This LSAT Diary is from Liz, a 23-year-old English teacher who's taken 20 timed tests and 40 untimed tests as she's been preparing for the February 2012 LSAT.
She's got tons of great advice from her LSAT studying experience, and she's improved 15 points on her practice tests - from a 154 to a 169.
If you want to be in LSAT Diaries, please email me at LSATUnplugged@gmail.com. (You can be in LSAT Diaries whether you've taken the exam already or not.)
Leave Liz some encouragement below in the comments!
Liz's LSAT Diary:
Greetings fellow LSAT preppers,
My name is Liz and I’ll be taking the February 2012 LSAT. I bought all my books and buckled down to study in September (I’ve been going by Steve’s 5-month LSAT study schedule), so the bulk of my preparation is now behind me. I’ve taken 20 timed tests so far in addition to 40 untimed tests and my average score is a 169 (timed tests only), up 15 points from where I began. Because I’ve already worked out the kinks in my own approach to the LSAT, my posts will be reflections about what failed and what worked for me as well as what I’ve learned. But before I get to that, a bit of background info:
I’m a 23-year-old English teacher from rural North Carolina with a degree in Spanish and Political Science. Like countless others in my position, I’ve always dreamed of law school but without really knowing why. So instead of going straight to law school like many of my undergrad friends, I opted to take some time, see the world, and reassess my desire to study law. With my TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) certification in hand, I was on a plane headed for South America just a month after graduation. I taught for three months in Santiago, Chile, spent another twelve in Panama City, Panama, and backpacked through many countries in between before I decided it was LSAT time. Now I’m back home with the parents, studying full-time and waiting patiently for February 11th, after which I will head to Saint Petersburg, Russia to take up my next teaching position.
In retrospect, I can’t stress how glad I am that I took a gap year before reevaluating my decision to attend law school. I’ve only been out of school for a year and a half, but I feel ages ahead of where I was as a senior – maturity, perspective, self-discipline, you name it. I briefly attempted my own LSAT study plan during my junior year of college and can really see a difference in my performance: I can now solve with relative ease and speed the logic games that used to give me so much trouble. It’s also become much easier to cope with distractions and maintain my focus and positive outlook while studying.
Studying habits aside, teaching abroad has given me the opportunity to learn two foreign languages (Spanish and Portuguese) and has exposed me to cultures and perspectives that I never would have considered otherwise. So for those college students who find themselves in my previous position and are thinking of going straight into law school – really reflect on the decision you’re about to make. The debt alone that we will all be incurring is a substantial undertaking. Be sure not only that this is the right path for you, but also that it’s the right time for you to head down this path.
Back to LSAT tips – here’s my advice regarding an overall schedule. More to come on the individual sections and specific strategies that worked for me!
1. Organize your studying content to fit your needs. Earlier I said I was using Steve’s 5-month schedule, which recommends focusing on Logic Games first, then Logical Reasoning, and finally Reading Comprehension. This worked for me because I found the LG sets to be the most difficult, then LR, and RC was the easiest. But if you find LG easier than LR, switch the order of those months. Choose to study your weakest section first – that way you’ll have more time to devote to it!
2. Allow yourself some flexibility for study breaks. Sometimes I have on-days where the logic flows freely, and sometimes I have off-days where my thoughts are disjointed and chaotic. Just as athletes training for a marathon need time to rest, our brains need time away from the LSAT. If this happens early on in your studying, no big deal. Just spend a day or two away from the books and come back when you’re feeling focused again. This was a very important step for me to avoid frustration – if I insisted on studying during my off-days, my frustration would mound as I continually missed problems or became distracted. But beware of too many off-days – if a runner spends a week away from the track, she can tell the difference when she returns.
3. Be positive and patient. This was also a very important factor in my case, as I’m unemployed and living with my parents in rural NC, which isn’t the most exciting situation for a 23-year-old fresh from life overseas. Sometimes it can be downright discouraging to miss 9 LR questions or 12 RC questions two tests in a row. This is where flexibility comes in – we need to be comfortable with taking a break and reassessing the problem later from a fresh point of view. Personally, I went to the gym to de-stress after disappointing study sessions. Our attitudes have a HUGE impact on how we approach the LSAT – the more positive, patient, and determined we are, the better results we will ultimately achieve.
