Hi 7Sagers,

I am currently drilling RC as it's my weakest section. Although I [feel] it's improving slightly and slowly, I am not sure if it's true or just my feeling since it's not shown in my scores yet.. I am wondering how long it took you to improve your RC (e.g. reduce the wrong ones by about half)? Either in terms of hours or number of RC sections would be a good measure that's helpful for me.

Also, what strategies or changes of your habits made that difference?

I felt frustrated when I still got -9 after two weeks of drilling (about 8 passages per day).. And not sure if there's something wrong with my strategy. I felt I spent too much time on each questions and always had about 4 questions unanswered when time's up. But not sure I I could overcome this, because if I rush through the passages, I will get more wrong answers.. When I do BR (only my circled and unanswered ones), I got -6 to -3. At this stage, should I focus on time management or analyzing the passage when I drill?

Thanks very much!

lty

Hey guys, just curious as to what an individual should do at a law school information session if he or she is applying next cycle?

Thank you~

Some law school applications ask, "Are you applying, or have you applied, to other law schools? If so, please list them." This questions is typically marked as optional within the "Law School Interest" section.

Should we disclose this information or leave it blank? What are the advantages/disadvantages of listing all or some of the schools to which we are applying?

How long should a personal statement be? I have heard different things on different sites - some saying 1-2 pages and others saying a max of 3. I am asking this because mine is 2 full pages right now and I feel like it may be longer with my friends' editing/comments on how I can better improve it.

Thanks!

I've seen multiple responses in multiple posts about this question so I just wanted to corral all advice in this post based on my particular stats. I will take the LSAT in November and have a 166 on file with a 3.4 GPA. PT'ing around 172 and hoping to hit at least a 169. If my application is ready to go before scores are released, is it advisable to submit and indicate that I am re-taking in November, or to wait until I get my score and then submit? I will likely blanket T-14.

Who feels ready? Shaky? Share your stories please :)

I'm reaaally struggling with the idea of balancing Applications and studying. For those of us testing in November, I figured we want to get our apps in asap once our scores come back. But I'm leaning toward waiting to do my apps until after I take the test because I've read the admissions centers are closed for holidays anyways so it makes no sense to apply in the middle/end of December. That would give me about a month and a half to complete all my apps. Is that enough time for a solid application?

November'18 Study Group | Blind Review PT 76 | Thursday, October 18 | 7:30 PM EST

This week's call will be led by our very own @"Kristen B" :)

https://media.giphy.com/media/xT9IgovVfkFstqybL2/source.gif

(During the 15 minute break)

If you are done the curriculum or almost done the curriculum, join us when you can. We welcome people in all stages of prep. The point of the group is to get your lsat nerd on with other like-minded people and make the process more fun. Expand your thinking and learning by interacting with others! For my fellow shy-people, everyone is going to be focused on their own answers/questions that I guarantee you they will not be judging you based on mispronounced words, reading-speed, etc. It's all for fun!

Note: Take the PT under timed conditions; BR to the best of your abilities; join us for all or part of the call! For the purposes of the group please don't check the answers beforehand. If you happen to know the answer, keep it to yourself, and win the argument using your reasoning. Also, please don't go "so I know the answer is C but I don't know why B is wrong?" as the purpose is so that we all collaborate on improving our reasoning skills.

Enter the questions you wish to go over on the spreadsheet below! Write your name beside the question(s) you wish to cover, if the question(s) you want to cover are already marked by someone else, add your name! :) The more discussion, the merrier.

Based off of my experience and deliberation with some other folks, we're going to try something new for this group. Instead of having a call every week, we will instead have a call every other week. The reason being is that I think that the process of taking a PT, BR-ing it thoroughly, and doing drills to address weaknesses that were ascertained from that PT/BR can be really taxing when repeated weekly. I noticed, among myself and regulars on the call, that having the call scheduled every week really exacerbated burnout. Especially since people would try to force themselves to attend as many calls as possible because they felt they'd be missing out and would neglect signs of burnout. I realize that this means there won't be as many calls but this was a decision made after much deliberation. After all, PTs are just a snapshot of your understanding, the bulk of your learning happens in BR and drilling. Of course, people are free to take a PT or two every week if they need to.

