September Timeline

Ohnoeshalpme

I wanted to see what you all thought about my schedule leading to the September test. As it stands, I am finished with the CC, I am 1/3 of the way through fool-proofing 1-35 and I have done a total of 3 PT's including my diagnostic. My plan is as follows -

I have 13 weeks and I will divide them between:

3 weeks to finish fool-proofing 1-35
remaining 10 weeks to take 2 PT's/week with intense BR and drilling in-between tests.

Does this look like a good strategy? Should I increase or decrease the number of PT's that I have taken?

LivingThatLSATdream

During one of the recent RC sessions with JY, he said that you shouldn't be taking more than 1 PT per week. He emphasized that 2 PTs every 3 weeks would be ideal. Take the time to blind review, analyze, write out explanations, reaffirm your thinking, film your PTs, review the film, analyze and record the time, all of those are important aspects to taking practice tests. Completing and learning from all of that takes time.

When I first started studying I read that you must take X or Y number of PTs before the actual test. I was so concerned that I wouldn't take this magic number of PTs, at one point I was taking 3 a week. Every other day I would take a test, every other day I would do some (weak/lying to myself) version of blind review. It wasn't beneficial. When I sat for the exam I was beyond burn out. The quality matters more than the quantity, but the quantity also matters in many cases. Some people may be at their goal score after X or after Y, some may need double that or triple that magic number. Those that need more practice tests ultimately need more time to prepare. It does not mean that you should double up on PTs during a week.

Something else to note is that your PT schedule should be flexible. If you notice you aren't solid on a certain question type and want to spend time drilling, don't be worried about completing a "scheduled PT" that week. Be consistent but not rigid. Good luck with studying! Hope to see you at the September BR group meetings.

alyhobbs

Hey! So I definitely agree with @LivingThatLSATdream that taking 2 PTs a week would be too much. I was wanting to do the same but realistically you have to spend a lot of time BRing and doing that twice a week on top of doing drills on question types you are struggling with may lead to a much higher risk of burnout. We have a BR Group starting next week with scheduled PTs if you would like to join. https://7sage.com/discussion/#/discussion/15925/september-2018-br-group/p1

Ohnoeshalpme

@alyhobbs said:
Hey! So I definitely agree with @LivingThatLSATdream that taking 2 PTs a week would be too much. I was wanting to do the same but realistically you have to spend a lot of time BRing and doing that twice a week on top of doing drills on question types you are struggling with may lead to a much higher risk of burnout. We have a BR Group starting next week with scheduled PTs if you would like to join. https://7sage.com/discussion/#/discussion/15925/september-2018-br-group/p1

I'll be sure to take PT 39 this weekend then! Are you at all concerned about only taking 14 PT's potentially?

Ohnoeshalpme

I would like to add that I am studying for the LSAT full time so I have more study hours in each week than the average student.

LivingThatLSATdream

@Ohnoeshalpme I'll probably only take 10 full times PTs by September. But I'm going to blind review the hell out of them, make sure I understand not only why I missed a question but also any trap I fell into, I'll write out my thought process, keep a log, review my film to see if I wasted any time on questions I should have skipped, record my timing. To answer your question, no I'm not concerned. For one, those 10 PT or 8 PT or however many it ends up being are going to be exponentially more beneficial to me than running through 20. And two, if it is getting close to September and I'm not happy with my scoring, I'm not fully understanding or I'm not consistent with my timing then I will change my test day to November.

Just because you are not working doesn't mean you necessarily have more study hours. There are plenty of articles out there about how many hours per day or week you can study and actually retain information. And every one is different. Right now I'm studying about 20-25 hours a week while working full time. Which is kind of a lot now that I'm thinking about it... lol. I should probably ease up slightly. Personally, I don't see how someone could study more than 6 hours a day effectively. And definitely not 7 days a week. You need breaks away from the LSAT. I've learned that from experience. Other people have mentioned in posts that for those who are studying full-time, consider starting a volunteer opportunity. Something that takes your mind away from the LSAT but productively. Also, reading could be a beneficial avenue away from LSAT studying but still kind of LSAT related, if you are obsessive and hate the thought of not studying.

See you at the September BR Group session!

alyhobbs

@Ohnoeshalpme said:

@alyhobbs said:
Hey! So I definitely agree with @LivingThatLSATdream that taking 2 PTs a week would be too much. I was wanting to do the same but realistically you have to spend a lot of time BRing and doing that twice a week on top of doing drills on question types you are struggling with may lead to a much higher risk of burnout. We have a BR Group starting next week with scheduled PTs if you would like to join. https://7sage.com/discussion/#/discussion/15925/september-2018-br-group/p1

I'll be sure to take PT 39 this weekend then! Are you at all concerned about only taking 14 PT's potentially?

Not sure if this was a question for me as well lol but I will answer anyway. I will admit at first it did bother me because I originally was wanting to do 20 or more before I felt I would be ready. However, after seeing all of the advice on here I’m really starting to understand it truly isn’t about the quantity as much as it is the quality. You could take all 83 PTs and gain nothing from them if you aren’t focusing on weaknesses and truly understanding your mistakes. BR is really where it’s at so I’m fine with 14. If I find that I’m not ready by September and that I really need to spend more time on more PTs then I will push back the test. I’ve been very hard on myself to take it by a certain time but if I’ve learned anything from other 7sagers it’s that you should never take the test until you’re ready.

Alternatively, knowing that you are able to study full time I do think that changes things. I work full time and I’m constantly putting too much on myself and end up falling behind because my goals are not realistic given the fact that my time is much more limited. If you know you can handle doing 2 PTs a week and can still utilize your time properly when it comes to a thorough BR for each then do it. Test it out and if the first few weeks you struggle then maybe try every other week. The most important part is not letting yourself burnout. I’ve found that there are signs of burnout before it starts to get worse and I believe if you are proactive then you can avoid it. A strategy that may work for you as well is the one that @seekingperfection has talked about on a few posts I’ve read where instead of taking a 5 section PT, you take 2 PTs, 4 sections each, back to back. You can read more about that strategy here https://7sage.com/forums/discussion/15570/

I will reiterate again that no matter the advice we give you here and what you’ve read that others have done, you absolutely have to make sure it’s doable for yourself. I’ve seen posts on here where some people have been able to do so much more than myself while working full-time and I’ve mistakenly compared myself to them. Thinking that I should be able to handle the same amount of studying. That’s where Ive fallen short is that I forget to really think about what I can handle. What my strengths and weaknesses are when it comes to time management, how to properly utilize all my resources and how best I learn. So evaluate everything and see what seems best for you. Hope that helps!

Ohnoeshalpme

@alyhobbs Awesome! Thank you for the advice