4. Start slow. One of my biggest mistakes when I started out was trying to time everything. I began working on my timing issues before I could even break down the different types of LR problems. Through trial and error, I found that the best approach was to spend as much time as my mind needed to unwrap and thoroughly examine every single logic game or LR question. I looked at questions from every possible angle and deconstructed them the best I could, and that takes time. The first three months of my studying were almost entirely untimed – I like to think of them as ‘orientation months’. I used the last two months to take timed tests, focus on my problem areas, etc. In my LG orientation month I averaged 12-15 min./game; through repetition and practice I’ve managed to reduce that time to 5-8 min./game without missing any questions. Speed comes with repetition and experience, but we need adequate time to build upon those components.
5. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. If you don’t have Steve’s explanations for the LSAT PrepTests and can’t figure out why you missed a particular question, ASK. Preferably someone with good logical thinking skills – I usually ask my brother the nerdy neurobiologist, who’s about as logical as they come.
6. Reward yourself. Take small breaks, eat chocolate, spend time with your friends or significant other. Find some way to positively reinforce your study habits so that you can stay strong until the test rolls around. After study sessions I usually treat myself to a honey wheat bagel (mmmm, my favorite!) or a few M&Ms, and my reward for Feb. 11th is Saint Petersburg!
7. Don’t let more than 2-3 days go by without picking up an LSAT book. Like going to the gym or running, too many off-days will result in lower performance. It’s easy to get stuck in a rut by letting a few days slide by – avoid this by working even one LG set per day or doing some Sudoku. And remember, rewards can go a long way!
That’s all for now – next post will be on Logic Games!
If you want to be in LSAT Diaries, please email me at LSATUnplugged@gmail.com. (You can be in LSAT Diaries whether you've taken the exam already or not.)
Liz's LSAT Diary:
Greetings fellow LSAT preppers,
My name is Liz and I’ll be taking the February 2012 LSAT. I bought all my books and buckled down to study in September (I’ve been going by Steve’s 5-month LSAT study schedule), so the bulk of my preparation is now behind me. I’ve taken 20 timed tests so far in addition to 40 untimed tests and my average score is a 169 (timed tests only), up 15 points from where I began. Because I’ve already worked out the kinks in my own approach to the LSAT, my posts will be reflections about what failed and what worked for me as well as what I’ve learned. But before I get to that, a bit of background info:
I’m a 23-year-old English teacher from rural North Carolina with a degree in Spanish and Political Science. Like countless others in my position, I’ve always dreamed of law school but without really knowing why. So instead of going straight to law school like many of my undergrad friends, I opted to take some time, see the world, and reassess my desire to study law. With my TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) certification in hand, I was on a plane headed for South America just a month after graduation. I taught for three months in Santiago, Chile, spent another twelve in Panama City, Panama, and backpacked through many countries in between before I decided it was LSAT time. Now I’m back home with the parents, studying full-time and waiting patiently for February 11th, after which I will head to Saint Petersburg, Russia to take up my next teaching position.
In retrospect, I can’t stress how glad I am that I took a gap year before reevaluating my decision to attend law school. I’ve only been out of school for a year and a half, but I feel ages ahead of where I was as a senior – maturity, perspective, self-discipline, you name it. I briefly attempted my own LSAT study plan during my junior year of college and can really see a difference in my performance: I can now solve with relative ease and speed the logic games that used to give me so much trouble. It’s also become much easier to cope with distractions and maintain my focus and positive outlook while studying.
Studying habits aside, teaching abroad has given me the opportunity to learn two foreign languages (Spanish and Portuguese) and has exposed me to cultures and perspectives that I never would have considered otherwise. So for those college students who find themselves in my previous position and are thinking of going straight into law school – really reflect on the decision you’re about to make. The debt alone that we will all be incurring is a substantial undertaking. Be sure not only that this is the right path for you, but also that it’s the right time for you to head down this path.
