Advice sought! What exactly to study?

sbc.mom_3x

I am a mother of two, and it's just us three; I work forty hours a week, and about 1.5 yr away from completing my undergrad. I'm taking the LSAT this June. Obviously my study time is limited, but I am using any free time I can manage to get to study, and so far for a couple of months I have just been reading the LSAC guide to the LSAT and Superprep book. I've taken two PTs, and am not happy with my score, I definitely want a boost of at least 10 points. What exactly am I to be studying? Surely it's more than the guides to the LSATs, what can I be studying and practicing? Do I just take PTs over and over for the practice? I have two more PTs left on me that I have not taken, where can I get more? Considering my situation it is a little difficult to get a solid "schedule" in, I spend a vast amount of time studying/reading, but this also includes my undergrad school work, while my kids sleep, so that is a few hours each night. I think I should start waking up an hour early in the mornings to study, but that's just one extra hour a day, I guess some is better than none. Any advice please? Most importantly, I need to know what exactly I should be looking at to study or practice...thanks in advance.

ddakjiking

Can we get a better idea of your diagnostic? That would help some of the posters here offer some advice. Going up 10 points from a 150 to 160 will be much easier than a 160 to 170. I would absolutely save those full PT's until the last 2 weeks before the official LSAT.

Aside from official practice PT's and the Superprep book, have you actually gone through a study book (ex: Manhattan, Powerscore "Bibles"). Depending on your diagnostic, you should really give these books a run. I would also drill questions from older PT's so you can become proficient at w/e question types or game types.

sbc.mom_3x

I want to be in the mid to upper 150s. 160+ would be great, but I am being realistic and I've got my goals set to get into a school here in Ohio, with median LSAT score of somewhere around 155.. I am trying hard and I am confident I can do better. No I have not gone through one of those books, I am looking on amazon right now at the powerscore bibles, which is a good one to choose? My strongest section is the reading comprehension section. So maybe I should focus on the logical and analytical reasoning sections as far as rigorous studying goes. When you suggest I should drill questions from older PT's, please elaborate on that. Do I drill myself in a timed setting, or take my time and focus and concentrate on the question and getting an accurate answer.. thanks for your help!

blah170blah

Wow! If your strongest is RC, you're in good shape. I think for you the lsat trainer could be beneficial. Mike Kim creates a holistic portrait of the test and really gets you to develop the fundamental skills.

For supplemental material (which should be later in your studies), 7sage is amazing for logic games, though personally I just needed blueprint (was taking the course). Manhattan is my number one go to guide for Logical Reasoning.

sbc.mom_3x

I'm considering buying this: http://www.amazon.com/PowerScore-LSAT-Logical-Reasoning-Bible/dp/0991299221/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1426436193&sr=8-2&keywords=powerscore+lsat.

sbc.mom_3x

I feel like so far I have spent a lot of time just reading about what the LSAT entails, like what to expect, or what the questions involve, etc etc. And honestly, that's been nearly a carbon copy of my critical thinking philosophy course I am taking right now. I feel like I need some practice or something else other than.. 'this is what you will see in the LSAT' etc etc etc... catch my drift? It's like learning what you will be learning about but not actually learning it. And reading some reviews online (I know, not always the best bet) I get the same vibe from others about these books. Maybe I could skip the first half. I don't know. I need some direction.

bonjoursm

Powerscore is a waste. Get manhattan LR or trainer. Or... Just get the Cambridge packets and just run through them 3 or 4 times.

sbc.mom_3x

http://www.amazon.com/Logical-Reasoning-LSAT-Strategy-Guide/dp/193770775X/ref=la_B0053HGVRQ_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1426446062&sr=1-2

sbc.mom_3x

That a good one to start with?

Nilesh S

@hmccabe1214 Trainer and 7sage would be my recommendation... also... redo all the 30 + tests that you have done and BR the hell out of them once you are done with your concepts... there is some value to doing that... and this is highly underrated... also... don't give it in June if you are not where you want to be... in fact if you are an undergrad, I would recommend taking in in October... because it looks like you are juggling a TOUGH schedule... and October gives you 3 months odd without classes where you have at least one thing less to worry about and more time to devote to LSAT prep without worrying about class reading... it also gives you the advantage of an extra test to practice with (the June LSAT). This is a test at which everybody gets better with time. Also Cambridge has a series called 10 LSATs out of print... I wonder if you have done those? Also look at the LSAT India tests, as 4 of them are available for free online... Trainer is the best to start with for LR imo.

emli1000

I would recommend the trainer.

bobalicious

I agree with @"Nilesh S" about having a more forgiving schedule. June will be tough for someone who's full time devoted to LSAT studying and wow you have a lot on your plate already! For example, it took me a full school year plus the summer plus part of the new school year.

Definitely enroll here (7Sage) if you haven't yet. If you need something else beyond that (your probably won't), then consider the Trainer.

No Powerscore.

sbc.mom_3x

& you mean enroll in 7sage by more than just the free account right? I'm still taking classes during the summer so I won't really have more spare time. I plan to apply to start law school in fall 2016 so I think I'll still take the June test & that leaves me, what, 2 more chances to test this 2015? Shouldn't I get my test done in 2015 if I want to apply for fall of next year? Thank you everyone for your feedback

jenifferk

Enroll in the 7sage ultimate! I work 50 hours a week, with a 10 hours of driving on top of that to/from work.. and I got through the 7sage package on my own time at night, and you have a access to a ton of past LSATs that you won't need to purchase through LSAC. So you are really getting a deal by purchasing the $500 program through 7sage.

And the LSAT trainer, a MUST.

I used Power Score, but I wish I had honestly gone through the 7sage curriculum first, then the trainer!

shine.on.me

I agree completely with @jenifferk. I used PowerScore the first time I took the LSAT (September 2014) and parts of the Trainer. I think my cold diagnostic was a high 130s low 140s. My actual LSAT score that in hindsight wish I would have rescheduled or cancelled was a 145. I think everyone learns differently even with the same materials. 7Sage and The Trainer have worked the best for me so far. My last PT was a 153 and I'm only 12% through the Ultimate course. If I need additional practice or if I need another viewpoint, I'm using PowerScore but only sparingly. BR has been the key for me. I work full-time and commute about 10-12 hours a week. The great benefit of 7Sage is that you can do it whenever you have the time. I frequently work on materials at work during downtime or during lunch/break.