Can I break a 170? Forum

[Megablix]

I just finished school last week so I have plenty of time to study everyday. I have been studying throughout the semester as well. I have been scoring between 162-167 though I do seem to be stabilizing around the 165 mark. The most recent LSAT I took was PT 37 and scored a 164 on it. RC: -6 LR: -5 LG: -2 LR: -5. With the time left before the June test could I break a 170? How should I study fir it? I have practice test 38 and 50-59 left. Thanks.

[Emma.]

I just finished school last week so I have plenty of time to study everyday. I have been studying throughout the semester as well. I have been scoring between 162-167 though I do seem to be stabilizing around the 165 mark. The most recent LSAT I took was PT 37 and scored a 164 on it. RC: -6 LR: -5 LG: -2 LR: -5. With the time left before the June test could I break a 170? How should I study fir it? I have practice test 38 and 50-59 left. Thanks.

It is pretty hard to predict how things are going to shape up for you in the next few weeks, but if 170s are your goal you should be consistently above 170 in PTs. Most people see a drop of a couple points from their PT average in the real thing.

I'd definitely suggest working on some of the more recent PTs since if you haven't done anything in the 50s you haven't even seen any comparative RC passages yet. I also found that the most recent tests had a different 'feel' to the tests in the 40s, and you want to get used to that.

Good luck!

[Megablix]

OK, thanks for the advice!

[jamesieee]

Work on the stuff that will give you the most points - for you, that's going to be LG and LR. You need to be consistently getting -0's on LG if you want to break 170, especially given how you're doing on the other two sections. Then study the hell out of LR - you'll get better return on investment than studying RC.

Your PT scores suggest that you haven't fully grasped all of the concepts and techniques, especially in LR, so it may help to go back and keep studying those in addition to doing PTs. If you haven't thoroughly studied the LR and LG Bibles, I highly recommend doing that. Even if you have, I recommend rereading sections on question types that you have trouble with.

[jpSartre]

Most people see a drop of a couple points from their PT average in the real thing.

This is not a fact. Some people see a drop of a couple points from their PT average in the real thing. Some also see gains.

[haole_20]

Most people see a drop of a couple points from their PT average in the real thing.

This is not a fact. Some people see a drop of a couple points from their PT average in the real thing. Some also see gains.

I actually had a 2 point increase from my highest PT; about 4 points higher than my average.

[jpSartre]

When it comes down to it, no one can make a general statement about most test takers from a small population of board poster.

And I don't even think we can say most posters on this board see a decrease, because from what I've seen polls in the past are inconclusive in both directions and favor individual's averages.

[Megablix]

Work on the stuff that will give you the most points - for you, that's going to be LG and LR. You need to be consistently getting -0's on LG if you want to break 170, especially given how you're doing on the other two sections. Then study the hell out of LR - you'll get better return on investment than studying RC.

Your PT scores suggest that you haven't fully grasped all of the concepts and techniques, especially in LR, so it may help to go back and keep studying those in addition to doing PTs. If you haven't thoroughly studied the LR and LG Bibles, I highly recommend doing that. Even if you have, I recommend rereading sections on question types that you have trouble with.

Thanks for advice. I just finished PT 50 and I am planning to take a new one every other day while reviewing the LR bible on my off days focusing on the main question types I missed.

[Dr. Strangelove]

I know of a few people who did worse on the actual thing than on the PT's.
I don't think some of those people were prepared for the experimental section in terms of time..