Getting worst with each practice test... What is going on? Forum

[JdCan]

What is going on with me? with less than 1 month to go I'm consistently scoring lower on my PT's. Maybe I made a wrong decision by taking a prep class. I took the LSAT back in Dec and scored a 156, and I really didn't study at all, didn't even take a practice test before hand. My parents decided I had to retake and try to get a 165. I prepped for about two months before my class began in April and right before the first week of class, I took a practice test and scored a 164 and I felt great about it, thinking maybe with the class I could maybe get into the low 170's then the nightmare began. The first test, I got a 159, fair OK, but still depressed, second test 161, started to feel a little confident, and then my life came crumbling down. The next two test I got a 157 and 154 respectively. What is going on with me? I'm dealing with so many emotions right now, I just feel stupid. I am not gonna get into a great school and def not getting scholarship money, on top of that, the thought of wasting my parents money thinking it would help me with my LSAT is eating me up. I need advice, something! This disappointing does not stem from a lack of effort. I bust my butt everyday doing homework, and practicing different sections, going back and looking at why i am getting questions wrong. It hurts even more because now i am starting to feel like maybe I could have been better off self studying as I was seeing improvement at the time. Seems like the class is doing the exact opposite of what I envisioned it to be..... I NEED HELP! What could be the problem?

Sorry for rambling and sounding a bit incoherent, I just feel like I am in a deep hole, and I cant afford to take the LSAT a 3rd time. This will just look horrible when I decide to apply. I really do need suggestions on what to do next.

[VasaVasori]

.

[JdCan]

My LR section has taken a huge dip since the prep class, the RC section as well, but not as bad as the LR. Seems like the class has only helped with games. I do want to be a lawyer, it is a personal thing and I rather not go into why. In terms of pressure, it comes more from me and my fear of failure. My parents want to see me achieve my goals in life so they provide me with whatever I need to do so, and they push me to make sure I am not going through the motions. I am working, but seeing zero results. I emailed my prep course teacher and she said she will go through all of my test thus far and the LR section in particular and try to figure out exactly what is going on. By the way, I am prepping with PR. At this point, if I end up with a 160 ill be glad, that's how bad it has gotten. But I understand what you mean about stressing, it probably played a huge factor in my dismal performance on those last 2 PT's.

[llachans]

My LR section has taken a huge dip since the prep class, the RC section as well, but not as bad as the LR. Seems like the class has only helped with games. I do want to be a lawyer, it is a personal thing and I rather not go into why. In terms of pressure, it comes more from me and my fear of failure. My parents want to see me achieve my goals in life so they provide me with whatever I need to do so, and they push me to make sure I am not going through the motions. I am working, but seeing zero results. I emailed my prep course teacher and she said she will go through all of my test thus far and the LR section in particular and try to figure out exactly what is going on. By the way, I am prepping with PR. At this point, if I end up with a 160 ill be glad, that's how bad it has gotten. But I understand what you mean about stressing, it probably played a huge factor in my dismal performance on those last 2 PT's.

Have you been studying outside of the prep class; what have you been using? Grab the Power Score bibles if you haven't. It'll help you immensely.

[JdCan]

Yes I study everyday for 3 hours doing homework and going over the answers I get wrong with the explanations provided online. I was studying with the Powerscore bibles a little before the prep class started. I regret not taking the power score class now. Will a month be sufficient enough to go back and start afresh with the bibles?

[03152016]

.

[sanjola]

Well first you need to consider whether you're doing this to please your parents or because you actually want to go to law school.

[beezneez]

Hang in there! Sounds like you're really psyching yourself out. That could be your problem.

Do this to please yourself, and pi$$ on what your parents think! You may be allowing them into your headspace too much. I can relate, but as I am likely at least a decade older than you I can now see that parental input matters little to nothing in the grand scheme. And as a parent myself I can only assume that they want the best for you. If applicable, keep that in mind too no matter how much of a pain their interference may seem.

Good luck. Take a break. Do something fun and come back at it with a clear mind. You'll get back up there again in time (and maybe then some)

[Scotusnerd]

Several things:

First of all, don't listen to your parents on this. It's your life. You do what you think is right. There is no one who will take responsibility for your actions but you. If that means go to law school, great, but if not...

