The Official September 2017 Study Group Forum

[digitality]

pretty exciting day for me. i've been drilling games by type hard for two weeks and had planned on PTing either tomorrow or thursday. the plan for today was just to do the LR and RC sections of an early test timed to get back into the habit of answering those questions before my PT. did each section in under 35 minutes with time to review. i did take breaks for lunch and a run, as i wasn't planning on making it a full PT. but the sections went so well i just decided to play the games for kicks.

"PT 28" (in heavy air quotes)
LR1 -3
LG -0 (my first ever -0!)
LR2 -5 (kind of a bummer)
RC -0 (this is my section)
174

to reiterate, even though i timed each individual section, this isn't a real PT since i threw it together more as a day of drilling. and its an early test with some weird quirks (multiple LR questions for a single stimulus, no comparative RC). nonetheless, it's my first time north of 170 and pretty encouraging.

[abujabal]

PT 62:
RC -2
LR1 -0
LG -2
LR2 -1
-5 178

I can't believe I went -2 on LG. It's always -0 and kept me from my first 180.

nice! that's one helluva curve

[hhm]

Checkin in for september!

Should be finished the Trainer by the end of the week, and am going to jump into PT's and blind review for the next two months till September. Looking to make a 10+ increase from high 150's into the 170's. Not working right now, and only taking one summer class so I'll be putting in around 70 hours a week.

Time to ball out!

[Anon-e-miss]

Has anyone found success by switching away from LR orthodoxy (stimulus then question stem) and tried reading the stem before the stimulus? Thoughts for or against it?

A LOT of people read the stem first. I do and it works great. I don't really think one is considered the LR orthodoxy.

Thanks for the input, and thanks to everyone else who shared their thoughts on this topic!

I used to read the stem first when I took my diagnostic and prior to the PS Bible's insistence that I read the stim first. Given the overwhelmingly favorable response that the stem-first camp provided, I might try that out and see if it can take me from the -1-4 per section to -0-2 (where I aspire to be)

I gave the Stem before Stim approach a try on tonight's PT, and had not only my best score yet (176) but also had my best LR performance as well (-2 and -0).
Could not be happier right now

[CottonHarvest]

PT 62:
RC -2
LR1 -0
LG -2
LR2 -1
-5 178

I can't believe I went -2 on LG. It's always -0 and kept me from my first 180.

nice! that's one helluva curve

There are 102 questions so I don't know if that is part of it

[Aptony]

Am I the only one who thinks 2 months is a lot of time? There is still so much you can learn in that frame.

In two months I went from 169/170 to both of my last two PTs being 179

How??? I'm trying to get to a 170, I'm at 160. I've been doing independent study; looking for some new ways to expand my capabilities. I have volume V and one earlier of prep tests and two strategy books. I've been doing a combo of timed and not timed sections and full practice. Taking the test in sept; started studying in march.

[Rupert Pupkin]

Has anyone found success by switching away from LR orthodoxy (stimulus then question stem) and tried reading the stem before the stimulus? Thoughts for or against it?

A LOT of people read the stem first. I do and it works great. I don't really think one is considered the LR orthodoxy.

Thanks for the input, and thanks to everyone else who shared their thoughts on this topic!

I used to read the stem first when I took my diagnostic and prior to the PS Bible's insistence that I read the stim first. Given the overwhelmingly favorable response that the stem-first camp provided, I might try that out and see if it can take me from the -1-4 per section to -0-2 (where I aspire to be)

I gave the Stem before Stim approach a try on tonight's PT, and had not only my best score yet (176) but also had my best LR performance as well (-2 and -0).
Could not be happier right now

Thats awesome man! It helped me out a ton too. Great score

[Aptony]

What products are you guys using for drilling specific topics? Are you just pulling out sections from practice tests or are there some recommended books that have endless logic games, for example? I'm trying to get faster; I'm guessing on 5-8 questions before running out of time.

[usaorbust]

I can't tell if I should continue PTing or drilling sections, any input? Im hitting around -5/-4 on each LR section which I hope to get down to -3/-2 per section. I am also hitting around -7/-6 in RC. While I think taking PTs is helpful, I don't know if its helping me close the gap. Gone through Manhattan and the Trainer (at least for LR) and I always check wrong LR answers on the Manhattan forums, but I dont know what would be best to improve on LR and RC.

Also not missing anything in particular with LR, maybe a bit heavily on support and SA Qs.

[presidentspivey]

I took my first PT in weeks, confident in the magnitude of my LG improvement. The LSAT took a giant dump on me.

PT33

LR1: -5
RC: -7
LR2: -1
LG: -4
Scaled: 167

While the LG strides were real, reflected both in my section score (my best ever on LG) and my thought process and comfort level throughout the section, I've seemingly traded for this improvement with huge declines in LR and particularly RC, on which I was routinely going -2. Was part of this rust? Probably. But it's still extremely disappointing. My trend of mediocre performance on one LR section and outstanding performance on the other continues. Nevertheless, this is my second best scaled score yet. Had I performed to my normal standards on LR and RC, I would have easily broken 170 for the first time. Perhaps later in the week, after some refresher drills on those sections, I will. But I don't know.

TL;DR: This test and the process of studying for it continues to humble me. I'm frustrated with the test and my own performance on it, but it's morphing into the frustration that motivates. That's probably the biggest case for optimism.

ETA: Perhaps BR will be illuminating. I'll be doing that tomorrow.

