If you could go back in time and study for the LSAT all over again, what would you do differently? Forum

[CoGar]

Get a degree in computer science

Lmao, this; probably would have done Comp Sci and Econ

Can I ask why? what does comp sci help bring to the LSAT table.... i suppose i can understand econ be very transitive to a law career but comp sci?

[HYPSM]

Get a degree in computer science

Lmao, this; probably would have done Comp Sci and Econ

Can I ask why? what does comp sci help bring to the LSAT table.... i suppose i can understand econ be very transitive to a law career but comp sci?

Yeah, is there something particular about Computer Science that would be helpful for the LSAT/law school? Or is it because it would be a good backup plan?

[Good Guy Gaud]

Get a degree in computer science

Lmao, this; probably would have done Comp Sci and Econ

Can I ask why? what does comp sci help bring to the LSAT table.... i suppose i can understand econ be very transitive to a law career but comp sci?

Yeah, is there something particular about Computer Science that would be helpful for the LSAT/law school? Or is it because it would be a good backup plan?

More for a backup plan but also to get into IP

[RamTitan]

Get a degree in computer science

Lmao, this; probably would have done Comp Sci and Econ

Can I ask why? what does comp sci help bring to the LSAT table.... i suppose i can understand econ be very transitive to a law career but comp sci?

Yeah, is there something particular about Computer Science that would be helpful for the LSAT/law school? Or is it because it would be a good backup plan?

More for a backup plan but also to get into IP

This; also, apparently Comp Sci majors do score well on the LSAT (something how the system of the test translates well to the systems they learn or something of that ilk I believe)

[Jordan Catalano]

Wouldn't have paid for a class and would've just self-studied with the Cambridge packets.

This. Plus the Bibles - those were the best material I had.

[HYPSM]

Wouldn't have paid for a class and would've just self-studied with the Cambridge packets.

This. Plus the Bibles - those were the best material I had.

I also got Manhattan LR and LSAT Trainer. Can anyone speak to the effectiveness of these books?

[KMart]

Wouldn't have paid for a class and would've just self-studied with the Cambridge packets.

This. Plus the Bibles - those were the best material I had.

I also got Manhattan LR and LSAT Trainer. Can anyone speak to the effectiveness of these books?

I used Manhattan LR and I liked it. I think it's just preference.

[galadriel3019]

I studied from about April-September. I mayyyybe took off ten days in that time, and most of those days came toward the end? It was a stupid decision. It's been a few years so I can't accurately say what would be the right number. But instead of listening to myself and recognizing when I was showing signs of run down… I just kept plugging along and making stupid mistakes. Instead of a number, I'd say you need to build a rest day or two into your regular study schedule, from the beginning. That way you almost make it an obligation to take care of yourself, and you don't feel like you're slacking. Good luck!

I would have given myself a lot more days off. Echoing some of the posters above, burnout is real!

How much time did you take off exactly? (And how long should you have taken off, in your opinion?)

[HYPSM]

I studied from about April-September. I mayyyybe took off ten days in that time, and most of those days came toward the end? It was a stupid decision. It's been a few years so I can't accurately say what would be the right number. But instead of listening to myself and recognizing when I was showing signs of run down… I just kept plugging along and making stupid mistakes. Instead of a number, I'd say you need to build a rest day or two into your regular study schedule, from the beginning. That way you almost make it an obligation to take care of yourself, and you don't feel like you're slacking. Good luck!

I would have given myself a lot more days off. Echoing some of the posters above, burnout is real!

How much time did you take off exactly? (And how long should you have taken off, in your opinion?)

Thanks a lot! Always kind of wondered whether burnout was actually a thing! Haha

[bmathers]

I studied from about April-September. I mayyyybe took off ten days in that time, and most of those days came toward the end? It was a stupid decision. It's been a few years so I can't accurately say what would be the right number. But instead of listening to myself and recognizing when I was showing signs of run down… I just kept plugging along and making stupid mistakes. Instead of a number, I'd say you need to build a rest day or two into your regular study schedule, from the beginning. That way you almost make it an obligation to take care of yourself, and you don't feel like you're slacking. Good luck!

