Is one and half month prep realistic?

[jadedclay]

Hi all, just want to get a feel of what the general opinion is regarding how many hours of prep time is needed for LSAT.  Do you think it's possible to prepare for LSAT in a month and a half if 5 hours of study time put into it everyday?

[marcus-aurelius]

I prepped for four months, increased my score 25 points into the 99th percentile and I still did't feel I prepped enough.  That includes about a month of 30+ hours per week.  So I'd conclude 6 weeks is not nearly enough.  It is possible, but I find it unlikely

[Jeffort]

Unfortunately there is no one size fits all formula in terms of how much study time is necessary to be able to hit your maximum potential score.  The LSAT isn't a test you can reliably say X# of hours per week over Y# of weeks will equal Z# of point increase. 

Your mileage may vary.  Some people prep for it for 3 months, some for 6+ months etc. to get their performance up to a score they are happy with. 

Have you taken a timed practice test yet to get your starting off pre-prep/just started prepping baseline score?  Have you researched and figured out what score range you need with your UG GPA to be a competitive applicant to the Law Schools you are interested in attending?

It all depends on what your goal score is and where you start off.  If you are looking to break 170 and scored something in the 140's or below on your first timed practice test(s), expecting to break 170 with under 6 weeks of prep is a long shot. 

What is your target score and what are your target schools?  Not everyone needs or wants a 170+ to be satisfied and to get into a LS they will be happy with.  If you're talking about going from say mid to low 150's to 160+ or something like that in 5-6 weeks, that is reasonable and do-able with good dedicated prep.  If you are going for a 20+ point gain in 5-6 weeks, that is unrealistic.

[LSAT Freedom]

That might not be enough.  It really all depends on where you are at with your scoring?  Have you taken a practice test?  You should normally spend at least 10 – 12 hours per week studying.  Any more, and you will burn yourself out.  If you take a practice test and score high enough, then maybe you can get to where you want to be within a month and a half.  However, if you score lower than what you expect and need significant improvement, a month and a half likely will not cut it.

[JSFisher]

Not without a prep course and some meaningful way to gauge your progress. This is about what I put in, and I can tell you that it's not enough if you want to clear the 160 mark, which is what I hoped to do. Look, the benefits of taking a test prep course far outway the costs. If you have the time and the ability, taking an LSAT prep course and getting the nuts and bolts of the test down pat will probably improve your scores considerably. The cost is 3000 dollars (last time looked), and you will reap the benefits in terms of better tuition and better options. If i had it to do over again, I would take Kaplan or something comparable.

That said, sounds like you don't have time to change your mind on that one so make sure you are timing your answers. You need to be able to do all the questions in the allotted time, and in my first section I ran out with three questions to go. It set me up for what I can only describe as an awful testing experience for the remainder. So time yourself, or have someone time you. and take 2 practice tests under timed conditions per day.

[Jeffort]

Not without a prep course and some meaningful way to gauge your progress. This is about what I put in, and I can tell you that it's not enough if you want to clear the 160 mark, which is what I hoped to do. Look, the benefits of taking a test prep course far outway the costs. If you have the time and the ability, taking an LSAT prep course and getting the nuts and bolts of the test down pat will probably improve your scores considerably. The cost is 3000 dollars (last time looked), and you will reap the benefits in terms of better tuition and better options. If i had it to do over again, I would take Kaplan or something comparable.

That said, sounds like you don't have time to change your mind on that one so make sure you are timing your answers. You need to be able to do all the questions in the allotted time, and in my first section I ran out with three questions to go. It set me up for what I can only describe as an awful testing experience for the remainder. So time yourself, or have someone time you. and take 2 practice tests under timed conditions per day.

$3000 for a prep course??   That's double or more the price of most available quality full length prep courses. 

Also, taking 2 timed practice tests a day to try to improve your score is well beyond foolish.  Doing that would be counter productive and waste tons of time that could otherwise be spent doing the study & review stuff that actually helps improve your skill/performance level.  It would almost be the worst possible way of doing the stupid churn and burn routine.

Slow motion study, analysis and review of test content, concepts, strategies, techniques, approaches, mistakes you make along the way, etc. is critical in order to raise your scoring ability.  Burning through a bunch of tests as fast as possible expecting it to help improve your score is silly. 

The only study plan I can think of that would be a worse formula for disaster would be doing 2 timed practice tests a day and starting to take/getting hooked on adderall to do it.

[marcus-aurelius]

Two timed tests per day is at minmum 7 hours.  Going over them should be another 5 hours (or more).  Who has that type of time?  Not to mention how shot you'll be by the second section of the second test (or sooner)