 min break, then sit down to complete a section. Instead of setting the timer for 35 min, set a stop watch. Move at a comfortably fast pace through the section, but diligently apply yourself to each question. Find your rhythm. Upon completing the last question in the section, hit the lap button on your stopwatch, and then take a quick look back at the handful of questions you were iffy on. This should also be at a comfortably fast pace. Once finished with the second glance, hit the stop button on your stopwatch.

Both times might be revealing, and hopefully reassuring if you've just been psyching yourself out thinking about how much time is left on the clock when you should be answering questions.

There are so many things in life you might have thought would be a huge deal to actually achieve, and then after the fact you realize it really wasn't as bad as you were making it out to be. I hope this helps!

Best,

C.

Hi everyone.

I am so down because I practiced so hard and I scored nearly my initial diagnostic in the December LSAT. Initial diagnostic was a 154 and my LSAT score is 157. I was practicing at 164 average with 167 top score and blind reviewed in the 170s in the end. I knew i could keep going to get better to solidify but really wanted to get it out of the way since I have been studying 1.5 years on and off. I have 4 kids and I feel if I retake I might end up running out of time again. Taking very few full timed practice tests and finishing sections when I had gotten the kids snacks thinking to myself 'the time it took to pay attention to them I will just add to the end and it comes out as if I had cut off at 35 minutes.' was not working. I know I am t14 material with a 3.96 GPA and the capability to score 168 if I just can hurry up/prepare more focused. I don't know if I will ever have the chance. I don't want to schedule a retake and then just be crushed again. I used to be so bad on logic games and i actually thought the rug game was not that hard, was so proud. I actually only got 7 wrong on Logic Games which is great for me. I would score 165 and get 10 wrong on Logic Games. I am really really sad seeing my chances at Berkeley or Stanford slip away and having to settle for Santa Clara. What should I do?

Hi everyone,

if I get accepted to my safety school and decide to retake the LSAT in June to apply to my reach schools who rejected me, to see if I have a chance, will the safety school still take me a year later when I refused the offered seat the year prior?

Hello fellow 7sagers,

I have pretty much decided to attend Cardozo Law and really like the idea of doing their Part time program and beginning 1L in May. In my opinion, getting a head start and spreading the first year over 3 semesters is a recipe for success, classes are smaller and taking 10 credits a semester versus 15 leaves more room to focus on each class.

My Mom, however, works for a nationally ranked law firm and has been advised that the big firms do not give as much weight to PT students as they do full time because they know that it might be easier.

I'm conflicted because I took classes in Undergrad all throughout the year in the Winter and Summer (I hate taking time off) and did very well.

What does everyone think? Is it worth risking perhaps a lower GPA just to go Full time when all the May start students will have to go full time anyway beginning in the 2L year?

Hi everyone!

I live in the Baltimore, MD area and am looking for an online Skype/Facetime study buddy as it would be easier to fit in my schedule than meeting in person. I am brand new to the LSAT, am looking to take the June offering, and just learning techniques/strategies through 7sage. I'd be interested in hearing from you. Thanks :-)

Hey there. I decided to take the December test with not all that much preparation (~10 PT's). Average PT score was around ~159 but ended up with a 152. In my PT's and actual test my LR/RC were approx. -6 with LG closer to ~ -9-11. I'm senior Finance major and could get an internship this summer and prep for the June test more seriously. With 7Sage's resources how are the chances given my situation (low LG sections) to get up around 165+? Thanks for your help.

I find that when I am doing in out games with conditional statement rules, my diagram is logically correct nut looks different than the explanation videos and it is harder for me to get to the answer using my way. When I watch the vidoes, it is much clear to follow the path to the right answer using the instructor's videos. I can't seem to figure out how to follow his method of drawing the diagram on future similar games

For example, I did PT 36 Game 1 today and my diagram looked like this

O -> P -> not K -> T

-> W -> F or T

I am a non-traditional student, meaning nearly 40. I am retired, so working is not a big deal with a pension. I took my first LSAT and did not score what I wanted to due to a major injury the day before. I did not score high enough to make the lowest score accepted from last year's pickings of the preferred school I need to get in to (I have small school aged kids that need to stay put). Anyway, does it hurt to submit an application with strong softs (military, big resume, PS, LOR's, etc) and retake the LSAT later this year as a contingency? If I am refused to the preferred school this year, would the school use the refusal against me next year if I reapply with a higher LSAT?

Hi everyone!

