First LSAT practice test - timed Forum

[msuz]

There seem to be a lot of people on these forums saying that the first time they took a practice LSAT with no/little prior studying, they got in the 150's-160's.

At first I was a little worried, because I got a 144 on my first practice test when I timed myself, without any prior knowledge of the test whatsoever. I'd like to shoot for at least a 160, but I honestly have no idea what my potential is. The time limit is what really threw me off; I have always been a naturally good test taker, and I think that untimed I could easily get above a 160, even high 170's.

I am thinking that most of the people who got 150's and 160's their first times are probably saying they either prepared before their first test, or took it untimed?

Many people say that your first score doesn't matter, but I was wondering if anyone started the same way I did - timed their very first practice test. If so I would be curious to know what LSAT score you got first, what you ended up with, and if you think your first timed score is any predictor of your potential?

Thanks!

[am060459]

initial diagnostic timed - 134
actual lsat (took it two times) - 159

http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 6&t=121989

[msuz]

Thanks for the link, and sorry for the redundant post!

[emciosn]

I think a lot of people on these boards just had really good diagnostic scores even under timed conditions. Don't be discouraged, it is a learnable test, I went up 15 from my diagnostic. Just study hard, being at least above 160 is important.

[jbates14]

I didn't prepare at all before my first PT and I got a 161. My problem is that I missed only 3 on the LG section, so it has taken more time to improve the other sections. I have only taken 3 PTs and I am down to -1 on LG and bombing the others. A lot of people who scored in your range, did poorly on LG, and therefore can master LG because it is way more learnable. There are plenty of threads showing people's diagnostic compared to their actual scores. I believe one of them is stickied and it goes through their method of studying as well. I think it's best to view the first PT as a starting point for your studying. I have read about large jumps 20+ points, but most came with a lot of hardwork for over 3 months. What is breakdown per section? If you are missing most of the LG questions, then it will be easier to raise your score a significant number.

[msuz]

That's good news. My breakdown was 9/12/12/16, with 9 being the games section and 16 being reading comp. I also heard reading comp is hardest to improve.

I just cant believe so many people score 160's their first time taking it, without studying or knowing how to manage their time.

[rinkrat19]

My first test was timed, I'd never seen an LSAT question before, and I got a 164. The only section I ever had timing problems on was logic games. (I am a very fast reader, which helps a lot on RC and LR timing.)

That's not to discourage you, because the test is very learnable, just to correct your assumption.

If you've historically been a good standardized test taker, that bodes well for you in one important area: you should be able to score close to your practice test scores on the real thing. People who aren't good at taking tests frequently panic.

Intelligent and disciplined studying can improve scores a LOT. I didn't study all that welll (didn't discover TLS until it was almost too late) but still improved 7 points to a 171 in just under 2 months--almost entirely by getting better and faster at LG. Improving 10-15 points from your cold diagnostic is not uncommon, and improving 20 is not unheard of.

Check out Pithypike's study plan at the top of the LSAT forum. It has helped a LOT of people.

[NCB166]

Like everybody is saying, the first LSAT practice score is not a perfect indicator of your potential. Some people are used to doing logical reasoning type exercises, so they are likely to improve less in that area than somebody who doesn't commonly examine flaws in arguments. Some people just understand logic games or have seen them before, so they aren't that likely to improve a lot. The same is true for reading comprehension, as some people are used to reading and analyzing scientific journals or The Economist. If you haven't done that before, you are likely to improve more as you study for the test.

I personally got a 160 on a timed practice test when I didn't even know the format going in. I studied fairly hard, and wound up with a 167 on the real deal. I have seen others improve 10-20 points, but I feel like I did as well as I could have and have no regrets. For others, a seven point improvement would be well beneath their potential.

Without knowing the circumstances of your specific situation, it is impossible to know how much you will improve. The best thing that you can do is to give it your all. You could max out at just about any place between 150 and 170, but if you give it your all, you should have no regrets.

[glucose101]

I'm glad I didn't initially score well. If I had, I probably wouldn't be working as hard as I am now. Good luck!

[incompetentia]

I've always had the tendency to blaze through tests, so my diag was rather high since I didn't have any time problems. (Of course, from there, the ones I missed were ones I was truly whiffing on, so improvements were more difficult.)

There are plenty of people who improve 20+ points from their cold diag, and I'd say this is possible for anybody with enough time, especially if you got a bit freaked out with the way the time constraints went. You're going to really have to study intelligently, but I think it's well within reach to improve 20 points.

[bruss]

144 dia here,
My second pt was 145. Now I'm pt-ING at 167. Doesn't matter what Ur initial dia is as long as you can understand why u missed questions then the sky is the limit. Don't listen to ppl who say you can only go up so many points. Remember that you know yourself better than anyone. And if you know your not an idiot then u can aim for the stars.

[loomstate]

Good luck OP. I went up 16 points in 6 weeks studying roughly 50 hours a week. How bad do you want it?

[glucose101]

144 dia here,
Doesn't matter what Ur initial dia is as long as you can understand why u missed questions then the sky is the limit.

My thoughts

[beezy08]

I went up 15 points in a month. My teacher always stressed that there are no limits for LSAT scores. It's a skills based test so everyone has the ability to do well. It might take more effort for some than others, but you can do what you put your mind to.