LSAT: One Approach to Success
The first step any prospective law student must take in their quest to go to law school and become a lawyer is taking the LSAT. The LSAT, like many other standardized tests, can be a daunting prospect.
I took the LSAT last summer, and I am going to be starting my studies this coming fall at Osgoode Hall at York University.
Study habits vary among individuals. An approach that worked for me, may not work for everyone. Nonetheless, here are strategies I believe can help students succeed.
Self-study or course?
Many individuals prefer a traditional course. This offers a strict study schedule and helps students stay on top of the material. Other students may elect to self-study so that they can allocate more time to concepts they find challenging and devote less time to areas they feel more comfortable with.
I used a program called 7-sage as this merges the positive aspects of a course, with the flexibility of self-studying. 7-sage offers pre-recorded video courses for all three sections of the LSAT. They explain in great detail how to approach each question type for the Logic Reasoning section, how to tackle each type of game in the Logic Games section, and how to approach and review passages in the Reading Comprehension section. Additionally, 7-sage offers full video explanations for each question for all 89 practice LSAT tests.
With 7-sage, students can have someone teach them how to approach each question and section on the LSAT, but since it is not a live-course, students can watch the videos on their own time and at their own pace. Additionally, as with self-studying, students can also focus on aspects and concepts that give them more trouble. 7-sage truly merges the benefits of a course and self-study, as they have the structure of a course, and the autonomy of self-studying. I would recommend it to anyone planning on writing the LSAT.
Learn all question types
Before starting practice tests (except the diagnostic), it is essential to learn all question types. Spend a few weeks practicing each question type in the Logic Reasoning section, and each game type in the Logic Games section before starting practice tests. For the Reading Comprehension, it is also important to do several stand-alone practice passages before doing them on practice tests. By doing questions and passages as stand-alone questions for a few weeks, students can begin to understand how the LSAT question makers write their questions. Students will begin to recognize themes and will start answering questions faster and more accurately, before even starting practice tests.
How to approach practice tests
Once all question types have been reviewed, it is time to start practice tests. The only way to improve on the LSAT is by taking many practice tests. LSAC releases many of their past tests, and there are currently 89 practice tests available. These are previous tests, and therefore the scores students receive on these tests tend to be representative of how the student will perform on the real test.
I did a practice test every other day leading up to the real test. I would wake up, do the practice test, take a break and then review the test. It is very important to review each question on the test, regardless if you got it right or not. When listening to the explanations of the answers, it will help you recognize the themes that the question makers continue to repeat. The day after the practice test, I would do individual sections from other tests and review them later in the day. I would also redo the games from the previous practice test. This may sound unnecessary since I just did the same questions the day before and listened to explanations, but it is crucial. Similar logic games show up on different LSATs, and by repeating the same games, students will begin to make more inferences that will help them in future games.
It is also important to take breaks and not fill your day with practice tests and reviewing tests. The test should take a few hours, and reviewing it should take an hour or two. For the rest of the day, it is important to relax, exercise, socialize and, most importantly, not think about the LSAT.
Timing
By far, the most difficult aspect of the LSAT is timing. Each section is allotted a mere 35 minutes. Everyone has different strategies on how to approach timing, however, I believe that as students complete more and more practice LSATs, timing naturally improves. I did not focus on timing until a month before my LSAT. Prior to that, I would complete the sections and focus on accuracy, as opposed to timing. Once my accuracy improved, I noticed that my timing also improved. Do not overthink the timing aspect of the LSAT. As you write more practice LSATs, the questions will become more familiar, and you will be able to answer questions at a faster pace.
Mindset
The LSAT has a significant mental component. The scores of each section are cumulative and add up to one final score. It is important not to let one difficult section affect your mindset for the other sections.
Lastly, when doing practice tests, try mirroring test-day conditions so your mindset is the same as the real test. This will help you feel more confident on the day of the test. If your test is in the morning, do your practice tests in the morning. If your test is in the afternoon, do your practice tests in the afternoon. Eat the same breakfast before your practice test as you will for the real day of the test. It is important to mirror the situations of the real test, so your energy levels, fatigue levels, and concentration levels are all as similar as possible to the real day.
Key Take-aways
1. Consider merging self-studying and a “course” to get the best of both worlds
2. Learn all question types before starting practice tests
3. Do as many practice tests as you can once you start them
4. Do not underestimate reviewing EVERY question of each practice test
5. Do not overthink timing; it will come with practice
6. Explore ways to maintain a positive mindset
7. Studying varies from person to person, what works for me may not work for you, and vice versa
8. Good luck!
