One Month left before your LSAT

You should be taking timed practice LSAT exams. But don’t forget to evaluate your performance. Following are some suggestions of how to make your last month of study for the LSAT successful.

Transition into timed LSAT exams

You’ve likely been taking untimed sections to learn the strategies necessary to complete them accurately. Now you need to transition into timed ones without losing the advances you’ve made mastering the fundamentals and/or making careless mistakes. Methodically assess your approach to each of the question types that are giving you problems. Spend this time with each question that you struggled with or missed. The time spent doing this is invaluable.

Taking timed PrepTest sections is very different from the untimed prep you have been doing. So, with a month left before the exam, work on the following:

Review old practice tests to identify problem questions

Before you can build speed, it is necessary that you assure yourself that you know the methods and techniques well. The only way to know this is to evaluate the mistakes you’ve made on practice tests and review work. Evaluate your past work. Review the methods you used to answer the question. Examine the steps you used to determine where you erred.

If you’re struggling to achieve your dream score, and you should have a target score, re-evaluate …Set a realistic goal.

Learn to skip questions

Get more of the easier questions right! Remember, you get one point for each right answer. The difficulty of the question doesn’t add points, so skip the hard ones and consistently get more of the easy ones right.

Mark the skipped questions on your score sheet and in your test book and come back to them if you have time. (DO NOT forget to fill in a guess answer if you don’t have time to get back to it.)

 Evaluate Skipping Questions

Consider whether or not it is realistic for you to answer every question. Evaluate areas where skipping is a good idea:

• Evaluate old practice tests to identify problem questions. If you recognize those question types, you can skip them immediately. This saves valuable time that you can use for more accurate completion of the questions that you’re good at! (Remember to mark that question so that you can come back to it.)
• The logical reasoning section is a good choice where to skip questions. In this section you don’t have to do any catch up like in the games section where you already invested time into diagramming set-up or in reading comprehension where you have to re-read a section. Remember that the first 10 questions in Logical Reasoning are the easier questions. Work these as quickly as you can to save time for the later questions.
• Skip questions in reading comprehension and analytical reasoning if they’re taking too much time.
• Please remember to go back and guess answers to questions you were unable to complete!

The 35-minute limit

Don’t panic! This adjustment might be difficult so consider gradually cutting down on the time you allow yourself for each section. However, you do not have a lot of time to adjust, so get started now. Accurately timed sections and full tests are valuable to show you your real progress. After finishing a timed prep test…have I said, “Make sure you evaluate that test?” Oh, and after the test, work the questions you didn’t get to. Good practice!

If you’re struggling with timing and adjusting, you might consider gradually working into the timed sections. Perhaps give yourself 40 minutes per section, then reduce your time gradually on your next prep tests. You don’t have a lot of time though, so diligently work towards the 35 minutes.

Eight minutes, 45 seconds the average amount of time you have for each Game or Reading passage is useful information, but remember: The easier questions might not take that full amount of time. Try to work as quickly as you can on each question to save time for the later, more difficult questions.

Remember to rest well, eat well and keep your stress levels low – and…enjoy your remaining time to study for the LSAT!

Tags: LSAT, lsat advice, LSAT Stress