The LSAT is just a short while away. It’s a good time to take stock of where you are and make sure you will be ready for this thing. Let’s run down what you need to do.
Shoot To Hit Your Peak On Test Day
You need to be a great LSAT taker for just one day. In fact, just for two hours and twenty minutes. The home stretch, which you are entering now, is all about focusing on being in peak LSAT form when test day comes. Here are some strategies for being in peak LSAT performance mode come February:
Build Peak Stamina
To build your LSAT stamina, we recommend taking three full, timed LSATs each week from now until the LSAT. Take these under simulated testing conditions, using RECENT PREPTESTS. That isn’t all you should be doing either. On days where you don’t hit a full simulated preptest, do timed sections from recent preptests and review. Focus on weak areas until you eliminate them.
Copy The Thought Process Of Great LSAT Takers
For people still regularly getting more than five wrong on each individual section, we really recommend that you get your hands on some explanations. Use them to review preptests after you complete them. This will help you fine-tune your approach and do what great LSAT takers do to attack problems.
All great LSAT takers have one thing in common: they approach questions in highly methodical, organized, mechanical fashion. When you see it done well, it’s almost like watching an LSAT robot. To learn how to copy this approach, you have to see it in action.
Stay Warm And Healthy
I know it’s not helpful to just say, “don’t get sick” but really, there should be some things you can do to avoid the winter colds that are the bane of February LSAT takers. First, focus on staying unstressed. After you’ve done that, maybe stay away from crowded subways, college dining halls, and other reservoirs of illness. Basically, avoid the unwashed masses.
Okay, now here’s the last thing you need:
Have Confidence
For a lot of people, the February LSAT is a retake. Have confidence that it’s going to be easier this time around. Everything is easier when you’ve done it once before. The vast majority of people improve at least a little on a retake. You are going to improve as well.
For first timers, you are in the lowest stress, best position possible, so take confidence from that. If things don’t go right you’ve got June, October, and December to fix the issue (that said, you should never take the LSAT if you don’t feel ready. let us know in the comments if you are having doubts about your preparedness and we’ll discuss your situation).
Final Note
Historically, We’ve tended to discourage students from applying for law school immediately with a February LSAT score. Click here to see why. However, these days law schools are so greedy for qualified applicants that it doesn’t hurt you nearly as much as it may have in the not-too-distant past.
February takers focused on applying for fall of 2019, on the other hand, are getting an excellent head-start! Taking the LSAT early is a great way to get the biggest part of the process over and done with. You’ll leave yourself with plenty of opportunities to retake the exam, should you need to, and you now have all the time in the world to work on the other parts of your application.
In fact, I wouldn’t even think about other application stuff until summer. Just focus on good grades or getting promoted or whatever else you’ve got going on. That’s the luxury of taking the LSAT ahead of the game.
Good luck to you all and enjoy the rest of your holidays!
16 Comments
GOOD MORNING MY NAME IS REE
JUST TOOK THE LSAT THE PAST WEEJEND FEB 2018 ACCOMMODATIONS DUE TO I SUSTAINED AN INJURY AND I AM DISABLE.
NOT SURE I WAS IN ER HOSPITAL 30 HOURS BEFORE AND DISABLE BUT NO EXCUSES. I UNDERSTAND CONCEPTS AND HAVE DONE GREAT ON MOST DAYS IN PRACTICE TEST LSAT AND I DID OBTAIN THE MOST RECENT LSAT DEC. 2017 AND DID PRETTY GOOD BUT STILL HAD ISSUES ON LR AND LG PERIOD. I HOPE FOR A PASSING GRADE MY PERSONAL STATEMENT AND WRITING ALWAYS PERFECT. I AM NOT SURE AND STRESSING ON HOW I DID?
MY ATTORNEY ENVOURAGE ME BECAUSE BECORE MY DISABILITY I WAS A NURSE AND BIOLOGIST OBVIOUSLY SMART.
I TOOK CARE OF MY MY MOTHER 17 YEARS HENCE
SHE DIED AND 2 AND HALF YEAR BATTLE TO KEEP MY APT ENSUE WITH THREATS HARASSMENT AND FLOOD KITCHEN WITH RAW SEWAGE TO GET ME OUT OF APT.
