Underachiever!?

melloish · August 2016

So I'm aware I'm not trying to get into a T-14 school. I have actually set my eyes on a rather low ranking regional school, where I intend to live after law school. My question is how much studying does it really take to get a 160. I've heard so many mixed reviews that just a few PT's makes breaking into the 60's rather easy. My cold diagnostic was a 152. Looking to hear other people's stories on how much and how long it took to start hitting the 60's. Please just don't say two months, like I want to know how many hours a day/week, what material, ect. Any advice helps.

blah170blah · August 2016

A cold diagnostic of 152 is a good starting place. Using the LSAT trainer to understand the fundamentals of the LSAT and accompanying that with 7Sage could push you into the 160s in 2-3 months. I can't give you exact time frames because I didn't have 7sage when I first started studying for the LSAT so I used Blueprint. We have similar diagnostics and it took me about 3 months, studying a few hours a day, to get into the 160s. I imagine since 7sage works better for most people than a prep course you could hit that range around the same time or sooner.

Cant Get Right · August 2016

Yeah, with a 152 diagnostic I think you could potentially be ready for December if you average around 3 - 4 hours a day. Obviously you’re going to be getting a biased sample, but I do think 7Sage could accelerate your timeline significantly. Regardless, be sure to find the 7Sage LG explanations on youtube. Those are free and extremely helpful.

Alex · August 2016

@melloish said:
My question is how much studying does it really take to get a 160.

I searched for the same answer to no avail. I was hoping someone could provide me with a magic formula to cross into the 160s. And the reason you've heard so many mixed reviews is because everyone's experience is different and there are no set amount of months of hours. Ironically I am giving you the same answer that I hated when people gave me..but that's the truth.....

No one can tell you how many hours you'll need to study to hit a 160.

I will echo what @blah170blah said about 152 being a great place to start. And I think 3-4 months is a reasonable expectation of what it will take at minimum to get into the 160s. But it is certainly no guarantee.

Here is what I would do if I was aiming for a 160 score.... And at one point I was.

First, I would forget how many hours, months, time, etc. 160 is the goal, so when I get there, I get there. I quickly learned that more time doesn't simply equate to more points. But I do think having some structure is good, and 7Sage's course and LSAT Trainer give you just that.

Materials:
7Sage Course
LSAT Trainer 16 Week Study Schedule
PT 36-77 (feel free to get whatever, just make sure you have what you need to do what course you decide) 7Sage Starter Course uses PT 36-44 and LSAT Trainer uses PT 52-71. But feel free to customize. Just make sure you get some expose to the 60s and 70s, because they are noticeably different than the earlier tests.

Go through the 7Sage Core Curriculum and get a very good understanding of the fundamentals of every type of question you might expect to see on game day.

Go through the LSAT Trainer 16 Week Study Schedule. This can be done in about 15 hours a week of work. So if you can do more, you can get through it quicker, but don't make rushing through it your goal. The 16 week is just a guideline. Mike Kim makes it very clear to customize to your needs.

As far as how much to study: I'd try to study at least 3-4 hours a day. Saturdays I'd study closer to 6. Sundays I would take off completely. Everyone is different though, and some days I put in 8 hours and some 3. It really varies. Especially with work, clubs, internships, schools, having a life, lol....You get the picture

I don't think you will get much out of my story from a 151 to the 160s. If you PM me I'll tell you the details, but it is quite boring. I got the 7Sage course and worked on LG straight for a month using the fool-proof guide to a perfect score. I studied 4-5 hours a day and took Sundays off completely. I think the most helpful thing was beginning to enjoy the process. That and deciding that I will take the test when I reach my goal and making time something I don't have to stress about. It lets the LSAT be something fun and manageable.

a 152 is a great place to start if you are aiming for a 160. What was your test breakdown by section? Were you missing a lot in one particular section?

Sprinkles · August 2016

Everyone provided very rich info but one thing I'd like to emphasize is that everyone is different! Someone may need 1 month to break into 160s by studying 10 hours a week, while another may need 4 months with 30 hours of prep a week. We can't provide you with a magic formula because who's to say it will even work out for you? Also I feel these type of questions are dangerous because if you can't break into the 160s by someone else's formula, you'll feel something is wrong with you and that will ultimately lead to discouragement. Don't fret, just get through the material the best you can, do not move on until you're 100%, begin PT and PROPER BR, and see where that leads you

Alejandro · August 2016

Other peoples' stories matter little. What really matters is yours and how much time it will take you to score at or above 160 consistently. Just study hard until you get to that point if that's what you really want.

MrSamIam · August 2016

I read somewhere that the average point improvement per prep method is roughly 10 points. So, if you were to go through the entire 7Sage curriculum, you could expect to reach around a 162 by the time you complete it. I would take that statement with a grain of salt, but many members on a certain other forum live by it.

danielznelson · August 2016

I think the advice is pretty solid and comprehensive here, so I really want to ask why you're aware you're not going for a T14 school. Do you believe anything near a T14 or 170 LSAT score is just way beyond your reach? I only ask because of how you started your post.

melloish · August 2016

@danielznelson- I do not believe a 170+ is beyond my reach per-say, I just don't have the motivation for that much studying when the university I intend on going to is not even in that ballpark. I am very much destination oriented and I'm pretty much set on it. I'd rather go to a lower ranking school that would ensure my happiness rather than a school that is prestigious but doesn't really appeal to my life standards. And at said school a 160 would still qualify me for a rather hefty scholarship.