I'll be very frank. There are people going to your law school RIGHT NOW (doesn't matter where) that will chew you up and spit you out. These people have gone out, experienced life, understand their goals and their weaknesses, and will kick your gonads in. I'm saying this because, honestly, I'm going to be one of them. The final month before taking the LSAT, I studied four hours a day, five days a week. I scored a 164. I'm not the most brilliant person out there, but I got good scholarships, and I aim to be at or near the top of my class. I will do this by preparing ahead of time.

I'm mentioning this to drive a point home: if you can't handle the pressure of competing with intelligent and hardworking people, find another profession. I really am not saying this to be a downer, but you need to know the truth before you run in and get creamed. You NEED to buckle the fuck down, get on your studying cap, and get to it. By the way, I am not attending a 'top school'. I am attending a TTT.

Fortunately, the solution is very simple. Take more tests, learn what you did wrong, and then take more tests. It takes time, but it's really not that bad. That test is a big freakin' deal. It scored me $30,000 in scholarships. That is an entire year's pay for a lot of Americans, earned in less than a month's time for doing nothing but reading and taking a test.

Third point: Beating yourself up is a waste of time and energy. I did it for five years, all throughout college before I finally realized how much wasted energy I was putting into it. Don't make my mistake. Use that energy to find the mistake, fix it, and move on. Don't try to maintain a facade of perfection when you are not perfect. I think my lowest score was a 141 when I was learning the test, by the way.

Fourth Point: What you are likely experiencing is variations in what the test is testing. Tests from certain time periods focus on different concepts. You will notice that the tests from the 1990s tend to focus more on logical reasoning, and the games are more about 'super inferences', whereas now they are more about the reading comprehension. This does not mean you should not take the 1990 tests, because their concepts appear on new tests as well. I found a huge paradigm shift occured around PT 57-59, and I had to reorganize how I did LR tests. The important thing about this is to be able to identify a mistake and adjust your style accordingly. The LSAT does not stand still. It is a moving target. You've got to learn which ways it might move.

If you want to perform at your best, you need to take the test in October.

TL; DR version: calm down, pull up your boostraps, drop the ego and work. Nothing else will work to achieve a good score. I wish you the best of luck, and I hope that you can avoid the mistakes I made.

[beezneez]

There are people going to your law school RIGHT NOW (doesn't matter where) that will chew you up and spit you out. These people have gone out, experienced life, understand their goals and their weaknesses, and will kick your gonads in. I'm saying this because, honestly, I'm going to be one of them.

Uh, ok...

But the rest is good, sage advice nonetheless

[Scotusnerd]

There are people going to your law school RIGHT NOW (doesn't matter where) that will chew you up and spit you out. These people have gone out, experienced life, understand their goals and their weaknesses, and will kick your gonads in. I'm saying this because, honestly, I'm going to be one of them.

Uh, ok...

But the rest is good, sage advice nonetheless

Sorry, didn't realize that sounded so jackass-like. I'm a nice guy, really! I'm trying to be motivational because I was about where JDcan was last summer (minus the parents). I just didn't have drive. I'm trying to instill that drive.

[northwood]

seems like you have stressed yourself out pretty good... reschedule for october, take a month off from studying and hit the books again.In the month away do not think about LS, the LSAT or TLS. Do what you want to do, and if you want to get back to studying- then do it. If you don't, then don't worry about it- its for the best ( yes.. I'm telling you that its okay to walk away from the LSAT and pursue anohter career if thats what you really want).

[llachans]

I think you might be burned out or too stressed. I hit a wall where my PT scores took a huge dip. I took a week off and did NOTHING lsat related. After that week, my PT scores were much better. Maybe you just need a week to forget about the LSAT.

[JdCan]

Thanks guys, I am going to buckle down, stop bitching and take it this June.... no excuses. I know I can do well, I just need to kick the fear of failure out of the way and believe in my abilities.

Thanks for all of the advice.

[thestalkmore]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zh6uGL8kamE

[PDaddy]

Don't you mean to say that you're getting "WORSE" with each pt?

[thestalkmore]

Don't you mean to say that you're getting "WORSE" with each pt?

Shhhhhh

[JJDancer]

It could be burn out or stress.

Try to break a test up into 2 sections in the morning and 3 in the evening to see if it has to do with just sitting through timed tests. Also, if the ones in the class are in a setting with students (compared to you at home alone) that might be a factor.

Lastly, were your practice tests from different times like early 2000s vs. 90s vs. past three years? Maybe there are some changes in the test that your scores correspond with.

[Indifferent]

Probs should learn grammar first.