first 175+ on a timed PT celebratory post and appeal for advice

krw200066

Hiii! I am here to celebrate this victory and ask for some advice! For context, I have been struggling for months to pass the 175+ hurdle (getting from the high160s to the low 170s took forever on its own) and now I finally hit this goal with a 178 on PT 80!! The tactic that seemed to push me into 175+ territory involved taking super slow practice tests to solidify some solid test-taking habits. After a week of that tactic, I finally took a timed PT today and was so pleasantly stunned to see the 178! If I can consistently hit above 175 over the next couple of weeks, I'm planning to take the August LSAT of this year.

HOWEVER, if this score turns out to be a fluke, I'll probably push the test back a couple months. The biggest con to pushing it back (besides the obvious monetary one lol) is that I start my first year of teaching in late-August and know I won't be able to commit as much time to consistent prep. Thoughts on this plan of action?

apk19e

First off, congratulations on your score. I have been in your shoes and thought my performance was a fluke too, but that is not the case. No one scores a 178 on luck alone. I thought it was a joke when I scored my first 180 a week out before my actual test, but the 175 I have on record proves otherwise. It is possible that you may underperform, but that doesn't invalidate your PT scores. You've already proven that you are capable of getting there. This may be a controversial statement here, but if you can do it once then you can do it again. You don't necessarily need to score 175+ a dozen times before you can get there in the real thing. It does certainly help though

If you can take the August test, I would absolutely do that. Even if you don't do as well as you would have liked, you would both have more time to retake than you would months from now and you would be able to go in with the experience of having already taken the real thing. I was a nervous wreck my first time and bombed hard, but that experience helped me score 15 points higher exactly 2 months later.

I hope you are aware, however, that the August and September deadlines have already passed. If you haven't already set a test date for yourself, the earliest time you will be able to take it will be in October.

JD__2528

@krw200066

Hi, a passing-by person who would really appreciate it if you could elaborate the tactic you've mentioned! I've been advised to do something similar, and am trying to embark on this process.

"The tactic that seemed to push me into 175+ territory involved taking super slow practice tests to solidify some solid test-taking habits."
=> could you share what your super slow practice tests looked like, and some of the solid test-taking habits that you've acquired?

Congrats on the amazing improvement! such an inspiration!

Glutton for the LSAT

Congratulations! Sounds like you finally made it past the oh-so-dreaded glass ceiling for some people.

HOWEVER, if this score turns out to be a fluke, I'll probably push the test back a couple months. The biggest con to pushing it back (besides the obvious monetary one lol) is that I start my first year of teaching in late-August and know I won't be able to commit as much time to consistent prep. Thoughts on this plan of action?

I'd say to take things one step at a time. Focus on your regular study schedule for now and when your teaching placement starts, you can evaluate your availability after being at the job for a week. What I've heard from other professionals studying for this test is that they tend to wake up earlier to study for the LSAT before they head off to work; others, they seem to do best cramming in some LSAT drills during their work breaks.

As you can see, there's no set formula: You really need to be your own judge on this matter.

Best of luck!

krw200066

@apk19e said:
First off, congratulations on your score. I have been in your shoes and thought my performance was a fluke too, but that is not the case. No one scores a 178 on luck alone. I thought it was a joke when I scored my first 180 a week out before my actual test, but the 175 I have on record proves otherwise. It is possible that you may underperform, but that doesn't invalidate your PT scores. You've already proven that you are capable of getting there. This may be a controversial statement here, but if you can do it once then you can do it again. You don't necessarily need to score 175+ a dozen times before you can get there in the real thing. It does certainly help though

If you can take the August test, I would absolutely do that. Even if you don't do as well as you would have liked, you would both have more time to retake than you would months from now and you would be able to go in with the experience of having already taken the real thing. I was a nervous wreck my first time and bombed hard, but that experience helped me score 15 points higher exactly 2 months later.

I hope you are aware, however, that the August and September deadlines have already passed. If you haven't already set a test date for yourself, the earliest time you will be able to take it will be in October.

Thank you so much for this message! It is extremely calming and super helpful. The point about the test-day experience helping on future tests in addition to the extra two months of studying is something I hadn't even considered for some reason!

Also, I am aware that the deadlines have passed and would probably opt to take it in October if I decide to push it back, but honestly your post has tipped me a little bit more towards the "Take it in August" direction. I'm going to probably take a few more tests just to ease my worries, but this was super helpful. Thanks again!

Congratulations on your 175 btw! And good luck in the application cycle!

krw200066

@JD__2528 said:
@krw200066

Hi, a passing-by person who would really appreciate it if you could elaborate the tactic you've mentioned! I've been advised to do something similar, and am trying to embark on this process.

"The tactic that seemed to push me into 175+ territory involved taking super slow practice tests to solidify some solid test-taking habits."
=> could you share what your super slow practice tests looked like, and some of the solid test-taking habits that you've acquired?

Congrats on the amazing improvement! such an inspiration!

Hi! For sure! I am planning to take a couple more timed PT tests in the next few days just to ensure this one wasn't a total fluke (I would hate to pass on advice that wasn't actually consistently helpful haha!). If I can consistently push past that territory, I'll definitely try to make a post and put it under the August test discussion label within the next week. Feel free to DM me if you can't find anything by next weekend, though! I have ADHD and am notoriously forgetful.