MY ATTORNEY EMPHASIS I USED CRITICAL THINKING AND LOGIC WHETHER I REALIZE IT TO KEEP BUREAUCRACY AND LANDLORD FROM PLACING ME IN A SHELTER. SO AUG 2017 I WON MY CASE THOUGH 11 ADJOINMENTS. BUT I AM IN POVERTY MOLE INFESTED ENVIRONMENTAL AND CANNOT COOK A decent MEAL FOR 2 AND HALF YEARS. YET I AM BLESS WITH FRIENDS AND STORE MERCHANTS WHO FED ME AND KEPT ME GOING
AND ALL PROUD I WOULD TAKE SUCH A CHALLENGE AND HOPE GOR MY HAPPINESS AND SUCCESS.
MY BEALTH NOT GREAT I COULD NOT AFFORD POWERSCORE BOOKS OR GET A TUTOR I DID IT MY SELF I UNDERSTAND MY BASICS BUT I ALWAYS FREEZE ESPECIALLY IN LG I DO THE SETUP BUT I ANSWER ALWAYS FIRST FEW BEGINNING QUESTIONS BUT THE REST I AM LOST. OR IS MAINLY PARALLEL REASONING AND IT’S FLAWS. I DID MY BEST, REASON FOR MY STORY: TO UNDERSTAND WITH EMPATHY FOR YHOSE READING THIS I AM PART IRISH AMERICAN INDIAN WEST INDIAN BLACK I KICK BUTT AND STAND UP FOR MY SELF INDEED. IT’S NOT SCHOLARSHIP MONEY FOR ME AT THIS POINT IT’S ME LIVING IN MOLE INFESTED ENVIRONMENT RESIDUE RAW SEWAGE FROM THE KITCHEN SMELL LINGERS IT’S ALL THOS TJAT HAS FIRSTADE ME A SKETCH ARTIST AND NOW I PRAY S FURTHER LAW STUDENT I WISH FOR A BETTER LIFE PERIOD. THAT’S WHAT AT STAKE FOR ME I CANNOT CONTINUE TO LIVE IN THIS CONTAMINATION HOWEVER I AM THANKFUL FOR THIS HORRIBLE ENVIRONMENT I WAS ABLE TO STUDY AND TRY MY BEST ON LSAT THIS PAST SUNDAY BECAUSE, I COULD BENN HOMELESS AND THEREFORR OBVIOUSLY COULD NOT EVEN ENTERTAIN STUDYING FOR AN LSAT PERIOD SO BAD SITUATION NOW I USED IT FOR GOOD.
ADVICE PLEASE ON NEXT LSAT AND WHAT I CAN AFFORD TO GET INDIVDUAL HELP OR BOOKS RECOMMENDATIONS IF THE WORST HAPPENS…..
I AM SCARE NERVOUS BUT THANKFUL FOR OPPORTUNITIES AND HELP EVERYONE GIVEN ME I DONOT WANT TO LET THEM DOWN AND MYSELF I DONOT WANT TO BE DEFEATED THEREIN.
REE
Hello guys,
I’m registered to take the LSAT next week and my last practice test will be next Thursday.
As a rule of thumb, if I’m not 3 points to my ideal score, I should postpone to June, right? Or its 5 points?
Thanks!
Lionel
Hello guys,
I’m registered to take the LSAT next week and my last practice test will be next Thursday.
As a rule of thumb, if I’m not 3 points to my ideal score, I should postpone to June, right? Or its 5 points?
Thanks!
David
I am registered to take the February LSAT, however I’m not confident at all right now in getting the score I want. I have a 3.55 GPA with a B.A. in Environmental Studies and a minor in Professional Writing for Business Communication from UCSB. My dream school is Berkeley, so I’m trying for an LSAT score that will compensate for my low GPA. I’ve been self-studying using the Powerscore Bibles (minus the RC bible) and official LSAT preptests. When doing practice tests it usually takes me about 40-45 minutes to complete a section, and even with extra time I’m scoring around a 165. Do you think I should cancel my registration and wait for the June LSAT, or try as hard as I can to bring my score up in time for February? As always, thanks so much for your help!
Hi Laura, sorry I missed this comment until now. I don’t know how its going for you, but it looks like your current best isn’t going to be enough to put you in Berkeley range. I might suggest postponing if you have good reason to think you can do better.
Can you tell me a bit more about how long you’ve prepped and how many preptests you have done, etc.?