I would have given myself a lot more days off. Echoing some of the posters above, burnout is real!

How much time did you take off exactly? (And how long should you have taken off, in your opinion?)

Thanks a lot! Always kind of wondered whether burnout was actually a thing! Haha

It absolutely is. It happened to me during my first teaching gig (inner-city in a very poorly managed/lead district, it was a whirlwind) and definitely impacted my decision to leave teaching.

Long days may sound productive, but eventually can become counter-productive. I would HIGHLY recommend working in some personal developement, it can certainly help fend off burnout - it's imperative to keep your mind in the right state.

Check out books and/or youtube videos by Jim Rohn, Eric Thomas, Les Brown, Tony Robbins, Napolean Hill, Dale Carnegie,John Maxwell, etc. Some good books are the Slight Edge, the Success Principles, 12 Pillars, The Secret (also a movie), the Four Agreements, etc.

I have some lectures on CD by these people and will additionally listen to it when I'm in the car, if I feel the need to get my mind right or haven't done my 15-30 minutes of PD that day.

[brinicolec]

Wouldn't have paid for a class and would've just self-studied with the Cambridge packets.

This. Plus the Bibles - those were the best material I had.

I also got Manhattan LR and LSAT Trainer. Can anyone speak to the effectiveness of these books?

I used the Trainer & Bibles (minus RC Bible) for test prep my first time around (along with PTs). I liked the Trainer & think it did well explaining for the most part. My least favorite was the stuff on RC in it. Since RC is mostly about teaching yourself to read a certain way, I would've preferred more examples or something - but it's also my weaker point. I'm gonna try a new RC-specific book this time around to try to help with that; it's by Blueprint. The Bibles are also very helpful and I think 7sage's video explanations for LG are really good too.

[Barack O'Drama]

I started studying in June and I would change a lot...

1) This biggest thing I would change... Setting my goal as a number and NOT a date.

This is the most important test you may ever take. It literally will directly decide your future. AND you have the freedom to take it whenever you are ready. I've been on these fora now since freshman year of college. There's always some reason why you just have to take it in September.... You don't! If it is parental pressure or whatever you need to explain to them how important this test is and if they don't or refuse to listen to you then idk. Screw them.
So I began planning on taking the September test; decided to postpone to December; and now taking when I am 100% confident I will and can score a 173 or better. I want Yale/Harvard and I'm not going anywhere else. What is an extra year in the scheme of things with that being the goal? I think H/Y are worth an extra cycle worth of prep. Barack Obama didn't start H until he was 27... I think I've got time

2) I wouldn't have wasted a month looking for "silver bullets" or a secret study guide/book. There is no secret; just hard work and time.

3) I would have used 7Sage course + The LSAT Trainer from the beginning. I think the 7Sage core curriculum is the best LSAT prep course there is to be honest. It is affordable, comprehensive, and it makes sense. Not to mention our community is so helpful, positive, and supportive.

4) I would study each section separately and intensively at some point. So I think a big turning point in my prep was when I got good at games. If you look back at my old posts to June I sucked. I couldn't finish a section, and I was missing tons of questions. I began using 7Sage's fool proof method and did nothing but Logic games for 3 weeks. Doing and redoing everything game from PTs 1-38. That was a turning point in my prep and what broke me into the 160s.

5) Avoid burnout and obsession.
In June I began studying for the LSAT like a full time job. 9-6, no breaks, 7 days a week. Around July 4th weekend I realized I was burning out. All the sudden I lost motivation, couldn't focus, etc. I took a day off and began by going right back to the obsessive habits. I had to study more, I had to get better, but the burnout remained. Eventually I took like 5 days off and came back and was better than when I left. My first timed LG section when I came back was a -3, my personal best.

6) Realize it is just a test. Not an aptitude test , self worth test, or IQ test. Just a test. Just a really hard test that you can do well on if you prepare correctly.

[HYPSM]

I started studying in June and I would change a lot...

