How to balance LSAT prep with the semester

[fmihalic1477]

Hello all,

Like many of you, I just started the semester yesterday and already have a lot of work piled up. I have no trouble find 1.5-2 hours per day to dedicate to my LSAT prep. However, the type of prep I do I think is key. For example, I took the winter break to get pretty decent at linear logic games. I have made good strides. That said, I'm not near a level yet where I can do them with ease and they use up a lot of my energy, leaving none for school work. I two majors, philosophy and Spanish, obviously with neither can I afford to have a "tired" moment and miss something.

I was wondering if maybe during the semester, I should focus on a section a little bit "less impact", if you will, like Reading Comprehension. For me, logic games are like lifting heavy weights, while logical reasoning is a hike up relatively steep hill, and reading comprehension is fast paced jog.

I feel that I would be able to really polish my comprehension skills with the bible over the next few months, and would then have all summer (May 3 - September 19th) to learn and perfect logic games.

In addition, this semester I am taking a class "Logic of Everyday Reason" as part of my Philosophy program which has helped several of the more ambitious students get scores in the 170s.

Is this a good approach?

[Kristina Moen]

Hi fmihalic1477,

Are you using one of our free self-study plans? Each plan is extremely comprehensive, and details the steps you need to take to achieve the best possible LSAT score. You can shape each study plan to your individual needs. Since you have nine months until test day, you could do the 6-month or 4-month study plan and go slower while you finish this semester or when you encounter a concept that is more difficult for you. Doing any of these plans will give you a comprehensive understanding of the test, but the longer plans give you more opportunities to practice and more time to digest the concepts. You have put yourself in an excellent position - you have time. Use this early time to learn the skills and understand the concepts, all along practicing the skills and developing your own preferences by doing repeated questions of the same type. Use the later time to develop stamina and test-taking strategy with timed practice tests. While the test sections are different, you use many of the same skills in all of them. For example, you will find conditional reasoning in both Logical Reasoning and Logic Games. You will use your understanding of argumentation and argument structure in Logical Reasoning and Reading Comprehension. You also want to avoid burnout, which can happen when you focus on one section or question type to the exclusion of others.

But above all - keep using the Forum to ask questions about your study plan and about individual LSAT questions. We love to help!

[fmihalic1477]

Yes I've noticed. The forum has helped a lot and it is a great resource!

As of right now, I am not using a study plan. I Started my preparations so early because I know that I will spend a lot of time on all of the sections, in particular on logic games. I naturally excel at LR, and the RC Bible has already helped me with a few tips in the first few chapters that have made that section must less daunting.

My ultimate goal would be a score of 175 or above. As of my last practice test, I'm at a 160. I understand that this is relative because the difficulty of each test can vary and the practice tests don't use the sliding scale. However, of the 22 questions that I got wrong, only 5 came from the two LR sections combined. It broke down like this : LR - 45/50 , LG - 18/26 , RC - 16-25.

I did this examen having only studied basic linear logic games and with no RC preparation. Now, I'm confident just from the first few chapters of the bible that my RC score would go up at least a few questions. With time, relentless practice, and a great attitude, I'm sure that I can get there.

[Adam Tyson]

Just adding my two cents here, Frank, to say that variety is the spice of life AND can be a really useful thing in LSAT prep. I'm not fond of the idea of putting off your study of games until the summer while focusing only on RC during the semester. I think that can lead to burnout, for one thing - you will get tired of RC, and fed up with it, and your gains will slow down and perhaps grind to a halt. Meanwhile, you games and LR skills will atrophy and rust.

Mix it up. It's fine to put greater emphasis on RC - fine-tune your note-taking skills, get more familiar with the typical patterns, work on prephrasing the Main Point and Tone, etc. - but every now and then work on something else. Improving your attack on causal reasoning in LR can have a positive impact on RC, as you will frequently be asked to weaken or strengthen a causal argument. Apply the Fact Testtm to Must Be True questions, and you'll find that skill directly applicable to about 80% of all RC questions. Continuing to practice linear games, adding in advanced games and more challenging basic games, and then moving into grouping games a little at a time will allow you to take a mental break from the soul-sucking boredom that RC can become and have a little fun while also making the learning curve this summer a lot less steep.

Don't get into a rut. Spread out the joy and the pain, just a little, and your brain will thank you.

Nice job on the diagnostic, and otherwise a good looking plan to keep yourself moving forward during a busy semester. Good luck!

[fmihalic1477]

Hi Adam,

Thanks a lot for your two cents! I think that everything you've said makes perfect sense. In fact, just yesterday I took a mini-morning break from RC and did a few linear games with 100% accuracy. Later in the afternoon when I hit the RC bible, I was fresh and sharp.

As for my last test, that was not a diagnostic. I started off at I believe a 156...but I'm not 100% on that because I took that last summer just out of curiosity long before starting any prep.

As for the few specific tactics that you named, I believe that the mastery of things like that is what is separating me right now from having between 20-25 wrong per test and having 5-10 wrong per test. What i get wrong on LR or RC is almost almost a matter of choosing wrong between two choice. That's to say, I can get the answer down to two choices quickly. However, over time I will master those tactics and get the answer down to one with speed.

Thanks again!

Frank