Have I hit a wall?

combsni

In the last few weeks, I have hit the ground running so to speak.I've read the LGB and LRB religiously and have seen improvements. The linear games have become like second nature for me. The other games are a work in progress. I'm currently posting around 18/23 in the sample LG sections I have (19 on my PT today). Not where I want to be, grouping games are killing me right now. LR is moving a bit slower, I'm averaging a mere 66% on Must Be True questions (I've put most of my efforts into those types of LR questions) The other day, I did about 50 questions in my workbook and got 39 of them correct (not exactly where I want to be but I was feeling okay). Today I did about 70 from my Kaplan book and only answered 46 of them correct. My irritation caused me to rush into a PT where I only scored a 158 (36 on both sections combined). RC went horrid, with a 15, though I haven't studied RC questions at all. Exam day is in 10 weeks. I've put about 30 hours a week into studying for the LSAT and I don't want to burn myself out but I feel kind unaccomplished. Have I hit a wall?

Pacifico

I would venture to say it's a combination of hubris, an unrealistic timeline, and poor study materials. If you don't have the money for a starter pack on 7Sage, at least go grab a copy of the LSAT Trainer and spend the next month slowly and deliberately going through it. The best thing for you to do is postpone until December at the earliest though next June is a better idea. Give yourself time to learn rather than wasting time stressing about an artificial deadline.

combsni

December is too long of a deadline. It also puts me in a corner. 30 hours a week for 10 weeks should at least get me to about a 162. I'm too elite. I never mentioned postponing it. 158 at this point is 8 points away from my goal, why would I postpone ? Just kind of sounds like you want to be a troll.

blah170blah

30 hours a week is an insane amount of studying. The LSAT isn't about brute force studying, it's smart studying. It's possible to get your 8 points but you need to be smart in your studying and hone the fundamentals. That means, instead of doing 70 LR questions, you do 10 MBT questions in the same amount of time and nailing the process by which you approach MBT questions. It means only taking PTs whenever you have a new strategy you want to test our. Like, you've drilled combo games ad nauseaum, you know how to set them up, and now you want to see in real time how you do. For the fundamentals, it's meaning drilling question types and applying the same process over and over and over again, even if it means you're spending 20 minutes on an LR question.

Cant Get Right

I don't think it's anyone's intent to troll anyone on here. There is remarkably little of that on 7Sage. It is very difficult to judge just how insanely hard this test is when you're first starting out. I had a very similar timeline in mind as you. I think everyone starts this process thinking that they can knock it out in a few months. But the truth is that the elite scorers on this test are largely represented by folks who study for 12 - 18 months, not really really smart people who can just steam roll over it. And if you've hit a wall, that excludes you from that very small group of weird people who smell kind of bad. Learn from our mistakes!

And even if you can score a 166 in a few months, why settle for that? If you are confident you can get there in such a limited amount of time, it seems to me you're selling yourself short.

combsni

Well I am a senior and Maurer and Notre Dame are my target schools. A 166 gets me in pretty easily and my fall back schools like Chicago-Kent, Loyola, and Michigan State will take me with a 160. Plus if I am not happy with my September score, I can fall back on December. Waiting until December closes that door because I would have to wait until February.

Ron Swanson

@combsni

In light of your previous thread on here, I'd highly recommend taking a quick step back to evaluate your study strategy. As others have touched on, LSAT improvement is extremely difficult to brute force no matter how innately intelligent you are. It's a style of thinking that's foreign to how we operate everyday.

If RC is giving you trouble, definitely pick up a copy of the LSAT Trainer, or check out @NicoleHopkins' RC webinar that's on Youtube. Just search "nicole hopkins RC", I'm sure it'll come up. RC is all about reading for structure and author opinion, not cramming/memorizing information.

Next, really invest effort into LG because that section is most conducive to improvement through pure repetition. Getting your LG to even -2 average will be a big jump in getting consistent ~165.. you'll have way less pressure on yourself in other sections.

Overall, I'd just suggest that you focus on really hammering down the fundamentals rather than spamming PTs. There are a finite number of PTs and if you have to go for a December (or even June 2017 and postpone until next cycle), you're going to want those tests.

You seem like a really smart person whose used to experiencing a high level of success pretty effortlessly in all sorts of academic/intellectual challenges. We're all like that. Most people who go to law school are. I originally imagined that I'd be in law school now but decided to take time to invest effort into the LSAT because it can literally pay your tuition. Not part of my plan but how often does life perfectly follow the plans we imagine?

You got this, LSAT improvement isn't always linear..everyone experiences peaks and valleys

combsni

@"Ron Swanson" I guess my biggest frustration is being 8 points away. I can taste it. It took me almost 6 weeks to jump 12 points.

blah170blah

It's not the number of points you have left but in what band you need those points. I've been trying to jump 2 points for a year -- but that's because I'm trying to go from low to mid 170s. Don't despair. It's possible and anxiety inducing but your psyche is as important as your studying. There are takeaways from this thread you can apply to your studying immediately.

combsni

The plus is that I haven't even looked at the grouping games in the LGB and I still have a decent amount to go over. Everyone is different and what works for one person might not work for another. You can say that 30 hours is a lot but it is all relative. I have come to grips with taking the exam in September and possibly taking it the second time in December. I believe I have a strong application and I'm not shooting for schools like Yale and Harvard so anything over a 166 isn't totally necessary. Schools like BU, GW, and Maurer will be on the table

stepharizona

@combsni said:
The plus is that I haven't even looked at the grouping games in the LGB and I still have a decent amount to go over.

Dont take any more test until you have finished studying your base materials. If you havent looked at grouping games, and you took PT that was mostly grouping games, your score isnt useful.

If you want to go 30 hours a week and you wont burn out do it, you know what is right for you.

Just make sure a good chunk of your time is spent in review mode, as this is where you will gain most of your improvement.. Understand why the right answers are right, the wrong answers are wrong. Nicole recommends writing these explanations out in full sentences, and it does make a difference. So for the 11 questions you missed you should review them and write out explanations.

I personally havent read the Kaplan books, but if you feel you arent improving consider the 7Sage starter.