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Flex or no Flex?

rwilso22rwilso22 Member
in General 41 karma

With the deadline for the July test approaching in a few days... would it be best to take the July test as most likely Flex, or wait until August? I talked to a rep today about another topic and she mentioned that every single state has to be opened to go back to normal testing- all or nothing. I would love to hear from those who took Flex and the pros and cons!

Comments

  • lexxx745lexxx745 Alum Member Sage
    3190 karma

    You can go on reddit forums for that if you wanna see extensive list. Overall, it seemed like most people either had no trouble or minor troubles that werent enough to massivley impact performance. I lost like 20-30 seconds from connection issues which i consider a minor problem for sure.

    Overall, not bad though. Make sure internet connection is good. You always run the risk of a bad proctor but thats far and few in between. Im sure issues like not allowing scratch paper will be fully resolved by later Flexs

  • S_a_s_h_aS_a_s_h_a Member
    18 karma

    @lexxx745 ...wait, what? The Flex is not allowing scratch paper? How does one even go about taking notes or doing games?

  • rwilso22rwilso22 Member
    41 karma

    @lexxx745 , thank you so much! Did you find that LG was harder? I read that a few people suggested taking Flex if you are good at LG because of the way the questions were.

  • hcdbsu24hcdbsu24 Alum Member
    103 karma

    If LR is your strongest section, I would hold out until August in hopes that the normal LSAT is administered because you are losing crucial points that could help you. However, if your best section is either LG or RC you should 100% try and take the flex. If there are major technological issues LSAC will work with you and make it right. Also, if you do not have access to a quiet area in your home, I would caution taking the flex because of the potential distractions you could be facing. It's a give and take type of thing, but I personally loved the flex because I get fatigued on section 4 and 5 regardless of what the section is testing, and my best section is LG.

  • rwilso22rwilso22 Member
    41 karma

    @hcdbsu24 , thank you for your response. I have only been studying for a little over a month, and wanted to get a baseline score on the July or August test. I am not sure of my strongest points right now, as I only took one diagnostic and got a 140 and have been going through the Core Curriculum, but I thought it may be a good idea to stick to a flex first since all three sections are weighted equally. What are your thoughts on that?

  • mhf.andrewmhf.andrew Member
    207 karma

    I would further qualify this advice. If your best section is RC, but your worst section is LG (my case), then the flex might not be the ideal setting. Or if your worst section is RC, and your best section is LG, I'd be cautious. The flex might actually favour the more well rounded test taker, rather than the test taker who may have two good to great sections (provided one of those sections is LR) and one utterly dreadful section. If LR is not your strongest, but either RC or LG is your weakest, I would hesitate to write the flex, as your weaknesses are more exposed with these questions taking up a greater percentage of a shorter test.

  • keepcalmandneuronkeepcalmandneuron Alum Member
    470 karma

    Taking a 3 section test at the comfort of your home vs taking a 5 section test in a foreign environment with 200 other people + the physical fatigue from getting to the test centre, waiting in line, waiting for instructions from proctor?? It's a no brainer for me regardless of where your weakness lies...

  • Oni LSATOni LSAT Alum Member
    218 karma

    I find reading on a small tablet extremely hard. The FLEX offers me the ability to take the exam on my comfortable chair and large monitor (12 inch tablet vs 34 inch monitor). There are trade offs though such as having one less LR and possibility of technical issues. However, I am leaning more towards the FLEX as a positive.

  • ExcludedMiddleExcludedMiddle Alum Member
    edited May 2020 737 karma

    @rwilso22 said:
    @hcdbsu24 , thank you for your response. I have only been studying for a little over a month, and wanted to get a baseline score on the July or August test. I am not sure of my strongest points right now, as I only took one diagnostic and got a 140 and have been going through the Core Curriculum, but I thought it may be a good idea to stick to a flex first since all three sections are weighted equally. What are your thoughts on that?

    There's really no value to getting a baseline score. Even though schools focus on your highest score, it's always better to do well on your first LSAT. Taking the LSAT and waiting on your score can be an emotionally taxing process, so I don't think many people would recommend voluntarily subjecting yourself to unnecessary official takes. You should not sit for a real LSAT until you're confident that you're ready to do well. One month is probably not going to cut it for most people. You should probably finish the Core Curriculum and then spend 2-3 months drilling and taking practice tests before you sit for the LSAT.

