Comments

• 1 Like

  jyang72 Alum Member

  August 2015 844 karma

  I did PT 60s and I think they are comparative harder than 50s and 40s. Maybe it is because LSAC changed some styles. But the fundamentals are the same. Premise, conclusion, get the support, get the flaw, attack it or bridge it!
• NYC12345 Alum Inactive Sage

  August 2015 edited August 2015 1654 karma

  The test has some subtle differences but they are not easier or harder. People exaggerate about the differences. If you're doing well with the PTs in the 50s and 60s, you will do well in the 70s.
  @pizzaqueen
  What makes you think that the stimuli are wordier on the 60s and 70s?
• pizzaqueen Free Trial Member

  August 2015 79 karma

  @alexandergreene93 In PT 72, for example, section 2 question 16 was written in such a way that made it very easy to misinterpret the argument (beyond what I feel is typical in PTs), and then there was a perfect wrong answer choice that matched the incorrect flaw. And section 4 question 7 presented a really hard situation to follow, which made it difficult for me to assess where the flaw was.
• NYC12345 Alum Inactive Sage

  August 2015 1654 karma

  @pizzaqueen
  Wrong answer choices are never perfect-- they are incorrect. May I ask how long you've been studying? Do you find a lot of LR questions difficult in general, or only on the 70s?
• 2 Likes

  Pacifico Alum Inactive ⭐

  August 2015 8021 karma

  Yeah it's like they don't want you to get all the right answers or something... those jerks... I'll show them... I'll strap on my XL Depends and burn that mother down...
• pizzaqueen Free Trial Member

  August 2015 79 karma

  @alexandergreene93 I've been studying at a slow pace for almost a year, mixed in with a full-time job. I would say LR is now my best section thanks to the LSAT Trainer and 7sage articles here and there. (Can't say LG is best because of the random crazy games.) I don't find many LR questions difficult, especially not when BRing. With the 70s, I'm finding that I can't even perfectly comprehend explanations after doing BR -- something that has never happened before. I guess I'll have to put on my big girl diapers like @Pacifico and burn through the section faster so I can spend time on the tough questions.
  
  Somewhat reassuring that others don't find the 70s harder...
• leonsmoney Member

  August 2015 280 karma

  I was doing all older tests first and just recently jumped to the newer tests to experience the difference. If anything my score went up a point or two. Not saying that is true for all people, but I definitely haven't seen any significant differences in the new tests aside from the comparative passages in RC. I actually like those though. lol
  
• pizzaqueen Free Trial Member

  August 2015 79 karma

  I like the comparative passages too, @leonsmoney ! It's definitely easier for me to maintain my focus through two separate 2-paragraph passages as opposed to one long 4-paragraph one.
• nicole.hopkins Inactive Sage Inactive ⭐

  August 2015 7965 karma

  @alexandergreene93 said:
  People exaggerate about the differences.
  

  Alex, how many PT's in the 70's have you taken?
• 2 Likes

  nicole.hopkins Inactive Sage Inactive ⭐

  August 2015 edited August 2015 7965 karma

  @Pacifico said:
  I'll strap on my XL Depends and burn that mother down...
  

  I just Googled "bank robber diaper" to try to get a visual but maybe @"Dillon A. Wright" can help me ...

  About the 70's.

  The LSAT is the LSAT.
  
  The LSAT is written by humans.
  
  Are there areas of striking consistency over the past 25 years?
  
  Yes.
  
  Are there variations across the "eras" of tests?
  
  Yes.
  
  Are they subtle? If you're asking whether they're noticeable, well, we would not be freaking discussing it if they were not. I like to think we're not imagining things
  
  If you're asking whether your prep is getting you to a place where you can handle this era of tests—and I think this is ultimately what we're concerned about—yeah, I think if you're serious about understanding what the test is designed to measure, then you'll be prepared. But that's always been the case with this test.
  
  Ultimately there are different people writing the tests at different points in time. Of course there is going to be some variation. Maybe they hired a writer in 2010 who is just really good at writing a certain nitpicky LR question. Is it still testing the same thing? Yes ... It is. No question. Reasoning structure/analysis hasn't changed in the past 25 years.
  
  Perhaps this era of tests is honing in on another angle of LR and mixing stuff up with LG. Ok, so maybe some of us got complacent with certain aspects of tests in the 50's and 60's and now we see that that complacency is a weakness. Guess what. That weakness has been there the whole time. Now it's being exposed. So we gotta deal. Get real intimate with recent tests. Learn their curves and quirks, if you can discern them. And chill out about it.
  
  So.
  
  A lot of the same? You betcha.
  
  Some things different? Of course.
  