So I got my score yesterday and am incredibly disappointed since it was substantially lower than what I was getting on practice tests. I have already registered for the February LSAT and plan on writing it because I have already submitted my applications for the 2015.

From the research that I've done, writing in February really doesn't put me in the greatest place considering that most acceptances are already sent out by the time the law schools will get my February scores and review my applications. I should also note that I applied to all of the Canadian law schools (who especially recommend writing earlier than February of the year you want acceptance) and US law schools (who seem to be a bit more flexible with the February LSAT because of the rolling admissions).

I was just wondering if anyone has any insight or advice of what I should do. I really don't want to delay another year of applying and this will be my last time writing the lsat so I need to make it count and if I only have a 5% chance of getting in, I may as well just wait until June to write it.

Hi everyone!

I usually don't post on here (I read a majority of them, however) but I am feeling a little down and out lately, and was hoping to get some advice. Please excuse the long post as well.

I started 7sage last May. After seeing my diagnostic, I knew that I was going to need a lot of work in order to achieve my goals, which I was okay with. The course was phenomenal. I enjoyed learning about the strategies and methodology that was necessary to getting the questions correct (believe it or not). It explained everything so simply and so clearly. I felt my score was slowly but surely increasing each day because I was learning how to conquer this test. After studying as often as I could with school and internships, I was able to complete the curriculum in December. I took my next test after the semester was over and my score wasn't as high as I had hoped. I got a 149 and a 159 after BR. I was a little surprised but I kept pushing and did four more practice tests. Needless to say, I haven't got above 153 on the timed section or above 161 BR. I even did one untimed and only got a 158 and 159 after BR. I feel so depressed and I honestly don't know what to do. I did every single part of the curriculum and took meticulous notes on all of it. I didn't do that bad on all of the quizzes and got roughly 8/10 on all of them. The only significant improvement that I have seen is that I am consistently getting -1 or -2 on LG after BR, which is much better than my previous -10 or worse. However on LR I'm going -17 after BR or worse combined. RC is usually -7 after BR. I know I should be getting in the 170s after BR but I honestly don't even know how

The worst part is when I sit down to take a practice test, I instantly go into panic mode as soon as I start my watch. It's like every single strategy I learned goes right out the window. I just might as well close my eyes and guess. This is particularly troublesome on RC because if I spend too long reading a passage (which I always do) I just pretty much guess at the questions and go on to the next passage. I get such bad anxiety under timed constraints that it significantly hinders any progress. Not only that when I BR those LR questions, I seem to justify my answer, which is only making matters worse. I've been completely Blind Reviewing the entire test and redoing every single game and RC passage, which has been very helpful on these two sections. Nonetheless, LR is still killing me.

Everyone seems to say that this is a learnable test but I feel like I am physically incapable of doing better. I mean, I am smart kid (3.7+ GPA, dean's list, honors, yada yada yada), but this seems to be an insurmountable hurtle. Quite frankly, it sucks because if it truly is a numbers game, this is the only thing holding me back from getting into a top tier law school. I study for at least 35 hours a week and to see such little progress is just gut-wrenching. The only thing keeping me sane is that I started working out 3-4 times a week in order to completely clear my mind.

I just started going through the LSAT Trainer. In addition, I was considering getting the Cambridge LR drill set PT 1-38 in order to try and make some progress. I've spent so much time trying to understand the test and how to solve each question type that I think it may be better to start do problems. The fool proof review, for example, is really helped me on LG and just doing games over and over again. But is it helpful to employ a similar strategy on LR such that you do the same questions over and over until you fully understand what you need to do get it right? I think one of the BR videos, JY says something about it being not beneficial to just to problem after problem of the same type. So would not be beneficial to do the drill set then? Not only that, my concern with this is that I don't know where to go to get explanations if I do poorly. Also, because I can only finish 3/4 passages under timed conditions (never mind getting them right), should I purchase the RC package also? I ask because I literally have no idea what to do from here. I constantly think about just giving up because the returns are diminishing and I don't know even know if I am capable of doing well. I was originally going to take it in September, then February, and now June (thanks for charging me to reschedule...), but the June testing locations are all pretty far from my house.

I honestly don't even know what to do anymore. Any help anyone could provide would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for the great material at a great price.

Hello, everyone!

I'd like to congratulate everyone who got through 7Sage course and took the LSAT. It was a very stressful semester! I would like some different perspectives on my current situation and thought of no better place to ask for such advice.

