Retake Tips? Forum

[OhMyLaw]

Hi everyone,

Just another casualty of that September test, hopping to recover with December. I scored within my expected range so don't have any super pressing issues. I have a few questions about studying for a retake.

- How useful is the LSAT trainer for a retake in such a short amount of time?
- What's one single change you did that made a difference? I.e. Studying in a busy coffee shop, taking the prep tests in the morning etc.
- any other tips are welcome ^_^

If it helps to give a little background about my studying habits, I took most of my pts in the morning with strict timing. Did about five actual 5 section pts. Self studied using the power score bibles. On blind reviews, generally 90+% accuracy on all sections. And I can finish every section in time, although not usually much room for review. Oh and got a 160 in September lol

[Rupert Pupkin]

Are you a student, do you work.. ? what are your obligations besides LSAT? the trainer is great and was recommended to me for retake and Im going through it now and finding it very helpful-- but if you plan on DEC it would be cutting it close to go through another book and get sufficient practice, drilling and PTing in time.

[OhMyLaw]

Are you a student, do you work.. ? what are your obligations besides LSAT? the trainer is great and was recommended to me for retake and Im going through it now and finding it very helpful-- but if you plan on DEC it would be cutting it close to go through another book and get sufficient practice, drilling and PTing in time.

Yea I'm currently a full time student in my last year of UG, graduating a year early. I'm also working 15ish hours a week but it's a chill library job so I study most of the time lol. Aside from that, I can pretty much brush everything else aside for December.

[ws120]

Retook this Sept, went up +10 from 167 to 177. It really depends on what your score was this cycle and how high you want to move up. What was your score and how well did you perform in each of the sections? The Trainer is the best book on the market, but really its an introduction. Moving up takes a lot of practice on real simulated tests... Feel free to PM me with some more details if you want.

[Walliums]

Are you opposed to waiting until Feb (or waiting until you are scoring in the range you want?)

[guynourmin]

I went -11 on LR the first time I took (-3 on both LG and RC), so this might be too simple of an answer, but for the first month and a half or two of my re-study effort, I did NO games or RC, I did no full length tests, and I hardly timed myself. I just drilled the hell out of LR over and over again. a 160 is 26-27 Qs wrong. You said you don't have any super pressing issues, but there has to be one section you're going -10 on, right? DRILL it. Just getting better at one section and keeping the others the same could bring you up to a 166-168.

[OhMyLaw]

Are you opposed to waiting until Feb (or waiting until you are scoring in the range you want?)

Well I strongly prefer to apply this cycle. So the plan rn is to study my butt off for December (and hopefully also do well on my finals). And if I can do well enough to get into a T14 with reasonable expectation of money, then probs gonna apply.

If I don't do so hot, I'll probably retake in June or something and apply next cycle. Probably find a job or something for that year.

[OhMyLaw]

Thanks everyone for your replies again!

I went -11 on LR the first time I took (-3 on both LG and RC), so this might be too simple of an answer, but for the first month and a half or two of my re-study effort, I did NO games or RC, I did no full length tests, and I hardly timed myself. I just drilled the hell out of LR over and over again. a 160 is 26-27 Qs wrong. You said you don't have any super pressing issues, but there has to be one section you're going -10 on, right? DRILL it. Just getting better at one section and keeping the others the same could bring you up to a 166-168.

I think my issue is stamina. My PT's showed it and this September test also supports it. For this test, I got exactly 6-7 wrong on each section. And for PTs, my weak sections would be all over the place. That said, i'll definitely do what you recommend for LGs since I know they're the most easy to improve. Thanks for the advice

[guynourmin]

Thanks everyone for your replies again!

I went -11 on LR the first time I took (-3 on both LG and RC), so this might be too simple of an answer, but for the first month and a half or two of my re-study effort, I did NO games or RC, I did no full length tests, and I hardly timed myself. I just drilled the hell out of LR over and over again. a 160 is 26-27 Qs wrong. You said you don't have any super pressing issues, but there has to be one section you're going -10 on, right? DRILL it. Just getting better at one section and keeping the others the same could bring you up to a 166-168.

I think my issue is stamina. My PT's showed it and this September test also supports it. For this test, I got exactly 6-7 wrong on each section. And for PTs, my weak sections would be all over the place. That said, i'll definitely do what you recommend for LGs since I know they're the most easy to improve. Thanks for the advice

Yeah, if you're getting 6-7 wrong in LG, tighten that up! Should get going -0 on 3/4 games every time imo. If the hardest game trips you up, so be it; should still be -3/4 at most.

Then, obviously you have to remember that LR is half the test!

good luck!