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Hi All,

I'm currently enrolled in a Blueprint LSAT course. My diagnostic score was 159, and I was hoping to score 170 on the September LSAT, or at least high 160s. However, after 6 weeks in the course and several timed practice tests, I'm not seeing any improvement. My instructor has said that I still have plenty of time to improve and that most students don't see improvement until the end, however I'm not so sure. Is it still possible that I could see the kind of improvement I'm hoping for in the remaining month (!) until the September LSAT, or should I delay until December and overhaul my study schedule/approach? I'm mostly just going through the Blueprint materials now and doing some additional prep tests on my own. I typically am pretty good at standardized tests (I scored 1500 on the SAT) so am a little surprised and discouraged at my lack of progress. LG is definitely my weakest - I seem to score only around 13 or so on that section. Any suggestions re: the best study strategy from here would be most appreciated.

Thanks so much!

It is possible, but at this point I don't know if it is probable enough to justify taking in September. This is especially true for you since you are averaging around 160 while missing around half of the questions on LG. What you stand to gain by waiting seems fairly significant: LG is the section on which most people see the most improvement, you could be looking at a very strong score if you can perfect LG. If you can go from averaging -11 to averaging -1 or -2 on games withing four weeks then kudos, but if that seems unlikely wait, perfect games, dominate in December.

It's possible but not probable. I suggest really thinking critically about your prep (and perhaps trying something different) and taking in December. When I took the June test, I had a PT-heavy study strategy that didn't work for me. I changed things up, am mostly drilling with the occasional PT now, and am feeling much more confident for Sept. Good luck!

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smccgrey wrote:

RunnerRunner wrote:It is possible, but at this point I don't know if it is probable enough to justify taking in September. This is especially true for you since you are averaging around 160 while missing around half of the questions on LG. What you stand to gain by waiting seems fairly significant: LG is the section on which most people see the most improvement, you could be looking at a very strong score if you can perfect LG. If you can go from averaging -11 to averaging -1 or -2 on games withing four weeks then kudos, but if that seems unlikely wait, perfect games, dominate in December.

I agree, but boosting games that much, that quickly is definitely possible. It depends on what makes you go -11. If it's timing, relentless drilling can be enough. If it's just not 'getting' games, it might take a little more than 4 weeks (though it's definitely possible to master them).

Yeah...how much time do you have to study, OP?

hillz wrote:It's possible but not probable. I suggest really thinking critically about your prep (and perhaps trying something different) and taking in December. When I took the June test, I had a PT-heavy study strategy that didn't work for me. I changed things up, am mostly drilling with the occasional PT now, and am feeling much more confident for Sept. Good luck!

Not trying to de-rail OP but can you please elaborate—either here or in a PM—on your prep process and the change to/reason for changing from PT-heavy studying to more drilling with the occasional PT? Thanks.

jw316 wrote:

hillz wrote:It's possible but not probable. I suggest really thinking critically about your prep (and perhaps trying something different) and taking in December. When I took the June test, I had a PT-heavy study strategy that didn't work for me. I changed things up, am mostly drilling with the occasional PT now, and am feeling much more confident for Sept. Good luck!

Not trying to de-rail OP but can you please elaborate—either here or in a PM—on your prep process and the change to/reason for changing from PT-heavy studying to more drilling with the occasional PT? Thanks.

I'm not gonna speak for the other poster's reasoning, but I know that drilling really helps to get down the fundamentals of different problem types. If you're just doing PTs there
Is a chance you are just trying to get as many questions right to see a higher score rather than fundamentally knowing why you are gettin them right, why some are wrong and the best method for attacking certain problems.

Thanks so much, all. How do you all suggest that I best approach focusing in on LG? Going through LG Bible? Can you elaborate on a "drilling" approach versus taking lots of PTs? Thanks tons!

coramdeo wrote:Thanks so much, all. How do you all suggest that I best approach focusing in on LG? Going through LG Bible? Can you elaborate on a "drilling" approach versus taking lots of PTs? Thanks tons!

I used manhattan LG. It was cool nothing amazing, I saw improvement after going through every LG from the Cambridge packets. They break down every LG from 1-39 by type. Don't get too tied to in type, just figure out a formulaic way to diagram and with practice the games just become quicker and easier

FWIW, I had a 159 diag as well. I'm just now starting to get 169-172 with highest being 173, and I've read the Trainer, all the bibles, and the MLSAT, as well as paid a private tutor twice a week for two months. I study 6 days a week, average 5 hours a day (lately its been 7-9 hours) and have been keeping this up for several months now.