I started studying for the December exam in mid August. I was spending hours upon hours everyday along with school full time and my part-time job. I had scored a 147 on my first practice exam, and while I was disappointed I knew there was nowhere to go but up. In the middle of the semester though (around the same time as midterms), my father needed surgery and I needed to contribute a lot more to the household operations, which killed about a months worth of study time (I studied, but not as much as I needed to).

Fast forwarding to when I got back on track, I really started to nail down my LG. Getting maybe 5 wrong, then 2 wrong, then 3 wrong. I wouldn't say I mastered that section, but it did a lot for my score. Two weeks before the December exam I took PTs #40 (June 2003), #68 (Dec. 2012), #69 (June 2013), and #70 (Oct. 2013). With these 4 tests I score three 156s and one 157. I felt I was prepared for the test, and that these four test really reflected where I was and how I would perform on the exam.

I got my score yesterday and it was a 147. My heart dropped. I wanted to cry, but held back the tears because I was in front of others. I'm still applying to the schools I planned on applying to (their low end was 151 last year), and I'm hoping that everything else on my application nudges me over (strong GPA, PS [LS admissions officer personally told me my resume and PS were strong], and letters of recommendation.) However, I'm still skeptical that I'll even be able to make it in, and it's so depressing that after a full semester of school, work, and LSAT I dropped the ball on test day, because that score is not really indicative of where I truly am.

I have some options. I could take the Feb. LSAT but I felt that would be rushed and not very productive (it's already decently late in the application cycle for next fall.) So my aim is June/October 2015, assuming I don't make it into the schools I want. Of course in this off year I would try to find a full time job and hopefully have a better score at that point.

I know this is a lengthy read, but I appreciate it if you made it this far. I wanted to know what some of you guys think and what you would do in my position. It also felt good to air it out. Also, if you're in my position, at least you know you're not alone! :'(

I started studying for LSAT in July - I quit my job so that I could dedicate every waking moment to studying. I felt really good about where I was and was PT'ing at 166. Took the September LSAT and was incredibly disappointed when I got a 158. I usually get perfect scores on LG, so when that tricky section threw me off, I knew my score would be lower, but not that much lower! So I studied more for the December test, and was PT'ing even higher - 167-170. Again, I was devastated last night when I found out I only scored a 158 again.

So here's my real concern: my score doesn't reflect my ability at all, and it seems like I have a test taking problem--some serious nerves are causing me a lot of grief. I took 40 different practice tests. I only scored below a 160 3 times. That is seriously concerning to me. Is it even worth it to take the test a third time? I have this fear that I will inevitably get nervous again and wind up with a 158 for the third time. But I also really can't imagine waiting until next cycle to take the test all over again and waiting another year to go to law school. I had originally intended to apply for the 2013-2014 cycle, but unfortunately I experienced a string of deaths of people close to me during the summer when I needed to study but just couldn't. I don't think a 158 is a good enough score to get me into a school I'd be happy at. But I can't imagine waiting yet another year only to score the same 158 a third time.

So I guess my options are to go for it for this cycle with a 158 and hope I get in to one of the schools I want. Or to forego this cycle, put it off another year, retake in June and HOPE that my score will be higher even when I have so much doubt? And I have no idea what the dynamics around taking the Feb test would be.

I've just been mulling over these thoughts in my head for a day now and I could really use any outside opinion. I totally trust you guys and this forum has helped me a lot so I would appreciate any honest opinion. Thanks for taking the time to hear me out!

Need some advice here. I took the LSAT in October 2013 (canceled score), September 2014 (159), and December 2014 (159). Very disappointed, especially since I seem to be making the same stupid mistakes. I only signed up for 7sage between the September-December administration, so I really only had 6 weeks to prepare. I think that bit me in the ass when it came down to internalizing JY's method and the way that you need to think on the LSAT. I have a 3.7 GPA from an Ivy, some great softs, and am an old, non-traditional student, so I have a pretty good application other than the LSAT and I KNOW I can do better because I was PTing in the high 160s/low 170s. ARGHHHH.

So, my question. Does LSAC's 3 exams in 2 years limitiation mean that I can't take the lsat again in June 2014? Or do I have to wait until October 2014? Would love to know if anyone else knows...

So, I've been accepted to two great schools one in the 20s and one in the 30s in the rankings. However, I am trying to get into a top 5 school. I have a 161 now, but am seriously thinking about retaking in February. Can retaking hurt my chances at all? I also have a 3.87 GPA and very strong softs on my resume.