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Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 6:50 pm
by analytic_philosopher
I'm really sorry if this topic has been done to death, but I couldn't find it, so here goes:
Other than the individual prep tests (which cost $8 each), LSAC offers three "compilation" volumes that contain 10 tests each at a more reasonable price:
10 Actual, Official LSAT PrepTests ™
PrepTests 7, 9-16, 18
10 More Actual, Official LSAT PrepTests ™
PrepTests 19-28
The Next 10 Actual, Official LSAT PrepTests ™
PrepTests 29-38
10 New Actual LSAT PrepTests w/Comparative Reading ™
PrepTests 52-61
Obviously the most recent one is an excellent buy and I should definitely get it. But what about the older ones? It sucks that they are all older than test number 38. Would it be better for me to spend my money on buying tests 40 - 52 (which seems not to be included in any of the compilation volumes)?
Thanks for the advice.
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 6:55 pm
by Nova
Get 62 through 66 individually for sure.
28-38 is great, IMO.
Every LSAT is useful if you have the time.
The LSAT has not really changed much over time. The underlying logic is the same.
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 6:56 pm
by gaud
Nova wrote:Every LSAT is useful if you have the time.
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 6:58 pm
by analytic_philosopher
Nova wrote:Get 62 through 66 individually for sure.
28-38 is great, IMO.
Every LSAT is useful if you have the time.
Right, I'm definitely going to buy 62 - 66 individually because those tests aren't part of any compilation. And, I'm definitely going to get the 52 - 61 compilation. So, that's 15 tests that I'm definitely going to get.
But in addition, I probably want another 10 or 15 tests. I'm wondering if I should go with the older compilations? Or instead buy tests 40 - 52 individually?
Nova wrote:Every LSAT is useful if you have the time.
I don't disagree. But realistically, I will only have time to do a certain amount of tests. My goal is about 30 or 35 tests. So, I'm just trying to decide which ones would be optimal.
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 7:04 pm
by gaud
Focus on the more recent tests. So, if you do 30, it will best to get tests 36-66 (or however many there are now).
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 7:05 pm
by Nightrunner
gaud wrote:Focus on the more recent tests. So, if you do 30, it will best to get tests 36-66 (or however many there are now).
This is good advice.
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 7:09 pm
by analytic_philosopher
gaud wrote:Focus on the more recent tests. So, if you do 30, it will best to get tests 36-66 (or however many there are now).
Thanks. That's what I was thinking also.
This means that the only people who should be doing the older tests are people who are planning to do more than 30 practice tests?
It sucks that LSAC doesn't offer compilations of more recent tests like it does for the old tests - obviously they would rather have you pay $8 a pop.
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 7:11 pm
by Nova
analytic_philosopher wrote:gaud wrote:Focus on the more recent tests. So, if you do 30, it will best to get tests 36-66 (or however many there are now).
Thanks. That's what I was thinking also.
This means that the only people who should be doing the older tests are people who are planning to do more than 30 practice tests?
Well, if you want to take 30 practice test, then youll need more material. Youll need the older ones for drilling and working individual sections when you are not taking full PTs.
The implication was that you only wanted to do 30 tests of material, not that you wanted to take 30 pts.
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 7:12 pm
by gaud
analytic_philosopher wrote:gaud wrote:Focus on the more recent tests. So, if you do 30, it will best to get tests 36-66 (or however many there are now).
Thanks. That's what I was thinking also.
This means that the only people who should be doing the older tests are people who are planning to do more than 30 practice tests?
More or less, yes. The idea is that the more recent tests are going to be more like what you'll actually see on test day. A lot of people will save the more recent tests for their full-length practice sessions and use the older ones for drilling of individual sections.
EDIT: scooped by Nova
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 7:27 pm
by analytic_philosopher
gaud wrote:analytic_philosopher wrote:gaud wrote:Focus on the more recent tests. So, if you do 30, it will best to get tests 36-66 (or however many there are now).
Thanks. That's what I was thinking also.
This means that the only people who should be doing the older tests are people who are planning to do more than 30 practice tests?
More or less, yes. The idea is that the more recent tests are going to be more like what you'll actually see on test day. A lot of people will save the more recent tests for their full-length practice sessions and use the older ones for drilling of individual sections.
EDIT: scooped by Nova
Ok, got it.
For drilling, I was planning to use those bible books. Would that be adequate for drilling?
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 7:31 pm
by Nova
analytic_philosopher wrote:
Ok, got it.
For drilling, I was planning to use those bible books. Would that be adequate for drilling?
These?
http://www.amazon.com/PowerScores-LSAT- ... 0982661827
Yeah, thats fine.
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 7:32 pm
by gaud
analytic_philosopher wrote:For drilling, I was planning to use those bible books. Would that be adequate for drilling?
Not unless you're talking about the PS workbooks (I think that's what they're called). You're definitely going to want to drill more than what is in the regular bibles. Have you looked at Pithypike's Guide?
http://top-law-schools.com/forums/viewt ... =6&t=41657 It should give you an idea of what an ideal study plan will look like.
You use the regular bibles to learn the basics. Practice the basics while drilling older test sections (initially untimed). Then, once you've got a grasp of it all, you move on to timed, full-length tests for complete mastery.
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 7:44 pm
by analytic_philosopher
gaud wrote:analytic_philosopher wrote:For drilling, I was planning to use those bible books. Would that be adequate for drilling?
