My first post-curriculum PT with a twist

Addistotle

So, I finally finished the curriculum and bought the LSAC copies of almost every PT. My initial intentions were to write 36, as per the study schedule, but I photocopied 35.

My diagnostic from 11/19/2015 was 150/159 BR.

I was at the Queen's University campus, had a logistical problem figuring out the photocopier and finding a space to study, the libraries were swamped. Where I picked to write was in the basement and there were students everywhere around me. I wore similar clothing to what I plan to wear on test day, ensured I had my usual amount of caffeine for that time of day, and reviewed my cue cards before writing.

Sat down, realized I forgot a scantron, went and printed a bunch of copies, plugged my headphones into my partner's computer, started the 5 section proctor video and set to try it.

Complete PT35 S1, S2, then my "experimental section" (PT16 S1 G1, PT17 S1 G2, PT27 S2 G3, & PT18 S1 G4), took a 15min break, then finished PT36 S3, S4. Initially I felt confident that I only remember some of the recent questions, and the experimental section went really well. I was only checking time by asking my partner to switch back and hover over the proctor screen. My timing was good, had time the review at the end of each section, I know it should be taken with a grain of salt because 35 was chopped up and fed to me slowly over the curriculum.

Scoring

PT 35
Scaled 168
Raw 87/101
86.1%, 95.8 Percentile
S1 -6 (LR), S2 -3 (RC), S3 -3 (LG), S4 -2 (LR)

Experimental Section
PT16 S1 G1 -0
PT17 S1 G2 -0
PT27 S2 G3 -1 (I guess my copy was missing Q !19 so I'll treat it like a missed bubbling or something)
PT18 S1 G4 -0

How should I feel about it? Turns out I missed 2 softballs on 35, but I think it was a good intermediary test before I write 36... Goal is to finish 26-30 PTs before I try to write in June.

Cant Get Right

Well you increased 18 points from your diagnostic, so you should feel great about that! Congratulations!

What was your BR score?

MrSamIam

That's an incredible improvement! Congrats. You still have some time before the June test to prepare, and plenty of time before the September administration.

Jonathan Wang

Nice work! Bask in the glow for a while, then pull it back out and start ripping all your mistakes apart.

This result means nothing if it cannot be replicated, so back to work we must go. You can make up for all the missed feel-goods later (and in fact, I would encourage it), once you've replicated the result enough times to demonstrate that this is not a fluke. Any question about whether you need to adjust your score due to the test not being 'clean' or whatever else will fade once you write several more clean tests with similar scores. And if you can't, then I guess that also answers that question.

It's not entirely the feel-good answer, but it's the correct one in my opinion. Never let yourself get too high or too low.

Nicole Hopkins

@"Jonathan Wang" said:
It's not entirely the feel-good answer, but it's the correct one in my opinion. Never let yourself get too high or too low.

+1000

Cant Get Right

I love @"Jonathan Wang" 's tough love responses. This wasn't too tough, but can always count on JW to lay down some truth.

Addistotle

Hello! wow, thank you everyone. JW that was exactly what I needed to hear.

It was a 172 BR, so lots to improve upon still!

I already have 36, 37, and 38 laid out to slay this week with an extra section from pre-35 PTs..

Aidoe

That sounds awesome @ A. Clermont! Can I ask how long it took you to get through the curriculum?

Addistotle

Turns out I didn't input my answers correctly and it was a 169/173.

I've reviewed all of my mistakes further and made the appropriate annotations to my cue cards! Time to go for a jog, meditate, have a coffee and grind out PT36

Addistotle

Aidoe, I started the curriculum in November 2015, finished it last week!

Cant Get Right

What does your BR process look like @"A. Clermont" ? Correctly doing your BR is where you really see improvements at your stage in the process. If you're pushing 170, aim for a perfect BR. You've got unlimited time, so make sure you use it.

You haven't really given me much reason to think you're doing it improperly, it's just something I did so wrong for so long without even realizing it. I really wasted a lot of time, PTs, and LSATs, so every time I see someone moving into PT, I start having 'Nam-esque flashbacks. Do yourself a favor and review the BR process. Go back to the beginning and rewatch the lessons, check out the webinar. Even if you think you're doing it effectively, do it anyway. It'll make me sleep better if nothing else.

allison.gill.sanford

Fantastic job!! And this is solid advice. You still have a mountain to climb, post core curriculum it gets real. Let us know in a few weeks how you're doing, and bear in mind that the different series of tests do have particularities. For me, 30s and 40s were very easy. Mix it up, do some from the 50s and 60s in the next few weeks to see where you are overall on scores.

Addistotle

36 went down somewhat painfully. Every section was completed with time to go back and try a couple of the ones I'd skipped.

S1 LR -8
S2 RC -3
S3 LR -4
S4 LG -1

167/171BR

Well, Cant Get Right....

My BR process is sitting down, inputting my initial answers, and then looking over every question where I do not have every answer eliminated, and every question that is circled. I try to recall if I had gone back to it already and felt confident in that answer. Then I attack it, for RC, I go over the content again, and for LG I try working out the boards.

I just want to say this, in my BR I gave up on game 3 from this set, I almost wasted so much time on it, key word, almost, I left the whole thing blank and moved onto the gift at the end. Confidently blasting through that one, I returned to the 3rd game and somewhat hacked away at the questions. With minimal recollection about whether I ACTUALLY sorted out the answers I chose, or just guessed... no idea.

Thank you everyone for the support and advice, I plan on reviewing the questions I missed in detail and doing fool proofing that game tomorrow.

Maybe I have to commit at least one day between PTs in order to solidify the necessary concepts between each sitting and properly review my errors!

Cant Get Right

Try using a clean copy for you BR. It doesn't seem like a huge deal, but it really makes a huge difference. I write down all the questions I need to review on a notecard and then use that to work through a clean copy. I also write out my reasoning for each question in a notebook. It forces me to really be able to understand each stimulus and answer choice. Before I started doing that, it was really easy to gloss over something with just a vague understanding. Having to write it out, that doesn't happen.

Addistotle

I'll do that tonight, Cant, thank you!