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1 Like
How do I prepare for the LSAT writing sample?
itsemmarobyn
Member
I was going through the Ultimate+ study plan to see what I'm going to be covering over the next few weeks when I realized that there aren't any lessons on the writing sample. Are there any resources for it? How are you guys preparing?
Comments
You don't. Seriously there is no reason to. It is a waste of time IMO.
Basically, all you need to know is that you are going to be given two situations and you have to pick one then provide reasons for and against each option.
Hope this helps!
it isn't worth to do anything for it beforehand. JustDoIt said everything you need to know. 2 situations, you pick 1 and argue for it.
But don't T-14 schools (or in fact, all schools) read them? Is it not better to have a really strong sample as opposed to a weak one, especially if you don't even know if yours would be strong or weak?
I don't have a solid reason to believe T-14s or any school actually read the WS and if they do, they're likely to take its contents with a grain of salt. Addcomms understand this piece of writing was written after a grueling 3 hour test, so odds are they won't look too much into it if they even do that. However, that's not to say it's acceptable to be an idiot and blow it off. Take your time with it and think critically, just don't worry about your chances of admissions into a school because of your WS.
They may, although I have heard rumors that most schools really don't care about it. But honestly it's really not worth spending studying time on. If you want, you can look at one and just see how it is. But I feel like just knowing that there are 2 sides and you choose 1 is good enough because it's more of a "on the spot" writing, if that makes any sense, lol.
I'll echo what's been said--don't waste your time preparing for the essay. It's also highly unlikely that t14 adcoms can/want to spend the time deciphering smeared No.2 pencil lead scratching that has been moved around. That time would be much better spent sharpening your LR, RC, and LG skills.
*unless you have little to no experience writing essays under timed conditions.
If you want some fast tips, check out the LSAT Kung Fu podcast episode called "Golden Streams! A 5-part process for your LSAT writing sample". It's 10 min long, and seriously is all you need to know.
Just to reinforce, don't prepare for the writing sample. Unless you just don't write it at all or actively make a mockery of it, it really won't matter. Just make a case for both options, then choose one. Write around words you don't know how to spell. Do your best. If anyone ever accidentally sees it, they may spend about 30 seconds on it.
With agreement on above - check out JY's take on it https://7sage.com/discussion/#/discussion/69/so-about-that-writing-sample
I'm going to disagree with the people here who are saying not to prepare for the writing section. The advice I've been given, and that I've read countless times from authorities regarding the admissions process, is that you do not want a personal statement that varies too much in quality from your LSAT essay. Otherwise, admissions officers may worry that you received excessive help on your personal statement. Additionally, the LSAC states that in some instances a poorly written essay, or a writing section left entirely blank, has been used as reason for denial of some applicants. In other words, while an awesome essay won't necessarily help, a poor essay could definitely hurt. As such, at a minimum you want to be able to plan and write a coherent essay with minimal grammatical and spelling mistakes. That will likely take some practice if you aren't used to writing essays under time constraints. I don't think they expect perfection, but you don't want to write an essay with fundamental spelling/grammatical mistakes or write an essay missing a thesis statement, supporting points, and some kind of conclusion. I would recommend writing out a few after your PTs to get an idea of what it will be like on test day. Then review your essays for the basics: thesis statement, supporting points, evidence provided in the "facts", spelling/grammatical errors, and etc. Good luck!
While I highly doubt that admissions officers read writing samples with a critical eye, it might still be worth practicing a few writing samples.
First off, whatever you do make sure you take the writing sample seriously. Writing "screw this" or drawing a Garfield cartoon shows a serious lack of maturity (Garfield is great but this is not the time or place) and an unwillingness to follow instructions. Both of which do not reflect well on an applicant's potential in law school.
As @zmeeker91 pointed out, a lot of people do not have experience writing under strict time constraints. In undergrad, almost all of my essays were done over a long period. Only a couple were done in a classroom under exam time restrictions. Thus, it is worth getting a feel for it.
It is also worth practicing if it makes you feel better. I am a strong believer that a large part of doing well on the LSAT is having the right mindset. Thus, it is worthwhile to eliminate any fears you have. If you are worried about resetting your normal watch between sections, buy one of those fancy LSAT watches that reset at the press of a button. If you are worried about getting to the test center on time, visit before the day of the test. If you are worried about the writing sample, practice it beforehand. In all of these cases, the actual problem/issue itself will likely not occur/matter, but your state of mind will.
I used the following advice from Manhattan Prep: https://www.manhattanprep.com/lsat/blog/2009/05/19/the-lsat-essay-what-it-is-and-how-to-write-it-2/
It provides a formulaic approach for tackling the writing sample. Try it on a few practice writing samples and you will be fine. This will likely only take you an hour or two, but it might make you feel a lot better about the test. Good luck on the LSAT and writing sample!
@Daniel.Sieradzki yes! I did spend a few hours understanding what the Writing Sample required:) It is not to be a skill over-looked preparing for writing the test!
In my long tenure at 7Sage, many of us posted about the writing sample after Sept'17 & that was a first:) To be finally given a free form argument at the end of a grueling test and "state" your reasoning was fun -
& we all obviously knew that the writing sample is not to be taken lightly:)
Appreciate your post & hope it helps:)
Edited to add: IN T-13/14 etc, it may not make a difference, but for other schools it might??
You don't. It is a waste of time,just make sure you actually answer the question on the exam.
In case anyone stumbles across this old thread—we have a new (free) lesson about LSAT writing here: https://7sage.com/lesson/lsat-writing/
This is great, thanks for alerting us!
I utilized the videos that you all had posted and although they feature a master writer and at first I was intimidated,I believe it helped me in my writingby raising the bar.