It takes a decent amount of practice do the easier games really quickly. The game boards are all really repetitive (except for MISC games) so just keep practicing and the time it takes you to know what the game board is will decrease. try doing speed foolproofing where you try to answer all the questions and prove all the inferences in writing in decreasing amounts of time (this really helps you to practice writing quickly) (and note if this leads to making mistakes or writing down the game or pieces less legibly) (i.e. I had a lot of trouble with U and V pieces when I would try to increase my speed, so now I always write U more like a 3 sided square sort of a thing), finishing with trying to complete simpler sequencing and grouping games in 4-5 minutes (and note what it takes to do it this quickly). and practice when to split and when not to split (and when you mess up and decide to split and it's not helpful). depending on the number of slots in a sequencing game, I won't write all the numbers underneath (like for a 5 slot game I just write a 3 under the third slot). I wouldn't worry too much about time this early on, as the time it takes to identify the type of game decreases a lot the more games you do. But I do think that it's very possible to speed up the speed at which you write down the rules, set up the master game board (I generally don't rush through inferences bc they almost always end up saving time) and any time it takes to copy down the game board. Another strategy that I am quite fond of is, after writing down the rules for the game, while you're thinking about how they interact with each other, just copy down a bunch of blank game boards. (this might not work for you, but I can pretty mindlessly write a bunch of game boards, especially for sequencing games, while still fully thinking about how the rules will interact with each other, and then I don't have to write out as many game boards during the questions). try doing this and see if you like the strategy. Another thing that I did that I think helped a lot was to listen to JYs explanations without looking at the screen sometimes. I have youtube premium so I would download some LGs and listen to them on the walk to class. and then pause the audio after he reads each question stem and think about all the possible correct answers by imagining the game board in your head.
TLDR (I'm really bad at concise messages sorry):
1)"Speed foolproofing" (start with however long the game took you and then decrease the amount of time you give yourself to re-complete the game by 1min or 30 seconds each time (prove out the answers, don't just select the correct answers).
2) trying to do games mentally while just listening to the audio and imagining the board and pieces in your mind.
3) identifying personal things that slow you down
4) not worrying because you'll speed up as you get more comfortable with the repetitiveness of the games structures and the inferences
Best of luck! Hope this helps!
the "Logic Games" category on the sidebar of the iPhone app for me is stuck with descriptions of the different LSAT courses 7sage offers, but I'm already signed into my ultimate+ account. I think this might be related to how the LG videos were removed from youtube. lmk if any of you know how to fix this
I generally don't redo the problem with a clean version, as I would do for LG. I just keep the marked up version and review where I messed up and why I messed up. Generally for the tough questions there's a very specific part of the stimulus I did not retain, sometimes even a shift of a noun modified by an adj in the stimulus to a noun without the adj as an answer choice that makes the answer incorrect. Keep reviewing it and notice patterns in the questions as you continue to review missed answer choices
-Practice your logic. Having logic down really well is the easiest way to speed up. Even if this isn't what your diagramming error is from, I'd still practice this.
look for patterns wrt your diagramming error, and try to fix the pattern. you'll be a lot more comfortable with the various game boards when you've repeated the games a lot. recently identifying the type of game isn't an issue for me because I've done a lot of games, and the game boards are all really repetitive (except for MISC)
the key to LG imo is doing the easy games really quickly so you have more time for the hard games. 10-15 for a 5 star MISC game wouldn't be that bad/might even be reasonable. I think you're diagnosing your time problems incorrectly. I would imagine they come more from taking too much time on the easy games. When fool proofing, try to do 1 and 2 star games in 4 minutes or less. On my last LG I spent 8 minutes total to finish the first 2 games, no Qs wrong on those two games. I got tripped up by a 5 star game but still did well because of how much time I had.
