Getting Back on Track :(

Kristen B

Hello fellow 7Sagers,

Whelp… unfortunately, after doing so well with studying, I fell off HORRIBLY. At least a month or two has gone by, and I have not even attempted to study. In my defense, I think my mind was not in the right place. I just completed my undergrad studies, and I got a full-time job at a law firm. Now that I have things a little more managed in my life, I think I am ready to really dedicate myself to tackling this LSAT. I guess I am looking for tips, advice, and encouragement. How do you manage your time? Also, what is a healthy amount of time to dedicate to studying a week? Lastly, what are some additonally things I should be doing as a suppliment to 7Sage?

Thanks in advance for your help!

Pacifico

Kristen,

Not to worry, everyone falls off at some time or another, the point is to get back on your game. I think most of the community would agree that we probably need some more details of the next 5-8 months of your life to give you really thorough advice. A few pertinent questions: Will you be working full time up until your LSAT? Are you shooting for October or December? How much had you already studied and how much have you retained?

I would highly recommend starting over from the beginning of all the lessons and seeing how much you've really learned. I first bought 7Sage on deployment last fall and worked my way through about a third to a half of the curriculum before redeploying and family life took over. When I rededicated myself this past March, I started over and it was great to be able to see what I had retained really well and also gave me a chance to drill down on those things I was weak on. I used 7Sage's Study Schedule with the October test as my goal which basically gave me the second half of March and all of April to get through the curriculum and then May-October to do the LG Bundle and then just PTs (though of course I saved plenty of problem sets for drilling if need be). If you've already taken a diagnostic you're ahead of the game.

I posted my LG Attack Strategy in the LG Discussion Forum and it should still be at or near the top if you want to check that out. It outlines my plan for the next few weeks before I dive into the PTs. As for PTs I am slightly modifying the Study Schedule to front load 3 PTs/week for May-June, 2 PTs/week for July and then 1 PT/week for August and September along with extra drilling as needed. I only did this because my wife is due in August and another baby is going to make it more hectic so I wanted to minimize the amount of time I had to be away doing PTs in isolation. If you can commit ~20 hours/week to studying the curriculum you can get through it in about 6-7 weeks or even less. I also like the 20 hour threshold because it is enough time that you need to at least do a little bit everyday. I loved that I could speed up the videos on 7Sage so I took full advantage of that and got through all of those probably 50% faster on average than I would have otherwise. If you're working then that might be a bit much, but if you have literally no other responsibilities besides work then 20 hours/week shouldn't be too bad so long as you can stay disciplined. 7Sage allots 9 hours for BR, but I think that is a very conservative estimate as it is an insanely long time and honestly you shouldn't need to BR more than half the test or you are in a world of trouble anyways and probably need to relearn some fundamentals. So if you can BR and review in around the same amount of time it takes to do the test timed then I think you can still manage 3/week when the time comes.

If I were you I would buckle down and shoot for October so just in case something goes horribly wrong you can still retake in December with little to no harm done and still get your apps in in early January. As far as additional resources I hear great things on here about the LSAT Trainer, though I've heard mixed things on Amazon reviews, but there are a few chapters you can read for free on the LSAT Trainer website so I'd recommend doing that and seeing how it strikes you. I really liked what I read, but I don't know if I'll need the outside perspective yet as 7Sage has been great for me so far. If I get through half the PTs and still can't break 170 on a regular basis then I'll definitely be picking up a copy. There's a lot of great people on here that use a wide variety of resources so I'll leave it to them to recommend more. Good luck and feel free to message me if you have any questions!

~Pacifico

emli1000

It's okay. At least now you got the rest you needed. You know what's your daily work schedule like and you can decide if 2-4 hours daily is attainable. When are you thinking about taking the LSAT? I would recommend that you get a copy of the LSAT Trainer to go along with 7Sage. I've noticed that a lot of people that work and are studying for the LSAT study between 20-40 hrs per week. It really depends on what works best for you. Because you do not want to burn out so quick if you're going non-stop 7 days a week. Remember to take some time off during the week so that you can relax and do some things that you enjoy.

shine.on.me

I'm not sure if I am the best person to give advice. I'm stuck in the middle of a lengthy break. My mind is not the right place right now and will probably post this exact same thing when I get myself put back together. My only advice for you and myself is to start slow. Only you know your limits. I don't think there is a magic number for the amount you should prep. I think its different for everyone. Also I've learned so much through LSAT prep. But one of the biggest things I've learned that is that its ok if you need to wait to take the LSAT. Law school and the LSAT will always be there.

nicole.hopkins

Turn that frown upside down, @"Kristen B" ! That lengthy break was just what you needed during that season. No sweat—no loss. You're in an excellent position to jump-startr your prep with a fresh perspective. You may very well have prevented burn out in taking the time off; burn out can linger for a long time and may have ended up affecting applications/1L.

—What's your non-LSAT schedule like during the week? When do you go to/get off of work, and what are the weekends like?
—Any kiddos or family that you need to take care of? Other priorities that you shouldn't neglect (working out, church, etc.)?
—When do you plan to apply to law school, and how much flexibility do you have in that regard? (Hint, more than you might initially think )
—And, what are your goals in terms of score range?

