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@zunair Thanks for the input! I won't totally ignore the foundations, I still want to make sure that I understand them well
@mjfromcanada Thanks for the input! I will most likely review the LR question types and strategies to deal with them, but I think I could take the Foundations sections pretty light. I do not have the Live Session subscription, unfortunately
Hi everyone!
I am extremely new to 7Sage. I am not (unfortunately) unfamiliar to the LSAT. I recently took my LSAT back in June, and I got a pretty decent score of 155 after studying for a month with Kaplan's physical test prep (I completed all of it, and I think my score is pretty decent for only a month of prep-work). The problem is, I want to get into UNC Chapel Hill's Law School- which means my LSAT score will definitely hurt my application, even though everything else is really solid, including my GPA. So, I rationalized it, and I decided I was going to find a prep course so I could practice more LSAT questions, so I can memorize the question patterns even faster and increase my overall question accuracy under the time constraints of the test.
My big question is, how much of my time should I devote to the study lessons provided by 7Sage? So far, I am using my old knowledge from Kaplan and relating it to the 7Sage lessons. But, should I put more of a heavy focus on the practice problems, and sit the lessons on the back burner? Or should I follow the study plan and learn how to tackle LSAT problems quickly and effectively? Should I do an even 50/50 split of both? I just want to make sure I am maximizing my time, which I do not have a lot of when all is said and done (Friday afternoons and weekends aside). For context, I am doing 1-2 hours prep daily, until the January LSAT. Thanks for your input!
Hi Elvin! To start right off the bat, I would highly recommend that you read the solutions. I understand that you believe that the issue is rather one of reading comprehension, but reading the reasoning of the problem's solution may give you more insight into the way you were supposed to comprehend the passage, in order to reason and solve the problem. Taking the chance to see the solution, and how that solution was worked out through the use of the passage as evidence, could help you in examining your weaknesses in reading comprehension. Again, I completely understand why you are adverse to reading the answers, but I would definitely give it a shot to see what you might be missing in your RC toolkit, to better understand how you should interpret passages, and then relate that interpretation to your answer.
Additionally, what Mitch suggested is extremely helpful. One thing I learned from Kaplan is that, for the time allotted for the test, it is CRITICAL to highlight (or at least, make note of) keywords. Keywords will absolutely help you better understand the passage's main points, and that helps you make shortcuts to find all the important pieces of information the question is asking for you to sift through. This helps you save time (which is everything to this test, to be honest- the LSAT, as you must know by now, is almost all quick pattern recognition with limited time constraints), and cognitive resources. Unsure what keywords are? Think of words such as "however, but, therefore, additionally, [name] writes..., etc. Keywords are usually used to either introduce ideas/perspectives, or to transition between them. Keeping note of all the keywords in a RC section should help you better understand the content of the passage, the perspectives provided, and the author's overall purpose for writing the passage.
I know this is a lot of information, but I hope this helps! Don't give up on trying to improve your RC- you can do it! You just need to take the right steps, and be proactive and intentional with your learning. Take it from someone who has taken the test before- every single minute counts!
@Adam Thanks Adam! I might consider it a little down the road, but for now I'm sticking towards a more self-paced, solitary study plan, because that's how I usually operate best