-especially for sequencing games if that's where you're struggling, try to identify where you're burning time. (this applies to all sections and is as helpful imo as the CC) Where do the psyshometricians that write the test cause you to waste your time (and knowing that they're trying to get you to waste your time)? Maybe you're not spending enough time making inferences up front. maybe if you find a question that you don't know what to do on, you spend 20-30 seconds thinking about what to do before just brute forcing it. Maybe when writing down a new game board you write kinda slow because you're confused/discouraged. Maybe when you can't find the right answer easily you go back to the rules to see if you wrote something down wrong, made a logical error, etc. maybe you're spending too much time deciding which question to do. Everyone's different. My main time sinks were not making inferences up front (I now force myself to spend at least a full minute thinking about how the pieces interact for each game, otherwise I jump into the questions too early) and hovering around various questions if I don't know what to do next.
My current approach is to do the games in order, and I skip a game if I think it seems difficult. I also skip substitution questions, which appear on later prep tests, until I have answered all the other questions. Skimming the games and deciding which to do next could work for some people, but I think it burns too much time and could lead to indecision or doubting if you made the write choice.
Congrats on your scores thus far that's a very good starting point! Hope this helps!
Save questions that you struggle with and practice them by being able to explain why 4 of the answer choices are incorrect, and why the other choice is correct. If you're just finishing the CC I wouldn't worry too much, and your scores are already really really good. Keep doing the problems and thoroughly reviewing questions you don't understand fully, even if you get the right answer.
Everyone is different with how they interact with the question. in the questions that you got incorrect, Are you eliminating the correct answer choice? Are you able to correctly eliminate some/most of the answer choices? Have you eliminated 3 and are stuck with the trap AC and the correct AC and are hovering between the two? Obviously you want to get the answer right but being able to increase your odds is super helpful. Don't just review the question, but also review how you reasoned through the question, especially if you're eliminating the correct AC. Hope this helps!
yes the newer tests are harder. imo it's mostly from LR and RC. doing super thorough BRs and taking a good amount of time to review Q types you're missing before the next test will help
looking to add about 10 people to a discord study group. Preferably people who have scored 170+ on a fresh PT and are hoping for 170+ on the test.
DM me if interested
feel free to dm me the journal you keep or start keeping a journal and send it to me and I can critique it/give you feedback. I'd take a break if you're upset. I tried to stay away from the test if I ever had too much negative energy and I think that was for the best. after the break review logic indicators and LR question types and easy LGs
are you attempting all the questions? how good are you at identifying when you aren't 100% certain.
If you can differentiate easy LGs from 4-5 star ones, it could be worthwhile to just completely skip one game.
also for LR, are you missing any easier questions? how often? why? I'd get into the habit of blind guessing on the last 5.
are you keeping a journal? I could give more detailed advice if you list exactly how and why you are missing questions
over a year and a half of on and off studying and I'm finally done. The content here is super helpful, esp the LG and LR videos, and the new thing where you can make a custom made problem set. also thanks to all the people who post a lot and spread a really positive attitude.
156 after cc -> 166 jan 2019 -> 169 july 2019 -> 172 jan 2020 (curious as to what the breakdown was. I'll never know). a lot of ups and downs. wait till your PT score is where you want it to be before you sign up for a retake. take breaks. keep a journal. believe you can improve and find your weaknesses. find a strategy and stick to it
be more specific about where and how you are missing questions when you make posts asking for advice (this forces you to understand why you're dropping Qs.). take some more breaks. do something while you watch LG videos like yoga or stretching or clean.
Thank you for sharing!
1-2 PTs a week is usually fine. more prep tests doesn't always equal more learning. It's more important to go through the Prep Test thoroughly, especially learning from whatever questions you're still getting wrong after BR. Getting to 170 that quickly will be tough but it's possible. Also 156-7 on your first PTs isn't 'such a low score', it's a good starting point.
do practice tests and keep a detailed journal. take breaks if you get burned out
Thanks for the feedback! I think the mindset that the next test will be my last one is a very good point. the partial refund would be $50. All of my last three PTs (which is all I've done since the July test aside from drilling) are above my goal, but they're also earlier PTs which are a bit easier imo. I feel ready.
