1st PT Post-CC: 160, 178 BR advice/next steps?

Victoria.

I just finished BR for my 1st PT Post-CC, scores below (planning on taking the September 2018 test):

Raw Score: 160, BR: 178
LG: -9, -0
LR: -10, -3
RC: -5, -0
LR: -5, -1

Tl;DR - Need advice on where to go from here, see poll below.

I was really excited about the 160, because with this being my first timed pt (and having not done ANYTHING timed during the CC, which, I know, bad idea) I was totally unprepared for how much I'd be worried about timing and freaked the f*** out during the beginning of the test. I literally got so flustered with my first section (LG - which I was most confident with heading in) that I couldn't understand the 1st two games, totally skipped them, and bubbled c for 10 straight ac's since I didn't have time to come back to them at the end of the section. Heading into section 2 (LR), I was still freaked out about timing, was finding my mind wandering, and was distracted by hip pain (pregnant, sitting in not-so-supportive desk chair) that I skipped/bubbled in c for quite a few questions that I didn't have time to come back to yet again. This is all quite accurately refkected in my scores for those sections as well. I got a little bit more familiar and comfortable with timing on my last 2 sections and ended up only not getting to ~2 questions/section.

Anyway, what I also wasn't prepared for was my 178 BR score (super stoked, don't get me wrong, but unsure as to how to proceed). Like I previously mentioned, I was fairly confident on LG going in, so I knew I could get -0 on BR especially after I realized the games weren't as bad as I first thought. I didn't expect -0 for RC but I figured LR would be my worst section, as it was. My original plan was to foolproof LG until I hit -0 on BR at least and work LR and RC via timed sections as needed before taking more pts. Now, I'm not so sure? Should I still try to foolproof LG before moving on? I haven't done any fool proofing nor any timed games, although I only got -1/-0 on games during the cc and only one -2 when I was burnt out. Or, do I take more pts to see more accurately where I stand/where my weak spots are/to work on timing?Because I know this is only my first pt and isnt necessarily indicative of what I'll actually be averaging for BR or otherwise. Or, should I begin drilling LR since it's my worst section (all 4 LR questions that I missed were of different types, 3 with 4 or 5 star difficulty). OR (probably what I'm leaning more towards) do individual timed sections of LG LR and RC to get used to timing and review and go from there? Sorry this is so long and thanks ahead of time for any and all input!

btate87

First of all, congrats on a great score and a fantastic BR! That's got to be encouraging for a first PT.

I would fool proof LG. Especially after the doing the CC, your BR should be -0 just about every time. I think it's good for morale to consider what your score could be with a -0 LG, but you also have to be careful to not expect to get that score to come easily. -9 is -9. It's pre-fool proofing so definitely don't sweat it, but remember that time crunch is what makes the test difficult. Definitely fool proof games to get used to timing.

My broader advive for how to go forward on each section is to turn on a stop watch instead of the proctor for a few tests. Take some much older PT's and just work through a section a day at your natural pace. This will help you start getting all of the skills you've developed during the CC into alignment. I wouldn't even put the pressure of figuring out the official score for the first few to make sure you avoid rushing. You want your natural pace to increase, you never want to rush.

Hopefully that helps, and again, congrats on some great scores to start your post-CC work!

Tom_Tango

It means you got 29 wrong when you took it timed and 4 wrong with unlimited time.

Seeking Perfection

I don't see any reason not to foolproof. Foolproofing is how you get those 9 points back for sure.

After that you should drill LR based on the question types you missed. If you didn't already, input the answers from before the blind review into the 7sage grader to help you figure out if there are trends in those errors. You obviously generally know how to do them as evidenced by a phenomenal blind review score. However, you will need to get better and better at doing them with that same degree of confidence as the blind review but quicker until time isn't a major factor on that section.

keets993

I agree with everything that's been stated. First of all, congrats on those stellar scores. It's like Tom said, you got 4 wrong with unlimited time. That means you have the fundamentals of doing it untimed and you need to carry that over to increase your timed score.

You 100% definetly should foolproof LG. Foolproofing LG helps improve your timed score because you get familiarity with the games and also because it helps you attain an internal understanding of how much time you should spend on a game; when to skip a question; when you should spend time upfront for inferences. The flustered feeling you are explaining is also really common so exposure to timed games, timed sections, and timed PT's should be beneficial in ridding you of that feeling.

Also, this was just one PT. It could've played to your strengths, which means that the next time could be a dip (including BR). That just means that you need to be prepared for your worst-case scenario for your actual take. For example, if you're bad at grouping/in-out games, you need to theoretically be prepared for 3 games that focus on conditionals (if that's why they are your weakness); same goes for LR and RC.

For LR, if there's no trend in question types then you need to figure out why you got them wrong during BR. Was it a lack of understanding of stimulus, answer choices, or question-stem? Did the wrong answer choice bait you like it was supposed to; were you unsure of what to even look for; did you just not 100% grasp the stimulus; is there a trend in the subject matter covered? I've found that sometimes it's easier to realize why you got something wrong when you step back from it. Generally when you BR, you are supposed to be 100% confident in your reasoning during BR for picking that answer choice that when you get something wrong it means your reasoning was off somewhere. So sometimes you need to step away from your reasoning and come back to it to figure out where it was wrong (talking to others about the questions helps too).

Timing is something you'll get used to as you get more exposure so I don't know if I'd necessarily suggest wasting fresh material just for timing. Maybe you can go back to PT's 1-35(I'd stick with 17+ for LR) and do timed sections of those to familiarize yourself with timing since some of the stuff is covered in the curriculum but not all.

Victoria.

Thank you everyone for your comments and input! I will definitely be incorporating your advice as I continue to study (starting with foolproofing, timed and untimed sections, LR drills). Also changed the heading back to my original "advice/next steps" prompt because by asking what this means I was hoping to communicate "what does this mean for me moving forward" as in what should my next steps be - I really appreciate your thoughtful responses.

LivingThatLSATdream

Something to think about... did you get 178 BR score by only reviewing questions you circled? Or did you look over the test in its entirety? I’ve done both during mine studies. The reason I ask is b/c if you only reviewed the questions you circled during BR, that’s an amazing score and you just need to work on speed so that you have time to review circled questions during the 35min. Confidence test will be beneficial to help with that. Also, filming yourself taking the PTs will help you get timing down and understand what questions you should skip first read through. Getting 178 while going back over the entire test untimed is also great! Like others have said it means you have a strong understand of the fundamentals. Work on foolproofing LG, and then after a few PT you may get a better understanding of what LR questions are taking up too much time and what question types are a weakness. You are rocking it! Keep it up!

JustDoIt

Take your time. Your knowledge is clearly there, however your testing strategies are not. I personally believe that testing strategies are what separate the good test takers from the great ones. Plus, all that you will have when you get in the testing room is your strategies.

In short, I would recommend individual sections so you can evaluate your strategies and how you are taking the test. For more information on strategies, consult the LSAT Trainer.