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How's this study method?
I'm in my fourth week of study for the lsat and my approach has been to go through as many tests I need to untimed until I'm consistently within the 175-180 range. I've heard that you shouldn't waste any tests by not adding time constraints but I have a really big pool of past exams to study from so it's not really an issue in my opinion, and I've started at the oldest (1993) tests I have access to and am working up until I feel comfortable enough to ramp up the pace. I'm guessing I'll be able to add time limits around the end of July as my scores have been slowly improving from the mid-to-high 160 range to around the mid 170s, but again this is untimed so I'm not sure if that's really any good. Does anybody else have experience with this approach and would you recommend it? For the now the plan is to study consistently and take the test in December, but part of me thinks I can be ready in time for the one in September.
- Is practicing untimed worthwhile?17 votes
- Yes52.94%
- No47.06%
Comments
So the issue is that the question you're posing is actually a false dichotomy. Timed and untimed practice both have their place for prep, at least in my opinion. However, and never forget this, you ultimately need to get good at taking timed exams. I think your approach will ultimately leave you with some issues.
I'm not sure if you have a curriculum, course, books, or whatever you are using to learn, but go through those and learn the fundamentals before you start drilling like crazy. You can't really learn this test via osmosis. So doing tons of untimed sections may only be enforcing negative habits and strategies that aren't working.
I think the best way to study for this test (generally speaking, because every single person learns differently, and there's not a silver bullet out there) is to go through some sort of course. 7Sage is the highest rated and best priced. There's also a plethora of other choices out there to choose from. The LSAT Trainer, Powerscore, and Manhattan seem to be the most credible. I like 7Sage because it includes all I need, but it's worked wonders for me, so I'm a bit biased
While going through the course, you'll have structured drills and a schedule. The problem with just doing untimed tests is that there is no specific aim aside from "I just want to score higher...." The better way as @"Cant Get Right" once bestowed upon me is to drill and do timed and untimed practice with a purpose; goal; something you are actively working toward improving on. Otherwise, you might as well just being doing timed exams with no real direction. And I'll tell you from experience, that doesn't work too well.
Now, if you've been prepping for a month and can score a 165-170 untimed, that's excellent. It's like you're doing X-Games level BMX tricks with training wheels on with those scores and not timing yourself. Again, timing is a big, big part of this test. It's arguably the hardest thing about it....
I do have experience with untimed sections and I usually rarely do them and if I do it is something I've already done or during blind review process. After all, that's where you want to be doing your untimed work. This way you can see where you're going wrong, set a pacing + skipping strategy, and the million other positive benefits of Blind Reviewing timed exams.
In sum, consider maybe getting a starter course, going through the 7Sage core curriculum (which includes targeted problem sets/drills) and then begin doing timed exams/timed sections with BR.
The way I see it, a 180 untimed is like making stock trades with monopoly money. It means you've got some skills, but the pressure just isn't the same and that can make all the damn difference.
I think you're doing extremely well thus far and all you need is a little structure.
Good luck!
"I have a really big pool of past exams to study from so it's not really an issue in my opinion"
Not sure how that justifies untimed practice. Attempt the problems timed, and then review them untimed before grading. Yes it takes longer, but it gives you the opportunity to see where you would have made mistakes on the real test and possibly why.
"I'm in my fourth week of study for the lsat and my approach has been to go through as many tests I need to untimed until I'm consistently within the 175-180 range."
You're a month in, your goal shouldn't be to burn through tests. Take a timed diagnostic test (possibly one that is proctored), and then tackle your weaknesses.
Thanks @"Alex Divine"! That was a great response with a lot of useful info.
Yeah now that you mention it I don't really have any structure or plan for preparing other than taking as many tests as possible and interpreting upward trends in scores as meaning that my skills are improving and I'm more prepared for the actual test. I like the X-Games with training wheels comparison, it makes a lot of sense that the time constraints are what makes the exam so difficult. Exams at my university are 40 minutes each so I definitely agree that time constraints can be the hardest part of an exam, even more than the material itself.
As for learning fundamentals, I'm using some old Powerscore bibles and Nova's "Master the LSAT" as supplements. Admittedly I don't use them much, I occasionally read through a section and scribble some notes down then practice some drills in the book. I'm currently on the second chapter of the logic games book, and it actually helped a lot to learn about "not rules" and diagramming advice. I had no idea about any of that prior to reading the book. I also have a logic textbook to refer to, but I'm not sure how useful that is for studying the lsat as it's pretty basic.
I'm not familiar with the phrase "blind review" or any of the resources that people usually incorporate into their study, I kind of just assumed studying past exams in itself was sufficient. But I'll be competing with everyone else taking the lsat and if they're all taking courses and making structured study plans then that tells me I need to step my game up! Thanks again for the advice!
@USER123456 I've never considered that strategy but it makes perfect sense! My justification for doing strictly untimed is that timing myself at this stage would only confirm that my fundamental skills were lacking, which I already knew. So by doing them untimed until I felt confident in my skills, I figured I would build a strong foundation and all I would have to worry about after that point was speed. But know I'm beginning to realize this approach is a bit too crude, and I could use a more structured strategy that focuses on improving my weaknesses and simulates actual test conditions. As of now all I'm doing is using overall test scores as indicators of progress.
Totally back these points.
https://7sage.com/the-blind-review-how-to-correctly-prep-for-lsat-part-1/
There's a link for Blind Review.
Well, no matter what you're using, I think you should really focus on learning the fundamentals in the first part of your prep with some targeted drilling of specific question types. Then you want to move to taking timed sections/PTs with Blind review.
Entirely agree with everything @"Alex Divine" has said.
Untimed practice is great and necessary, sure, but just taking untimed tests repeatedly is not the way to maximize your score.
I too entirely agree with @"Alex Divine" and @AllezAllez21. You have to develop strategies to answer all the questions under timed conditions.
Don't mention it --- I was there once. I wasn't scoring 170 on untimed tests, though, haha.
Invest in some new materials. Grab a starter 7Sage Course or The LSAT Trainer. It depends how old the Bibles are, but around 2014-2015, they changed them and started updating them from the editions that were basically the same from 2003-2013. I think it's worth investing in a course that's going to give you structure. I personally am a big fans of 7Sage (my fav!) Manhattan LSAT, and The LSAT Trainer. Powerscore works, but you seem to know the basics you get from those books by the looks of our score. Gotta take it to the next level! The other options also have free study guides to follow along.
Also, just a repeat of everything everyone said above and below me: Agreed 100% as always with @AllezAllez21 and @akistotle.