(I hadn't studied much between jan and july because I was studying abroad and wanted to focus on language acquisition. I took the test anyways bc I thought this free voucher would be easier to use earlier)
Follow up question: what would you do with the 2 free test vouchers if you got your target score (but not what you think could be your max) on the nov test? I read somewhere that law schools don't like it when you retake an already really high score (like if you retake a 174 to try to get a 180). Would this idea still apply if I could write an addendum saying that I had two vouchers and there was no point letting them go to waste)? Could it potentially be better to not use the vouchers if my next score might be less?
I took the january LSAT and didn't do as well as I was hoping. I took the July test, but was just planning to cancel and use the free test voucher. I missed the September deadline, and there are currently no available spots in LA for October. I registered for the waitlist regardless. There is only one location that would be viable for November (anything else would be a 2+ hour uber drive, and I don't want to take my chances with LA traffic the morning of an LSAT).
Should I register for that spot in November now? Should I wait and hope that it is still available after I cancel the July score?
Should I be worried that if I register for November now, the total number of times I'd take the test could be 5?
LA also has no test centers. Is there any legitimate reason why they wouldn't already have testing centers in the two biggest cities in the US?
why are you missing the LR questions that you miss? how's your timing?
LSAT analytics should help you know what questions are more difficult for you - skip those. Or just skip the ones that are longer like Parallel Flaw. I read the stimulus. If after the first read I didn't understand it well, or if I lost focus, I start over on the stimulus. After reading the stimulus twice and I still don't know what's going on, I flag and move on. For answer choices I I eliminate the choices that are easy to eliminate. If I'm stuck between two answer choices I'll reread each choice. If I still don't know I flag and move on.
2.) I don't fully understand the question. with regards to "how bad the wording is"- Are you eliminating answer choices bc the wording is confusing? If it's one of the tougher questions I personally wouldn't worry about missing it (easier said than done ik) as long as you don't let it be a time sink. I think JY says that if you're ever stuck between two ACs that's a good hint that it's a tough question, and just to flag it and move on.
I think it's super important to practice eliminating wrong answer choices. practice explaining why 4 ACs are wrong, in addition to explaining why the one is correct. (under timed PTs I look for the right answer first, but for BR I look to eliminate four wrong choices)
My friend told me that LR has changed drastically since the earlier prep tests and became very different around prep test 80 or so. Anyone know more info about this? Is this accurate?
How important are the earlier tests if the LSAT has changed?
I think the biggest thing is breaking up the routine. Try different study methods.
take a break from studying for a few days and just read the economist/challenging texts. exercise before you study (or exercise while you study, sometimes after doing LG I'd go for a jog while listening to the audio of the explanations).
switch up the strategies while studying to make it more interesting (instead of looking for the right answer, always look for the 4 wrong answers) (or find the trap answer choices on harder LR questions and pretend you're the test maker explaining to your coworkers why the trap answer choice will trick people)
try out 7sage's law school predictor and then just adjust the variable of application month
I have a google sheet where I keep track of what I'm working on, and a google doc where I write down info about the questions I have trouble with, why I didn't flag a question I got wrong, why I missed a question, why I had trouble with the stimulus, etc. I wouldn't review every question but I think it's very helpful to review and explain whatever you got wrong/why you got it wrong
a post test + post-BR journal has helped me a lot. write down why you missed each question you missed, why you failed to flag a question you ended up getting wrong, etc. is timing an issue?
I'd start by doing untimed PTs, flagging any question you're not sure of and really focusing on understanding. do the PT untimed. after you finish BR (for BR, instead of finding the right answer, practice disproving the 4 wrong answers. any LR question that you miss find out why you missed, watch the explanation video if you still don't understand, and then write a stimulus that has the same reasoning as the stimulus of the question you missed. diagram the different parts of the LR stimulus in the original and your stimulus of parallel reasoning. LG advice depends on how you're missing the questions.
what's a fresh PT?
I wouldn't try to represent this on the master game board. (but still write the rule off to the side)
What mistakes are you making? We could give better advice if we know where exactly the mistakes are coming from. Are the unseen games similar to earlier games/games you’ve seen before? Why exactly do you think you continue to miss this amount of questions?
I found it super helpful to journal to get a better understanding of where/why I’m messing up
thanks for the tip! I deleted and re-installed and it's working now