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huge gap between BR and actual
standardizedcanbelearned
Alum Member
Hi again everyone.
So, I've been studying for this test for about a year now, and although I've improved my score 20 points, I still am not scoring where I want to be (mid/high 160s). I linger from mid to high 150s, while consistently BRing in the low 170s.
I've watched webinars, read outside material (LSAT trainer) etc., but I still feel so discouraged and sort of aimless at this point. BRing in the 170s is what keeps my confidence up and makes me feel like I'll be able to score a 165+ when I take the real test this summer, but I honestly just don't know how to move from the 150s to the 160s consistently. My scores are sort of all over the place (the only consistency is the 170+ BR).
I guess what is making me feel discouraged is the fact that I understand the test (given the high BR average) and that that understanding has grown (I used to BR in the mid to high 160's), but that my actual score hasn't seemed to make substantial progress.
Is it as simple as getting more strict with the PT + BR routine? Do I need to find patience? I am in school, so it's been a little difficult balancing my schoolwork with the LSAT. But at this point, and given the fact that I am aiming to take the test in July, I'm ready to do whatever I can to get my score up to 165+. I've worked too hard to not get there.
Any honest advice from someone who has been in this similar position would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance.
Comments
Hm I started in the mid 150s Post CC and my BR score was high 160s. Then once it became low to mid 170s I just started gradually moving up my timed score to the mid-high 160s.
I feel like this is hard to address without understanding your specific situation. For example, I PT 169 consistently but BR 175-180. I realize that the reason for this gap is mostly missing up to 8 questions per LG because I rush through them, panic, make dumb mistakes with diagrams under timed pressure. So to close the gap between BR and PT I'm honing in on drilling LG because I know this is where I have serious weakness. I can get -0 on any LG with enough time but struggle with the time component, so I'm working with foolproofing.
What are your areas of weakness? Do you have mix up question stems in LR and pick the wrong answer under timed conditions? Do you have trouble focusing on RC and need to try better to contain confusion? Do you panic and mess up diagrams with LG like I do?
@noonawoon honestly for me, it's a timing issue. I freak out under time re. LR. And, yeah, sort of same boat with LG, but I miss 5 or 6. I'm also to the point where I know I should be focusing on foolproofing, but then there's this other element of an urge to do whatever I can to resolve my timing issue on LR.
Why can't you do both? It seems the two areas of focus are to foolproof LG and resolve timing on LR. That seems like a perfectly reasonable plan to get into the score range you want to be. Assuming you can get LG down to 1 or 2 as opposed to 5 or 6, and you make modest gains on LR, you are basically there. Obviously easier said than done, but that 170+ BR says you understand what is generally happening.
How many PTs have you taken and what is your weekly study schedule?
Omg ok so I was having the EXACT same problem as you
I was also BRing in the 170s and stuck in mid/high 150s
I did the exact same thing as you in the LR
I think you should go back to old sections before doing new sections (they are like “new” tests. Since I’m sure you forgot most if not all of some of your oldest tests) and practice timing
What is timing? For me it is:
1) Choosing and moving before question 15
2) POE unless I feel 1000000% confident with my AC
3) Going REALLY SLOW when I read cuz I’m careless AF (like the paragraph part)
4) Not changing my ansr - I am not allowed to change my ansr unless I am 100000% sure that the one i chose is bad and the new one is better (and i have to tell myself WHY I’m switching)
5) Aim for 20 questions. Trust me. Just focus on getting 20 questions out of 25/26. But do them perfectly. Do them 100%. I mean, is getting 20/20 on the ones you can do better than getting 17/25? Yes. And like this, you will feel more calm because you are ‘hitting your goal’ and I GUARANTEE you will eventually build your confidence and find yourself with the time to get them all. But start small. And never change your goal to above 22 questions - I find that once I change my goal to get them all, I rush, I skim, I get the first question or two wrong. Why? Careless. Worst part is, I invested a minute in these questions and I could have used that minute to get another question right.
6) Explaining EVERYTHING as I go along - if I am lost after the first sentence, i restart. If I am lost after the second sentence, I restart. If its not clicking, i leave it blank and come back to it later.
7) Explaining the ACs - like what is it really saying
8) For the harder Qs or those I am getting lost in I write a couple of words on the conclusion/my prediction. This saves me time but you think it would do the opposite.
The same thing with RC - there is no checking to see what else lies in the ansrs if i am 100% confident. Sometimes I am wrong. But at least I dont stay lingering on the same question for like 5 minutes, which at that point it doesn’t even matter if i get it right cause I probably could have used that five minutes on another 2 questions or for the last passage.
