Need advice: tutor? Forum

[Mollythecat]

Hi guys - Need ur advice on whether I should find a tutor. Currently unemployed with an early empty wallet. But if a tutor is the most reasonable/promising step I have in hand right now, I would give it a try. That's why I hope to get some advice here

I have taken LSAT for 3 times in March (160), June (165) and September (waiting for the score). Have studied full-time for about 6 months in total (I decided to give up law school after June's test, but came back to LSAT's hug in late August). For the materials, I have tried manhattan prep, LSAT Trainer, Loophole in LR and etc. In April and May, I almost did 1 PT/day + review, and nearly used up all the PTs after 40. So sad a story ...

My highest PT score is 174 on PT80. Most of the time it varies between 165-170.
LG: -0 to -3 (Tho in September's test I guessed almost 8 questions).
LR: -2 to -5 each section. But during real tests, I always rushed through and cannot digest the contents and think like a real person. Always flag/circle at least 4 questions, but never get the chance to go back and think further.
RC: -3 to -5 (Used to be -5 to -7; improved by a little in the last month, but not sure whether I was merely being lucky since it happened only one week ago.)

I haven't seen real/valid improvements in a while. Is it because my method of study is problematic? Should I go find a tutor and see what he says about my performance?

Welcome to share your story with your tutor. Thank you in advance!

[Blueprint LSAT]

I am a tutor for Blueprint. Here are a few thoughts:

It does sound like you were burning through a lot of PT's. As I'm sure you know, the LSAT requires your peak attention. Being tired or burned out can start tanking your score well before you notice it. Also, I don't think you could possibly be getting the full benefit out of all those PTs if you are taking 1/day and squeezing the review into the same day. In order to break through into the super-high percentile scores you need to fully understand what each question type is asking for and your process/method needs to reach the point where it is almost muscle memory.

Think of it this way. As an athlete, working out every day might be enough to make you king of your high school and maybe even your college, but to reach the pros you have to actually understand the game you are playing on a deeper level.

I would suggest slowing down a bit. Go back and double-check your understanding of the basics. Really look for patterns in the mistakes you are making. Also, take PTs where you thoroughly analyze the time you spend on each question and how that time might be spent more efficiently. A lot of times people rush through questions because they think it is faster when really, slowing down and fully understanding the stimulus in LR would actually save them time scanning through the answers over and over again. It doesn't matter how many times you go through the motions if your form isn't right.

To check your understanding of the fundamentals, try breaking questions down and teaching them to someone else or the mirror. Put the timer away for a bit. Can you explain what the question is looking for? Fully analyze the argument? Explain why the right answer is right? Why all the wrong answers are wrong? What about why they are supposed to be tempting? Actually forcing yourself to think about that and articulate it all out loud can really deepen your understanding of the test. Speed will come.

It also sounds like anxiety is a pretty big factor for you. Please do not take that the wrong way, it is an issue for almost every student I have ever worked with and it was an issue for me as well. You may be able to make some progress on the LSAT by addressing the anxiety more generally. Proper self care can address some of the burnout and help with the anxiety.

If anxiety is a broader issue for you (no need to share whether or not it is), it also couldn't hurt to bring the test up with your doctor/mental health professional to see if there are other root causes that can be addressed. That can be difficult, but think about it this way: law school isn't going to be any less stressful nor is being a lawyer, so if it is an issue what better time than the beginning to address it.

The only way I've found to solve the test anxiety problem through studying alone is to get to the point where you understand what is going on on the test with perfect confidence. That doesn't just mean doing a lot of PTs, it means understanding how the questions are put together so well you could write the test yourself. Keep working on that understanding and once you have it practice until you can do it in your sleep. It is okay to use tests you have used before, my guess is you didn't squeeze all the value out of them the first time anyway.

I know that advice sounds contradictory. Work til your eyes bleed but don't burn out. What I'm saying is work smarter not harder, take breaks, and don't blame yourself for days spent not studying.

If that all sounds pretty daunting, I'll say this. You may not need to do it. It sounds like you have a pretty good understanding of the test and are already getting a decent score. Progress on this stuff isn't linear and a breakthrough might be closer than you think if you can find a way treat the live test like just another PT.

As to shelling out for a tutor... maybe? Without further conversation, this stuff is pretty much what I would tell you at our first session if you came to me. You have seen a lot of different prep materials/approaches, so there is no guarantee a tutor would have a magic-bullet solution. They could probably help you better understand those approaches and fine-tune your studying and your actual-test taking process further. If there are any major concepts you are still having trouble with they could talk you through those as well as doing examples with you and pointing out some "pro-tips" for the harder questions. I'd try the things I mentioned, but if you are having trouble implementing any of it or just keep stalling it might help to have an outside perspective to talk you through things a bit.

[LSATWiz.com]

No. If you don't have a few thousand dollars for prep, you are going to be stuck with someone inexperienced or ineffective. Try to self-teach yourself. You're much better served self teaching yourself and working with a top regarded tutor to work on a specific question type you can't figure out on your own than trying to find a bargain tutor.

But if you're intelligent enough to get a 165, you should not be unemployed.