How to know if im studying correctly or not?

Comments

• 7 Likes

  tbynum30 Live Member

  February 12 95 karma

  I'd focus on doing drills or even sections untimed. This will help you practice the MATERIAL rather than the TEST. By doing this, you will build mastery of the concepts, then you can add in timing and strategy. I'd also pause on the PTs, but I know that's a controversial opinion.
• 6 Likes

  SufferingfromSufficientCondition Core Member

  February 12 341 karma

  I agree with the above comment. If you're PTing in the 140s, it's a sign that there are fundamentals that you need to improvement upon.

  Here are some recommendations:
  - focus on UNTIMED drilling of easier to medium rated questions
  -shift to timed drilling only when untimed accuracy has significantly improved
  -hold off on PTs until your accuracy improves, both timed and untimed
  -review CC & understand what each question type is asking of you, how to do conditional logic, practice identifying parts of an argument, etc.

  With only 1 month of studying, 140s is a totally reasonable score. It takes time to improve, so don't get discouraged.
• Iamstressed Alum Member

  February 12 1 karma

  I feel like I am not improving even though I have been studying for months. My initial test was 144 and I have not improved since then even though I have been with 7 Sage, should I try somewhere else because I am not understanding what I am doing wrong and it is not making any sense?
• 7 Likes

  Cant Get Right Yearly + Live Member Sage ⭐ 🍌 7Sage Tutor

  February 12 28109 karma

  Agreed with above about untimed work. And as much emphasis on the work as on the untimed. One of the biggest mistakes I see with people--especially starting out--is they'll spend a minute or two reading through a question, and then watch the explanation to get JY to explain it to them. This doesn't work. You've got to do the work yourself; JY can't do it for you. This is slow, tedious, and painful work. Even relatively easy questions might take upwards of 15-20 minutes to work all the way through. The lessons give you the tools to do that, but you're the only one that can use those tools to build understanding. So just make sure the work is an arduous grind. That's where a change in results comes from.
• 1 Like

  natemanwell1 Core Member

  February 12 314 karma

  got to learn the content. how to answer the question types and, what the wrong answer and right answer types are. doesn't seem like you know them yet so taking more tests rn is pretty worthless tbh
• 1 Like

  courtneynicholecovington Live Member

  February 13 7 karma

  I would like to know too because people think i'm crazy because I have PT'd yet. Makes it seem like i'm just only suppose to do pratice tests non stop. I don't have that many uninterrepted hours in my week unless I stay up late and i'd be too tired to fully concentrate.
• 3 Likes

  Cant Get Right Yearly + Live Member Sage ⭐ 🍌 7Sage Tutor

  February 13 28109 karma

  @courtneynicholecovington said:
  I would like to know too because people think i'm crazy because I have PT'd yet. Makes it seem like i'm just only suppose to do pratice tests non stop. I don't have that many uninterrepted hours in my week unless I stay up late and i'd be too tired to fully concentrate.

  PT's are important. Let me lead with that. But they are way overrated and their uses are broadly misunderstood. They are great as dress rehearsals and diagnostics, but very ineffective at actually tackling problems. Even really broad problems are not well addressed by PT's. Let's say you're really bad at NA questions. A PT will expose you to many of them, but how does it help you improve at them? You can't spend time reflecting on them. You can't explore your tactical options. You can't stick with them until you have a breakthrough. You can't do any of the things that need to be done to actually address the problem. PT's test your execution; they do not provide effective means of improvement. So if you know you suck at NA, all a PT will do is confirm that. Instead, you should study NA questions. What does it really mean for an answer to be necessary? What is the most effective tactic to approach them with? What are some of the common reasons for answers being wrong? What are the exceptions to those common reasons that can make those same answers right in a different context? Drill them untimed and write out full length reports deconstructing the stimulus and detailing exactly why each answer is right or wrong. Compare your explanations to JY's and then explain those questions to your study group. This is what the work looks like that will address and correct the problem.

  Think of PT's as the start of a cycle: PT, BR, Analyze, Identify Problems, Address Problems. The PT itself is both the easiest and briefest part of the cycle. For most of my studies, one a week was about the most I could manage, and that was only once I was able to start studying full time. I couldn't really handle two a week until I was consistently scoring into the lower-mid 170's, and even then, I burned out pretty badly trying to maintain that pace.

  So don't get me wrong, PT's are really important. But they are not as important or important in the ways that most people think. Their best uses are 1) diagnostic to tell you what is going wrong and 2) dress rehearsals to get you comfortable with the start-to-finish testing process.
• 1 Like

  thisisrough Core Member

  February 13 edited February 13 7 karma

  I have taken a 30h course through my school, and have some background knowledge of the exam through Mike Kims LSAT trainer. I am wondering what i should be focusing on now. The study schedule through 7 sage is more instruction than drills and PTs. I wouldn't say i understand every concept to the max, but feel as if i should be doing more than just watching video explaining for 7-13 hours a week. Does anyone have any suggestions? Im also currently taking 5 courses so my time is very valuable to me
• 2 Likes

  legallykelly Core Member

  February 13 17 karma

  Most of the responses on here are very encouraging.

  I haven't felt ready to take a PT yet because I'm still working on understanding every question type and identifying my mistakes so that I can learn more. I had no prior knowledge of the LSAT and have been studying on and off for 3 months - with the last month being fully committed. I know everyone works at different paces and this can all be very confusing but the response above was hitting the nail on the head:

  -You have to understand each question type
  -You have to know why the correct answer is as such
  -It is arduous and tedious work, there is no way around it

  I'm looking for a study group that includes others interested in taking the June LSAT, please let me know if you hear of one!
• 2 Likes

  burkeoneal Alum Member

  February 17 15 karma

  You may not like this answer, and I'm making some assumptions about you and your place in life, but if you're not willing to apply with that score and take your chances, it might be time to redirect your efforts. It may be you have a more basic deficiency such as reading speed and comprehension. There is nothing wrong with pursing another career goal while working to improve your skills. I say this as someone who just took the Jan 2025 LSAT for the first time at the age of 46 and scored 165 two months after my first diagnostic of 160 on practice test 140. Stellar score? Nope. Adequate? Sure. Would I have scored this high 20 years ago without the intervening experience? Probably not. For sure, two month of 7Sage study was helpful, and while I made it through the LR syllabus, I was not able to complete the RC material in that time. I did no additional practice tests other than my initial diagnostic. I just didn't have time. I agree with many previous commenters in that you need to spend a great deal of time increasing your basic ability to read, comprehend, and reason. This would likely best be done while increasing expertise in your chosen non-law field; technical journals, etc. There's nothing wrong with spending some time getting paid to increase your likelihood of application success. Life may feel like a race when you're in your 20's, but there is a lot of learning and living ahead of you. Don't let this one roadblock stop you.