Not unless you're talking about the PS workbooks (I think that's what they're called). You're definitely going to want to drill more than what is in the regular bibles. Have you looked at Pithypike's Guide?
http://top-law-schools.com/forums/viewt ... =6&t=41657 It should give you an idea of what an ideal study plan will look like.
You use the regular bibles to learn the basics. Practice the basics while drilling older test sections (initially untimed). Then, once you've got a grasp of it all, you move on to timed, full-length tests for complete mastery.
Thanks; I did look at the guide but I didn't read it closely. I thought it would be more useful for me once I actually got started with studying.
On a different note - and sorry if I come across as cocky - but are there any books that are specifically geared for students aiming for 180? I took a diagnostic test in which I scored 175 and my educational background has already prepared me quite well for these types of questions (B.A. Philosophy & Mathematics, MSc. Logic). I really don't think I need to be reading an intro to logic or anything like that. What I need more than anything is to understand the various different types of LSAT questions and drill excessively.
Would the bibles still be good for someone like me? Are they focused more on drills? Or explanations / strategy?
No, sorry, I've never seen those before.
Could you please explain what that book is? Nevermind, I just read the description on Amazon. Awesome, this seems like the perfect drilling material.
I was talking about these bibles:
http://www.amazon.com/PowerScore-LSAT-L ... lsat+bible
http://www.amazon.com/PowerScore-LSAT-L ... lsat+bible
http://www.amazon.com/PowerScore-LSAT-R ... lsat+bible
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 7:48 pm
by theprophet89
It would be far more cost effective to do 19-38 and 52-66, rather than 36-66. The book containing tests 40-50 is over 3x as expensive as LSAC-published books ($20 for 29-58 vs. $70+ for 41-50).
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 7:48 pm
by NoodleyOne
Manhattan is geared to high scorers. That being said a cold diag of 175 may make most of that irrelevant. You may just want to drill and pt to get more familiar.
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 7:52 pm
by Nova
analytic_philosopher wrote:
3.Would the bibles still be good for someone like me? Are they focused more on drills? Or explanations / strategy?
2. No, sorry, I've never seen those before. Could you please explain what that book is? Nevermind, I just read the description on Amazon. Awesome, this seems like the perfect drilling material.
1. I was talking about these bibles:
1. Those are the basic guides that Gaud correctly said are not sufficient for drilling. They only have a handful of questions for each question type.
2. Those work books are every question from either 1-20 or 21-40 organized by question type (for LR), game type (AR), or passage type (RC). Other companies offter them as well.
3. I agree with Noodle. M is more sophisticated and is tailored for higher scorers.
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 7:55 pm
by gaud
NoodleyOne wrote:Manhattan is geared to high scorers. That being said a cold diag of 175 may make most of that irrelevant. You may just want to drill and pt to get more familiar.
+1
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 8:31 pm
by analytic_philosopher
Ok, I just spent the last 30 minutes researching the differences between Powerscore and Manhattan and have come to the conclusion that Manhattan would be better for me. However, I'm also going to get the LG bible from Powerscore as an additional reference just because that particular book has an unmatched reputation.
Now, for drilling:
The drill books suggested by Nova seemed to be perfect:
http://www.amazon.com/PowerScores-LSAT- ... 0982661827
But I'm unable to find the equivalent from Manhattan.
Should I just skip these and use the real LSATs (older tests) for drilling?
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 8:33 pm
by NoodleyOne
Cambridge is credited for drill packets.
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 8:43 pm
by Nova
NoodleyOne wrote:Cambridge is credited for drill packets.
Agreed. Thats what I used, and really liked them. The catagories are basically the same and only slightly different, so I would just go with the cheapest.
http://www.amazon.com/LSAT-Logical-Reas ... stion+type
AP wrote:Should I just skip these and use the real LSATs (older tests) for drilling?
You could just use old PTs for drilling. That works just fine, but its a lot less convenient.
Here is AR by type:
http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... =6&t=50657
Here is LR by type (stickied):
http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 6&t=108425
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 8:48 pm
by analytic_philosopher
Thanks for the link but these are rather expensive; $50 a piece is $150 total. The Powerscore product that you linked to earlier in this thread seemed to be the exact same thing for less than half the price. Is there any reason you think the extra cost of the Cambridge books is justified?
Nevermind: The price difference isn't as significant as I thought. Would it be more advisable to get a more recent volume so that the questions are closer to today's questions?
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 9:04 pm
by analytic_philosopher
Cambridge also has books for drilling the Manhattan types:
Logic Games Strategy Guide Workbook (LinkRemoved)
Logical Reasoning Strategy Guide Workbook (LinkRemoved)
Would it be better to use these instead of the regular practice books?
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 9:07 pm
by Nova
You can mix and match several differnt ways. For instances:
PS 1-20;Drill by type; $90
28-38; Drill by section; $20
39-51; PT; $104
52-61; PT; $20
62-66; PT; $40
M Bundle; $70
Total: $344 not including shipping
Bundle to save $40:
http://www.amazon.com/Manhattan-LSAT-Se ... 12-6418442
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 9:08 pm
by Nova
analytic_philosopher wrote:Cambridge also has books for drilling the Manhattan types:
Logic Games Strategy Guide Workbook (LinkRemoved)
Logical Reasoning Strategy Guide Workbook (LinkRemoved)
Would it be better to use these instead of the regular practice books?
That would certainly keep everything more consistent.
Re: Which Practice Tests to Buy?
Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2012 9:41 pm
by analytic_philosopher