Back to LSAT tips – here’s my advice regarding an overall schedule. More to come on the individual sections and specific strategies that worked for me!
1. Organize your studying content to fit your needs. Earlier I said I was using Steve’s 5-month schedule, which recommends focusing on Logic Games first, then Logical Reasoning, and finally Reading Comprehension. This worked for me because I found the LG sets to be the most difficult, then LR, and RC was the easiest. But if you find LG easier than LR, switch the order of those months. Choose to study your weakest section first – that way you’ll have more time to devote to it!
2. Allow yourself some flexibility for study breaks. Sometimes I have on-days where the logic flows freely, and sometimes I have off-days where my thoughts are disjointed and chaotic. Just as athletes training for a marathon need time to rest, our brains need time away from the LSAT. If this happens early on in your studying, no big deal. Just spend a day or two away from the books and come back when you’re feeling focused again. This was a very important step for me to avoid frustration – if I insisted on studying during my off-days, my frustration would mound as I continually missed problems or became distracted. But beware of too many off-days – if a runner spends a week away from the track, she can tell the difference when she returns.
3. Be positive and patient. This was also a very important factor in my case, as I’m unemployed and living with my parents in rural NC, which isn’t the most exciting situation for a 23-year-old fresh from life overseas. Sometimes it can be downright discouraging to miss 9 LR questions or 12 RC questions two tests in a row. This is where flexibility comes in – we need to be comfortable with taking a break and reassessing the problem later from a fresh point of view. Personally, I went to the gym to de-stress after disappointing study sessions. Our attitudes have a HUGE impact on how we approach the LSAT – the more positive, patient, and determined we are, the better results we will ultimately achieve.
4. Start slow. One of my biggest mistakes when I started out was trying to time everything. I began working on my timing issues before I could even break down the different types of LR problems. Through trial and error, I found that the best approach was to spend as much time as my mind needed to unwrap and thoroughly examine every single logic game or LR question. I looked at questions from every possible angle and deconstructed them the best I could, and that takes time. The first three months of my studying were almost entirely untimed – I like to think of them as ‘orientation months’. I used the last two months to take timed tests, focus on my problem areas, etc. In my LG orientation month I averaged 12-15 min./game; through repetition and practice I’ve managed to reduce that time to 5-8 min./game without missing any questions. Speed comes with repetition and experience, but we need adequate time to build upon those components.
5. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. If you don’t have Steve’s explanations for the LSAT PrepTests and can’t figure out why you missed a particular question, ASK. Preferably someone with good logical thinking skills – I usually ask my brother the nerdy neurobiologist, who’s about as logical as they come.
6. Reward yourself. Take small breaks, eat chocolate, spend time with your friends or significant other. Find some way to positively reinforce your study habits so that you can stay strong until the test rolls around. After study sessions I usually treat myself to a honey wheat bagel (mmmm, my favorite!) or a few M&Ms, and my reward for Feb. 11th is Saint Petersburg!
7. Don’t let more than 2-3 days go by without picking up an LSAT book. Like going to the gym or running, too many off-days will result in lower performance. It’s easy to get stuck in a rut by letting a few days slide by – avoid this by working even one LG set per day or doing some Sudoku. And remember, rewards can go a long way!
That’s all for now – next post will be on Logic Games!
Photo by bobaubuchon
Liz,
ReplyDeleteCongratulations! You are on your way. Go in on test day, claim it. You will do well!!
Thanks for sharing!
I can relate so much to this LSAT diary. Thank you so much for sharing your story. I'm studying for June 2012 and am then going abroad to teach English and travel before committing to Law School.
ReplyDeleteWay to go Liz, good luck on the lsat and your next adventures! Sounds like you're going to do great.
Really like this diary! I struggle a lot with timing and your 'orientation months' make a lot of sense! Thank you for sharing! Good luck on the test!!
ReplyDeleteWhat if you are taking the Feb LSAT and was seriously ill for the last week and did not study at all? Am I screwed??
ReplyDelete