LSAT Prep Scholarships
LSAT Prep Scholarships
I got a 134 on my LSAT diagnostic. What's the possibility of bringing my score to what I want?
134 is a bad grade, I know. I'm a very intelligent person, even earned a full-tuition scholarship to complete my undergraduate studies here at the University of Louisville, but I'm not a great test taker.
I'll admit, I've not worked very hard on the LSAT until this Sunday. I'm now in an LSAT prep class. Now I'm working my tail off inside and outside class to bring my score to what I want (155-160 range.)
I plan on taking the December '07 LSAT. What are the chances I can earn this score on the exam? What else would you suggest I do to prepare? Thanks!
Firstly, the lsat is a learnable test. 138 to 160 is totally doable. Early diagnostics are not indicative if you put hard work in for the next few months. A prep class is a good idea BUT is not a substitute for you understanding your own strengths and weaknesses.
Try and look critically at your work and spot your areas of weakness. Did you score better in certain types? Do you run out of time? Do you assume your answers were correct? Are you a slow reader? Do you panic? If you know what you are doing wrong, you have a better idea of what to fix.
Start working on your weakest section - cramming wont do it, you need to understand it so give it time and it will come. LG is the usually the easiest to bring up, as most test takers are unfamiliar with it and recognizing the questions is key. RC is usually the hardest. Everyday the NY Times op-eds are roughly the same length and tone. Try reading them and then critiquing them like an RC question. LR = buy the Powerscores LR Bible - it goes through the 13 question types and how to answer them and is invaluable.
Hopefully, through your class, you have past exam papers - DO THEM! They are your greatest weapon. get on Amazon if you don't and make sure they are REAL ones. If you are on a Kaplan/PR course they may not be. LSAC has three books of 10. Get them all. Buy the individual ones from 39 to 51. Yes it is expensive, but tiny LSAT changes can mean the difference between a top 20 school and a top 50 school, or even scholarship or no scholarship at the same school. Start off doing them untimed until you are fairly confident that you understand the answers. If you are aiming for a 155 - 160, don't be afraid to answer 3/4 of the section correctly, and to guess the rest.
Get online!! There are communities dedicated to this stuff. I'd try www.top-law-schools.com and www.lawschooldiscussion.org for starters. If you have problems you can't fix you can post them online and people usually help you.
Nerves etc mean marks tend to drop 3 - 4 points from practice to real so you need to be hitting 160 in practices to be confident for the test. If you are not ready by Dec, DON'T TAKE IT! It is, for better or worse, (at least) 50% of your law school application and it's better to wait until you are really happy than blow it and retake.
If push comes to shove, you can write an addendum explaining that you are not a good standardized test taker (presumably your SAT and ACT are also low) but that it wasn't indicative of your success in college. But honestly, I would put that in the last resort pile and get working.
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