[caramelizedgod]

For those who have written an administration - What is the physical form of the test? Similar to the single PT books you can buy on amazon? I don't want to show up and be thrown off because I was accustomed printed PTs.

The biggest thing I would say is to expect a longer waiting time in the beginning then you would expect. I was lucky and the whole process of instructing people to write down their information on the scantron sheets only took 30 mins but I know that others took much longer. This can build nerves etc so I would just recommend knowing about this and being calm.

[AvatarMeelo]

I can't tell if I should continue PTing or drilling sections, any input? Im hitting around -5/-4 on each LR section which I hope to get down to -3/-2 per section. I am also hitting around -7/-6 in RC. While I think taking PTs is helpful, I don't know if its helping me close the gap. Gone through Manhattan and the Trainer (at least for LR) and I always check wrong LR answers on the Manhattan forums, but I dont know what would be best to improve on LR and RC.

Also not missing anything in particular with LR, maybe a bit heavily on support and SA Qs.

Could be a stamina thing? I've noticed I'm a little less laser focused on the second LR section during PTs.

[AvatarMeelo]

TL;DR: This test and the process of studying for it continues to humble me. I'm frustrated with the test and my own performance on it, but it's morphing into the frustration that motivates. That's probably the biggest case for optimism.

ETA: Perhaps BR will be illuminating. I'll be doing that tomorrow.

Don't give up!!! I think with this exam we have our highs and lows and we should def see any losses as an opportunity to learn something new - not just about the exam but also about how we personally approach the exam and how we can get better. You got this!

[saf18hornet]

Being 8 years out of school, I was nervous about getting an academic LOR. I reached out to an undergraduate professor yesterday who said he would be happy to write me an LOR. Super pumped because now I can use his LOR and one from my previous employer, and not have to get one from my current manager. I assume that my current job would become pretty hostile for the next year if I needed an LOR from my current boss. This takes a lot of my application stress away. Now to just get my score up a few points here in September!

[saf18hornet]

For those who have written an administration - What is the physical form of the test? Similar to the single PT books you can buy on amazon? I don't want to show up and be thrown off because I was accustomed printed PTs.

The biggest thing I would say is to expect a longer waiting time in the beginning then you would expect. I was lucky and the whole process of instructing people to write down their information on the scantron sheets only took 30 mins but I know that others took much longer. This can build nerves etc so I would just recommend knowing about this and being calm.

Definitely this. It is nearly identical to a single PT you would buy from amazon. The only real difference is it has a paper cover, so it's even more flimsy. Otherwise, no surprise there. Like ^^ said, the biggest difference is when you finish 'warming up' on test day, you will likely have a 30 min to 2 hr 'cool down' time between when you enter the test facility to when your test begins. My test center in June started within 15 minutes of the 1230 start time, so I hope the same occurs in Sept.

[Ira Hayes]

Did the LSAC just ban 180 and Mastermind style watches? I saw a post on r/LSAT that chronographs aren't allowed anymore, didn't know if those types were included.

[Barry grandpapy]

Did the LSAC just ban 180 and Mastermind style watches? I saw a post on r/LSAT that chronographs aren't allowed anymore, didn't know if those types were included.

.

[Barry grandpapy]

Did the LSAC just ban 180 and Mastermind style watches? I saw a post on r/LSAT that chronographs aren't allowed anymore, didn't know if those types were included.

Edit again:
Nevermind, yeah it's banned.

Balls.

[Anon-e-miss]

Did the LSAC just ban 180 and Mastermind style watches? I saw a post on r/LSAT that chronographs aren't allowed anymore, didn't know if those types were included.

Fake news. I just called them to ask.

Phew. I was about to really regret buying the Mastermind last week

[Barry grandpapy]

Did the LSAC just ban 180 and Mastermind style watches? I saw a post on r/LSAT that chronographs aren't allowed anymore, didn't know if those types were included.

Fake news. I just called them to ask.

Phew. I was about to really regret buying the Mastermind last week

I was told the wrong information. It's banned now.

[Mikey]

Did the LSAC just ban 180 and Mastermind style watches? I saw a post on r/LSAT that chronographs aren't allowed anymore, didn't know if those types were included.

Edit again:
Nevermind, yeah it's banned.

Balls.

WAIT WHAT

[Anon-e-miss]

Did the LSAC just ban 180 and Mastermind style watches? I saw a post on r/LSAT that chronographs aren't allowed anymore, didn't know if those types were included.

Fake news. I just called them to ask.

Phew. I was about to really regret buying the Mastermind last week

I was told the wrong information. It's banned now.

link?

[Barry grandpapy]

Did the LSAC just ban 180 and Mastermind style watches? I saw a post on r/LSAT that chronographs aren't allowed anymore, didn't know if those types were included.

Edit again:
Nevermind, yeah it's banned.

Balls.

WAIT WHAT

According to Jon Denning' s Twitter "digital watches, alarm watches... chronograph watches (digital or nondigital)"

[AvatarMeelo]

Can someone take one for the team and call LSAC to confirm whether Mastermind style watches are banned?

[Mikey]

Did the LSAC just ban 180 and Mastermind style watches? I saw a post on r/LSAT that chronographs aren't allowed anymore, didn't know if those types were included.

Edit again:
Nevermind, yeah it's banned.

Balls.

WAIT WHAT

According to Jon Denning' s Twitter "digital watches, alarm watches... chronograph watches (digital or nondigital)"

bruh, wtf.. this is bullshit! why the hell would they ban the 180/mastermind watches..... smfh, the mastermind watch was going to get me my 180