December 2013 LSAT Study Group Forum

[civis]

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[HeavenBeyond]

Thanks for the advice everybody!

[tofuspeedstar]

scooped the LSAT trainer. ty based Amazon Prime. Starting Sunday.

What's your plan of attack? I picked up the Trainer as well. I don't have any fresh material so I was going to dig into old PTs while honing in on useful chapters.

I'm gonna follow the 8 week plan on the site. I have some fresh material left, and for the LR/LG drilling I have the cambridge packets for 41-60.

[civis]

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[Nonconsecutive]

Just jumped back on the study train today with some LG drills. Since I had only be focusing on new stuff for the past 2 months or so, I forgot how weird some of the old LGs are.

[A.Taarabt7]

First PT since Oct. LSAT

PT 65

LR1 -2
LG -0
RC -6 (Thank you LSAT for helping me find realize I hate anything to do with agriculture and farming)
LR2 -3

90 / 171

PT after a long work day, but still relatively pleased with the results.
******

Did two important things prior; Read through the MLSAT LR (Necessary / Sufficient Assumption Section) around four times until I got it on lock-down, then drilled through both respective Cambridge books on them until I could do ten without error. Already I feel just from this small amount of information, that my score will be significantly better in Dec.

I'd like to stress what others have said on the matter of getting better at LR: have a specific plan/process for each question type. I would get, maybe -3 to -5 just jumping in and attempting, but when I'm consciously taking steps during the stimulus read prior to answering, my speed and confidence are unparalleled to anything I've felt before. Highly recommended to understand the subtleties between Necessary/Sufficient Assumptions.

Also, took previous advice on doing first 15 in 15 minutes, and last 10-11 in 20 minutes. Also, highly recommended.

im the opposite. Im good at LR. basically got what you got. RC on the other hand.... I got 11 wrong you only got 6. Whats the secret? I did good on the comparative but everything else,especially with the fatigue and doing RC last,missed a lot on netherland agriculture passage and english common law.

any tips? Would like to cut my score on RC in half to yours. There are times when I can get what you are scoring but thats only if the RC "clicks" with me

[akechi]

For those of you who have dealt with New and Used CDs, did you guys brute force your way through or realize that you could setup a logic chain that incorporated all the elements except for U(o) and N(o)?

I found that you can link ~U(j) . ~N(j) -> U(p) . N(p) -> U(s) . N(s) -> ~U(r) . ~N(r) all in a neat little chain and this lets you solve the game extremely quickly, if you are familiar with your either / or conditionals.

[tofuspeedstar]

For those of you who have dealt with New and Used CDs, did you guys brute force your way through or realize that you could setup a logic chain that incorporated all the elements except for U(o) and N(o)?

I found that you can link ~U(j) . ~N(j) -> U(p) . N(p) -> U(s) . N(s) -> ~U(r) . ~N(r) all in a neat little chain and this lets you solve the game extremely quickly, if you are familiar with your either / or conditionals.

Fuck that game. That's one of the games i'm going to revisit this time around.

[akechi]

It was a horribly frustrating game at first, but this chain made things so much easier by realizing that certain genres had to be "in" (I set my "in" group as the sale) in virtue of standing in an at least one either/or relationship. The only confusing part is reading the conditionals in terms of conjunctions and disjunctive statements, but with enough practice it all becomes second nature.

[HeavenBeyond]

That was a difficult question. I don't even know what I would do if something like that showed up in December

[dosto]

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[All Star]

Checking in. I'm taking December also and planning to apply this cycle and am in need of improvement in LR badly. Right now, I'm getting around a -10 to -12 combined (horrible haha) and now I have less than 2 months to improve on that.

I have the trainer, and I didn't particularly like it for LR, but it saved me for RC and really helped with LG. Does anyone have any ideas or suggestions on how to improve on LR? I have Cambridge's 1-20 book and I'm also thinking about signing up for 7sage's course to iron out these wrinkles in my prep. Thanks!

[OVOXO]

PT51 today:

LR −3
LR2 −4
LRX −5
RC −5
LG −0

SS: 88/100
RS: 169

…back to the drilling board.

[TripleX]

Checking in. I'm taking December also and planning to apply this cycle and am in need of improvement in LR badly. Right now, I'm getting around a -10 to -12 combined (horrible haha) and now I have less than 2 months to improve on that.

I have the trainer, and I didn't particularly like it for LR, but it saved me for RC and really helped with LG. Does anyone have any ideas or suggestions on how to improve on LR? I have Cambridge's 1-20 book and I'm also thinking about signing up for 7sage's course to iron out these wrinkles in my prep. Thanks!

I'm in a similar position. I get between -4/-6 on the LR sections. I used 7sage to get my LR from -9/-11 to -2/3 in less than a week so I think I'll be using him for LR. I've only heard good things, I like his teaching style and it's affordable. Be warned that there is a massive amount of content on the 7sage website for LR so the sooner you start the better. (I should probably follow this advice as well seeing as I haven't signed up yet!!!)

[All Star]

Checking in. I'm taking December also and planning to apply this cycle and am in need of improvement in LR badly. Right now, I'm getting around a -10 to -12 combined (horrible haha) and now I have less than 2 months to improve on that.

I have the trainer, and I didn't particularly like it for LR, but it saved me for RC and really helped with LG. Does anyone have any ideas or suggestions on how to improve on LR? I have Cambridge's 1-20 book and I'm also thinking about signing up for 7sage's course to iron out these wrinkles in my prep. Thanks!

I'm in a similar position. I get between -4/-6 on the LR sections. I used 7sage to get my LR from -9/-11 to -2/3 in less than a week so I think I'll be using him for LR. I've only heard good things, I like his teaching style and it's affordable. Be warned that there is a massive amount of content on the 7sage website for LR so the sooner you start the better. (I should probably follow this advice as well seeing as I haven't signed up yet!!!)