I just got a 162 on 72 and I am BRing 79 now
Timing is the most important thing and it cost me 10+ points
I am sorry you’re in the same boat as me — i hope what I am saying helps
The advice above is also great
)
Good points. Well, I've taken PT's 36-52. That's been over the past 6 months. and I have one in the 40's that I didn't take and took one in the 70's. My weekly study schedule has been pretty horrible the past few months - taking a PT every two weeks, slowly blind reviewing (due to my school schedule). At one point this semester I was taking them weekly, but I was so distracted with school that I wasn't really getting anything productive out of them. I've just recently (over break) been able to devote my full attention to it like I was able to this summer, and I'm already seeing improvements in my test taking (taking a full PT and then BRing it directly after over the next few days instead of intermittently over two weeks like I did last semester). Like, I actually employed skips during the sections and it saved me time and reduced my misses greatly. My focus was there because I wasn't distracted by outside obligations. What would you recommend I do for weekly studying? Consistently take a test every week with BR conducted shortly after? Or just focus on the LR timing and LG foolproofing for a month or so and then just into PT's? You're right in that improvement in those areas are both completely attainable and will get my score to what I want. I just want my focus to be in the right place and don't want to waste study material, if that makes sense.
thank you so much for this! Yep, looks like we're all in this together haha. Best of luck to you
I’ve got a different take. You actually need to get comfortable proceeding through the section with less certainty. Read slowly and carefully to make sure you understand, but once you’ve done that, get aggressive. Don’t articulate your reasoning if you’re confident you understand. Go with your intuition in those spots. Working out your reasoning takes an incredible amount of time, and so it should be reserved for harder questions where doing the work is necessary for developing understanding which is not otherwise there. You will occasionally miss questions you answer aggressively on intuitive understanding, but these will be more than made up for by the savings on time. Insisting on 100% certainty on every question is the most destructive instinct there is at your stage of studies. 90% certainty is exponentially faster and almost always just as good. The courage to make mistakes is critical to time management. When I hit about the 80% confidence mark, I move on. You may or may not want to be quite that aggressive, but you’ve got to incorporate some level of aggression into your section strategy to close that gap. Believe in yourself; trust in your abilities. Rely on all the work you’ve put in to hone your skills, and utilize those skills to save time you can apply later in the section to pick up extra points. That’s how the gap closes.
This advice applies specifically to students BRing comfortably above their goal scores. The rest of you keep exercising greater caution as you work your way up!
Depends on what you are getting wrong in LR. If it is totally random, you are making wild mistakes all over the place, and there is no real pattern, I would talk to a proper LSAT authority to diagnose what is going on. You don't want to burn PTs while you are not very intentional with your preparation. If it is a particular problem type you are struggling with, make that part of your practice on non-BR/test days.
A week could look something like this:
Day 1: PT
Day 2: BR and analysis if you finish
Day 3: (if necessary) more BR and analysis maybe add an LG foolproof
Day 4: Problem Sets of areas of weakness/Add one more LG
Day 5: LR or/and LG
This totally depends on how much time this takes you. Absolute maximum amount of LSAT a day is six hours. Five is probably enough. This should offer you a decent template, but do not be concerned if you follow it loosely or not at all. Remember to get good sleep.
Thank you so much. I listened to a podcast you did for the 7sage soundcloud and I really enjoyed it. This is great advice. Yeah - I literally just got finished a few minutes ago BRing PT 52 - scored 158 on the actual, while pulling another 171 on the BR. The highest I've BR'd was a 175. It's so frustrating. I'm going to print this out and put it by my desk. "The courage to make mistakes is critical to time management" + "...you've got to incorporate some level of aggression into your section strategy to close that gap". Never thought of it that way but you're totally right.
Glad to give back. I would never have made it as far as I did without the help of those that went before me.
Another thing I’d add to the “courage to make mistakes” bit is a reflection on the difference between courage and fearlessness. We often conflate the two, but actually they are strictly non-overlapping. Courage is the taking of an action we are afraid to take but which we believe is right. Fear, then, is a necessary condition for exhibiting courage. Don’t wait for fearlessness: It will never come. If you’re not scaring yourself, then you’re exercising too much caution. Don’t let yourself absent-mindedly default to your comfort zone. Aggression takes focus and constant effort.
Yeah, thank you for giving so much back. I listened to it for the first time over the summer and listened to it again a month or so ago. The overarching message I got from you was that this test is completely learnable, but you have to be devoted to learning it. I started studying just over a year ago and I remembered thinking "I totally have the work ethic that this guy has so I know I'll get there eventually". It's not something you can skate by and pick up in just a few months. You have to change the way your brain processes information and there is no shortcut to that. It's affirming when I retake sections from the first couple of PT's I took and I get questions right that I missed the first time I took it (and, on the contrary, it shows me a lot when I reselect the same wrong AC I did 6 months ago).
"Fear...is a necessary condition for exhibiting courage" right, right. And yeah - when I approach the test I'm in the default mode of exercising too much caution. Thanks for all of this. Time to get working towards embodying courage rather than working towards complete comfort or complete certainty. That just won't happen under the time constraint nor is that the goal.