  • hcdbsu24hcdbsu24 Alum Member
    103 karma

    @ExcludedMiddle said:

    @rwilso22 said:
    @hcdbsu24 , thank you for your response. I have only been studying for a little over a month, and wanted to get a baseline score on the July or August test. I am not sure of my strongest points right now, as I only took one diagnostic and got a 140 and have been going through the Core Curriculum, but I thought it may be a good idea to stick to a flex first since all three sections are weighted equally. What are your thoughts on that?

    There's really no value to getting a baseline score. Even though schools focus on your highest score, it's always better to do well on your first LSAT. Taking the LSAT and waiting on your score can be an emotionally taxing process, so I don't think many people would recommend voluntarily subjecting yourself to unnecessary official takes. You should not sit for a real LSAT until you're confident that you're ready to do well. One month is probably not going to cut it for most people. You should probably finish the Core Curriculum and then spend 2-3 months drilling and taking practice tests before you sit for the LSAT.

    This^^^ I agree 100%

  • canihazJDcanihazJD Alum Member Sage
    8313 karma

    @sbrig009 some proctors did not allow paper, and some takers who were denied paper inexplicably tried to do the test anyway. Its because proctorU typically doesn't use scratch paper, and many proctors apparently not trained well enough for LSAT administration.

  • lexxx745lexxx745 Alum Member Sage
    3190 karma

    @keepcalmandneuron said:
    Taking a 3 section test at the comfort of your home vs taking a 5 section test in a foreign environment with 200 other people + the physical fatigue from getting to the test centre, waiting in line, waiting for instructions from proctor?? It's a no brainer for me regardless of where your weakness lies...

    You would think so. What if you were in the minority that lost minutes. On this test you know even 30-40 seconds is crucial. Idk my 30 seconds was on LG, kinda salty lol

  • 473 karma

    I gotta say flex! You can always take it again. But I think it depends on your endurance,and your situation.

  • A.BilenkeyA.Bilenkey Member
    143 karma

    I am in a similar boat, making the decision between the July LSAT Flex and taking it in August (I don't want to write it later in the year once school starts back up). I decided to post-phone and take the August test purely because I am not prepared enough and wanted more time to study. I think the August LSAT will be an LSAT Flex regardless. So I would make the best decision for you in terms of where you're at with studying.

  • rwilso22rwilso22 Member
    41 karma

    I am in a similar boat, making the decision between the July LSAT Flex and taking it in August (I don't want to write it later in the year once school starts back up). I decided to post-phone and take the August test purely because I am not prepared enough and wanted more time to study. I think the August LSAT will be an LSAT Flex regardless. So I would make the best decision for you in terms of where you're at with studying.

    Thanks so much for your response, I am glad that we can relate. Can I ask what makes you so sure that August will be Flex? Honestly, I feel like I would be more prepared for August's test date but it seems to be beneficial as a first time LSAT-taker to go Flex.

  • A.BilenkeyA.Bilenkey Member
    143 karma

    @rwilso22 said:

    I am in a similar boat, making the decision between the July LSAT Flex and taking it in August (I don't want to write it later in the year once school starts back up). I decided to post-phone and take the August test purely because I am not prepared enough and wanted more time to study. I think the August LSAT will be an LSAT Flex regardless. So I would make the best decision for you in terms of where you're at with studying.

    Thanks so much for your response, I am glad that we can relate. Can I ask what makes you so sure that August will be Flex? Honestly, I feel like I would be more prepared for August's test date but it seems to be beneficial as a first time LSAT-taker to go Flex.

    @rwilso22
    Hey! Sorry not sure if this is the right way to try and comment back to someone.

    With COVID I think some states in the US and some provinces in Canada are starting to open back up (open schools, shops etc.). But many remain under stricter lock-down measures. For example, universities in Ontario (I'm from Canada) are staying closed for the fall 2020 semester. I think the LSAT has to be administered in the same "mode" (either in person or LSAT-Flex) for all LSAT test takers across all of the US and Canada. I can't imagine they'd be able to make it work by August to have in person tests in provinces or states that aren't even opening universities etc. Also, from what I can tell, the LSAT test administers seem to say the LSAT-flex is just as academically credible as the normal LSAT. If they have a way to administer it online, that works, is academically credible, and doesn't have to go against some regions COVID rules – I don't see why they wouldn't continue with the LSAT-Flex at least for August. Hope that makes sense! Just my opinion.

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