Should I take recent preptests (timed) even if i haven't done all the older ones?

DEC_LSAT

Hey guys,

I am registered for the September LSAT and 7sage recommends i take preptest 39-44 before test day. I've done 36, 37 and 38 so far (timed). I'm wondering if I should take the 6 most recent preptests timed since the newer ones can be different from the older tests and no one wants surprises on test day.... if i follow 7sage recommendations, i would be oblivious to the new tests. Do preptests change dramatically enough for me to worry about this problem? Any advice? Thanks in advance.

sbc.mom_3x

Oooh good question; interested in knowing as well.

desire2learn

By the 6 most recent I assume you mean PT 73-78? Definitely do the most recent ones. There are some tweaks that just are not the same as in the 30s and 40s. You'll want to work on comparative reading passages in RC as well as substitution and equivalence questions in LG. Plus some of the LR just has a little different feel to it.

Alex

@"Nina_Lucas" said:
Hey guys,

I am registered for the September LSAT and 7sage recommends i take preptest 39-44 before test day. I've done 36, 37 and 38 so far (timed). I'm wondering if I should take the 6 most recent preptests timed since the newer ones can be different from the older tests and no one wants surprises on test day.... if i follow 7sage recommendations, i would be oblivious to the new tests. Do preptests change dramatically enough for me to worry about this problem? Any advice? Thanks in advance.

7Sage would recommends doing at least 30 PTs. The Starter course just has you do 39-44 with explanations.

You should absolutely do the more recent ones as well. At this point I would suggest postponing until you have time to do all PTs 39-78.

They don't change dramatically per say, but there are changes and you should absolutely be acclimated to the style of the newer tests before you sit for the real deal.

DEC_LSAT

@desire2learn when you say LR has a different feel, do you mean harder or easier or neither? just different?

DEC_LSAT

@"Alex Divine" Thanks Alex!

Sprinkles

@"Nina_Lucas" said:
I've done 36, 37 and 38 so far (timed)

You're way behind from the recommended minimum PT takes as Alex said. I'm one of those people who took the LSAT after very minimal PT exposure and the damage that has done to my score is unforgivable. Get your hands on as much PTs as possible, even the ones not mentioned in the Starter course. The general rule of thumb is PTs 40+ should be used for timed tests while the lower ones should be used for drills. In any event, save the newer ones for when you're getting closer to game day (1-2 months prior at least). No worries if you have to postpone...we've all been there and have found ourselves in better shape because of it

DEC_LSAT

@montaha.rizeq thanks for your input!

Alex

@montaha.rizeq said:
No worries if you have to postpone...we've all been there and have found ourselves in better shape because of it

So very very true!

Sprinkles

@"Nina_Lucas" said:
hanks for your input!

Welcome let us know what you decide.

desire2learn

Just different. Shift in the feel of some strengthening/weakening. Shift in the feel of some MSS. Different wording on some miscellaneous questions.

twssmith

Hi Nina!
Exposure to as many PT's is always highly recommended. Having only taken 3 PT's, please postpone unless you are scoring in your highest score band - which with only a few PT's usually is not indicative of score potential. If you are a unicorn with a high diagnostic and the ability to understand the test, than ignore the following:)

The wisest advice from 7Sage is quality PTing vs quantity. Hopefully you took the PT's under true timed conditions, did a thorough blind review of the PT & entered the PT's in the analytics. Use these earlier PT's to hone in on your weaknesses to drill and build timing/skipping strategies as you progress through the score bands.

There are definitely different nuances as the LSAT has progressed that can be challenging but the test is always requiring the same ability to understand the same concepts no matter how they are presented! Everyone has different strengths/weaknesses, experiences, etc that can hinder/help as they adapt to the evolution of the test. Master the concepts, recognize patterns through experience, drill weaknesses, implement PT test taking strategies and then once you have scored at least 5 PT's within your desired score range - Take the LSAT with full confidence that you did all that you could to achieve your optimum score!

Please do not take the most current PT's in succession! There is an on-going joke that PT 72 was the 1st current PT that hurt a lot of people especially for morale. If you want to take a current PT, take PT72 so you can be a part of the discussion of that test - while not deserving of it's reputation, it seems to be a rite of passage for the newer tests:)
All the best:)

Cant Get Right

Yeah, the smart move here is to postpone. There are people who hit their target score right out of the curriculum and are ready to go, but odds are you are not one of these. Here's my advice given sufficient time to PT properly:

You really just want to start with earlier PTs. It takes a while to get comfortable with PTs and until you're really slaying it you won't have the nuanced insight to recognize the subtleties of the newer tests anyway. You're still in the phase of study where you learn best by identifying and analyzing your many mistakes. Right now, the reason you are PTing is to make those mistakes. From there, you go back to the curriculum, back to problem sets, back to drilling. For every PT, you need to identify and address the problems it exposes. And until you feel confident you have made significant progress in those areas, you shouldn't PT again. You really don't want to sacrifice your newer tests to this phase of study. You don't want to save them all until the end either, but right now, I would not advise taking them.

DEC_LSAT

@desire2learn thanks for the heads up!

DEC_LSAT

@twssmith Thanks! no I am not a unicorn I want to get a 160 and i thought i could get there by the sept lsat since i'm scoring around 157. I will take PT 72 as you advised to be part of the discussion! who knows maybe i'll find the newer tests easier.... i guess stay tuned cause i'll be taking it today

DEC_LSAT

@"Cant Get Right" Thanks for your input!

CocoZhang

@"Alex Divine" said:
7Sage would recommends doing at least 30 PTs.

Oh, is there such recommendation? I've done 18 so far...

Alex

@CocoZhang said:
Oh, is there such recommendation? I've done 18 so far...

Yeah, J.Y. wrote an article recommending taking at least 30. It's not meant to be taken as dogma; just a recommendation. 18 is a good amount to have done so far. I'm planning on doing 36-78 and probably will redo some of them. Essentially, you want to make sure you are doing them until you are reaching you're averaging your goal.

Toxoplasmosis

Just for what it's worth I think the differences between recent (late 60's-present) PT's and older (36-55) PT's are often understated on this forum (probably TLS too) and if you're dead set on taking in September, the best use of the next three weeks would absolutely be studying the most recent iterations of the test. The LR is wordier, trickier and much less mechanical, RC is functionally the same content-wise but has far fewer freebie questions than older PTs, and I think LG is much more of a grind (plugging in possible orders etc) than is earlier tests. The prudent move here might be to delay and save up your recent tests, but if for whatever reason that's not what you end up doing I would highly recommend getting after the most recent PT's ASAP.

DEC_LSAT

@Toxoplasmosis wow thanks a lot!! I'm glad i read your post. i'm leaning towards postponing to december now

DEC_LSAT

@Toxoplasmosis what do you mean by lg as more of a grind? plugging in possible orders... so more sequencing?

Toxoplasmosis

@Nina_Lucas sorry that wasn't very clear. To clarify, in earlier games I found it much easier to spend alot of time on the set up, push inferences together etc and glide through the questions based on my board and those inferences. In newer games I have a much harder time doing this and find that I have to plug in possible worlds (orders in sequencing games, group composition in grouping games etc) in order to get to the right answer. Obviously that could be a gap in my LSAT knowledge that I just need to address and get over, but I did find it startling when I began PTing the modern tests

DEC_LSAT

@Toxoplasmosis oh okay interesting! i wonder which one it is. i can't shed any light on it because i haven't done any practice tests in the 70s. maybe someone else will add to your post