What will test day look like? Forum

[gmreplay]

I know from experience that if I'm sleepy or go into the test cold I do much worse than if I practice a bit. How much time will I have to look over some old logic games before the test begins? What does the general schedule pan out like? If you were taking the test again, what sort of minor (but potentially psychologically beneficial) tips would you give yourself?

[tomwatts]

--ImageRemoved--
Test day looks like this.

(A more serious answer will follow shortly.)

[lawschooliseasy]

Picture yourself surrounded by lots of white-faced prospective law students. Now perform!

[MF248]

Picture yourself surrounded by lots of white-faced prospective law students. Now perform!

I sat in the car listening to music until a couple minutes before they started letting people in. No point in surrounding yourself with a bunch of stressed out people.

[gmreplay]

I've been told to meet in the lobby of a building at my school which I am very familiar with, so that's not too scary. They have auditoriums in the building and standard classrooms. Do the tests usually take place in a standard classroom? I'm told to be there no later than 8:30, but when will the test really be likely to start?

[TheTopBloke]

It's quite pathetic actually. Some people piss their pants. Others pulling their hair out. During the test at least one person will jump up and shout "I can't take it anymore!" and fly out the door. But don't be worried. You'll do just fine.

[GATORTIM]

(A more serious answer will follow shortly.)

doubtful...I took this pic outside my center

[gmreplay]

To be honest I wouldn't be so worried but you people make me sick! Half of you are fretting over whether you'll maintain your 175+ while I'm working my ass off for a 166. And I'm intelligent! Now after reading the forums in the last couple of days I am fully convinced that the logic games have taken a major shift for the worse, and that I will literally die while taking the test. I maintained a 166 on the June 2009 test (dinosaurs and all), but I'm seriously starting to freak now. I know that just one misread rule or one mental block can seal my fate, so I'm trying to eliminate every other possible worry that might afflict me on test day.

[fathergoose]

I never thought you could smell fear and desolation until I took the LSAT. It's like that scene in gladiator before they fight the first time. You know out of a 100 people that maybe only 4 people in the room won't have their dreams crushed and hearts ripped out.

Basically you have to decide if you want it bad enough or if you are gonna be he guy who gets his face bashed in with the mace one section in

[tomwatts]

I know from experience that if I'm sleepy or go into the test cold I do much worse than if I practice a bit. How much time will I have to look over some old logic games before the test begins? What does the general schedule pan out like? If you were taking the test again, what sort of minor (but potentially psychologically beneficial) tips would you give yourself?

Okay, here goes the serious answer. While it may feel like Hell, it's actually not. Elysian Fields, no, but neither Tartarus.

You shouldn't bring test prep materials into the site with you. Any kind of warmup that you do should be done beforehand. They tell you to get there no later than 8:30, and when I actually took it (at UC Berkeley in a lecture hall), I showed up at 8:25 or so and was one of the last ones. We starting filling out the scantrons and such only a few minutes after 8:30. The test itself didn't start until shortly before 9, but it was more efficient than the SAT usually is (upwards of 45 minutes or more of junk before starting the test).

From there the schedule is exactly what you'd think. Three 35-minute sections back-to-back-to-back, with no more than a minute or so in between as the proctor reads the instructions for the next section (and potentially no more than ten seconds in between). Then a ten or fifteen minute break, followed by two more sections, and then a long administrative break (upwards of 5-10 minutes where you can't actually leave your seat but you're not doing anything) while they set up for the essay. Then the essay, and then you dash out the door. You're done anywhere from 12:30 to 1:30, typically (sometimes later).

Minor tips include:
* Do walk to the bathroom during the break in the middle, regardless of whether you feel like you have to go or not. By the time you get there, the adrenaline will have died down and you may actually have to go, and either way, the walking will get blood circulating back to your brain again.
* Do bring a small snack. Small, light, healthy, not overly sugary or full of caffeine. Don't want to crash during the middle of the last two sections (which are half of your score).
* Don't pay attention to anyone else in the room, no matter what. You don't care. Focus on what you're doing.

Probably none of this is news, but just tossing it all out there.

[Alpha Helix]

I wasn't too nervous before, but now I am really, really nervous. Feb 6...

