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I have noticed that one of my biggest issues is the time it takes me to do an initial set up for a game. For example, on a target 9 minute game I will literally spend 4 minutes setting up the game and still realize that I am going to have to do hypos for a number of the questions. Any pointers?

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Started in or are sub 160: Get a course like 7sage, Manhattan, or some good resources like LSAT Trainer and LG bible, LR bible and self study(I'm all about quality>quantity). If you study that material well for a bit you should be able to hit 160 eventually. Criticism is worth more than compliments. Be thorough about why you suck and what you can do to improve. Didn't label something? Better label it next time. Mistook necessary for sufficient? Oldest trick in the book for a reason. People scoring better than you do not do it as often as you chances are. Drill problematic areas if needed so you do not repeat bad mistakes. Time isn't crucial but you should be doing some timed worked every so often depending on your needs.

Hitting 160+: Review fundamentals again. They honestly aren't as solid as you probably think. We have terrible bias about ourselves. We dislike knowing how much we suck. You will get some free speed even if you do not get more accuracy at least so it is NOT a waste of time as it can only help you. Do more practice tests(UNDER SIMULATED CONDITIONS) and BLIND REVIEW those mistakes you make. DO NOT cheat yourself. Spend a few mins on every question you got wrong and really dig on what got you to get it wrong.

Hitting 165+: You are going to start climbing the hill. Imagine yourself as a manual car and put yourself in the right gear. Don't put it on 4 at 10 mph and don't put it at 1 at 80mph. Here, it's about quality learning and not basic improvements. You have to thoroughly understand why the language, stimulus, etc is tripping you up. Start developing a methodology for approaching sections, questions, etc. I got stuck here like it was quick sand and I was helpless after quickly moving from 150s to 160s. I would not drill heavily here. I think drilling is great for sub 160 but not later. Have money? Get a tutor. Don't have money? You need to be VERY honest or you're going to be here stuck like me. Dismissing a question as a silly mistake? That is the STUPIDEST error in the book if the other is the oldest. That is going to HURT you. Hurt you very much.

Hitting 170+: Here it's about perfecting your methodology for things. If you forgot to put a not rule under sequential game treat it like you're a total newbie and be careful to not do that again. It's costing you time that you should have to review the tough questions, or spend in other questions in every section. Forgot to label a conclusion? Probably why you got it wrong or it cost you time. Forgot to translate language on an answer choice just because your gut told you? Got it wrong? Got it right? DOES NOT MATTER. Costed you time so you're making an error. That is why you do not have time left, didn't have time for a tough question, etc. Keep your methodology simple but effective. There is no ifs. You either did it right or didn't. It doesn't matter if you could have gotten it right but didn't if you want to improve. Be harsh but honest. No errors is the goal to aim for on the test taking. You should have things down to a mechanistic habit if you want to move up anywhere from 170 or be more consistent.

Hitting 175+: Don't know what you're doing wrong? I have no clue how you got here then. You should not need advice. Refer to 170 as maybe you're still having some problematic habits but have a very strong -0 section or two that is keeping you from doing better. Stop using your strong section as a crutch if that is what you are doing. Try to be a master of all.

Hit 180: Go celebrate your awesomeness. Do that at 175+ too. If you got here and didn't do that you probably should. What a feat. Heck, go celebrate every time you move up the ladder. Probably will keep you more sane.I just didn't want you to be complacent so I did not mention it earlier.

Things to do at EVERY step: have patience. Sorry, unless you scored a 165+ on your first test it will require some learning and practice. Patience. Things don't change overnight. Keep that in mind at every step of the process. I promise to you if you are honest and critical about your errors and studying you WILL improve. I can't tell you how fast, but I can confidently say you will.

Misc. notes: A tutor really can be helpful at moving up the hill once you hit 165+. They can see your pattern on approaching questions wrong, mention to you ways to improve speed, etc. If you can't afford one you need to be as I said HONEST and CRITICAL about your performance. I highlighted one word here in all of this post. See what that sentence said again. It wasn't a hyperbole; it was a fact.

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So far I got into UCI with 60k and UIUC (illinois urbana champaign) with 108k.

In light of UCI posting a biglaw/fed percentage of 41 percent in 2017, I'm not sure if Its worth getting into more debt in UCI. UCI beat ucla and is edging close to usc. 2017 was the first graduating class after UCI its accreditation from ABA. I am not sure how sustainable thrse numbers are since their class size was exceptionally small that year at 96 and admissions officers in UCI told me they planned to increase them to 170 for the incoming class of 2021. The out of state tuition in Illinois is the same as the in state as UCI. My parents will help me with housing and I have some money saved up.

In terms of career goals, I wouldnt mind a non negligble chance at biglaw. At the same time, I'm open to public interest. What would you guys choose? For context, I'm in the process of negotiating with UCI and should hear back later in april. I am a california resident but wouldnt mind practicing out of state

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Hey! So I have a few questions about things I should/should not include in my LOCI's...they are rather specific to my situation and I just want to see what people think about including them.

1.) Resident - As a resident of California attending these schools at a lower cost is something I consider heavily. My Post 9/11 G.I. Bill will also cover 2 full years of tuition WITHOUT the help of the school if I attend law school in California at a public school. Should I include this as a reason I'd commit to the school in my LOCI?

2.) No acceptances - As suggested by a couple users here, should I carefully mention that I've received no acceptances this year but am on many waitlists. Saying something how accepting me off the waitlist is likely to result in me being fully committed to their school. Obviously I would do this VARY carefully and not make it seem like a bribe....haha

Those are my two big ones; any thoughts on if I should include that stuff or not?

