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Dear 7Sage community,
As my account for the past 1.5 years is about to expire in an hour, I just want to say thank you for all the tips, encouragement, and wisdom. I applied last year, and got into a school in the mid 60's with no scholarship. This year I am going to a top 25 school with very, very close to a full ride. Wow what a difference applying earlier, with a much better score, and more fully flushed out apps does (basically a different applicant).
I could write all day about this. I kind of want to because I have learned so much in this journey that I would love to hand over this highly niched knowledge. But I will say this:
Just because you are a good person doesn't mean you are entitled to a good score. It must be earned. And in many people's cases, it took years. Some of my heroes on this website battled for 2 plus years to get their score, but it paid off BIG. I studied for almost a year and it paid off BIG for me. I was rejected from the school I will attend last year and this year they are rolling out the red carpet.
Your stories matter. Your humanity matters. But numbers matter most. If schools were to let in every great person or story, numbers at most schools would be down. So take the numbers component seriously. And if you have great essays or stories, that will definitely help. But get those numbers! I promise you, they are not playing around.
Do everything JY says. Obviously test what he says out. But he doesn't say things randomly with no thought (or at least not when it comes to the LSAT).
Take practice tests with 5 (or I recommend 6 sections). It drives me crazy when people are willing to do everything under the sun to prepare, but when it comes to PT, they take 4 sections. Then people say "the energy of test day will give you that extra boost." Ok, maybe it does. But aren't we trying to simulate test conditions as best as possibly. 5 sections are different than 4. And practice with 5 then get the additional "energy boost." I promise you, it helped me out.
The main difference between a 167 and a 172 is most likely test taking strategy. Of course better fundamentals helps, but at this point it's strategy.
Practice reading comprehension. Most people believe this is the hardest section to improve. That is because most people don't like to practice this section. LR is fun and you can do you a few questions at a time. I found LG fun. I hated RC, practiced it the least, and improved upon it the least. Practice it!
Don't be afraid to postpone a year. It was one of the most painful decisions of my life. It doesn't matter where you are in your life. But it was one of the best decisions I have ever made.
Sorry, but if you are just starting you LSAT prep, it's probably best to postpone a year. By the time you take your first real test, you will most likely realize you can do waaaaay better and it's too late (plus you have to start writing essays). Don't be afraid to wait a year (please refer to #7).
It's important to be able to break this test down. So taking your first PT in month 3 then retaking at month 5 looks very different than taking your first test in month 5. As you get close to test day, getting results are more important. So settling for cheap tricks versus really digging deep happens. So you can end up taking 3 tests in 6 months and very really studied in depth. Then you can become burned out after test 3 and then the real pressure happens. Wow, I have studied for 6 months and keep not improving. Is this for me? If i take it again I REALLY must do well! Don't do this to yourself. If after the second take you don't see big gains, take a year off and really go deep.
Get a tutor. Take all the pain and suffering that they had to go through and learn from it.
You don't only need big chunks of time to study. 20 mins here and there (in addition to the necessary big chunks of time) can really help and add up.
This test is a snapshot of where you on a highly specific set of skills right now only. It doesn't define you. But as you study for this test one can reduce their value to how well they did on their most recent PT. Don't get to high or too low on this. Study. Learn. And move on.
There are a million more things to say but I can't think of them. But for those in the deep dark jungle of LSAT study, I would come across the occasional 7Sage "Thank you" message and wondered if I were every going to be able to write one. I am. Thank you 7Sage! And best of luck to all of you who are studying! It is worth it. It pays off. It might take a little more time than you thought, but have faith!
i took it like 5 times. not a problem. got close to a full scholarship. no one really cared.