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My (long) LSAT Journey...
LivePumpkin
Free Trial Member
Hi everyone!
I hope you are all doing well.
I have been meaning to write this for a while now; however, I got very busy with exams. Now that I am all done, I really want to write a detailed post about my LSAT journey in hopes of inspiring someone else on here. There is a lot I want to say and I will try to organize everything in chronological order and in as much detail as I can.
To start off, the entire LSAT process and law school application process was very isolating for me. I did not know anyone that was applying or taking the LSAT. I had to be proactive throughout the process. Yes, mistakes were made, but I am glad I went through it no matter how difficult it got at times. I hope those reading and still going through the application/LSAT process will learn from my mistakes. And please do. Don't make this any harder than it has to be!
My very first post on here was some time last summer 2017, when I asked for help regarding improvements in my score. I did not seem to be making any improvements. I wasted so many tests studying the wrong way (no proper review following an exam and taking an LSAT every single day). By the time I realized this, I had already gone through tests 50-65~
Another big mistake I made was I took the September test without being ready. I went in thinking I'll be fine and maybe I'll end up with a really high score. Let's just say man... was I wrong, lol.
About 3 weeks after the September test, I decided to start from scratch and signed up for the February test. I started visiting many forums like the one on here, Reddit, and even TLS (to some degree) to get an idea on how people prepare. After reading a bunch of guides/advice, I started with LG and fool proofed games 52-80. I decided to stick with the newer tests and did no tests before PT 52. I am not sure whether that was a mistake or a good thing, but it turned out fine.
After semi-figuring things out, here was my plan, and yes, mistakes were STILL made (lol).
I fool proofed the games from PT 52 to 81. I did all of this in about one month. Yes, you read that right. One month. I was waking up at 5 am every day and doing nothing but the LSAT/school work all day until about 7-8 pm. I was literally fool proofing an entire LG section per day. And once I finished fool proofing tests 52 - 81, I did some games I found difficult again, which took more time.
After I was done fool proofing the games for the day, which would take approximately 3-4 hours depending on how easy I felt they were, I was alternating between an LR or RC section as my second section for that day AND blind reviewing it that same day... (I know, some of you may think that this already sounds like a bad idea).
After the BR, I would look up explanations for the answers I got wrong. I created a document which I organized by question types for LR and wrote down the conclusion, premise(s), wrong answer choice explanation and the correct answer explanation ALL IN MY OWN WORDS, followed by a "takeaway" I had learned from this question -- something to look out for the next time I see a question/idea like this.
I was taking classes during this time too. I am in my final year and I was also completing applications, which were due November 1st (Canadian deadlines). AFTER my LSAT work, depending on whether an essay was due soon or whether I had an exam or not, I would do schoolwork. I did not want to ruin my GPA that I worked so hard for over the past 3 years so I know I had to suck it up. And when I was not doing school work, I did a little bit of my law school applications.
I really enjoy playing video games and going to the gym; however, because of how stressed I was with the LSAT and how much of my day it was consuming, I sacrificed playing video game until I was done with the LSAT for good. But, I kept up with the gym as I knew how much it helped me to concentrate while studying. Sadly, I also did not have much of a social life. Based on the schedule I was working with (whichI know is bad), I pretty much did not see my friends until the LSAT was done either... another mistake.
Around mid December, I was legitimately starting to get frustrated with this schedule. I felt I was burning out, but there was only a month left and I pushed through. I tried to do whatever I could to help with the burnout... relax, take frequent breaks during the prep, listen to motivational talks from one of the best motivational speakers IMO (Greg Plitt), etc...
Fast forward to the February LSAT, I went in feeling VERY confident with the material but also feeling kind of burnt out. The week before the Feb LSAT, I literally stopped everything except LG and going over that long document of wrong answers I had created from LR sections I'd done in the past few months. The Feb LSAT went GREAT. I finished every section before the 35 minutes and I felt great. In particular, the LG also seemed very easy as I did not find one of those "misc" games on it, so that helped. After the Feb LSAT, I can't tell you how relieved I was; however, over the course of this LSAT journey, I was beginning to feel more and more stressed out at the fact that it was getting late in the cycle. Clearly my September score was not going to help me no matter how good my GPA was. I was getting worried that regardless of how strong my LSAT score is, I may not even get in as classes may have gotten filled up. I was also worried about not doing well. What if I had to do the LSAT again? I really don't think I would have had it in me to prepare AGAIN. I stopped thinking about things that I did not have to worry about though.