Spreadsheet: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/18ZoI9Nu-8SmhPh_MBpz8W6hEcDV1CyhZJVPKDQ7s08E/edit?usp=sharing

Tentative Schedule: https://calendar.google.com/calendar/embed?src=o5h8pap75saf8pmasoh80m2a80@group.calendar.google.com&ctz=America/Toronto

November 18 Study Group

Please join my meeting from your computer, tablet or smartphone.

https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/879623125

You can also dial in using your phone.

United States: +1 (224) 501-3412

Access Code: 879-623-125

Joining from a video-conferencing room or system?

Dial: 67.217.95.2##879623125

Cisco devices: 879623125@67.217.95.2

First GoToMeeting? Let's do a quick system check:

https://link.gotomeeting.com/system-check

Note: I will not be sharing my screen so please have the material in front of you.

170 and 3.0 GPA. I know I have a slim shot at T-14 without early decision. Anyone have luck getting into Penn through ED with these numbers? I'm looking at early decision at UVA or Georgetown, neither of which I'm too thrilled about. UVA while BL placement is great, I don't like the location. Georgetown is the black sheep of the T-14 with not too great BL placement. I like NU but that means I can't ED any other school until after I receive my decision in late December.

Any splitters have success without doing early decision?

Ok, about that time again. I finally have a full re-write of my PS that I'd love for someone to read over for me. Happy to read your PS, DS, or other essay in exchange! Thanks fam.

Hey all,

While waiting for my Oct LSAT score, I am preparing to ED either NYU or Cornell because I want to work in NYC after law school. However, I am a bit uncertain as to how to choose my ED school wisely to maximize my chances.

Basic info:

International;

167 LSAT; waiting for Oct LSAT- felt good about it so probably would be higher than 167;

3.41 UGPA but has a valid reason for writing a good addendum, according to some responses I got here. ESL and last two years GPAs were 3.88 and 3.75. Political Science major;

Diversity- I identify as LGBTQ;

2 years out of undergrad- did a master of social work degree in another country;

Strong rec and extracurricular- I have a strong focus in social entrepreneurship and social work, and won a fellowship to deliver a social innovation project in a another country during my senior year in college. Will hope to do some sort of social entrepreneurship and law work after law school.

What do you all think? Where should I submit my ED to to boost my chances? I am open to suggestions other than NYU and Cornell as well.

Much appreciated,

TC

Hey guys,

I speak primarily to those who have done foolproofing and put all their heart into improving LG for a long time but still struggle with the games.

I have foolproofed the games again and again for the last twelve months but whenever I face a fresh game section, I struggle very much with registering new rules into my head and pushing out inferences.

I have come to accept LG as my main weak point, contrary to the popular opinion that LG is the easiest section to improve.

Although I have been down in the lonely dumps on numerous occasions, I have not given up improving LG. The progress has been painfully slow, but practicing games is better than not doing games.

That is my LG philosophy and I no longer beat myself up too much for losing so many precious points on this section.

If you are in the same boat as me, you are the unicorn I've been searching for. Let us not be disheartened but continue doing what we can to minimize the damage in LG.

And I'm beginning to think that it is possible to score well on this exam without having the mastery on the logic games that has been so elusive to me. It is not the end of the world to suck at LG. My realistic goal is to suck less each day.

I believe in us. Let us keep at it!

Just wanted to see the general consensus on whether you time each game or the section as a whole? I've been doing really well on the LGs most of the time, but a couple of times, I've been pretty jammed at the end and feel like I took much time earlier. Any strategies for being quicker too?

Thanks! Good luck to everyone!

I thought I’d take some time to write this out for you. It’s becoming clear that the LSAT is a good reflector of Law School success for so many reasons that extend beyond just the “logic” of the test. I feel many of these things go overlooked, but are important to keep in mind.

