LSAT scheduling for full time workers Forum

[MyNameIsntJames]

Hey everyone:


So I work a full time job and I'm sure there are plenty others here who have graduated and taken a gap year or longer at this point. I think its a little bit harder for us than those still in college (no disrespect) to stay on top of this LSAT thing because of the additional responsibilities life puts on us, plus being obligated to be in one place for 8 hours.

So I wanted everyone to post ITT their typical schedules they use to fit in LSAT prep if you work full-time.

Here's my schedule right now:

5:00-5:30 a.m.-Wake up (depends on how many snoozes I hit)
5:30 a.m.-On the road
6:30-7 a.m.-Arrive at work (my commute is vicious, I know)
7:00-7:30 a.m.-Eat breakfast served at the hotel across the street and watch the news, bullshit online for 30 minutes.
7:30-8 a.m.-Prepare for work, read e-mails or whatnot.
8 a.m.-Noon-Work, attend meetings, blah blah
12 noon-1 p.m.- Lunch break. I try to do at least 1 section or study for 30-45 minutes of this break. If I'm feeling ambitious I'll study the whole break, but sometimes that's too draining. I pack my lunch everyday so that I don't have to spend any time going out to get food.
1-4 or 5 p.m.-Finish out my work day.
5-8:00- LSAT Prep/study/drills. No phone calls/social media or whatever. Just locked in.
(7:00 p.m.)-Dinner
8:00-9:00-Drive home.
9:00-9:45-Workout. I usually grind out for at least 30 minutes in the gym. I try not to surpass 45 minutes for personal workout goal reasons. Don't want to turn this into a bodybuilding thread.
9:45-10 ish-Shower
10:00-11-Leisure. I'll read, text, surf the web, whatever. I try not to stay up later than 11 since I have to wake up so early. 6 hours of sleep isn't the greatest, but its sufficient enough where I don't get broken down on my day to day.


Weekends usually consist solely of working out and study with both being used as intermittent breaks for each other. So maybe take a PT, bust out a 30-45 min workout, rinse repeat.

This is strictly an LSAT schedule and when the test is over I can go back to enjoying life a lot more (knock on wood, I'll probably be hammering down apps). This is the best schedule for me that allows me to get a decent amount of hours of prep during the weekdays (15-20 hours) + a solid 10-15 on the weekends to add up to 25-35 hours/week without murdering myself or cramming. Working out is something I personally enjoy a lot, so don't look at that as an additional 'task'. Its like my version of adult recess to just do something productive that doesn't involve any critical thinking at all and snaps me out of 'work mode' or 'LSAT mode'. My diet is extremely conservative, just quick meals that take no more than 15 minutes to eat with 0 preparation time, but are still healthy.

My advice is don't underestimate the benefits of sleep and a consistent, healthy diet. Even at 6 hours, I'm kind of borderline in terms of getting a decent amount of sleep in. If you're getting less than that I'd strongly recommend adjusting your schedule somehow. You may have to sacrifice something. Same with food. This isn't the best time to be crash dieting. You don't have to engorge, but if you work out for 45 minutes everyday (real workouts, not bsing in the gym) and eat between 1500-2k calories, you'll have well enough energy to nourish your mind and still cut as well. If you're looking to gain (guys), then go ahead and eat 3000-3500 if you need to. Just make sure you aren't spending too much time on meal prep. Do it all Sunday night if you can so that you can minimize time spent cooking.

Avoiding distractions is key, obviously. Having variation in what you're doing is too. I try to workout/study in different places just to have some sort of different stimulation coming in. My 10:00-11 leisure time is religiously mine. I do not do any LSAT studying at all when I'm done. Idc if I have the worst section of my life and get a -20 on something, I'm done for the day when that happens. Its good to have different stuff for you to focus on, so that you aren't going balls to the wall and start hating life because of this exam. I personally think 25-35 hours a week is pretty sufficient for someone who's looking to break 165+.

Post your feedback and your schedules if you're full time! Maybe we can learn from each other and adjust accordingly.




I'm lucky in that I only have to work 37.5 hours a week and I get a lot of flexibility in whether I want to work from home or not so sometimes my days change, but I really try to stick to the general schedule above.

[Voyager]

Mine was:

3 hours of Prep after work every night during the week
6 Hours of prep Saturday
6 Hours of prep Sunday

I also was taking the Kaplan LSAT Extreme course and it met several times a week for 3 hours each (I think... maybe 3 times a week? It's been 8 years...). The class time took the place of regular studying.

I started that pace in earnest 2 months out. I could manage it. I was working 8-5 during the week. Yeah, I gave up on having much fun, but it was a 3 months sprint to get into the best school possible.

