Studying For The LSAT: Self-Study vs. Prep Course
Your LSAT score is an essential component of your law school application, and as such, it’s important to strategically plan your preparations. You’re just about to begin studying for the LSAT, and you’re stuck at a crossroad: should you self-study or should you enroll in a prep course? Deciding between the two is a personal choice that depends on a multitude of factors, some of which include your learning style and how much preparation you require based on your diagnostic test score. While I began my LSAT preparation journey by self-studying, I eventually decided to enroll in a prep-course, which I found to be the most beneficial approach based on my learning style.
In this blog post, I will discuss my personal experience of studying for the LSAT and the advantages of each approach to help you decide how to begin your preparations.
Self-study
One of the most significant advantages of self-studying is having the flexibility to create a personalized study plan based on your schedule. At the start of my preparations, I purchased a few Powerscore Bible prep-books from Amazon. I used a three-month study plan that I found on the Powerscore website and modified it to fit my weekly schedule.
Self-studying requires organization, self-motivation, and commitment. I made sure to dedicate several hours each day to studying the material, familiarizing myself with the various question types, and completing lots of practice questions for each section. I then scheduled out the days of the week I intended to write a practice test and then went back to review and identify areas of weakness that I wanted to focus on. However, the most challenging part about self-studying is being self-aware and realistic about your progress and identifying what areas need improvement. I had to be my own instructor and ensure that I was retaining the material that I was teaching myself and recognizing my mistakes before moving on to new concepts.
To supplement the workbooks I had bought off Amazon, I found a wide variety of free online resources that helped me break down the concepts I was having difficulty with. Khan Academy is an excellent free resource that I used when I began preparing for the LSAT. Upon registering for an account, you will be required to complete a diagnostic test that determines your strengths and weaknesses. From there, Khan Academy creates an individualized study plan for you to help you achieve your desired score. There are also various Youtube videos that did an excellent job explaining some of the concepts that I was struggling with. The LSAT Trainer on Youtube is an excellent channel with a variety of videos that help explain difficult concepts from various different sections of the LSAT.
While self-studying gives you the flexibility to create your personalized study schedule, you must have the motivation and discipline to ensure that you stay on track to be prepared for test day. The LSAT is definitely not a test that you can cram for the night before, and it is easy to fall behind when you are self-studying if you don’t commit to the schedule you created for yourself. While I was able to teach myself the textbook material, I realized that there were gaps in my understanding. I would then spend countless hours attempting to identify these gaps and figuring out ways that I could approach the question differently. While Youtube videos were helpful, they only helped breakdown the general concepts from each section of the LSAT and didn’t answer the specific questions I had from the gaps that I noticed in my practice tests.
Taking A Prep Course
After a month of self-studying, I realized that I needed more structure and discipline in my preparation if I wanted to reach my target score. Ultimately, I decided to enroll in a prep course with Princeton Review. Princeton Review provided me with several prep-books organized in units, a diagnostic book, the answer keys to the practice questions, and a schedule that outlined all the topics we would be covering in each class.
Attending live classes kept me on top of my homework and ensured that I completed the assigned practice questions ahead of time so that I was ready to review them in class. As a part of the schedule we were given, Princeton Review had pre-scheduled our practice test dates, where we had the opportunity to take the test in class alongside our peers under timed conditions. Taking a practice test in a simulated testing environment where I was in a room with other students was a lot more realistic to test day than taking the test in a quiet room by myself where I had no distractions.
Given that I am a visual and auditory learner, I benefited from attending live classes every week. During the first few classes, my instructor broke down the various question types in each LSAT section and identified what we needed to look out for when faced with a similar question. Your instructor will be one of the most valuable resources available to you. One of the most significant advantages of enrolling in a prep-course was having access to an instructor when I had specific questions about practice questions that I was getting wrong. I was lucky to have a hands-on and supportive instructor that helped us one-on-one during the break with any difficult questions that we were struggling with. Although I had access to the answer keys for each section, my instructor gave us tips and strategies that explained what specific approach to take when attacking a particular type of question.
While I found the prep course to be the most beneficial, they are often the most expensive to enroll in. However, it is definitely worth the investment if you are a visual and auditory learner like me. I noticed that my practice test scores were increasing a lot faster than they were when I was self-studying. By reviewing the practice questions in class, I caught my mistakes early on in my study process so that I could correct my approach and avoid repeating the same mistake.
No matter how you choose to prepare, studying for the LSAT requires self-discipline, commitment, and motivation. The truth is that there is no “one right way” of studying for the LSAT, and many students choose to pursue a combination of methods to work towards their target score. Regardless of whichever approach you take to studying, make sure that it is based on your individual learning style, and remember that practice makes perfect!