1.) There is NO handholding in law school. They will throw you into the fire right away. It is 100% on you to sit down, sift through all the information being thrown at you, and pick out important take aways. You need to learn how to learn the law on your own.

This is much like what we have to do on the lsat. We are presented with an unfamiliar type of test in which you need to figure out what it is you are suppose to be learning. You have to learn how to learn logic. It’s very much a personal challenge that you have to devlop through on your own. Just like law school.

2.) the way to prepare for finals is to take practice tests and make outlines. You have to dedicate weekends to work on outlines and take full practice tests. This is one big way to prepare for finals. You need to have the discipline to work on your time off.

This is exactly what you do with the lsat. If you want to be successful on that test you need to tell your friends “no” to going out all the time. You need to take a significant amount of your own free time to sit down and do the LSAT. If you can do that, it is an indicator you have the potential to be successful.

3.) you have to want it. Law school doesn’t come easy and it is easy to let the work “slip” into the back seat. Doing the readings, staying on top of office hours, and briefing cases can become easy to “put off”. If you put it off until finals come you’re screwed. Cramming in law school is just not an option.

Which is exactly like the lsat. You can’t cram for that test. It just doesn’t work like that. You need time to develop the understanding of the logic and how to properly spot and apply it. Just like the law where you have to learn to spot issues and apply the law. The parallel is uncanny.

These are just a few of the parallels I notice so far. So when you hear that the lsat “isn’t even what we learn in law school” it’s because that is looking at it wrong. It’s not the subject matter that the LSAT tests, it’s your ability and desire to learn subjects that are largely unfamiliar and your dedication to that pursuit.

Keep at it 7Sage, you will be successful!

Back to Civ Pro reading.....

I am having trouble deciding where to discuss my chronic illness - in my Personal Statement or in my Diversity Statement. I was diagnosed epilepsy when I was a child, but things have gotten much more severe in the last ~5 years. My struggles in recent years have really shaped me, and I feel that they do a pretty good job of showing who I am as a person in a positive light. Overall, I think this is the most meaningful topic that I have to discuss in my admissions essays. Does anyone have any thoughts or opinions on which essay I should use this topic for? Or if I could potentially use the topic for both?

If I don't write about my illness in my Diversity Statement, I honestly have zero idea what I would write about. I do not have a very diverse background otherwise. If I don't write about it in my Personal Statement, I think I could come up with something else to write about, but I don't think it would be nearly as compelling. Since the Personal Statement is more significant in the application, I am not sure that I should sacrifice a stronger essay in order to have a topic that seems applicable to the Diversity Statement. At the same time I am still questioning whether it is a good idea to have a neurological disability be at the center of my application - I have been told by many that it is not uncommon for people (even those on a law school admissions panel) to associate an illness like mine with being mentally handicapped which could me a serious negative on my application.

I am just about ready to apply but when going to upload my resume a few law schools (only on LSAC, not on their websites) said to include some version of this information on the resume:

-List your extracurricular activities since entering undergraduate school, the hours per week devoted to such activities, and the dates of the activities.

-List your positions of employment since high school (either full- or part-time), the number of hours per week devoted to each position, and the dates of employment.

I'm a non-traditional student who graduated in 2010 and has been working as a full-time high school teacher. I do not remember all of my hours and odd jobs and extracurriculars. Also, adding these details would push my resume past 2 pages. Has anyone had a similar experience who applied? What did you do? Any advice?

A little over a week ago I submitted my law school applications. It was quite a relief. However, shortly after a very significant life event occurred that I'd like to speak about on my application. Is it possible to reach out to admissions offices and submit a supplementary essay? Would asking to do this look bad? I honestly have no clue who to talk to about this so any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks!

Does anyone else ever feel like the RC is sometimes total wild card? Sometimes it's a breeze and I get -2, but sometimes the passages just don't click for me and I end up getting -8.

Has anyone else experienced this? What are your tips for narrowing down this wide variation of error rate?

