How long should I study and how? CONFUSED! Forum

nyckid1 · Post by **nyckid1** » Wed Dec 23, 2015 12:34 am

I'm a junior and plan on taking the June 2016 LSAT. I was going to pay for the TestMasters course. However, yesterday I was introduced to a company called 7Sage. I read an article on the 7Sage site that argued a year is the minimum amount of time one should devote to LSAT prep. ONE YEAR?! I don't have that kind of time. Advice anyone?

Clemenceau · Post by **Clemenceau** » Wed Dec 23, 2015 12:43 am

Varies by person, but I doubt anyone *needs* a year. I think 3-4 months of fairly rigorous studying is going to be more than enough for most people.

gamerish · Post by **gamerish** » Wed Dec 23, 2015 12:47 am

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Clemenceau · Post by **Clemenceau** » Wed Dec 23, 2015 12:58 am

I also meant to say how shitty I think prep classes are in my previous post. Don't waste your money

LurkSoHard · Post by **LurkSoHard** » Wed Dec 23, 2015 1:49 am

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RZ5646 · Post by **RZ5646** » Wed Dec 23, 2015 2:40 pm

It depends. If you truly want to get the highest score you could possibly get, then yes, you should probably lock yourself in a room and do nothing but LSAT prep for the next year or more. If you're a normal person and just want a good enough score to get into your target school, then that will take anything from 1 month to 1 year of prep depending on your goal score and starting point.

BizBro · Post by **BizBro** » Wed Dec 23, 2015 4:11 pm

Scored in the 170s with 3 months of rigerous self studying -=25-30 hours per week. Started with 0 knowledge of the LSAT. Know other people with similar anecdotal stories. YMMV

RamTitan · Post by **RamTitan** » Wed Dec 23, 2015 7:42 pm

I'm all about "slow and steady wins the race"; I study about 6-10 hours a week, and have been doing this for 7 months. My scored has increased by 25 points. Like it has been said, a lot of your study plans depends on the time available to you and what your goals are. For example, if you work full-time you're going to be miserable studying 30 hours a week to get ready for the LSAT.

lymenheimer · Post by **lymenheimer** » Wed Dec 23, 2015 10:50 pm

There are numerous study guides on this site both for long term and short term. Take a look and see what you think. Everyone is different

Blueprint Mithun · Post by **Blueprint Mithun** » Thu Dec 24, 2015 6:20 pm

nyckid1 wrote:I'm a junior and plan on taking the June 2016 LSAT. I was going to pay for the TestMasters course. However, yesterday I was introduced to a company called 7Sage. I read an article on the 7Sage site that argued a year is the minimum amount of time one should devote to LSAT prep. ONE YEAR?! I don't have that kind of time. Advice anyone?

Check out my post in this topic. I addressed the concerns of someone who has just started studying:

http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 6&t=258103

Your timeframe for studying really depends on three things: your natural aptitude for the LSAT, how effectively you study, and what your target score is. You won't know what your natural aptitude is until you dive in, take a diagnostic test, and work through some prep books or a course to learn the material.

If, after learning the content of the test, you're still 15+ points from your target score, then yes, it may take that long to work yourself up there. It also may not take that long. Since you're in school, it might be hard to pull off keeping your grades up while studying rigorously (15-20/hrs a week or so). The best advice I received about the LSAT was to treat it like a part-time job (that you don't get paid for - I suppose it's more like an internship, then

). Work at it consistently, and don't forget the stakes.

Ask yourself if you're the type who'd rather take it slow and steady, or crank it out and be done with it. You've been in school a long time - which approach has worked better for you in the past. If the idea of studying for a whole year totally mortifies you, it's definitely possible for most to pull it off in a few months, granted they spent at least 3-4 hours a day.

Broncos15 · Post by **Broncos15** » Thu Dec 24, 2015 10:16 pm

It's hard to give a definitive answer on this at least from my perspective. I think it's so individualized, For example it took me closer to 4-5 months to really understand the LSAT.....I was in the low 150's despite nearly 20 hours a week for 4 months....while it was frustrating not seeing gains, in three weeks after I took the June 2014 exam I went from a 154 to a 168....I felt things really started to "click" and my scores rose. But I felt the quick increase was because of the foundation I had made with the prior 4 months even if I wasn't seeing the results.

I also believe 7sage's advice for a year may also take into account the possibility of a retake that many people use - you may have a great grasp of the material and be PTing at 170-174 but end up with a 167 on test day for example..... 3-5 point drops are unfortunately not uncommon