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Time to prep
Hi everyone. I am planning to take the LSAT on December 2nd, but am scoring in the high 150s. My goal is 170, but I understand that is difficult given the time crunch. What should I do? I have been studying fundamentals for around 3 months, but I am seeing little improvement and I am starting to freak out. Should I keep studying and hope to get a 160, should I postpone it to June and start everything over, or should I just give up on law school and start studying for the GRE (I know that's very dramatic). My anxiety is through the roof. This test is so difficult and I just want it to be over with. What advice do you have?
Comments
Hey @rigune-1
If your goal is a 170 then just plan to keep working towards it. 3 months isn't that long for people trying to make the gargantuan 20 point increase you are trying to achieve. If I were you I'd plan on taking in June. No need to start over; just keep mastering the fundamentals, fool proof games, and do a ton of work outside of PTs. Taking tests eats up tons of time & energy, and it's not really a way to help you get better. It's just a way to diagnose some weaknesses so that you can create targeted study sessions to improve on them.
And no, I don't think you should give up all together on law school, haha. One piece of advice I have is to learn to enjoy the process; learn to enjoy the test. I do the NYT crossword a couple times a week and while it's "hard" sometimes, it still can be fun.
I would recommend taking a step back and weighing your options. If you're considering not going to law school because of this one difficult test, then I would consider if law school is the right path (Ive heard that law school is way harder than the LSAT :B). Im not saying law school isn't the right path for, just that deciding to go to law school is a big decision that shouldnt be taken lightly and it shouldnt be taken while under immense anxiety and pressure.
Do you know what you want to do with your career? If you have absolutely no clue, I would take a year to think about it, travel, work new jobs, explore. Maybe you just want to go to school for longer. In that case, I would still think about exactly what you want to study because it's quite expensive and not guaranteed to be something you like if you make the decision quickly.
If you do decide that you want to go to law school and you want to go to a mid/upper range school, I would recommend giving yourself more time to study for the exam. Why?
Not only will it eliminate your anxiety, but taking a year to take the exam dramatically increases your chances of either getting into a really great school or getting awesome scholarships at a decent school (im shooting for the latter).
Have you finished the core curriculum?
Are you a senior in undergrad? If so, I might recommend taking a gap year (I took two years to travel and do political organizing and I was SO grateful for that).
Dear nicolas.saw,
Thank you so much for your advice. I graduated in May and am currently taking a gap year working in my family's business and studying.
I want to go to law school because I am interested in entertainment law, so I am looking at UCLA, Columbia and NYU mostly. So it is definitely something that I want to do.
I also want to get a masters, and am applying to 5 programs, which does give me the opportunity to start law school in a year or two, along with time to calibrate my priorities.
Thank you for your advice.
Hi Alex, thank you so much for your advice. I think taking it in June is definitely a viable option. I haven't gone through the core curriculum. I have mainly used Powerscore and Blueprint for my studies. And your definitely correct about tests as they do take a lot of energy and increase anxiety if you aren't scoring at your goal.
Anyways, thank you again for your advice.
If you're looking at T14 schools, you're probably not going to cut it in the low-mid 160s. Statistically, you're looking for a score of 170, plus or minus 3. Take the extra time to get those extra 10 points. It will 100% be worth it. What if you can start out your law career making six figures, or you get a six-figure scholarship? I don't think you'll regret waiting if you actually invest the time to raise your score.
You got it! Keep going and don't give up. I think almost everyone can hit any score given enough hard work and time.
This test is all about identifying patterns! After a lot of exposure and blind review (which is EXTREMELY important to notice patterns and such), you will become more familiar with eliminating 4 wrong answers as opposed to finding 1 right answer. Focus on the relationship between the premises and conclusion, apply your strategy based on the question stem, and attack! It takes some time to notice patterns, but once you keep scratching at it, it does get better. Trust the process.