Short Daily Time, Long Duration Retake Prep Forum

[za51]

A

[lawschool22]

It depends on your goals. What is your GPA? What schools are you interested in? Obviously a higher score is better in almost all circumstances, but it is entirely dependent on your situation and goals.

[za51]

A

[Toby Ziegler]

Hello. I'm thinking about retaking the LSAT. I scored 173 on my first take. I'm working now, and I won't be applying until at least next year. So I have a lot of time.

Here's my question: My score isn't low enough such that I'd really NEED to retake for any reason. So obviously, I don't want to take on too much stress. But since I have the luxury of time, I figure it might be smart to use it and go for a 180. If I study for say, 1 hr/day for 9 months or so, would this suffice? Has anyone tried this kind of long-term, short daily time prep?

Obviously, I know a lot of the test already. The goal would be that, over time, the test becomes second-nature. Is this how it works for LSAT tutors--they stay proficient at the test, but I'm assuming they don't study regularly for it (perhaps a tutor on here can correct my perception)?

Thanks

I wish I had an answer that was founded but my initial thoughts would say your plan to study 1 hour a day for 9 months would work. You know the areas that you lost points and you can just sharpen those skills, or any other areas that you feel aren't where you want them to be.

The real question though, is what did you do for your initial prep to earn the 173?

Enjoy all the money you get from the top schools!

[za51]

A

[Toby Ziegler]

I wish I had an answer that was founded but my initial thoughts would say your plan to study 1 hour a day for 9 months would work. You know the areas that you lost points and you can just sharpen those skills, or any other areas that you feel aren't where you want them to be.

The real question though, is what did you do for your initial prep to earn the 173?

Enjoy all the money you get from the top schools!

I appreciate your confidence! I didn't do anything special for the 173. I studied consistently for about two months. I did the Superprep first (untimed, never took a diagnostic). Then I read the LRB and LGB. After that, my first thought was to just do all the preptests, 1 a day. Then I realized this didn't do much for me. I plateaued and even went down a little.

So I went on TLS and learned about drilling--which is the key to success, really. I bought the LR from 1-38 by type. I took the pdfs of the preptests I already had and divided the games by type. I also took out some RC. Since I only really had a month and a half at this point, and I didn't have much time otherwise, I drilled LR most. I got really, really good at LR (I went -1 on the test). I drilled LG, but never enough to make it second nature. And I sporadically did RC. And what do you know--I did worst in RC on test day, medium in LG, and excellent in LR.

I mixed in drilling with preptests. About 2 and 1/2 weeks before the test I realized I had to stop drilling and focus entirely on preptests. I kept seeing improvements, and I hit 180 on my 4th PT before the test. But then I started to decline because of stress. The scores went down, in order, and on test day, I ended up with the lowest score of the 5--a 173.

I really should have delayed till December. I wanted it to be over, but if I delayed I'm confident I could have gotten at least a 177 or so. I had LR down pat, to the point where I finished both sections in 25 mins. LG is the easiest section to improve on. And RC was actually my best section--but I was so nervous because it was my first section that I really messed it up.

Hope this helps somehow.

That is excellent advice, thank you. I think your approach is pretty good, I am doing something very similar. My GPA is near your 3.9+ and I think the lowest score I will be happy with is a 173, as I am really hoping for HYS.

Hopefully see you there as well!

[za51]

That is excellent advice, thank you. I think your approach is pretty good, I am doing something very similar. My GPA is near your 3.9+ and I think the lowest score I will be happy with is a 173, as I am really hoping for HYS.

Hopefully see you there as well!

Yes, good luck to you!