I started the post as such because some people can be very 'very' aggressive with their opinions when it comes to T-14 schools. As stated those are not my goals so I am not interested in advice to reach the 170+ tier. Sure, if it happens I won't be upset but I will not put in any extra effort past a comfortable 165. As lazy as that sounds, its my reality.

Sprinkles · August 2016

@melloish said:
I just don't have the motivation for that much studying when the university I intend on going to is not even in that ballpark.

Even if getting a 170 would result in an awesome scholarship as opposed to a 165? you'd be surprised what a few point increase can open doors to on your application!

@melloish said:
I am very much destination oriented and I'm pretty much set on it. I'd rather go to a lower ranking school that would ensure my happiness rather than a school that is prestigious but doesn't really appeal to my life standards.

I like this!

@melloish said:
I started the post as such because some people can be very 'very' aggressive with their opinions when it comes to T-14 schools.

Meh. They're great don't get me wrong but no one should shove that down your throat lol.

@melloish said:
As stated those are not my goals so I am not interested in advice to reach the 170+ tier

I actually am considering applying to a local law school for the same reasons as you! honestly, a 165 would prob give me an awesome scholarship too but I'm not going to sell myself short and neither should you. At the end of the day though, if you're fully content with that and don't want to seek a 170 out of the lack of motivation to do so, the choice is yours. I just don't want you missing out on stellar $$!!

Alex · August 2016

@melloish said:

I started the post as such because some people can be very 'very' aggressive with their opinions when it comes to T-14 schools

I feel you on this. The good news is that around here the community will support you in whatever your goals are! One of the many reasons I absolutely adore 7Sage

So much so that this is where I hang out on Friday nights, lol.

So if your goal is a 160, you should follow the same advice for someone trying to reach a 180. I just think the time line changes. So when you are consistently scoring ~165 you can feel comfortable in sitting for the exam.

I think @montaha.rizeq nailed it as usual ---- we don't want you to miss out on $$$. Id you can, try to find out what GPA/LSAT combo resulted in full-tuition scholarships last year and make sure you are aiming for that combo.

Sprinkles · August 2016

@"Alex Divine" said:
I feel you on this.

LMAO you out of all people should know what it's like to be around unnecessary aggressiveness.

@"Alex Divine" said:
So much so that this is where I hang out on Friday nights, lol.

Literally me.

@"Alex Divine" said:
So if your goal is a 160, the advice for someone trying to reach a 180 doesn't change. I just think the time line changes, in that when you are consistently scoring ~165 you can feel comfortable in sitting for the exam.

Bam!

Alex · August 2016

@montaha.rizeq Haha! I am still going to need therapy when I'm 30 from dealing with the aggressiveness of top law school's forum... And a life, because by then I'll be done with the LSAT, law school, the bar, and hopefully still an active sage on here

Sprinkles · August 2016

@"Alex Divine" said:
I'll be done with the LSAT, law school, the bar, and hopefully still an active sage on here

#goals

kmarie7 · August 2016

I am in a very similar boat as you. I have no desire to go to a t-14. I have studied about 10 Hours a week for about a month consistently, and seen a 9 point increase from my diagnostic.

Sprinkles · August 2016

Way to go @kmarie7 !

danielznelson · August 2016

@melloish Okay cool, I just always want to make sure that people just give up hope on achieving such a score, simply because they don't think it's possible. I think you have a good mindset and realistic goals, and I especially like that you're acknowledging the very real possibility that you can achieve an even higher score than what you need, which as others mention would really help with scholarship money.

Cant Get Right · August 2016

@danielznelson said:
Okay cool, I just always want to make sure that people just give up hope on achieving such a score, simply because they don't think it's possible.

Lol. That's @danielznelson for you! Always making sure people just give up hope.

Best typo of the day! Actually, I hope it’s not a typo! @danielznelson says what he means! And what he means is:

Despair!!

Sprinkles · August 2016

@"Cant Get Right" said:
Actually, I hope it’s not a typo!

LOOOOOOOL

danielznelson · August 2016

Ahahahaha. Dang it. Hopefully, my point still managed to get across.

brianabbott1987 · August 2016

I started at 153. It took me a month and a half maybe two months. I could have done it quicker if I went back in time and knew what to do. It's all about the drills, until you drill your score won't improve.

I worked through the Powerscore LR Bible and drilled those types (1 month maybe) and after two weeks of starting to drilling logic games 4-8 hours a day I scored a 161. Logic Games is all I had to do because I didn't see an increase in LR questions.

I would start doing logic games curriculum. Buy a book with logic games by type and drill them (make copies obviously). If you do this you'll improve quickly. You might be able to break 160 doing just Logic Games.

If you don't break 160 and you're scoring at least 14-17 Games correctly then continue working on games but also work on LR.

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