Wow, you improved that much using 7Sage for LR? Did you drill each question type extensively after watching the corresponding video? Do you have any tips on how to get the most out of 7sage for LR? And how good is 7sage for games and RC?

[rebexness]

December prep starts tonight bros. I enjoyed my 4 days off.

[dosto]

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[nooooo]

im the opposite. Im good at LR. basically got what you got. RC on the other hand.... I got 11 wrong you only got 6. Whats the secret? I did good on the comparative but everything else,especially with the fatigue and doing RC last,missed a lot on netherland agriculture passage and english common law.

any tips? Would like to cut my score on RC in half to yours. There are times when I can get what you are scoring but thats only if the RC "clicks" with me

I try to enjoy what I'm reading to get over the initial boredom. Then I quickly look at questions for any references to paragraphs or line numbers and put a star in the general region.

After the first-second paragraph I box what I believe is the main thesis/thrust/argument of the passage and always re-look at it before attempting that first "main point" question to keep me centralized.

Anytime the passage brings up a list (the essayist used these techniques, the plant differed by having, this law requires: followed by list x, y, z, etc) I circle it, but don't think too much on it.

I also underline any contrasting word (However, But, Yet, etc.,).

I realized that since my memory is really lacking, reading faster helps me to retain the passage in my head better. The simple "act" of annotating (sometimes I won't even look back at it) keeps me engaged.

Also, read to understand, not to get to the end. Read a paragraph x2-3 times and get it, or else you'll stand the possibility of missing crucial info that could make or break a host of questions. Going back to said paragraph and trying to understand it to answer a question is damn near impossible unless you get back into the context and that takes TIME.

[jk148706]

December prep starts tonight bros. I enjoyed my 4 days off.

Anticipating a retake?

[HeavenBeyond]

im the opposite. Im good at LR. basically got what you got. RC on the other hand.... I got 11 wrong you only got 6. Whats the secret? I did good on the comparative but everything else,especially with the fatigue and doing RC last,missed a lot on netherland agriculture passage and english common law.

any tips? Would like to cut my score on RC in half to yours. There are times when I can get what you are scoring but thats only if the RC "clicks" with me

I try to enjoy what I'm reading to get over the initial boredom. Then I quickly look at questions for any references to paragraphs or line numbers and put a star in the general region.

After the first-second paragraph I box what I believe is the main thesis/thrust/argument of the passage and always re-look at it before attempting that first "main point" question to keep me centralized.

Anytime the passage brings up a list (the essayist used these techniques, the plant differed by having, this law requires: followed by list x, y, z, etc) I circle it, but don't think too much on it.

I also underline any contrasting word (However, But, Yet, etc.,).

I realized that since my memory is really lacking, reading faster helps me to retain the passage in my head better. The simple "act" of annotating (sometimes I won't even look back at it) keeps me engaged.

Also, read to understand, not to get to the end. Read a paragraph x2-3 times and get it, or else you'll stand the possibility of missing crucial info that could make or break a host of questions. Going back to said paragraph and trying to understand it to answer a question is damn near impossible unless you get back into the context and that takes TIME.

Thanks for the tips - always appreciated!

[TripleX]

Checking in. I'm taking December also and planning to apply this cycle and am in need of improvement in LR badly. Right now, I'm getting around a -10 to -12 combined (horrible haha) and now I have less than 2 months to improve on that.

I have the trainer, and I didn't particularly like it for LR, but it saved me for RC and really helped with LG. Does anyone have any ideas or suggestions on how to improve on LR? I have Cambridge's 1-20 book and I'm also thinking about signing up for 7sage's course to iron out these wrinkles in my prep. Thanks!

I'm in a similar position. I get between -4/-6 on the LR sections. I used 7sage to get my LR from -9/-11 to -2/3 in less than a week so I think I'll be using him for LR. I've only heard good things, I like his teaching style and it's affordable. Be warned that there is a massive amount of content on the 7sage website for LR so the sooner you start the better. (I should probably follow this advice as well seeing as I haven't signed up yet!!!)

Wow, you improved that much using 7Sage for LR? Did you drill each question type extensively after watching the corresponding video? Do you have any tips on how to get the most out of 7sage for LR? And how good is 7sage for games and RC?

oops I got mixed around! I improved on LG from -9/-11 to -2/-3 in less than week. He gives away the LG explanations for free so I'd love to pay him back by purchasing one of the packages to gain access to the LR lessons.

I apologize for the confusion.

[mindarmed]

scooped the LSAT trainer. ty based Amazon Prime. Starting Sunday.

Yeah I'll be starting Sunday as well. Hopefully this allows me to go -0 with some regularity

[kjane96]

Checking in. Prepping for December, applying this cycle. Been a TLSer ever since a friend of mine introduced me to the site a couple of years ago during her app cycle. As such, I subscribed to the general consensus on self-studying (not knocking it at all- it's good advice for most) and have tried purely self-studying on and off since I graduated in 2011--been through the PS bibles, drilled LR, taken a few PTs, etc. But I always felt like I was lacking the discipline to really knock it out of the park. So now I'm enrolled in a Testmasters course that started this week and I already feel 100% better and more motivated. The combination of the class (structure, lessons with instructor, homework, scheduled PTs) and the drills I already do on my own seems like the right way to go for me. So, here's hoping we all kill it

[toshiroh]

If I started the 7sage complete course, the one for 179, do you think I would be able to complete it? I just need to tighten up on the more advanced LR and LGs. I work full time, from 8-5, but study from 6-12 every weeknight, and all day on weekends?

[dosto]

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