Beginning to study for December LSAT-Any adice?

cynthiareeves

I am just beginning to study for the December LSAT. I would love to hear some study advice. Thanks!

Alex

@cynthiareeves

Congrats on beginning your LSAT journey and taking the next step to your future!

Let's see, I have enough LSAT advice at this point to write a 20 page essay, but I guess I'll start with some basics.

The most important advice I think I could tell you is to set your LSAT goal as a score; not as a date. So don't feel like you have to take in December, or even should, especially if you are just beginning now. I know that prep companies often opine that 3-4 months of prep is sufficient, but it really isn't for the majority of test takers. You should take the test whenever you are ready. This is going to be one of the most important tests of your life. The best part is that you can decide to take it whenever you are ready.

My other big piece of advice is to not waste time looking for "silver bullets" or secrets to game the test. I wasted an entire 6 weeks being every LSAT book, sitting in on classes, asking for magic-180 study schedules. Seems like pretty obvious advice, but I wish someone had told me when I began...

My other piece of advice would be to spend a lot of time in the LSAT curricula stage. I think people often rush into taking PTs way before they are ready. Don't hesitate to spend 6 months just on learning the test inside and out. Which brings me to my last bit of advice...

Plan for the long road..... This kind of ties into the first piece of advice of waiting until you are ready to take the test. But do realize if you want to score well, depending on your diagnostic score, it may take a while to be ready to take this test. And you need to be okay with that. I know a lot of people from my undergrad who started off with dreams of the top schools, and they had the GPAS & Softs, but they didn't have the dedication or patience to study for a good LSAT score.
I truly believe this test is learnable you just need dedication and time.

Hope that helps a little. Let me know if you have any specific questions!

Welcome to 7Sage

Cant Get Right

Well as far as studying for LSAT goes, you started in the right place. The 7Sage curriculum is the best LSAT learning tool I've come across, and it's a hugely supportive community. I hate to turn my response into a 7Sage ad, but truthfully, 7Sage is the one thing I wish someone had told me about at the very beginning of my studies. For about 6 months I was using prep books which I really don't think could have gotten me to where I am now. Obviously you're going to get biased opinions about 7Sage on the 7Sage forum, but I think it's rated 4.97 stars out of 5 or something crazy high like that, so the bias holds up to the more objective standard.

The main thing, especially starting off, is JY makes learning the LSAT fun. The lessons are really interesting and funny and it makes it really easy to get moving. The LSAT is incredibly difficult and it can seem overwhelming at times. 7Sage makes approaching it more manageable.

Even if you don't opt for a 7Sage membership, be sure to find the LG videos on YouTube. Free explanations for every game ever, hard to beat that.

Good luck, and welcome to the LSAT!

jknauf

Blind Review! Learn it, love it, live by it. The test is hard. Don't be afraid to take time off. This guy scored a perfect 180 and made a very helpful write up. I don't know how many people on these forums have read through this, but it's worth a read. I'm sure it will help anyone no matter how experienced you are. Check it out: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=120471

@"Cant Get Right" @"Alex Divine" check it out

Alex

@jknauf I have read it! I've been active on TLS for almost 5 years now, lol. That is one of the most popular LSAT articles on there along with PithyPike's and NoodleyOne's guide... I thought it was pretty helpful as far as strategy goes, but I don't think they are very useful beyond motivation and a bit of strategy. It kind of harkens backs the whole looking for a silver bullet mentality. I guess it can be somewhat helpful so long as you don't follow it thinking you will get a 180. I think TLS1776's guide is a little better than Pithy's and Noodle's because it seems more open to customization which is good. The thing to remember is that his cold diagnostic was a 161... That's pretty darn high...

So yeah, I think it is a useful read for sure and one of the better LSAT guides on TLS. But TLS1776 is an outlier and obviously had a knack for the LSAT and that has to be kept in mind.

jknauf

@"Alex Divine" While he did score a 161 diagnostic, Nathan took it to a whole other level. He did this by taking 85+ PTs; taking 1-2 PTs everyday leading up the exam; typing and printing out LR questions he didn't fully grasp, and taping them to his kitchen wall; changing diet and exercise habits; removing demotivating sources of pleasure; found sources of pleasure that reinforced motivation to study just to name a few.

This man literally changed his life for the LSAT. While a 180 is out of reach for most people, taking LSAT prep to that extent will guarantee you a better score than what you are scoring without it. I do believe some individuals have biological advantages, but I also believe if any of us here took our prep to that extreme, we are capable of score not only in the top 1% but the top .75%, the top .50% and the top .1% as is the case with the 180

Alex

@jknauf I agree with that! Dedication is so vital and that was what I found most inspiring about his guide.. Though, some parts of it, such as taking 1-2 PTs a day is just objectively bad advice. There is just no way you have time for proper blind review. And sure it seemed to have worked for him, which is great.
I'm big on not throwing the baby out with the bathwater, so I think there is a lot to be learned from that guide. I just think following it literally and expecting a 180 is bordering on quixotic.

jknauf

@"Alex Divine" From the article: Taking Two PTs back-to-back - Several high scorers recommended this, so I tried it when I was retaking PTs at the very end of my prep. I definitely think it helped; after taking 8 sections with a 20 minute break, the real test felt like a breeze. I definitely never felt fatigued, which is something others complain about.

@"Alex Divine" said:
such as taking 1-2 PTs a day is just objectively bad advice.

Objectively? As in based in fact? Well, the best it could be is subjectively bad advice.

@"Alex Divine" said:
There is just no way you have time for proper blind review.

It doesn't sound like the point of the back to back test was to blind review, but to build stamina. Additionally,when you are scoring 178-180 on your practice tests at the end of your prep, you're only looking at a very few problems to blind review so time wouldn't be an overbearing factor. But hey! Lets not hijack and discourage our new friend @cynthiareeves discussion with our opinion. @cynthiareeves Welcome to the community! If you are gunning for the best possible score, I don't think you're being quixotic!