1) This biggest thing I would change... Setting my goal as a number and NOT a date.

This is the most important test you may ever take. It literally will directly decide your future. AND you have the freedom to take it whenever you are ready. I've been on these fora now since freshman year of college. There's always some reason why you just have to take it in September.... You don't! If it is parental pressure or whatever you need to explain to them how important this test is and if they don't or refuse to listen to you then idk. Screw them.
So I began planning on taking the September test; decided to postpone to December; and now taking when I am 100% confident I will and can score a 173 or better. I want Yale/Harvard and I'm not going anywhere else. What is an extra year in the scheme of things with that being the goal? I think H/Y are worth an extra cycle worth of prep. Barack Obama didn't start H until he was 27... I think I've got time

2) I wouldn't have wasted a month looking for "silver bullets" or a secret study guide/book.

3) I would have used 7Sage course + The LSAT Trainer. I think the 7Sage core curriculum is the best LSAT prep course there is to be honest. It is affordable, comprehensive, and it makes sense. Not to mention community is so helpful, positive, and supportive.

4) I would study each section separately and intensively at some point. So I think a big turning point in my prep was when I got good at games. If you look back at my old posts to June I sucked. I couldn't finish a section, and I was missing tons of questions. I began using 7Sage's fool proof method and did nothing but Logic games for 3 weeks. Doing and redoing everything game from PTs 1-38. That was a turning point in my prep and what broke me into the 160s.

5) Avoid burnout and obsession.
In June I began studying for the LSAT like a full time job. 9-6, no breaks, 7 days a week. Around July 4th weekend I realized I was burning out. All the sudden I lost motivation, couldn't focus, etc. I took a day off and began by going right back to the obsessive habits. I had to study more, I had to get better, but the burnout remained. Eventually I took like 5 days off and came back and was better than when I left. My first timed LG section when I came back was a -3, my personal best.

6) Realize it is just a test. Not an aptitude test , self worth test, or IQ test. Just a test. Just a really hard test that you can do well on if you prepare correctly.

That was really helpful; thank you for that!

[Barack O'Drama]

I started studying in June and I would change a lot...

1) This biggest thing I would change... Setting my goal as a number and NOT a date.

This is the most important test you may ever take. It literally will directly decide your future. AND you have the freedom to take it whenever you are ready. I've been on these fora now since freshman year of college. There's always some reason why you just have to take it in September.... You don't! If it is parental pressure or whatever you need to explain to them how important this test is and if they don't or refuse to listen to you then idk. Screw them.
So I began planning on taking the September test; decided to postpone to December; and now taking when I am 100% confident I will and can score a 173 or better. I want Yale/Harvard and I'm not going anywhere else. What is an extra year in the scheme of things with that being the goal? I think H/Y are worth an extra cycle worth of prep. Barack Obama didn't start H until he was 27... I think I've got time

2) I wouldn't have wasted a month looking for "silver bullets" or a secret study guide/book.

3) I would have used 7Sage course + The LSAT Trainer. I think the 7Sage core curriculum is the best LSAT prep course there is to be honest. It is affordable, comprehensive, and it makes sense. Not to mention community is so helpful, positive, and supportive.

4) I would study each section separately and intensively at some point. So I think a big turning point in my prep was when I got good at games. If you look back at my old posts to June I sucked. I couldn't finish a section, and I was missing tons of questions. I began using 7Sage's fool proof method and did nothing but Logic games for 3 weeks. Doing and redoing everything game from PTs 1-38. That was a turning point in my prep and what broke me into the 160s.

5) Avoid burnout and obsession.
In June I began studying for the LSAT like a full time job. 9-6, no breaks, 7 days a week. Around July 4th weekend I realized I was burning out. All the sudden I lost motivation, couldn't focus, etc. I took a day off and began by going right back to the obsessive habits. I had to study more, I had to get better, but the burnout remained. Eventually I took like 5 days off and came back and was better than when I left. My first timed LG section when I came back was a -3, my personal best. Be social and be ok with missing a day to have fun. One day isn't going to make or break you. This can't be treated like a final in undergrad.

