What was your initial score on LSAT?

[cvetok]

Hi everyone,
I am glad that there is a site dedicated specifically to all those poor students (like me)  who spend the biggest portion of their time preparing for the LSAT. Anyway, I just wanted to ask what was your 1st score on a simulated (at home or elsewhere) LSAT? How did you handle the logic games section of the test when you first saw it? Also, how many hours per day did you dedicate to prepare for the test (taking to consideration that you have some light work load at school), and how long did it take for you to see considerable improvements in performance on the LSAT? I know it sounds like a lot of questions,  but I have just started to study for my June test, and have so many questions... Thank you!

[M2]

Im not sure if you are directing these questions only to those who have already taken it....but...

I have been studying for about 4 weeks on a partime basis for two of those weeks. I have taken 5 LSATS and my score has gone from 154 to 161.. In the next weeks before the June LSAT I plan to take 3 practice tests a week and study about 3-4 hours per day. During the last two weeks before the test I may take one test per day, at 12am ... im not sure yet.

[zpops]

Started with a 167.  The games section was very difficult, and I wasted a ton of time trying to figure out how to approach the questions.  I studied for about 2 months prior to the test, about 2-4 hours a day, with as much as 8 hours some days.  I scored a 167 the first 3 full length test conditions prep tests I took, then started scoring in the low 170's consistently, about 3 weeks before the test.  Good luck with your prepping, and feel free to ask any questions you have here.

[cvetok]

Thank you for replies  My score now is around 157, but I have only been studying for 2 days, so I hope it is not bad. The section that confuses me the most, like many others here, is the Logic Games section. It surprises me though, because I took a philosophy class in critical thinking, which was 90% based on this type of questions, and got an A there. However, I am really intimidated by these Logic Games, hmm... I hope I will have enough time to find the key to mastering their underlying logic Funny enough, right now my biggest motivation is "you can teach even a monkey to fly," as stated by someone in this forum 

[zpops]

Formal logical training does not help on the games section.  I'm a philosophy major, and I did not find any of my logic skills to be useful, in fact I just wasted time when I applied proper logical principles to the games.  You just need to learn LSAT logic games, which are more like riddles than anything else.  Get your diagrams and techniques down, and then the rest should just fall into place with enough practice. 

[cvetok]

2 zpops^
You've started with 167? That's great! For the schools to which I am going to apply that would be a pretty satisfying score.
The one thing that I've noticed about the LSAT questions, is that the people who make them deliberately formulate these questions in seeimingly incomprehensible manner.. but, really, once you get "into their minds" , so to speak, the questions are actually pretty straightforward. As with the Logic Games, I have yet to figure out the best diagram which to apply to most of the riddles, and I feel like it is going to take some time. 
Also, is it better to start timing the test from the beginning of my studies, or should I concentrate on that later?

[zpops]

You'll need some guidance on the diagrams.  You should buy a prep book or two (ask around for reccomendations).  I'd start with untimed sections, until you have your diagrams down pat.  Once you've got them, move to timed sections (don't freak out when you don't get to answer all the questions the first few times).  With some practice, you should be able to get a near perfect score untimed, so time is definitly the biggest hurdle on the LSAT.  By doing little more than working on games (I took a kaplan course which was aboust as useful as reading a book, and a lot more expensive), I manged to move my score up 8 points, and I think that's a pretty reasonable increase for anyone who really works hard on the test.

[jgruber]

First practice score 156
Actual LSAT score    155

[nathanielmark]

LOL, M2, i respect the fact that you are going to be working hard to do your best on the LSAT, but where do you get this 12AM thing from?  It sounds a little deranged to me to be quite honest. and not to mention, why not just go all the way and take it at 3 or 4AM if you really want to torture yourself.  Maybe you could have your wife/girlfriend whip you while you take it to really turn the pressure up a notch.

Im not sure if you are directing these questions only to those who have already taken it....but...

I have been studying for about 4 weeks on a partime basis for two of those weeks. I have taken 5 LSATS and my score has gone from 154 to 161.. In the next weeks before the June LSAT I plan to take 3 practice tests a week and study about 3-4 hours per day. During the last two weeks before the test I may take one test per day, at 12am ... im not sure yet.

[zpops]

Hi Zpops,

You sound exactly like me in terms of where you started out (And I'd like to get where you are!).  I'm just starting some older tests and get around 165-168 pretty consistently, missing around 10-12 on the games section.  Did you use the Bible or just old tests? I have two months left, but I actually have a JOB, so I can only do 2 hours a day and maybe 10 on the weekend. Any suggestions?

Thanks so much!

My score improvement was solely due to the games section.  I consistently scored 1 wrong on RC (2 at most) and 2-5 wrong on L/R, but I would only get about half the games right.  I read the princeton review book, and then used their diagrams for the most part.  Took a Kaplan course, combined their diagrams with PR to put together something which I could draw quickly, and which worked well for me.  My score increase was pretty much exclusivly from practice.  I did tons of game sections and full tests.  Saved newer tests for closer the exam.  Pretty typical stuff.  I bought LSAT 180, but never did any more than two of the games.  By the time I went onto the book I was acing them, so it didn't seem as useful as doing more games from new tests.  ALWAYS do the games sections untimed after you're done with a practice test.  This way, you don't waste a game by not finishing it or not working through it properly.  I probably did about 20 sections in full tests, and a few in isolation.   I also did the games in the kaplan book for homework.  Good luck!