Target Score

[jrb0911]

Good afternoon:
I am currently studying for the October LSAT. I have purchased the 3 PowerScore Bibles and I am following the 6 month study plan from the PowerScore self study area of the website (I have been studying since April). I completed the 2007 PrepTest at the beginning of my preparation to get a baseline score which was a 145. I am trying to achieve a 160 on the actual LSAT in October. My current range of scoring is between 150-155. I have read that it is typical to score a few points below what you are hitting during your PrepTests on the actual LSAT. I am at the point in the study plan where I am taking 1 PrepTest per week and use the rest of the week to review my answers and any concepts in the Bibles that I am struggling with. My question is what have you typically seen as a time frame for someone to begin scoring in their target range? Also, do you believe it is possible for me to hit my target score with where I am now and the time that I have remaining before I take the LSAT. I currently work full time and I delegate 1-3 hours per day 6 days per week to studying.
Thanks!!!

[Nikki Siclunov]

Hi jrb0911,

Welcome to the forum, and congratulations on choosing such a rigorous course of study. It’s great that you’re already seeing an improvement in how you tackle the questions: it means you’re building a strong conceptual understanding of the material, which is incredibly important. Your score will almost certainly increase even more as you become more efficient in how you tackle the various question types, and improve your overall section strategy and time-management. As long as you devote at least 10-15 hours/week to LSAT study, I see no reason why you wouldn't reach the 160+ range by the end of September.

Keep in mind, however, that at some point in the next few weeks or month, you may start experiencing a plateau in your practice test scores. There are ways to overcome this, of course, but you will probably see diminishing returns on your investment. A 10-point jump took only a month in the beginning; once you hit a plateau, it may take two months to jump half as much! That’s when students often seek professional help - through online instruction, tutoring, or a combination of both - in order to identify and fix specific gaps in their skill set or knowledge base. The 6-month plan you’re following takes into account such score plateaus (especially during the last 2 months), and encourages you to start identifying the types of questions that are costing you the most points.

For more info on score plateaus, check out these blog posts:

http://blog.powerscore.com/lsat/bid/316 ... -Attention
http://blog.powerscore.com/lsat/how-to- ... lsat-study
http://blog.powerscore.com/lsat/bid/243 ... Your-Score
http://blog.powerscore.com/lsat/bid/309 ... st-Go-Down

When all is said and done, remember that it’s exceptionally difficult to predict by how much you will improve. Most people improve by anywhere from 10-20 points, but there are outliers who will improve by a lot more (and also, unfortunately, by a lot less). This is because no two students are exactly alike: differences in background, study habits, aptitude for logical reasoning and reading comprehension can lead to different outcomes even under the best possible circumstances.

Here’s what I want you to do for now: focus on the process, not the final goal. It’s the small steps that matter the most: with every practice test you take, you learn more about your strengths and weaknesses. Use that knowledge to your advantage, and you won't be disappointed.

Get back in touch once you’ve taken a few more practice tests, and let us know how they go.

Best of luck!