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I've taken 5 preptests and not seen any improvement

ChelseyEChelseyE Member
in General 49 karma

I began studying over a year ago using Khan Academy and then Powerscore with a diagnostic of 148. After getting a 151 and 152 on the March 2018 and the July 2018 LSAT's I decided to commit to 7Sage curriculum. I feel like I have learned a lot more and have a deeper understanding of logic and its principals. But I have now taken 5 practice tests and gotten 149s and 150s for all of them. I think I'm following JYs method of flagging any questions I'm not 100% about. Taking my time to BR. And then watching the explanation videos and reading comments not he ones I still miss or wasn't entirely sure why it was right. My BR is usually low 160s. So I understand that my knowledge has improved but its not translating to my time scores. Is it normal to not see improvement until I've taken more practice tests? Is there something I am not doing in my studying that could help me improve? I'm feeling discouraged. I am planning on taking the LSAT in October.

Comments

  • EagerestBeaverEagerestBeaver Alum Member
    703 karma

    Progress is not linear. If your BR is improving, your knowledge of the test is improving. If it is not translating to a timed result, it may be due to how you are handling the pressure in the moment.

    Relatedly, at that score range, continue hammering Logic Games. Those are some of the lower hanging fruit that you can get that up in the near/intermediate future.

  • lsatgodjklsatgodjk Alum Member
    938 karma

    The LSAT has 3 sections; LR, RC, and LG, but there is a 4th "section" to this exam and it's the toughest one - time.

    I'm having trouble with timing myself, but a lot of people, and myself, would agree that timing can be defeated by mastery. Your BR scores are great, but try to get them higher. I'm confident you will see a natural score increase by getting a higher BR score. After you've gained some more mastery on the exam through a higher BR, you can then start implicating timing strategies on LR such as 5 in 5 or 10 in 10, and for LG such as doing the local questions first to have more game boards for the global questions!

  • edited September 2019 118 karma

    If it is worth anything, I was in the same boat. I remember feeling frustrated because my scores weren't moving, but I knew I had more knowledge than before. Keep doing more and more practice tests. I truly started to see the difference when I took around 20 tests. One day, my score just changed. I honestly couldn't tell you how, but I believe it was a combo of doing timed sections every minute I had the chance, practice tests, blind review, and making sure I nailed LG every time which was my strength section. You will get there!

  • LSATcantwinLSATcantwin Alum Member Sage
    13286 karma

    Just for reference; I took all 80ish tests, some more than once, to get from a 150ish score to a 170 score.

    Others are correct though nothing is linear and it takes a lot of work! Don't give up. Sometimes you'll see some improvement quickly and sometimes you'll go 10-15 tests before anything changes. It's part of the grind! Don't give up!

  • ChelseyEChelseyE Member
    49 karma

    I really appreciate the advice and encouragement from all of you in these comments! It was just what I needed to hear! Thank you so much :smile:

  • RealLaw612RealLaw612 Member
    edited October 2019 1094 karma

    It took me about 12 Prep Tests before my first breakthrough and another 35 or so before I started hitting my target score. Some testers are quicker to improve and others are not. Consistent persistent studying is the key to the LSAT.
    There are two sayings that have guided my success the most in this test; and I think they complement each other. The first is from my sixth grade music teacher (who would later be one of my college music professors): "Practice does not make perfect - practice makes permanent. If you practice it wrong, you will master it wrong."
    The second comes from my Army Drill Sergeant: "Slow is smooth and smooth is fast."
    My study method incorporated these two ideas. First, demand from yourself that you learn the logic thoroughly - the LSAT tests understanding of logical relationships and any hole in your thinking will be exposed on the test. Second, once I obtained the knowledge necessary to succeed, I began practicing with Prep Tests without timing myself. Only after I could read an LR stimulus and break it down in real time; only after I could summarize the parts to an RC passage in order to remember it, only after I could quickly and accurately diagram any LG setup (or, at least I thought before the Sep exam!) did I start adding the time pressure.
    Yes, this method took about 8 solid months of 3-4 hours of study a day (including Shabbas) before I saw an increase from 157 to the 170s.
    Keep it up: you can do it!

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