Need a pick me up #sadface Forum

[inevitable510]

.

[trojandave]

My diagnostic three months ago was a 155. June test I scored a 161. My practice test, untimed, was a 172 so I know I can do a lot better. I just haven't taken enough practice tests in timed conditions and that's probably what my problem is. How many PT's should I take every week? Have nothing going on until August when semester starts and taking easy classes.

Thanks.

I'd say do 1 per week so you don't burn out, plus you can save materials for closer to the test (maybe do 2 per week when you're a couple weeks out?) Then spend the rest of your time reviewing (and I mean really understanding) what you missed. How did they trick you? How can you spot the trick in the future to avoid it? etc. Also do this for any that you got right but happened to confuse you or take a bit of time. What I would do is star anything I wasn't 100% confident in during the test so I could find it on the review, whether I got it right or wrong. Either way I knew I needed to learn something from it. This will help you ID problem areas which will help you speed up big time. Also do some timed sections on the days you're not doing a full test, or just do a chunk of 25 questions from a problem book and give yourself 35 minutes. That last method won't be exactly right since it's not an official section, but it will be pretty damn close and you'll still get the timing practice in place. Do this for LR and RC, and do 4 LGs in 35 mins too. Slowly build up to doing 2 timed sections in a row, then 3. And you'll get stamina in place while you work on timing too

[inevitable510]

.

[scandk]

I'm sure other LSAT veterans can give you great advice regarding PT schedules. Here's my two cents for the "pick me up"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vH0nP4NzS9M

I first saw this on TLS, and felt like running a marathon/studying all day/studying while running the marathon. HTH

[JasonH]

Honestly, everyone is different. The correct answer to your question is as many as it takes. Everyone is different. It took me over 30 tests to break into the 170s, I eventually got there, but it took forever.

What got me over the hump with the logical reasoning questions was taking out a blank word document and starting with question 1, go through each answer and WRITE down a 1 sentence answer to why all the wrong answers are wrong and the right answers right. For me, it was the process of putting it down into words that helped me. After I did about 300-400 problems I found that I was naturally using the same words or phrases over and over to describe why answers were wrong.

Of course, this is just what everyone says, REVIEWing your tests is the best way to learn. For me, the structure provided by forcing myself to rewrite each question and why each answer choice was wrong was the structure that I was lacking during my previous reviews.

Feel free to PM, I can show you some of the deconstructed logical reasoning sections that I did to give you an idea of what I mean, but really anything that helps you thoroughly review why certain answers are wrong is the best approach for you to do better. For me, that process was putting it into writing. Maybe all you need to do is read it, but find what works for you, and don't get frustrated if you can't see the improvement right away.