So there ya go OP. I guess the moral of the story is that it may be possible to get the score you desire, but if you were to study for 15 hours a day, 7 days a week, every single day until September you still would not likely be close to the amount of hours I've put in. Although its impossible to compare "hours" to an increase in score, its alright to start a basis for an argument there.

TBF, the only way I can see it happening is if you're like -15 on games. Other than that, I'd defer til December. Take some pressure off, and learn the concepts the way they were meant to be learned.

hillz wrote:It's possible but not probable. I suggest really thinking critically about your prep (and perhaps trying something different) and taking in December. When I took the June test, I had a PT-heavy study strategy that didn't work for me. I changed things up, am mostly drilling with the occasional PT now, and am feeling much more confident for Sept. Good luck!

also, and im not trying to humble brag (because I definitely dont have the grounds too.... you seen my RC's?) I went from -7 on games to 0-2 in 2 weeks. Definitely possible. Especially with the games getting slightly more structured. A lot of hard work, but if I can learn the foundations of LG in a 5 dollar Princeton Review book, I bet OP would have no problem with an actual valid source. However, still doesnt really mean he'll make a 170. That's still VERY unlikely

ilikebaseball wrote:

hillz wrote:It's possible but not probable. I suggest really thinking critically about your prep (and perhaps trying something different) and taking in December. When I took the June test, I had a PT-heavy study strategy that didn't work for me. I changed things up, am mostly drilling with the occasional PT now, and am feeling much more confident for Sept. Good luck!

also, and im not trying to humble brag (because I definitely dont have the grounds too.... you seen my RC's?) I went from -7 on games to 0-2 in 2 weeks. Definitely possible. Especially with the games getting slightly more structured. A lot of hard work, but if I can learn the foundations of LG in a 5 dollar Princeton Review book, I bet OP would have no problem with an actual valid source. However, still doesnt really mean he'll make a 170. That's still VERY unlikely

Gawd enough of the humblebrag.

Just kidding, But for real this. It's not at all ridiculous to expect drastic LG improvements quickly. But again there are 3 other sections so that alone isn't sufficient for a 170.

Pick a study guide for LG, use it & take the September LSAT. You can retake in December if not satisfied with your score.

jw316 wrote:

hillz wrote:It's possible but not probable. I suggest really thinking critically about your prep (and perhaps trying something different) and taking in December. When I took the June test, I had a PT-heavy study strategy that didn't work for me. I changed things up, am mostly drilling with the occasional PT now, and am feeling much more confident for Sept. Good luck!

Not trying to de-rail OP but can you please elaborate—either here or in a PM—on your prep process and the change to/reason for changing from PT-heavy studying to more drilling with the occasional PT? Thanks.

Sure! I got a 166 on the June test, which was (obviously) lower than I had hoped. I work full time and late spring/summer is my busiest time at work, so the timing of the June test wasn't great...but still. When I studied for the June test, I read the Powerscore LG and LR Bibles and then practiced using PTs only and the exercise sets in the Bibles. I hadn't purchased any of the Cambridge sets at the time. I don't think I really understood how to prep and my motivation for PTing constantly was driven by anxiety - will I score higher/lower today/ what will make in June? I also didn't do a great job of reviewing or using blind review.

Before I got my June score back, I had started researching retakers guides. I like NoodleyOne's guide on TLS and it was really his that made me think about using drilling as the focus of my prep rather than PTs. So I re-read the Powerscore Bibles, as he recommends, and then ordered the Cambridge LR and LG sets. I have a study schedule that I use and have started enjoying studying (crazy!). Everyone's different, but for me, it has been great to have both the repetition that drilling provides and the ability to really "learn" methods for the various types of problem. Yesterday, I purchased the RC packets...should have done that a long time ago but I just assumed RC would be easy for me since I've always been pretty good at it. I don't know what Sept will bring, but I am feeling more confident about the test than I did in June. In June, I felt like the results were left up to luck, but now, I'm realizing more and more that I can relax and do what I've done day after day, problem after problem.

CanadianWolf wrote:Pick a study guide for LG, use it & take the September LSAT. You can retake in December if not satisfied with your score.

Yeah, I guess that's the other thing. If you feel like you can score decently and you have the $$ to do it, then you can take the Sept test as a trial run and get a feel for what Dec. test day will be like.

coramdeo wrote:Thanks so much, all. How do you all suggest that I best approach focusing in on LG? Going through LG Bible? Can you elaborate on a "drilling" approach versus taking lots of PTs? Thanks tons!

LG Bible was very helpful for me and then I use 7Sage for when I'm stuck on a problem or feel like there's a more efficient approach that I haven't figured out yet. Buy the Cambridge LG that are grouped by type and then work through the sets are on your own time.