  Look ... people are still getting 175+ on these tests, and it's the same number of people as got those scores in the 50's and 60's. Has prep changed much since then? Eh ... I think it's gotten a lot better. Back in those days you had, like, Manhattan (in the Kim era) and Powerscore. 7sage and modern LSAT Trainer blow that stuff out of the water.
  
  The test was hard then; the test is hard now. Let's just do our best with prep and go hard on game day.
  
  
  
• 1 Like

  I study I swear Alum Member

  August 2015 19 karma

  @nicole.hopkins I really appreciate the Friday Night Lights reference. Thank you
• 1 Like

  nicole.hopkins Inactive Sage Inactive ⭐

  August 2015 7965 karma

  @"e_williard" said:
  I really appreciate the Friday Night Lights reference.
  

  Stick around ... I'll hook you up.
• 1 Like

  nye8870 Alum ⭐

  August 2015 edited August 2015 1749 karma

  Hey, @nicole.hopkins I really like how you summed up the 70s. Especially the "intimacy" part. I am going to go over these repeatedly so as not to get so caught up in the lengthy stems. Thx.
• pizzaqueen Free Trial Member

  August 2015 79 karma

  @nicole.hopkins Thanks for the insight and putting things into perspective. Let's do this!
• inactive Alum Member

  August 2015 12637 karma

  @nicole.hopkins said:
  I just Googled "bank robber diaper" to try to get a visual but maybe @"Dillon A. Wright" can help me ...
  

  
  Best I could do lmfao. Not a lot of those weird gifs on google..
• 1 Like

  c.janson35 Free Trial Inactive Sage Inactive ⭐

  August 2015 2398 karma

  @nicole.hopkins you better have not been secretly working on FAQs during your break like this great about the 70s one... Mr. Mentor (did we just stumble upon 7sage's own Mr. Robot?) and I had strict guidelines...
  
  And don't you think that you can just woo me with some expertly placed Coach Taylor.
  
• 1 Like

  StopLawying Alum Member

  August 2015 821 karma

  @nicole.hopkins Have a ton of respect for you for the amount of work you have put into this test. Studying consistently for a year is not something many can do and no one is more deserving of a 170+ than you are. Just one question though and I always wanted to ask this: How did you not run out of study materials/PT's at this point?
• nicole.hopkins Inactive Sage Inactive ⭐

  August 2015 7965 karma

  @c.janson35 said:
  Mr. Mentor (did we just stumble upon 7sage's own Mr. Robot?) and I had strict guidelines...
  

  HAHA ... Ok well ... yeah maybe ... oops ... *runs*
• nicole.hopkins Inactive Sage Inactive ⭐

  August 2015 7965 karma

  @StopLawying said:
  How did you not run out of study materials/PT's at this point?
  

  Great question
  
  1) I've got 5 (yes ... 5) PT's I've never taken, 36-75.
  2) I've taken 34 or 35 tests. More than half of those have been retakes (2x). Maybe a quarter of them I've taken three times. All in all I've taken over 60 fully timed PT's.
  3) With BR, there's just always more to learn. You take a test and miss certain Q's. You retake it and feel differently about other Q's 2-3 months later. Etc.
  4) I didn't start PT'ing regularly until about March.
• 1 Like

  nicole.hopkins Inactive Sage Inactive ⭐

  August 2015 7965 karma

  @c.janson35 said:
  And don't you think that you can just woo me with some expertly placed Coach Taylor.
  

  
• 1 Like

  nicole.hopkins Inactive Sage Inactive ⭐

  August 2015 7965 karma

  @StopLawying said:
  Studying consistently for a year is not something many can do and no one is more deserving of a 170+ than you are.
  

  actually @c.janson35 deserves it more than I do (but his PT average is 5-6 points higher than mine ... here comes the speeding bus I'm gonna throw you under Corey) but he and I can hopefully share the prize with all y'all
• Pacifico Alum Inactive ⭐

  August 2015 8021 karma

  If the 70s were actually harder we would see a downward shift in score distributions but I have seen no such thing. Everything I have seen has shown LSAC to be remarkably consistent. Any increase in difficulty is likely just a response to an increase in quality LSAT prep opportunities. After all, some of them check TLS and other forums just as much as all of us so they can get a feel for public opinion on top of all the advanced metrics they put together based on test performance data. Just be glad you're not taking one in the 100s after 7Sage has blanketed the applicant pool with their high quality curriculum
• NYC12345 Alum Inactive Sage

  August 2015 1654 karma

  @Pacifico said:
  Everything I have seen has shown LSAC to be remarkably consistent.
  

  +1
  LSAC would lose its credibility if any LSAT was harder than a previous exam to attain a certain score. The exam HAS to be consistent. That's why test-takers must complete an experimental section.