6) Realize it is just a test. Not an aptitude test , self worth test, or IQ test. Just a test. Just a really hard test that you can do well on if you prepare correctly.

That was really helpful; thank you for that!

No problemo! If I could go back to June and start knowing all of that, I would have saved myself a lot of time, money and sanity.

[Hikikomorist]

Would have drilled LG.

[HYPSM]

Would have drilled LG.

A lot of people say this, but I'm not sure I completely understand what constitutes "drilling." Is it just practicing LG questions (exclusively) for an extended period of time? Does it have to be by "type" of question? Timed? Not timed? What's the most effective way to "drill"?

[RamTitan]

Would have drilled LG.

A lot of people say this, but I'm not sure I completely understand what constitutes "drilling." Is it just practicing LG questions (exclusively) for an extended period of time? Does it have to be by "type" of question? Timed? Not timed? What's the most effective way to "drill"?

Everyone does it a little differently; depends on what point in your prep you are at to be honest. For example, when I first started studying I used the Powerscore bible for AR religiously and would aim to just complete games with 0 wrongs answers instead of timing them. But now, I go for both; also, I redo any game where I get a question wrong, as understanding the pattern and flow of a game translates to understanding the patterns of future games.

[RamTitan]

I studied from about April-September. I mayyyybe took off ten days in that time, and most of those days came toward the end? It was a stupid decision. It's been a few years so I can't accurately say what would be the right number. But instead of listening to myself and recognizing when I was showing signs of run down… I just kept plugging along and making stupid mistakes. Instead of a number, I'd say you need to build a rest day or two into your regular study schedule, from the beginning. That way you almost make it an obligation to take care of yourself, and you don't feel like you're slacking. Good luck!

I would have given myself a lot more days off. Echoing some of the posters above, burnout is real!

How much time did you take off exactly? (And how long should you have taken off, in your opinion?)

I'm the same way; I've always taken Sunday off, but when I was doing 3 practice tests a week for the last 2 months before the June test, I felt like literal shit. Now I'm studying more like 4 or 5 days a week.

[RamTitan]

5) Avoid burnout and obsession.
In June I began studying for the LSAT like a full time job. 9-6, no breaks, 7 days a week. Around July 4th weekend I realized I was burning out. All the sudden I lost motivation, couldn't focus, etc. I took a day off and began by going right back to the obsessive habits. I had to study more, I had to get better, but the burnout remained. Eventually I took like 5 days off and came back and was better than when I left. My first timed LG section when I came back was a -3, my personal best.

Agree with everything you said, but I wouldn't feel so bad about this; having an aggressive start can be good just to set the mood and tone of your study process. I think down the road it's more important to take breaks and reflect.

[HYPSM]

Thanks for all the responses!

[Blueprint Mithun]

I was very happy with how my prep went, but if I could do it again, I'd probably have reached out to a tutor or expert once I was in the late stages of prep. Once I'd gotten to the level where the only thing I struggled with was the really hard LR questions and timing on RC (my Achilles' heel for a long time), improvements came very slowly. I essentially just worked through tons of timed preptests for the last month and half, and while my score did increase, some of the insights I had could have come sooner if I had drilled certain q.types and worked with someone who was better at the LSAT than me. Self-prepping can be really effective on this test, but don't underestimate the value of discussing and working through problems with someone else in person.

[xnsch]

Although I ended up doing pretty well (coming in only 1 point under my goal) I would have liked to have studied for a longer period of time so I didnt have to be so stressed during it. I studied all of last summer (ended up being a total of about 3.5 months of studying) during part of which I also took two summer classes. Wasn't the most fun and having only 3 or so months meant that I never had any time to rest or just breathe. Ended up doing almost 8 hour days of studying for weeks on end that definitely led to some days where I was burning out like crazy. Had I had more time I could have done things like takes a PT one day, review it the next, and probably would have been able to have the time to improve on my absolute worst section (RC) which I ended up doing crappy on on the real thing. So my advice to anyone is seriously carve out a few months if you can, focus only on the LSAT, and take your time!