YIKES! 148 on my first PT after finishing the 7sage course, feeling really discouraged. help!

Comments

• 6 Likes

  fiorella.sofia Alum Member

  August 2014 edited August 2014 9 karma

  I started with a similar score and it took me ~6 months of studying to raise it to a 156. However, I am working a full time job and cannot fully devote my time to the LSAT. I think that with drilling PTs you should be able to raise it to that point. Sometimes it can be a bit discouraging. For example after months of studying my score didn't improve and then all of a sudden I had a 5 point jump which put me into the 50s. It won't be easy but if you work hard I think it's doable. You should consider hiring a tutor if your score doesn't increase after the classes.
  
  ALSO I think you should take a couple more tests before freaking out. If you were nervous/anxious that could have hurt your performance by some points.
  
  Good luck!
• 3 Likes

  was12345 Alum Member

  August 2014 11 karma

  I think its totally doable. You just need to work hard. Use the test score analytics to see what you need to work on. Focus on improving a couple parts at a time don't overwhelm yourself by improving all LR question types, RC and LG at one time. Find what your worse at and have the greatest room for improvement. Kill them first then move on.
  
  Also LG is the easiest to improve. I got the 7sage LG bundle and just drilled over and over. I have now been able to get a few sections all right and still have 3 or 4 minutes left.
• 8 Likes

  cole.w.murdoch Alum Member

  August 2014 228 karma

  Josh, I had a very similar situation as you. I got a 146 on my cold PT with a 148 Blind Review. After doing the course in a very serious manner I took my next PT. I only got a 148 on it but my Blind Review was 163. My next PT was a 156 with a BR or 162. After about 15 PT's I am staying around the mid 160's (highest being 166 and a BR of 174).
  
  You have the foundation but you also have to master actually writing the LSAT. Keep doing PT's and you'll be bound to see a vast improvement. It is important to remember to spend plenty of time in BR. Any question I had even a hint of trouble on I redo and watch the video explanation. Keep your head up.
• 8 Likes

  titanium Alum Member

  August 2014 86 karma

  All I can say is that one full month with your full concentration on 7sage 10 hours a day will actually improve your LSAT score by at least 20 points. Ask around and you will confirm my statement.
  
• 1 Like

  chase62442 Alum Member

  August 2014 79 karma

  Keep taking pts. You can review concepts from 7sage now that you have context for them; you'll be taking pts so you'll know what areas are giving you trouble. lsat analytics is helpful as someone said. You can do it!
• 1 Like

  alwaysusan Alum Member

  August 2014 113 karma

  It is a process. You are not alone. Good Luck. I work full time, have classes, and do not have that time to devote to full time study. I have moved up 4-5 points. Keep going!
• 5 Likes

  chrijani7 Alum Member

  August 2014 827 karma

  I did not read every post on this discussion, so I may say things that are a bit redundant (apologies in advance). But, I tried to study during my final year of school and failed miserably. So, I will share my thoughts with you.
  
  If you are going to try and fit LSAT studying into your regular school schedule, then FIT IT. I know it sounds obvious right? Not as easy as it may seem, because as you start getting crammed with assignments, midterms, finals, LIFE in general. Guess what is the first thing to go on the back burner? More likely than not the LSAT, as it is not as "pressing" as your other priorities. However, if you start getting slammed, there may be times where your LSAT studying gets put to the side. It's important not to leave it at the side. Make an honest effort to keep a consistent schedule and if flexibility is required, just make sure you commit to what you have scheduled.
  
  That brings me to my second point. If you are going to study during school/work/whatever else. You NEED a game plan. I am not a huge fan of having my every minute detailed with what I plan to do, as I find it to be more of a distraction. If that is the case with you, then make a weekly schedule. Daily schedules don't work for me because some days I might be in the "mood" for games, where other times I might be more forgiving towards doing RC. The important thing is to make time for ALL the sections, and to make sure you stick to your game plan. If you want to drill RC one day, or do a PT, etc, just make sure you stick to your plan. Remember this test is not like a University midterm, you can't cram an all nighter and pull off A's. Consistency is key to succeed.
  
  Finally, my thoughts on your first diagnostic. I can tell you that I have been studying for over a year (on/off due to my lack of effort during school). I was originally scoring around 150-158. I finally broke the 160 mark this summer and scored a 163. I am not a top 1% test taker, but I can tell you that half the battle is psychological. I would often get discouraged by being in the 150's for months at a time. I would wonder, why is that I put way more effort and time into this exam and I can't even break the 75th percentile, but in undergrad I could pull straight A's. Well, one reason was definitely because of my attitude and me "psyching" myself out. I wanted the LSAT to be harder than it actually is. And likely that played a role in your score, because if you truly made an effort throughout the course and understand the fundamentals, then you should have no problem getting a 160+ (don't get me wrong it will hard). I know it's hard to try and dismiss the severity of the test, but you can't bring yourself down and make it seem like an impossible feat. I can tell you that my score went up by at least a few points, just by not overanalyzing, worrying, or hyping up how difficult the LSAT is.
  
  Be confident, be consistent, stay calm, and work hard. It WILL pay off. Good luck.
• JoshMustStudy Alum Member

  August 2014 edited August 2014 22 karma

  Man, I cannot thank you guys enough for the encouragement! Truly happy I took 7sage, the forum is so helpful!
  