[aIvin adams]

the only tip i have is one that you've probably heard a million times: drive to yer testing location the week before (preferrably on the same day of the week) at the same time you will drive there on the test week. park. get out. walk around and imagine how you will find yer spot. this would be a good time to take a seat and do a practice test. yer mind will appreciate the familiarity on test day.

i really enjoyed the experience but i love taking tests. i got a 167 which was ~ my practice tests. i didn't prepare as well as i should have, but i dont have the focus or patience to regret it.

about 10 minutes into my test a phone went off. wouldnt stop going off for what seemed like forever. finally someone silenced their phone. it was the proctor. LOL. i made a joke that it was the LSAC calling to tell him he was fired. he told me that if i talked again during the test i'd be kicked out.

tip 2: i made sure to have lots of food and cigarettes. i have fat kid personality so i hardly ever stress if i have snacks nearby.

[washed out]

There will be blood.

[melinda.corbin]

Picture yourself surrounded by lots of white-faced prospective law students. Now perform!

Why do you think that only "White-faced" will be in test and color will not be there?

[lawschooliseasy]

Picture yourself surrounded by lots of white-faced prospective law students. Now perform!

Stop talking race! Why do you think that only "White-faced" will be in test and color will not be there? While you fingerprint before test if the color of skin is darker than the color of palm then proctor will put "University of Alabama" and "University of District of Columbia" in your target schools and Chris Rock will be your manadatory classmate and you will be required to put a 45X35 inch long painting of Martin Luther King Jr and Obama in your room )

I would be okay with half of those.

[melinda.corbin]

Picture yourself surrounded by lots of white-faced prospective law students. Now perform!

Stop talking race! Why do you think that only "White-faced" will be in test and color will not be there? While you fingerprint before test if the color of skin is darker than the color of palm then proctor will put "University of Alabama" and "University of District of Columbia" in your target schools and Chris Rock will be your manadatory classmate and you will be required to put a 45X35 inch long painting of Martin Luther King Jr and Obama in your room )

I would be okay with half of those.

so you are okay with UDC?

[lawschooliseasy]

Picture yourself surrounded by lots of white-faced prospective law students. Now perform!

Stop talking race! Why do you think that only "White-faced" will be in test and color will not be there? While you fingerprint before test if the color of skin is darker than the color of palm then proctor will put "University of Alabama" and "University of District of Columbia" in your target schools and Chris Rock will be your manadatory classmate and you will be required to put a 45X35 inch long painting of Martin Luther King Jr and Obama in your room )

I would be okay with half of those.

so you are okay with UDC?

No, but I'd be down with giant MLK and Obama paintings... and maybe even Alabama if it was free.

[melinda.corbin]

How about Harvard Law School?

[melinda.corbin]

georgetown.edu

[gmreplay]

I know from experience that if I'm sleepy or go into the test cold I do much worse than if I practice a bit. How much time will I have to look over some old logic games before the test begins? What does the general schedule pan out like? If you were taking the test again, what sort of minor (but potentially psychologically beneficial) tips would you give yourself?

Okay, here goes the serious answer. While it may feel like Hell, it's actually not. Elysian Fields, no, but neither Tartarus.

You shouldn't bring test prep materials into the site with you. Any kind of warmup that you do should be done beforehand. They tell you to get there no later than 8:30, and when I actually took it (at UC Berkeley in a lecture hall), I showed up at 8:25 or so and was one of the last ones. We starting filling out the scantrons and such only a few minutes after 8:30. The test itself didn't start until shortly before 9, but it was more efficient than the SAT usually is (upwards of 45 minutes or more of junk before starting the test).

From there the schedule is exactly what you'd think. Three 35-minute sections back-to-back-to-back, with no more than a minute or so in between as the proctor reads the instructions for the next section (and potentially no more than ten seconds in between). Then a ten or fifteen minute break, followed by two more sections, and then a long administrative break (upwards of 5-10 minutes where you can't actually leave your seat but you're not doing anything) while they set up for the essay. Then the essay, and then you dash out the door. You're done anywhere from 12:30 to 1:30, typically (sometimes later).

Minor tips include:
* Do walk to the bathroom during the break in the middle, regardless of whether you feel like you have to go or not. By the time you get there, the adrenaline will have died down and you may actually have to go, and either way, the walking will get blood circulating back to your brain again.
* Do bring a small snack. Small, light, healthy, not overly sugary or full of caffeine. Don't want to crash during the middle of the last two sections (which are half of your score).
* Don't pay attention to anyone else in the room, no matter what. You don't care. Focus on what you're doing.

