Top Law Schools

Hi guys

I'm starting a job in banking in mid/late July and am considering a joint JD/MBA one day, so am determined to take the GMAT and LSAT this summer before I start working 90+ hour weeks. My GMAT is very close to where it needs to be, so I will spend the majority of my time studying for the LSAT. I took a practice LSAT (June 2007) last week before any study and scored a 161. All of my sections were pretty equal but I did a little worse on the Logic Games section. I also struggled with time on Logic Games and RC. My goal, which I know is lofty, is a 175+.
Materials

I purchased the following materials:

Powerscore Logical Reasoning Bible
Powerscore Logic Games Bible
Powerscore RC Bible
Grouped Analytical Reasoning (all Analytical Reasoning questions from LSAT 1-20 grouped by type)
Grouped Logic Games
Grouped RC
I also have every past LSAT from 21-current

Timeframe

I am currently on vacation, but will be able to study on and off as soon as I put together a plan. I will be back home on the 27th of May and will have 4 solid weeks to study full time. I’m then on vacation again (will less chances for study, but I can still do an hour or two a day) until July 10th, and will then have another solid week available for study. So overall I have 8-9 weeks to study, but really only 5 weeks that I can devote fully.

I hope to be at a 175+ level by the end of this period, as I will have limited chance to study between July 18th and early October. During this time I will need some sort of maintenance program. I’m thinking if I take 1-2 practice tests per week I will be able to maintain my level, but I’m not sure.

Plan

I have no idea! I won’t be able to do any sort of class, as my timeframe is so strange and unpredictable. I know I want to take as many practice tests as possible, and I’ve also heard great things about the Powerscore bibles (hence my choice of materials). I was looking at this plan:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/richpub/syltgu ... 7BZGF61X2N

How long should it take me to get through the Powerscore bibles? How should I structure my studying (how many hours at a time, and how many sessions a day)? How does my maintenance plan sound? Should I consider private tutoring?

Thanks!

There are always exceptions to any generalization, but it is very unlikely that you will be able to essentially power your way to a 175 in a few weeks and simply "maintain" that until the October test. LSAT studying, for the majority of us, just doesn't work like that. Although there are certainly strategies that need to be learned and mastered, and such strategies can definitely be learned in as quickly as a week or two, the rise to elite scores such as the goal you have set for yourself typically comes through the cumulative effect of applying these strategies over and over again to countless questions and after hours of thorough review.

For many people, myself included, it may even take 4 weeks before you even "learn" how to study correctly. You can use study plans made by others, which definitely put you on the right track, but ultimately every test taker ends up adjusting such plans to meet their own needs.

Once again, you may be an exception, but keep in mind that TLS is full exceptional test takers who killed exams like the SAT and GRE but still had to put in several months of dedicated study for the LSAT. For most of us, it takes a least a month or two of dedicated study to achieve a 14 point increase like the one you're aiming for, and countless hours of study on top of that to achieve scores like that consistently.

coolrunnings wrote:Hi guys

I'm starting a job in banking in mid/late July and am considering a joint JD/MBA one day, so am determined to take the GMAT and LSAT this summer before I start working 90+ hour weeks. My GMAT is very close to where it needs to be, so I will spend the majority of my time studying for the LSAT. I took a practice LSAT (June 2007) last week before any study and scored a 161. All of my sections were pretty equal but I did a little worse on the Logic Games section. I also struggled with time on Logic Games and RC. My goal, which I know is lofty, is a 175+.
Materials

I purchased the following materials:

Powerscore Logical Reasoning Bible
Powerscore Logic Games Bible
Powerscore RC Bible
Grouped Analytical Reasoning (all Analytical Reasoning questions from LSAT 1-20 grouped by type)
Grouped Logic Games
Grouped RC
I also have every past LSAT from 21-current

Timeframe

I am currently on vacation, but will be able to study on and off as soon as I put together a plan. I will be back home on the 27th of May and will have 4 solid weeks to study full time. I’m then on vacation again (will less chances for study, but I can still do an hour or two a day) until July 10th, and will then have another solid week available for study. So overall I have 8-9 weeks to study, but really only 5 weeks that I can devote fully.

I hope to be at a 175+ level by the end of this period, as I will have limited chance to study between July 18th and early October. During this time I will need some sort of maintenance program. I’m thinking if I take 1-2 practice tests per week I will be able to maintain my level, but I’m not sure.

Plan

I have no idea! I won’t be able to do any sort of class, as my timeframe is so strange and unpredictable. I know I want to take as many practice tests as possible, and I’ve also heard great things about the Powerscore bibles (hence my choice of materials). I was looking at this plan:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/richpub/syltgu ... 7BZGF61X2N

How long should it take me to get through the Powerscore bibles? How should I structure my studying (how many hours at a time, and how many sessions a day)? How does my maintenance plan sound? Should I consider private tutoring?

Thanks!

There is no maintaining on the LSAT. You either go up or down. Study hard and be consistent. I studied the LSAT while my wife was in the hospital and hours before my son was born. Stay focused.

You guys both make good points.

I actually will be working 40-50 hour weeks (not including additional job related study) from mid July until early September, so will still be able to put in quite a few hours of study during this period. The strict "maintenance" period will therefore only be 3-4 weeks, and I will try to take a few days (up to a week) off before the LSAT to really finalize my study.

Taking this into consideration, do you think I have a better shot? And what sort of study schedule would you recommend?

Thanks

I would suggest the Manhattan RC strategy guide. I just ordered the Manhattan LR guide from amazon because a lot of people here have given it some praise that it might be better then the LR bible. Since I have decided to postpone until October my plan for the next few weeks is to reread through the Manhattan RC guide and PS RC Bible and mix them together to make my own strategy for tackling the passages.

coolrunnings wrote: I'm considering a joint JD/MBA one day, so am determined to take the GMAT and LSAT this summer before I start working 90+ hour weeks.

When you say 'one day', do you mean within the next 3 years? LSAT scores are only good for 5 years, but most top schools prefer/require a more recent score. If you're going to stay in your job for longer than that, you might want to reconsider taking the LSAT now.

I have no idea! I won’t be able to do any sort of class, as my timeframe is so strange and unpredictable.

Sales time - If you're looking to take a class, we've (Blueprint) got an amazing video course that you can use to study at your own pace. You can read some first person accounts of it around here.