Hello,
I got a 167 on the december lsat and have a 3.9 GPA….what do you think are some schools I could apply to? Thanks for your advice, your blog is amazing 🙂
Hi I just got my December score and it was 148. Obviously I am going to retake it. I did well on the LR sections but the LG and RC I performed quite terribly. On your recommendations I just ordered the LG bible and RC bible. I am just about to start the studying all over again. How much hours should I put in, in overall studying? Is it realistic enough to get a high 150 or low 160 with that amount of studying? And if you have and basic schedule I can follow that would be great. Thanks for this great website I wish that I had learned about it the first time around
Moe,
Yes, follow this schedule: https://lawschooli.com/lsat-study-schedule/ A ten point boost is definitely realistic if you do things right this time around. However, don’t retake in Feb. That isn’t enough time to make big improvements. Focus on June. Good luck and let us know how things progress.
Hello!
So I’ve been studying since Mid-October for this February LSAT. My accuracy is there. I usually get zero wrong on Logic Games, 2-3 wrong on RC and LR. The issue I have is that my timing is completely off. I can never seem to answer all the questions within a specific section in 35 minutes. It usually takes me about 40-50 minutes. And if I speed up, my accuracy usually falls. I have about one month left. Do you think that this is enough time to boost my speed?
Thanks!
Anthony
Hi Anthony, here is our advice for getting faster on the LSAT: https://lawschooli.com/tips-for-increasing-speed-lsat/
How many wrong are we talking when you speed things up? Sometimes in the LSAT month you’ll see substantial improvements. I’d keep hammering practice tests and see what happens in the next couple of weeks.
Hi Evan,
I am a potential first time LSAT taker this February (for next year’s cycle), but I cannot figure out if I’ll be ready in time. I am doing well on the LR and RC sections (-2 or -3 at worst resulting mainly from stupid mistakes), but after 2 months of work thus far (admittedly not with strenuous hours of study) I cannot get the Games to click. Right now there’s a good chance I could score at -10 or worse. Are 3 or 4 more weeks of intense study enough to get them figured out? I would hate to wait another 4 or 5 months to take it in June if I can get it out of the way now.
Thanks,
Clayton
Hi Clayton,
Lagging in games is a tough problem to have, but should not be insurmountable. I wrote a post about a similar situation very recently. Check it out here to see if any advice looks helpful: https://lawschooli.com/still-trouble-logic-games-try/
You still have over a month to go. The last month is actually where a lot of your prior effort tends to start paying off, so keep at the study for now and don’t get discouraged. If you are still having this problem a week from the LSAT, then you can consider putting it off. Hit games hard and focus on always approaching the problems with the correct setups.
Hello Evan,
I’m not usually one to leave comments, but after reading your article I’m hopeful that you might be able to help me. I recently took my first LSAT in December (after a hefty studying regimen of four months) but due to an absolutely awful testing center I was obliged to cancel my score. Of course I was exhausted, both mentally and physically, after this exam, more so because I realized that my studying wasn’t over yet; I had to continue my training for the February test. Now, a little over three weeks after that exam I am completely lost. Studying has been practically unbearable and it seems as though I’ve lost all will to continue with it. It’s odd because before my December test I was so motivated, studying everyday for 3-4 hour sessions and I took 30+ practice exams, all of which I reviewed for my errors. As you know the February exam is coming up soon and although I’m signed up to take it I’m terrified that I cannot perform at my highest potential, although to be honest I’m no longer sure what that is. So my question for you is whether or not you feel I should trust the knowledge (can all I learned be lost so soon??) I built up for my December LSAT and rely on the studying I can accomplish in January and take the test in February, or sit tight until June (a terribly long ways away) and take that test, by which time it can be expected that my drive for the LSAT will return, along with an expiration of this “burned out” time period.
Thank you,
Mary
Hi Mary, really sorry I didn’t catch this comment. The central question is whether you are hitting the scores you want to on practice tests. If not, you might want to wait until June.
Can you tell me a bit more about what you have seen for results on practice tests? Again, terribly sorry that I missed your comment. I usually see all of them!
Hi Evan,
No worries at all, I know how busy you must be. I have decided to take the test this coming weekend and I’m feeling pretty good about where I’m consistently scoring 🙂 Thanks so much for getting back to me nonetheless, and I also want to thank you for your work with this site, the content is great!
-Mary
Thanks a ton Mary. Wishing you luck on Saturday!