3 months out I was doing less: maybe 2 hours during the week at night and 3 hours each weekend day max.

Diagnostic was a 164
Actual was a 174 (June, 2006)

[greatspirit]

How do you guys muster the energy to study after work? For me, that is my least productive time of the week.

Also this thread topic is crucial, thanks for starting this. In my case, I just try to do an hour in the morning before work 3 times a week, and then do as much as humanly possible on Saturday & Sunday.

If anything, "LSAT scheduling for full time workers" should be "Being At Peace With Sacrificing Your Weekends"

[Voyager]

How do you guys muster the energy to study after work? For me, that is my least productive time of the week.

Also this thread topic is crucial, thanks for starting this. In my case, I just try to do an hour in the morning before work 3 times a week, and then do as much as humanly possible on Saturday & Sunday.

If anything, "LSAT scheduling for full time workers" should be "Being At Peace With Sacrificing Your Weekends"

Well, I pictured myself graduating from a school with $300k of debt and a job as an attorney making only $50k... an income level I had long since already attained WITHOUT the debt.

Was PLENTY motivation.

If you can't sacrifice evenings and weekends for 2-3 months to ensure your future, you aren't going to make a very good attorney anyway. Tends to require long hours.

[greatspirit]

How do you guys muster the energy to study after work? For me, that is my least productive time of the week.

Also this thread topic is crucial, thanks for starting this. In my case, I just try to do an hour in the morning before work 3 times a week, and then do as much as humanly possible on Saturday & Sunday.

If anything, "LSAT scheduling for full time workers" should be "Being At Peace With Sacrificing Your Weekends"

Well, I pictured myself graduating from a school with $300k of debt and a job as an attorney making only $50k... an income level I had long since already attained WITHOUT the debt.

Was PLENTY motivation.

If you can't sacrifice evenings and weekends for 2-3 months to ensure your future, you aren't going to make a very good attorney anyway. Tends to require long hours.

Touche. I'm fine with working late - the issue is mentally switching gears from work to LSAT studying once I get home, as studying at my office is not feasible.

I understand the "just put up or shut up" mentality, but I don't find that to be actually helpful advice. It seems MyNameIsntJames incorporated evening workouts into their routine - perhaps that is a tweak I would find advantageous, so thanks for that MyNameIsn'tJames.

Hoping this thread spawns more of such advice.

[Voyager]

Touche. I'm fine with working late - the issue is mentally switching gears from work to LSAT studying once I get home, as studying at my office is not feasible.

I understand the "just put up or shut up" mentality, but I don't find that to be actually helpful advice. It seems MyNameIsntJames incorporated evening workouts into their routine - perhaps that is a tweak I would find advantageous, so thanks for that MyNameIsn'tJames.

Hoping this thread spawns more of such advice.

Fair enough. Everyone needs to figure out what works for them. For me this was easy: throw myself at the problem for 2 months because I really wanted to go to the best possible school.

I hate losing.

I didn't need any other motivation.

[RamTitan]

OP, your schedule sounds like a holy nightmare. I just studied during lunch and took practice tests on the weekends. With that said, I did that consistently for 8 months, with 3 months of full-time dedicated studying prior to it.

[Foniks]

Studying after work is brutal, but it probably depends on the job/hours of work. I typically put in 13 hour days, with a lot of reading/thinking. For me, my schedule has been pretty consistently:

5am: Wake up, and study LSAT.
6am: Leave for work.
7pm: Home from work. Be nice to dogs/spouse.
8pm: Study for LSAT.
10pm: Bed.

Obviously, my personal life has suffered a great deal from this... I'm ready to get this thing over with.

[Walliums]

.

[greatspirit]

Oof, how do some of you survive on such little sleep? I do my best to get in at least 8, no more than 9. When I get less than 7.5, I really suffer.

Depending on how my mornings go, I try to get a half-hour in before I go to work.
At lunch, I get in between a half-hour and an hour.
Come home from work, spend time with spouse, try to clean/cook/be a responsible adult.
Get in another hour to hour-and-a-half - helps that spouse is in medical school so we can study together (awwww )

On the weekends, it has depended on whether or not I take a practice test. I've been doing a lot of book-reading and trying to not cram in too much information so that I'm retaining everything. On average, it's been about 3-4 hours/day on the weekends. Again, with my spouse, which is nice.

Study partner (despite not being a law student/pre law student commiseration from your spouse/significant other sounds beautiful )is key - most of the success I've had with after-work, during the week studying is group studying.

Otherwise, morning studying before work - from time to time I can put in a solid hour before work (if I get up by 5:30-6:00am, and forgo going to the gym that morning).