We will help give you ideas as to how to fill LSAT study into your schedule.

Quick Silver

I agree. @"Kristen B" you needed a break. Start with some games. Maybe a section of each. then a full pt. Just posting on here could get you back in the groove of things.

Kristen B

Thank you for such great advice. I feel I have a lot under my belt thus far. In my undergrad I took a critical thinking class which really helped me to grasp the concepts of arguments, and an arguments structure. Additionally, in October I took a 3 month LSAT prep course. From both courses, I have retained most information. So, maybe I don’t need to go back and redo lessons… I guess I am still feeling that out. Also, besides work I have no real obligations in my life so I think 20 hours per week is doable.

As of now I am setting a hard date of October to take the exam. The schools I am looking at require a pretty high LSAT score, and some of the schools average, so ideally I would like to take the test only once. That’s why I am not trying to rush things at all. As some of you mentioned I am slowly getting there.

@nicole.hopkins
@emli1000
@Pacifico

But thank you everyone guess for being so supportive, I feel less guilty about my lengthy break, but now I also feel motivated to really get back into things.

nicole.hopkins

@"Kristen B" Just to give you an idea of what could be doable, I work full time, maintain church and social commitments, only study 6 days a week, and still am able to put in 35+ hours (often around 40) into LSAT study per week. I've been doing this schedule since the beginning of February and studied more casually from July-January. 20 hours might be a modest commitment for someone in your position.

What are the goal schools—or rather, what is your goal score?

If you haven't done so already, I heartily recommend grabbing the 7sage Starter course, which will give you all of the excellent course material. It's $179 which is $9 (2 lattes) more than the cost of a retake—aka, 100% worth it!

Edit: I see you're already doing 7sage But, it might be worth re-watching much of the content! I went through the LSAT Trainer 2 full times and do not regret reinforcing the material with which I began my journey.

katherinestein24

ADVICE FROM SOMEONE WHO WORKS AT A TOP LAW FIRM:

Not to take away from any of the advice and encouragement, but do not think for one second you will have a lot of time/bandwidth to study once you start working.

I put off the LSAT and am now also setting a hard deadline of October. I started studying in January, but have really only found a way to talk to my manager and dedicate two nights a week starting this month.

I graduated top 10 in my class from a top 15 liberal arts school and never had trouble studying. I say this to stress that even with drive and passion (I actually like the LSAT -- I took three advanced logic courses in college but I suck at testing so there's my issue), you will have a lot less time than you expect. ESPECIALLY if you are paralegaling.

Try to get in as much as you can now. You have no idea how crazy your schedule is about to get!

emli1000

@katherinestein24 said:
Not to take away from any of the advice and encouragement, but do not think for one second you will have a lot of time/bandwidth to study once you start working.

So true! I experienced this as well. Work does get in the way. Some days you are more tired than others. You'll think 6 months is a long time so you'll study the least possible until you get closer to test date. But honestly you need a lot of time upfront to devote to the LSAT. Especially if you want a high score. By the time the test date is approaching you realize that you do NOT have enough time to study as much as you want. This is why you should set a schedule now and try to follow it. Eventually you'll start to get the hang of the LSAT and you'll look forward to studying. That when you take a day or two off you feel weird lol. Once you reach this point in your studying a lot of things will begin to click and you will know what's best for you- as to take the upcoming LSAT or postpone until a later LSAT. Just remember that LSAT prep will come to an end before you even know it.

nicole.hopkins

@emli1000 said:
You'll think 6 months is a long time so you'll study the least possible until you get closer to test date. But honestly you need a lot of time upfront to devote to the LSAT. Especially if you want a high score. By the time the test date is approaching you realize that you do NOT have enough time to study as much as you want.

Word. This was my experience to a T. I thought that casual (<20 hours/week) study and then a 3 month ramp up would be more than enough to get me to my 181 *very lol* ... False. The 3 month ramp up was enough to show me that I can count on 35+ hours/week for many more months and not to sign up for the test until I'm truly ready. Lessons learned.

emli1000

It happens. @nicole.hopkins we all learn from our mistakes.

nicole.hopkins

Yeah girl!

VegMeg55

@emli1000 Sooooo true. The abrupt realization that I don't have enough time has hit me twice over the course of a year. It's amazing how quickly time flies and although I convince myself that I'm 'studying hard', I am not doing nearly enough to prepare.

emli1000

@VegMeg55 focus less on how much time you have right now. Worry about time later when you're reaching your target score get in the habit of putting in more time upfront now then later, when it's too late. Because if you're only giving yourself 10 hours per week now and you keep that schedule throughout your prep, then making it 20+ hours 10+ weeks later will be difficult on you. Set out a weekly schedule of how much you have to cover every week. Be realistic with what it is you have to do and the extra prep you can manage to get done per week. Don't move on until you understand a concept and you're prepared to move on to the next lesson. Well you know time flies when you're having fun haha