  I am in my last semester of school and will be graduating in December. Thankfully I took my advisors advice during freshmen year. She told me to save my electives till the end so all i have left is four classes and they are all blow off electives (did my research on ratemyprofessor and some other sites, the classes are easy A's). As a couple of you all mentioned, I will be cracking down HARD. 3.5 months of strict studying.
  
  I also know all of the concepts and methods of attacking each question very thoroughly. So, I guess it just me getting use to the test and making it second nature.
  
  So here is my schedule
  
  I will be taking 3 PTs a week M, W, F.
  On T, Th, Sat, I will be BR the test I took the day before.
  Sunday, I will be resting and watching football all day. Go Saints! Who Dat!
  
  This leaves me with 42 PTs and an entire week before the test to chill and wind down.
  
  What do you guys think? I will not be taking shortcuts, no half-ass, everything 100%.
• 1 Like

  Nilesh S Alum Inactive ⭐

  August 2014 3438 karma

  You will be fine... often there is a drop in scores for the first few PTs because you are learning to do things in the tactically correct manner. if this persists after a few tests then maybe think of retooling but don't panic as of now... do plenty of BR... I had a 150 in my first preptest after 7sage and ended up with a 163 on the actual thing.... in 3 months.
• 1 Like

  danielznelson Alum Inactive Sage Inactive ⭐

  August 2014 4181 karma

  I've learned that it doesn't have so much to do with the amount of material or time but HOW you study. The method of approach, your mindset, your focus, and your confidence are all necessary in elevating your score. My increases correlate little with the amount of time and material I've had. Of course, these are both necessary, but it isn't always a steady, consistent climb. Sometimes, it's a random jump out of nowhere, all because of something as seemingly insignificant as your confidence and determination DURING the prep test.
• 11 Likes

  Jonathan Wang Yearly Sage ⭐

  August 2014 edited August 2014 6874 karma

  Less PTs, more practice. Test - Review - Drill is infinitely better than Test-Review-repeat in my opinion, especially at the very beginning where you need to be diagnosing and dealing with your mistakes the most. Give your brain the opportunity to practice what it's learned before you dive into a new practice test. You wouldn't train for a marathon by running one every other day, so don't do it here either.
  
  Otherwise, just keep doing everything the right way. It takes time and experience with the test to translate your newfound knowledge into LSAT points. If it were easy, a 180 wouldn't mean anything.
  
  Good luck!
• 5 Likes

  DivineRaze Alum Member

  April 2019 556 karma

  @JoshMustStudy Hey brother I was in the same boat as you even worse actually. My first diagnostic without studying I scored a 148, I read all the PowerScore books and still got a 148. Did the entire LSAT Trainer and still didn't improve much. Did the entire CC of 7sage and got a 152 on PT's. Now I score consistently in the 168-170+ range. The issue that I had was that I was kind of rushing to cram everything in and I didn't really learn much. Also I found that the best approach for me was taking a two week break and coming back to the material after I let my mind rewire itself for lawgic and started righting my wrongs by myself without trying to learn anything. I feel that a lot of people put too much emphasis on following certain criteria for answering questions and they confuse themselves. LR for example, after I took a break and came back to and just really read the stimulus and what was it asking. Like "what is the assumption that the argument depends on?" Most people would read it and say "OH thats a necessary assumption question and start trying to incorporate certain methods from books or lectures." I read it and say ok I know what an assumption is and the author made an assumption that the entire argument depends on for it being valid per se. So I try to find that and use the negation technique if I find myself second guessing. Remember you can't cram for the LSAT your brain needs time away from LSAT drilling to digest the info and rewire itself. What i'm trying to get at is try approaching it with a clear mind like its your first time reading and recognizing what the stimulus is asking for, your subconscious will direct you the correct way without you even knowing. I took the LSAT 3 times mind you, first time i got a 148, second time i got a 147! The third time i got a 163 after studying by myself without forcing myself to follow a certain method of finding the right answer. So DONT GET DISCOURAGED, its really important to not put too much stress on yourself and just go with the flow, be confident, fall down three times and stand up four, nothing worth getting is easy. You can do it bro!
• 4 Likes

  Jonah Chadwick Griego Alum Member

  April 2019 652 karma

  Yo, so I was in the same exact position after completing the CC. I would recommend utilizing the analytics portion of the test that is available via 7Sage. This will help you to establish trends. For the time being really focus on your BR for the tests you HAVE done. DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT CONTINUE TO TAKE PT'S IN HOPES THAT TAKING MORE TESTS WILL LEAD TO A HIGHER SCORE!!! Notice your weaknesses, work on them. If you haven't already fool proofed LG, begin memory work to kill RC, and master the stimuli recognition for LR..this will save you time. Do not be discouraged, keep on your grind. If you do not play yourself then you will see results...maybe not as quickly as you would like, but you will see them.
• studyingandrestudying Core Member

  April 2019 5254 karma

  Maybe the Post-CC webinar can help. Don't worry about this too much. Just learn from what went wrong on the take and use the forums to help. It's going to be OK.
• 4 Likes

  LastTime Member

  April 2019 88 karma

  Did anyone notice that this post was from 5 years ago?
• studyingandrestudying Core Member

  April 2019 5254 karma

  @guesswhat, Not until after I wrote my comment.