Advice On Preparation

[Traci]

I am scheduled to take the LSAT on Monday, 6/11. I had taken the weekend PowerScore Coure May 14-15 and I have been studying the books and the online virtual modules for Logical Reasoning. I have taken practice LSATs; however, I don't seem to be improving on the practice LSATS. My score is around 140. I feel like I am hitting a brick wall. I understand the book, homework, and the virtual information on the Logical Reasoning section, but yet when it comes to the actual practice tests I don't seem to be improving. Any suggestions on what I can do differently? I have been preparing like crazy.

Thanks,
Traci

[Steve Stein]

It sounds like you've put some time and effort in already, and it seems quite likely that you've built a fairly solid foundation. If you can understand the lesssons, and you can understand the questions you've missed, then perhaps it's less of a conceptual problem, and more a problem of general strategic approach. For example, are you stopping to attempt a prephrase at every opportunity to do so?

You are most likely pretty good at identifying the conclusion of each stimulus--are you taking the time to actually underline or bracket it? That's a great way to ensure that you'll keep your eye on the ball.

Are you doing the questions in order? If so, I suggest that you recognize the advantages of being able to skip questions that slow you down. As soon as you notice a question that is confusing, skip it! Based on your study and experience, there are probably several questions in every section that you can see right through--start with those!

If you are not doing these things as a matter of course, I'd recommend that you take a couple of practice sections on which you skip around the questions, underline the conclusions, and prephrase the answers. As these approaches become more automatic, you should see improvements in both your timing and your success rate.

[Roxanne72]

The best way to prepare for the LSAT is months in advance. You have to look at the test as if it were a marathon. You have to slowly build up your endurance to ultimately dominate it.

Once you figure out your strengths, focus on figuring out your weaknesses. You'll want to work on those areas the most to make sure you can tackle the exam.

Whether it's games or arguments, there are ways of breaking down the questions to better understand how to answer them correctly.

I think the best bet is to take a prep course and make sure to do all the homework. If you don't put in the time you won't see the results.