Doing PTs one section at a time

hl_alarak

Hi all.

I'm an international student studying for LSAT. My English is not perfect so please excuse me for my awkward writing.

So I received my June LSAT score this week: 161. Not too bad for my first test ever, but I can't help but feel a little disappointed because I've dedicated the past 3 months to studying full-time for the test. I have another 3 months ahead of me before I take the October LSAT in Asia.

In retrospect, I believe I've overworked myself these past months by cramming 3 PTs into a week's study schedule. I would take a full 4-section PT, BR, check the answers, watch video explanations for the Qs I got wrong, and move on. It was a tough task indeed, and it really took a toll on me that I was feeling too exhausted to go on at the end of each week.

A friend of mine who also studies for LSAT suggested a different approach: doing PTs one section at a time instead of doing 4 sections all at once. According to this method, I would complete one section, BR, check the answers, analyze the Qs I got wrong, and move on to the next section. Kind of like drilling for each section I'd say, only this time it's proctored.

She says it worked wonders for her performance but I'm not so convinced myself. My doubts are twofold. First, I might get too comfortable with taking PTs on the section-by-section basis that I would fare worse on an actual test. Second, I have a feeling that doing so would be waste of the more recent PTs I've kept pristine up to this moment; I think making best use of them is by taking them under the same (timed) conditions equal to a real test.

What do you think? Would you recommend trying this method? Thanks to all in advance for sharing your thoughts.

paulmv.benthem

First off, congrats on your 161. Even if it's below you targetr score, that's a solid performance for 3 months of prep.

With regard to your question, I don't think it has to be an either/or situation. In fact, I think it's best to do a mix. Drilling individual sections can be helpful for getting a firmer grasp of the fundamentals or shoring up you strategies for sections/questions types. Of course, writing a full practice test requires/tests mental stamina that isn't required by doing individual sections, so it's good to have those full PTs spread out within your prep. For myself, I currently do one PT/week and then spend the rest of the time (5-7hours/day) doing BR and drills (sections, specific games/passages, LR question types, etc.)

Also, doing the number of full PTs that you were doing each week sounds exhausting. Were you beginning to feel burn-out during your prep?

How many fresh PTs do you still have?

Hope this helps a bit as you move forward!

Leah M B

I think ideally, full PTs should be done about once a week. That’s what I think the majority of students around the board here do. Doing a full PT is helpful to gauge your score and build stamina for test day, but if you do them too much, you’re going to burn through all the tests and also burn yourself out. If you were feeling exhausted at the end of the week as you mentioned, you were probably pushing too hard and suffered some burn out. Your brain can only absorb so much information in a day and it needs rest to be able to let the information sink in.

I’d suggest doing 5 section tests once a week (use a section from another PT to add in a 5th), and then during the week focus on drills and timed sections. I’m on my phone so it’s tough to grab the link, but if you look in the 7sage webinars, there’s one titled “Post-Core Curriculum Study Strategies”. I really suggest watching that. It’s helpful also to be analyzing what types of questions you’re having trouble with and then doing some drills by question type, and reviewing the curriculum with it occasionally as needed.

Hope that helps!