Thank you and happy Monday :)

Is there an explanation video for this question?

Admin note: edited title

For those of you who have submitted the Columbia App, anybody can't log in to the portal? Mine was saying there was a technical issue since I got the original email. Thanks

When I began formulating my personal essays/statement, I tried to focus on providing an interesting narrative that I thought helped to explain how different specific events have lead me to a way of approaching the idea of the law. I've tried to maintain a narrative form, rather than going all-out abstract essay.

However, I was recently reviewing some personal statements online, and I noticed that a number of people made note of their academic achievements. For instance, UofT, arguably Canada's #1 law school, provides this online document for prospective applicants: https://www.law.utoronto.ca/documents/JD/UofT_Law_Personal_Statements_Examples.pdf

What have other people's experience been with this? Is it best to "slip" these in? Gotta say, when I've tried to work them in so far, I kinda feel like a prig.

Saw the other thread about writing a GPA Addendum and I was wondering if my situation would apply/it would be worth it. I have a cumulative GPA of a 2.91(Yeah I know) due to a couple of instances that occurred throughout my collegiate career. The first 3 semesters of college my GPA was a 3.2/3.6/3.98 until the spring semester my sophomore year. The night before the first day of classes I was involved in a DUI Hit-and-Run in which I hit my head on the window and suffered severe trauma to my brain. I was on academic accommodation's for pretty much the entire semester and ended up getting around a 2.1. Following that semester I transferred to ASU and got around a 3.0-3.2 the rest of the time that I was in school. The reason I was wondering if I should write an addendum is because I had a strong GPA up until my accident and noticeably had to work harder in school and to pay for my bills because of the trauma and financial obligations that arouse due to the accident. If I wrote an addendum I would probably approach it from the point of view that the accident made it to where I needed to work harder in and out of school due to the cost both mentally and financially. Wonder what you all think, any feedback/input is appreciated! I took the LSAT last year and got a 150, had a little bit of bubbling error due to me rushing. Taking it again in November and should hopefully bring my score closer to the 160s

EDIT: I was the one hit by the drunk driver. Wasn't sure if that was clear.

Hello! I'm revising my PS currently and am wondering about using non-English words in the essay, as well as more technical words vs "common" words. For example, using "Pipipi snail" instead of "black nerite." Even then, should I just say "sea snail?" Or another example, using "a'a" or "basalt" vs "lava rock." I assume everyone knows what basalt is, but then again, maybe not! I know they're smart people, but I'm not sure how much knowledge I should assume the readers should have. It's part of my upbringing and general knowledge to use these words, and I feel it's more authentically myself to use the words I've used, but I'm paranoid they won't know what I'm talking about so should I use simpler words for the admission's officers clarity? Thanks for any help!

Never thought I'd still be struggling with LG but here I am with one month left and I still average -5 on LG. I know the one month left posts are common and probably repetitive but I feel like i'm so close yet so far away. My average is only 5 points below my target score and I know going -1 or -0 on LG would be enough to get me comfortably into the high 160s. Am I wasting my time redoing games and trying to foolproof them? I've foolproofed before and saw some improvement but whenever I'm doing the timed test I typically bomb 1 game. As soon as I realize I missed something or and having difficulty with a game my brain just shuts off and I panic. This doesn't happen with any other section. Speed is also still a problem. If I do easy games in under 5 mins I tend to miss a questions due to overconfidence.

My Stats: 3.82 162. Top tier research University.

Work experience in fed government internship, and in public interest law organization for an internship. Experience at a software startup too and currently working as a paralegal in SF Big Law firm.

Study abroad experiences in Asia.

Languages include Mandarin.

I’m also a non-AA URM.

So: should I maximize my chance at NYU by EDying? My goal is for NYC Big Law and eventually government work. I really like the school’s vibe; I had a great experience touring the school. If I get a Root-Tilden, it’s a done deal. But my lsat is low!

I am applying to Cal, Harvard, Columbia, and UChicago

Any shot at those?

My PS and DS and LORs are strong.