Another thing to note is that the time each person wants and needs to spend on each section of the core curriculum is subject to variation.

For instance, if you aren't getting very many questions wrong on LR sections, you won't be spending as much time blind reviewing. Moreover, a huge chunk of the Core Curriculum hours is tied up in problems sets. Each set of five questions is supposed to take 30 minutes. But for the sections with 1 star difficulty, this could be much more than the time you actually need to complete the questions and blind review. In addition, you do not need to complete all of the problem sets your first time around. One strategy is to do enough to get a solid grasp of the question type, and then to save problem sets for drilling later on (the problem set questions are pulled from some of the sections from Practice Tests 1-35, so you can also encounter them by drilling practice tests sections later on in your studying).

Quick Summary

The time estimates are just that, estimates. They can differ depending on your grasp of the material, and depending on how many problem sets you choose to do your first time around.

As the above commenter noted, you get the Core Curriculum with all the packages. Ultimate is great if you want all of the Prep Tests that have ever existed. But you might not need this many to prepare. I would recommend enrolling with a Starter package at the very least, as I personally have found 7sage to be highly helpful in studying.

IMHO, do whatever works for you when you study for anything else--you have a 3.9 GPA so I have a feeling you know what you're doing in that department. There's no need to reinvent the wheel here!

However, as far as taking PTs, I think it's important to consistently do what you will do on your actual test day. I'm taking it in June, which is the afternoon test date, so I get up around 10, shower, eat breakfast/lunch, then take my test. You want to reduce test-day surprises as much as possible, and a big part of that is getting the test-day ritual down.

I think this answer can be treated in the same way as the answer choice "It appeals to popular opinion on the matter at issue" (PT33-S1-Q2, from the Method of Reasoning Section). If an argument's main premise is based on something "most people believe" or "some people believe", then this might be considered taking an opinion and using it as if it were factual. Perhaps the verification part means to say that an opinion is being considered verified because the person arguing has taken it to be fact. What question did you see this in?

Wanted to lend support to @'s sentiment, because she's spot on. There's no need to wait to start fool-proofing. Even once you've seen the videos and know how the game should be attempted, getting practice with making those inferences again and again is half the battle. Fool-proofing as you go is a good way to start making progress and getting more comfortable, which will only make the process easier and easier. Waiting till the end of the core curriculum to get started means having less familiarity and practice. Fool-proofing now means less struggle down the line. I was hesitant to start fool-proofing on the problem sets myself because it sounded like a lot of extra work, but I've already found the process super valuable.

You should also keep in mind that the Problem Sets are all coming from Prep Tests 1-35, so you'll see all of these games again eventually if you by the bundle.

On a related note: If you haven't seen the advice posted elsewhere in the forums already, there are a few good techniques to save paper if you don't want to print out a bunch of copies of each game. You can write out each game on a fresh sheet of notebook paper (which is what I do), or you can use a plastic protective sheet to slide over the paper and then write with a dry erase marker. Would also recommend tracking your progress via an excel sheet so you can see your progress.

Best of luck!

Like you, I've always been a good at RC, -1 to -3. I also never actively notate--usually just a bit of mindless underlining and circling to keep myself engaged with the passage (cuz damn, are they boring). I think for people who are naturally good at RC, trying to notate may do more harm than good--why fix what ain't broke? For those who are not naturally good at it, though, notation is probably very useful--it provides a system to use in place of intuition. My experience in LG is sort of the polar opposite of RC: I sucked at LG, but then used the PowerScore and 7Sage system, and have gotten quite good at it. I would imagine that using a third party's system for LG if you are naturally good at LG would hurt, just like notating on RC seems to hurt you.

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@ Thank you! I will. Always good to know there are fellow North Carolinians out here :)

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With the caution that I am not a doctor and you obviously should talk to yours, I second looking into propranolol or other beta blockers. It's widely prescribed for people whose jobs involve a lot of performance anxiety--think musicians and surgeons. I take it myself and find it pretty harmless.