Fast forward a little bit more to when we finally got the scores, I was SO happy. I got a 169. The past several months of excruciatingly difficult prep and balancing school work were finally over. This score was good enough for every school in Canada and I was SO relieved.
And you must be wondering: what about the schools you applied to? Did you hear back? Yes, I did! I heard back from all the schools I applied to. You may consider this another mistake but I only applied to two of the top schools here, and yes, I know that is a risk, but it was a risk I was willing to take. I did not want to leave where I lived and I was happy going to either. I got the call from U of T one afternoon at the end of March and the next morning, I got an email from the other school, Osgoode. It was by far one of the happiest moments of my life. The journey was very difficult and I know I still made many, many mistakes and I hope whoever is reading this can really learn from it. There were many times I felt I was going to quit and just apply the next cycle, but I kept pushing. If I had to do it all over again, there are SO many things I would have changed.
Along this LSAT journey, there are many, many of you whom I messaged for help on LR or LG or RC and I cannot thank you all enough. I know I asked so many questions and it may have gotten annoying at times (I don't blame you). There are too many of you to list but you know who you are if you're reading this. Thank you, thank you, thank you. The community on here has been so supportive of me throughout the journey. No one turned me down when I asked for help. Everyone always made me feel welcomed. This was very important to me because despite not knowing anyone applying or taking the LSAT personally, I knew that I had an entire awesome community in 7Sage that is full of supportive individuals. And for those of you reading this who are also alone on this long journey: reach out to others. Dealing with this alone may only do you harm. Others WILL help you. I wish everyone here the best of luck on their LSAT/law school/life journey. We will all make it. DO NOT QUIT. I am strong believer in not thinking "what if" later in life because I know at that point, there is nothing I can do. I would have wondered "what if I pushed through that adversity? Would things have been different?" - regardless of the answer to that question, the outcome won't change anymore and that is something I really could not live with if it had happened. Be honest with yourself and keep working. Improvements are slow and what works for someone else may not work for you. Do things in the manner that they work for YOU. You know yourself best. And with that said, I think that ends my LSAT journey. If anyone has any questions, please feel free to ask! Also, sorry if this was a long post!
THANK YOU ONCE AGAIN TO THE MOST SUPPORTIVE COMMUNITY I HAVE KNOWN.
-LP
Comments
did you choose toronto or osgoode?
Thanks for this. Could read posts like this every day.
Thank you for posting this! Your post really inspired and motivated me. I have been working full time and have been struggling with the LSAT for a year and a half. Hopefully I will do well in September.
Congratulations! So well deserved.
This came right on time. Thank you for posting
Hey, I ended up going with Osgoode for various reasons!
Congrats on UoFT and Osgoode! Glad it worked out for you and thanks for sharing your story
Congratulations @LivePumpkin!! You're a star. Thank you for sharing your journey!
Thank you for sharing this!
Indeed, thank you for taking the time to sit down and write this post. It's helpful to read and inspiring as I begin my own LSAT journey. I often struggle to find time to study for the LSAT but after reading your post, I'm ready to carve out time in my schedule, commit to those hours and get it done.
Thank you!
Congrats !!! My LSAT journey has been long / gruesome as well. Makes me so happy to hear someone that's succeeded. Hopefully it'll be my turn soon = )
I came across this post because I was starting to get frustrated not seeing big improvements after following a hectic study schedule similar to yours. This motivated me to keep going, thank you
From one Canadian to another, congratulations!! Enjoy Osgoode!
Lovely story thanks for sharing ,love it
Aw, this was wonderful. We all need this to inspire us. Your drive for what you wanted is what we should all have to keep our own selves going. Yes, it can be lonely but ultimately we all take this exam alone and by ourselves.