How long?

goalis180

How long into your prep did you start to add time, and become strict with time? and how did you get good with timing besides practice?

nicole.hopkins

I'm not super sure what you're asking. I've always been strict with time (on sections and PT's) because ... well ... that's a large part of the purpose of taking them.

Do a drill (take a section, doesn't matter which). Use a stopwatch app on your phone. For RC/LG, time your set-up/read and write the time. Time each question, using "lap" once you finish each. At the end, record how long it took you to answer each question. Then at the top of the page, write the total time you spent on that passage/game (obviously just write the time you took per question for LR).

Get a pink, a yellow, and a green highlighter. For set-ups/games >3.5-4 minutes, pink; 3-3.5, yellow; , green. For Q's, set up a similar gradient/threshold so that you can see where you spent longer than you should have (~1.20 per Q depending on section), where you were ok (yellow=in range), and green for where you were super speedy.

Over time the yellows replace the pinks, and the greens become more numerous.

ENTJ

Or you can use the 7sage app timer and just reset once the section is complete.

goalis180

I am still not finished with the 7sage course I still have like 25hrs to go. At this point in my prep should I be strict with timing? I only ask Because I am not really in the drill/PT phase yet, I am still on fundamental skills. I mean I usually time myself to see how long the drills at the end take me, I am not too bad with LR, but for the harder LG, I def need to practice. I am sure I should have been done with the course already, but I don't really move on as scheduled all the time when I am struggling with a section, and on top of that I supplement the 7sage course when I don't understand something withe the trainer, and PS bibles.

7sagelsatstudent180

Strict is the only way to be accurate... I personally took my first few practice tests untimed until I got comfortable with the material. Take your time during BR and you'll know exactly where you stand every step of the way.

ENTJ

You should always be timing. When you want to do things untimed that's what you do when you Bind Review (BR). The earlier you condition yourself to the time constraints of the test, the better off you'll be when it comes to test day.

Pacifico

As @ENTJ said, you should always be timing except during BR. The only caveat is at the beginning, you can time with a stopwatch so you have unlimited time but know how long you're taking. Later on, you switch to a timer. Also, you should be drilling throughout the 7Sage curriculum as it comes up. I wouldn't move past a section unless you have been successful on all the videos and at least the first problem set.

goalis180

@Pacifico I do the sections with the drilling, but its 5 questions, so there is not much drilling. Also, If I do really bad on a section, I usually go to the trainer, or the PS bibles read their explanations and do some of their problem sets, or a few more from my Cambridge drill packets. I want to save drilling whole sections until I finish the course. I am finishing the course for fundamentals, and understanding how to attack difficult questions. I do time myself with a stopwatch as everyone here suggests so I guess for now I am on the right track.

goalis180

Also, I do not miss easy questions like level 1-3 often, however for some of the difficult level questions I will usually miss like 2 and sometimes 3 when I try and do them in a 1:20. I don't frequently miss any questions when I am not keeping track of time, but this test is difficult because of time, so those questions do not really mean much to me.

c.janson35

Well depending on your level of proficiency with the easier questions, on a real test you may have 2 minutes+ to use on the harder questions, so just outright limiting yourself to 1:20 isn't necessarily representative.

goalis180

@c.janson35 I was thinking about that, the only way I will find out if that is the case is when I take my first PT after I finish the course.

c.janson35

Well, just know that you probably won't find out on your *first* PT after finishing the course. I'm not saying you won't see an increase, but it will probably take a few PTs for your skills to truly shine.

nicole.hopkins

@goalis180 said:
At this point in my prep should I be strict with timing?

Yes.

@Pacifico said:
The only caveat is at the beginning, you can time with a stopwatch so you have unlimited time but know how long you're taking.

Yes.

@goalis180 said:
I do time myself with a stopwatch as everyone here suggests so I guess for now I am on the right track.

YES!

@c.janson35 said:
so just outright limiting yourself to 1:20 isn't necessarily representative.

Agreed—thus benefit of stopwatch/recording/color coding. Pinks aren't necessarily bad, they're just where you're spending more time.

@c.janson35 said:
but it will probably take a few PTs for your skills to truly shine.

It will probably take a lot of PT's for you to really "see" ROI in a big way, but ... TRUST THE PROCESS!

inactive

Man, everytime I read the title of this thread, this song gets stuck in my head:

7sagelsatstudent180

Your first PT after the course probably won't be outstanding (165)+ for one major reason. You'll have to alternate between all of the skills you learn in the lessons for the first real time during your or... You'll get there soon enough (maybe even quickly) though once you make the adjustments... Timed PTs after perfect drilling helps to solidify concepts but the time factor is the major killer. If it weren't for the time factor a lot of people who study the LSAT as much as 7sagers could score a 170 easy...Give yourself a couple of PTs to truly evaluate yourself.

nicole.hopkins

@7sagelsatstudent180 said:
Give yourself a couple of PTs to truly evaluate yourself.

Exactly!

goalis180

Thanks you guys rock. Do you guys recommend I take my 2nd pt untimed to see if I atleast have a grasp on the fundamentals, and then from there drill a bit, then start PTing?

goalis180

@"Dillon A. Wright" The song is awesome, reminds me of a mellower version of a combichrist song.

inactive

I love combichrist.

goalis180

@"Dillon A. Wright" we're now best friends lmao.

c.janson35

No don't take your 2nd PT untimed, you need to start practicing for the real thing once you finish the curriculum. You'll know you have a grasp on the fundamentals by doing the curriculum, so the only reason to do a test untimed would be to avoid any sort of let down that may happen. I personally think PTs should nearly always be timed, and if there was a way for me to write "nearly" in .25 point font there, I would.

nicole.hopkins

@goalis180 said:
Do you guys recommend I take my 2nd pt untimed to see if I atleast have a grasp on the fundamentals, and then from there drill a bit, then start PTing?

No. Always fully time PT's.

gs556

@goalis180

Being that it's only your second PT giving yourself a slightly more relaxed time contstraint migh not be the worst thing (I.e. 40 min a section). This may prove less stressful and boost your confidence.

However, as you progress the stress which the actual time constraints puts on you is absolutely essential for your preparation. There is no substitute for it.

goalis180

Yea, I was thinking I should time it, either way I'll end up doing it untimed since I will BR it after anyway.

nicole.hopkins

@goalis180 said:
Yea, I was thinking I should time it, either way I'll end up doing it untimed since I will BR it after anyway.

Exactly! If you give yourself a timing "handicap" now I believe you will be setting yourself up for disappointment whenever you start doing real 35 minute sections. If you always do 35 minutes, you always have the same baseline against which to measure your progress.

Would 100% recommend 100% strict timing 100% of the time.

goalis180

@nicole.hopkins I agree with you on that.

inactive

@goalis180 said:
we're now best friends lmao.

goalis180

lmaoo eppiiicc