Probably none of this is news, but just tossing it all out there.

Thank you VERY MUCH, Tom. You were most helpful.

[sumus romani]

Sometimes the wait to start the actual exam can be far longer than Tom says (I've heard people say that they didn't actually begin the exam for over an hour). Also, if you are worried about taking it early in the morning, make sure that your body is used to thinking at that hour by getting up early and doing some PT's the week before the exam. Lastly, make sure that you understand that the test centers can be distracting (the person next to me cried on two separate occasions). Take some PT's in a somewhat distracting environment. Nothing I've said here is exactly new advice, but make sure that you actually do it.

[SDWaterBaby]

Don't pay attention to people around you, the first time I took the lsat, people all around me were talking about how they were retaking because of the dinosaur game...it was pretty distracting and disheartening to hear about how people had to cancel because of one difficult game. Try to tone out everyone else during the waiting period.
Keep your own time, you don't know how visible the clock in the room is going to be, and on top of that, proctors can be horrible about the 5 minute warning, in the first section of the Sept lsat all we got was "OH shit sorry, 2 minutes left". A popular way to keep time is to always reset your analog clock to 12:00 at the end of every section so it's easy to keep track of the time.
Remember that the test is supposed to be difficult, if you hit a tricky question don't let it bring your confidence down for the rest of the section, there will be questions that trip you up; that's why we don't all get 180s. If you get tripped up, do your best and move on with a simple "touche, lsat" and continue to work on the rest of the questions without losing faith in yourself.
Other than that, test day is really not that bad. The proctors are usually friendly and they tend to understand that the stress level is off the charts in the room. Keep your calm when you start filling out the formalities, the girl next to me turned a strange color right when the first forms got passed out (the name/address stuff). Good luck!!!

[umichgrad]

Tips from an easily stressed September test-taker (PT avg was 165-172 and I hit 167 on test day):

Before Test Day

1. Exercise in the afternoon the day before; you'll be calmer and more energized on test day.

2. Do NOT stay up all night studying. At this point, you know everything you're going to know for the test.

3. Eat well the day prior; avoid sugar and carb overload. Pack your plastic bag the night before with a small drink, a healthy snack, and your materials. I also brought peppermints because they keep me focused.

4. MOST important: Have a game plan. The day before, in my head I went over every scenario for the test. Ex: I knew RC was my weakest, so I had a strategy planned to not get freaked out or slowed down if it was the first section. It actually was my first section, and I was able to talk myself through it.

Test Day

1. Bring one or two simple logic games with the answers on the back. It made me feel better to have something to do, and I felt warm and prepared. However, do NOT bring a game that was difficult for you, and do NOT bring LR; both of these (imo) can dampen your confidence.

2. Completely tune out everyone around you. Their insane blabbering will get under your skin if you let it.

3. Expect to wait. Get to the test center early/on time, but be prepared that you might wait up to an hour for the test to start. Don't let it disrupt your calm.

4. Be prepared for mediocre proctoring; have your own watch and keep careful time. Do not be thrown off by a proctor that makes noise or seems disinterested. However, be prepared to report a case of bad proctoring if it actually interferes with your ability to take the test.

5. Go home and relax!

[examplepdf]

Great advice above. I would recommend gum or mints in your plastic bag too. I had a peanut butter sandwich for breakfast and half of one as my snack--not sugary, and it will stick with you so you won't be hungry. My test center was really overcrowded, and I was REALLY nervous when I first showed up. They took people into classrooms in small groups so it took forever; I decided I'd rather hang out and wait in the lobby than wait in a classroom at a desk, so I waited to be in one of the last groups to go into a classroom. While I waited I chatted with a few other people around me, made some jokes and complained about the wait--that actually really calmed my nerves and distracted me from worrying about the test. I'd definitely recommend just relaxing and chatting with people as you're waiting (foreeeever) for the test to start, instead of trying to "psyche up" for the test or get into the first classroom. Oh, and I went to my test site the weekend before and the day before the test, and did a full PT each time a classroom at the site. Definitely a must. (For example, my site had these horrible, teeny-tiny desks, and the clock was hard to see--I was glad I checked it out beforehand.)

I also brought a page of (easier) logic games to do on my way there.

[LawandOrder]

--ImageRemoved--

Test day looks remarkably similar to Vietnam, circa 1968.