9 Study Tips for the LSAT

Law school admission boards place the most weight on your LSAT score because the LSAT is designed to be a direct indicator of how well you will likely do during your first year in law school. Many admissions committees note that they place about 60% of their decision on an individual’s LSAT score, which is much, much higher than the weight colleges place on a student’s SAT or ACT. For this reason, it is critical that you score the best score possible to better your chances of acceptances. The LSAT is not a test that you should take without preparation; it has a great deal of content you have likely not encountered on other standardized exams. We have created 9 study tips to help you prepare for the LSAT.

1. Take a Diagnostic Test

Once you decide that you want to take the LSAT, you should take a full-length practice test. This will help you get a good idea of your baseline and give you important insights into what areas you need to focus on. It will also give you some sense of how much time you should plan to devote to studying (see next tip). When taking this diagnostic test, treat it like the real thing. Make sure you are following the time constraints of each section and have chosen a place with minimal distractions. You can use the free LSAT provided by LSAC, or you can take a diagnostic test with LSAT Engine online where we will time each section for you and break down what questions you missed.

2. Create a Schedule

Once you have taken a diagnostic test you can create your study plan. Assuming you can devote roughly 10 hours a week to your studies, we recommend giving yourself 3-4 months for a 10-11 point increase, around 6 months for a 15 point increase, and at least 8 months for a 20 point increase to your baseline score. If you are taking the prep course with us, we will create a study schedule for you by calculating how many hours you need to be studying per week to complete all of the material before the test date. If you are studying on your own, you need to look at your week-to-week schedule to see how many hours you can realistically devote to studying. Then create a timeline, and do your best to complete your study goal each week. Your personal performance counselor will help you stay on track, but there’s no secret that a disciplined, consistent approach will be key to your success.

3. Study in Blocks

We know it can be tempting to neglect your daily practice and then crank out eight hours of studying in one day. However, this approach will not work for the LSAT. Advice commonly given is that practicing for the LSAT is like training for a marathon: run a handful of miles each day to build your stamina and skills until you are ready for the big race. Studying for the LSAT should follow the same structure, and we recommend studying in blocks anywhere from 20 minutes to 2 hours. Studying in these smaller chunks will lead to higher retention. It is also a good idea to take breaks if you are going to study for longer. Consider changing your location, going for walks, or grabbing a snack to help reset your brain. As you get closer to the exam you should build up to longer 2 and 3 hours blocks with the goal of building your mental stamina.

4. Study in the Morning

5. Turn off Distractions

Although this tip seems obvious, you would be surprised how many students study while texting and browsing social media. Turn off your distractions by putting your phone in airplane mode or by turning it off altogether. If you are using LSAT Engine, we suggest turning off your computer notifications so you can stay focused. Apps like Freedom (Mac and Windows) or SelfControl (Free Mac App) are great resources that you can turn on that will restrict your web browsing for a specified period of time. Remember: LSAT practice first, Instagram later.

6. Find the Right Setting

Where you choose to study is important! Go somewhere that you will be able to sit down and focus for chunks of time. We recommend changing up where you study so you can train yourself to focus in different environments. Some great places to study are the library, coffee shops, your home or apartment, classrooms, outdoor tables, or anywhere else you can sit at a table and focus. If you are using LSAT Engine you can study pretty much anywhere, but we recommend getting some headphones so you can focus on the lessons.

7. Study on Your Own, But Review with Friends

Unlike midterms and finals, studying with friends is not an efficient approach because each student has different areas where s/he excels and where s/he needs extra help. For this reason, we recommend that you study alone and focus on what you need to do to improve your score. However, if you have a friend preparing for the LSAT at the same time as you are, it is a great idea to review together once you have already learned and studied the material. You can take turns teaching each other mini lessons, reviewing big ideas together, or workshopping specific questions. Oftentimes the best way to test is your own is to try and explain it to someone else.

8. Practice, Practice, Practice!

We recommend taking as many full length LSATS as possible before your exam. If you are not using a practice course, there are usually one or two full-length tests you can find online. LSAT Engine uses 54 practice tests total (PrepTest 30-83), giving you 12 full length exams, 10 practice tests divided into full sections, and the rest of the questions split up in the lesson examples or on the quizzes. Repetition is key, so taking multiple practice tests will help train your brain for the real thing. It will also give you a better idea of the score you should expect when you go in to take your LSAT.

9. Don’t Beat Yourself Up!!

This might be the most important study tip. The LSAT can be extremely frustrating and humbling at first because the content is difficult and new. Do not give up; there are tips and strategies for each section! It is important to maintain a growth mindset and to understand that your scores will increase if you spend more time studying and working smarter. Students sometimes wrongly believe that their skill in one particular section is based on innate talent and is therefore fixed. However, no section on the LSAT relies solely on natural talent. Your brain is a muscle, and the more you train it, the stronger it gets. So get to studying!

Posted: 6-19-2018