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https://abovethelaw.com/2018/04/experts-say-the-future-of-law-school-is-looking-bleak/

If we thought that this application cycle was brutal, looks like we might be in for an increasingly competitive legal market in future years. According to this article, the employment data we are seeing may not be representative of how law schools will place their graduates in the near future, because these graduating class size of 2017 were smaller than past years.

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The school I'll be attending this fall said I could increase my scholarship by improving my LSAT score (even by 1 point!). So... What do you guys suggest I do to increase my RC score in such a short period? I rock games (thank you FP method!) and LR is my second best section, but RC was averaging -12 when I was PTing before the Dec test... I run out of time AND miss questions on the passages I am able to get through.

My Ultimate + ran out about a month ago, but I have hard copies of most PTs and have the Starter to review CC.

Thanks!

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There's a common questions type in RC where they ask you to predict the first sentence in the next paragraph (ex. PT7.S3.Q7 and PT1.S1.Q27)

I seem to be having trouble with this question type at a high level. What's the best strategic approach for these? And does anyone have a good resource for drilling this question type. #help

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Hi Guys! Wondering if any of you have good study-related podcasts that you listen to while driving? I have 2 long drives coming up and I want to listen to something LSAT studying/learning related... any suggestions?

Thanks

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This may be a silly question, but is it possible that schools that currently take the highest score may start averaging again in the future? I will be retaking the test soon but plan on applying in a few years due to work commitments.

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I'm not sure I'll be ready for the June test. I've been practicing for three weeks, mainly LR and have seen roughly +5 improvement there. Haven't given as much time to LG or RC because I'm stronger in those. But there is still room for improvement everywhere. I'm shooting for a 180, want 170+, and 160+ wouldn't be the end of the world. Anyway pleas argue:

If I am not confident that I can achieve a score I want in July is there any reason I should postpone knowing I can take the LSAT as many times as I want?

Thanks guys

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I currently have a job that I come home from exhausted and brain fried six days a week. I'm so tired when I get home that it feels nearly impossible to do anything productive. For those of you working, how have you found a balance between your job and studying nights and weekends?

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Hey all! Congrats to everyone improving your scores!

I was wondering if you guys had some advice on dealing with crippling anxiety and stress that prevent me from reaching my potential?

In timed, stimulated exams I scored my recent high 166..but blind review...170.

In fact, with blind review I am not taking much time over 35 minutes. Sometimes, I finish under time.

When I take the test with stimulated conditions, it's as if I am frozen & forgot everything I've ever learned.

I get so worked up and nervous that I fall well below my average in regular practice drills.

Anyone have any advice?

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What is y'alls favorite/most effective prep book. I have an older Kaplan Premier/Unlocked, but I'm burning through the content pretty quickly. Is there a different brand you like better? I want to focus on actual questions and full length tests, rather than learning guides (since 7sage does that well).

I'd like to spend less than $40, if possible.

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This is something I've been thinking about recently. Has the 'meta' changed for those who hope to go to a T6 law school?

This past cycle, we've seen a huge increase in the number of 175+ scoring applicants. I believe in past years there were only approximately ~400 175+ scoring applicants. This past cycle, there were almost 700 according to Spivey's 2017-2018 cycle data. (http://blog.spiveyconsulting.com/new-2017-2018-cycle-data-as-of-3-27-18/)

And, just anecdotally, I've seen a lot of discussion on various forums from scorers in the 170-174 range who are planning on retaking just to break through the 175 barrier. And it makes a lot of sense -- I think if I had a 174 I would think about retaking as well. Getting past 175 will put you in the 75th percentile for all of the T6, and that's life changing.

Furthermore, I think almost anyone scoring in the 170-174 range is capable of scoring a 175+. At that point, taking the exam is more like rolling the dice to see whether or not the examination plays to or against your strengths. For example, if you're weak at RC, you can just sit for exams until you run into an exam with a particularly easy RC section. Now that there's unlimited retakes, there's no downside to doing this. The only limiting factors are time and money (which for a college entrance exam, really shouldn't be limiting factors imo).

Considering the huge benefits that a score increase from say a 172 to a 177 provide, is it not a no-brainer to take this approach to the exam? A Ruby at Chicago or an admittance to Yale are really life changing events, and they're both significantly more likely to happen if you're boasting a 175+ score.

Just to clarify, I'm not advocating this type of approach. To me, this just seems to be the obvious consequence of the new rules surrounding unlimited retakes and all of the new testing administrations. It does seem to give a distinct advantage to those individuals who can afford to delay a couple cycles, and keep sitting for the exam until it eventually plays to their strengths.

Is this the new 'meta' for T6? What do ya'll think, I'd love to hear your thoughts.

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I visited a school today where my app is still pending. Met a director of adminssions. Would it be a bad idea to email her a thank you? Met her through the “info lecture” and asked some questions with her directly after.

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I am on track to take the June LSAT, but with less than two months to go, I am starting to feel the anxiety creep in. Where my anxiety stems from is how inconsistent I feel like I can be with my prep tests. Although my raw scores and my overall scores are rather consistent (ranging from 161-169 with an average of 165), I vary quite widely within sections. I have had times where I score perfectly on Reading Comp, and I have had times where I have only had 67% on Reading Comp; sometimes I miss only 1 or 2 out of both sections combined with LR, but other times I miss 7 or 8 combined. So far, the times where I have been less successful in Reading Comp have corresponded with stronger LR and vice versa, but I am starting to worry about potentially having an particularly bad day when I have a bad RC and perform poorly on LR. Any ideas on how to get more consistent? Thanks!

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