Question on the Importance of doing Prep Tests Forum

[JDot]

I work 9-5 mon-fri and have various obligations outside of work on the weekdays and on weekends. I'm currently taking the velocity online course, which is very helpful by the way, so I spend my time studying for the LSAT outside of working going through all those materials, along with doing various single timed sections. I sometimes find it difficult to find enough time after work or on the weekends to devote a 3 hour block to get through an entire prep test. I can usually only find time to do one MAX per week, sometimes none. I do well on the single timed sections and have no trouble with time.

My question is, has anyone, or does anyone know of anyone, that has done well on the LSAT by simply studying and doing single timed sections without doing an extensive amount of entire prep tests.

I ask because lurking through this forum for awhile I always see people stressing to do like a million prep tests, but not everyone has the luxury to devote 3 hours every other day to do this.

[EdgarWinter]

.

[shifty_eyed]

I think doing at least one a week is key, and closer to test time (2-4 weeks before) I'd shoot for one every other day.

This is my plan, and I also work 9-5.

And to answer your question, I got a 170 by doing maybe 4-5 total full length timed practice tests the first time around. However, I scored 165 on my first cold prep test, so it actually wasn't much of an improvement.

I'm shooting for a 175+ now.

[American_in_China]

I did 6 tests in 3 months before my 179. 3 of those were as two 6-section practices in the two weeks before the actual thing, just to kill fatigue.
14 in a month and a half before my 172.
Taking the real test doesn't help you improve for shee-it. Especially compared to drilling question types on LG or game types on LG. If you're taking it in June, take one 6 section or an 8 section every two weeks on the weekend. But seriously, I don't know why anyone thinks just taking test after test is the best way to improve. Even if you review them, the differences between question types and game types is large enough that jumping around is going to give too small a sample size, and make it hard to remember how to improve what you did on any specific type.
But that's my two cents.

[JDot]

that's what I'm thinking, I feel like taking prep tests help with timing and killing fatigue, but my timing is never an issue and I feel on test day my adrenaline will be pumping enough to kill the fatigue, I think taking prep tests are important, but I feel they are over stressed on this board, but then again what do I know....

[Elston Gunn]

Don't stress about it. Take as many as you can (and in close as you can to real test conditions or worse--like crowded coffee shops etc), but if that's only 5 or 6 it's no big deal. You need to know what it feels like to sit in one place for 4+ hours and stretching your mind on the LSAT and now that you can handle it (surprises on test day are bad), but you don't need to take a million.