Advice needed for June Test

Comments

• akistotle Member ⭐ 🍌🍌

  May 2017 9382 karma

  I'm in a similar position as yours. My BR scores have been 170+ for a while but my actual score is fluctuates around high 150 to low 160s. LG is my strongest section (always -0 to -2). My score hasn't reached high 160s, but I think I can give you some of the advice I got from high scorers.

  I was advised that low-170s BR scores show that there are room for improvement in fundamentals and that I should work on increasing BR scores to 175+. I was also advised to refrain from taking too many PTs because it only tires me.

  Have you ever recorded yourself doing PTs? I highly recommend this because you can see how much time you are spending on each question and analyze what you have to do under timed conditions. I've recorded myself during the last PT (with iPhone and this: https://www.amazon.com/BESTEK-Holder-Gooseneck-iPhone-Phones/dp/B00JK70KUY), and I am still trying to come up with my own timing strategy. By watching yourself doing PT, you will know when to skip on your next PT.

  @TimLSAT180 said:
  My score break down was RC -12, LR -12, LG -0. I feel like RC being the first section threw me off because I didn't do any warm-ups before taking the PT, but during BR, I was able to bring my RC down to -1 and LR down to -6.

  I'd like some clarification so that other people can give you advice. Does this mean your LR score is -6 per section? And your LR BR score is -3 per section?

  Good luck
• TimLSAT180 Alum Member

  May 2017 619 karma

  Hey @akistotle ! Yes so under timed pressure, I got -6 on each LR section. For my BR, I got -5 on one section and -1 on the other section. I really want to close that gap between my actual score and BR score by the June test. What have you been doing to close that gap beside recording yourself?
• 1 Like

  JustDoIt Alum Member ⭐

  May 2017 3112 karma

  Hi @TimLSAT180!

  Great BR score! I would guess that you probably aren't really understanding reasoning structure under timed conditions. You want to get to the point where you have a very general idea of what is going on under time and, more importantly, the locations of the things that you read. IMO, locations are far more important than what is going on in the passage because most people are going to have to go back anyways so if you can remember where the stuff you read is located, it would make this process much easier.

  All of the passages have very similar reasoning structure to another passage so getting familiar and building a vocabulary of the different types of reasoning structure can be a huge asset for you while taking under time. You get more familiar with this with more and more passages. Make sure you breaking the passages down, writing out explanations, and identifying the structure consistently and accurately. Anticipating the direction of the passage is incredibly important (not the content), and if you can do so, you are well on your way to closing that gap.

  Hope this helps!
• AllezAllez21 Member Inactive Sage Inactive ⭐

  May 2017 1917 karma

  Was this your first preptest? You might find that your score goes up a few points after another few preptests solely because you are more used to doing the test under timed conditions.

  @JustDoIt has some good advice. Basically, my recommendation is to keep working on fundamentals and deeper level knowledge. The best way to reach your current BR score under timed conditions is to enhance your knowledge to the point that your subsequent BR score would be even higher. Unless you are BRing consistently at 180, you cannot expect to score at your BR under timed conditions with any regularity.
• akistotle Member ⭐ 🍌🍌

  May 2017 9382 karma

  @TimLSAT180 said:
  Hey @akistotle ! Yes so under timed pressure, I got -6 on each LR section. For my BR, I got -5 on one section and -1 on the other section. I really want to close that gap between my actual score and BR score by the June test. What have you been doing to close that gap beside recording yourself?

  I'm trying to increase my BR score to 175+. I would go back to CC to strengthen my understanding. Also I'm drilling the type of questions I didn't do well on the test to get a sense of timing. I would time myself and think of ways to do a question under 50 seconds or so.

  Hope this helps