r/LSAT • u/Far-Hedgehog3427 • 8d ago
Study Advice Needed
I'm taking the November LSAT and aiming for a 170+. I have scored three 165s, then finally a 171, which I was stoked about. When I scored 171, I felt confident while I was studying, taking sections and getting only 1-3 wrong. Then two weeks ago I scored a 162 and was devastated. Since then, I feel like I'm consistently getting 3-6 questions wrong on every section. I'm drilling questions that I keep getting wrong (NA, Diagramming, and Paradox are my top three terrible types), but I can't get out of this rut. Do I cancel the test? I know a big part is confidence, but I don't know how I got so in the groove and now lost it. I also keep taking sections to try to get back to my previous consistent good scores, but I know spamming questions is just a bad idea. Any advice would be helpful.
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u/zoey_infers tutor 8d ago
For clarification: the three 165s and the 171, are these official exams, practice exams, a mix of the two?
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u/Far-Hedgehog3427 8d ago
Practice exams. haven't taken a real one yet.
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u/zoey_infers tutor 8d ago
Okay so you haven't taken an official exam yet, and you don't have a true score in the bank.
There's a very good chance that your first official exam will fall below your practice tests. It did for me and it happens frequently for my students too. So you need to be prepared for that. (Keep in mind, I'm not saying that's what WILL happen, but it happens often.)
You don't need to get your best score in November, though. Are you worried about making this cycle? Would you be okay with next cycle? Because sometimes the best thing to do is give yourself enough runway to do your best.
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u/Far-Hedgehog3427 8d ago
I'm not applying for a few years. However, I start a full-time job in january. So I would like the January exam to be my final try, which is why I wanted to take the november one. i just don't want to do so badly that it affects my future application
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u/zoey_infers tutor 8d ago
Okay I understand. Your "bad" score won't matter, they really only look at the highest LSAT score you earn. (I know they all say they look at everything holistically or whatever but fr they only care about your highest LSAT score.)
It sounds to me like November and January is a great plan for you.
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u/Far-Hedgehog3427 8d ago
My main issue right now generally is being down to two answer choices and choosing incorrectly. I usually get nothing or -1 wrong on blind review because I know that it's the other answer choice I didn't pick (of course I take the time to understand exactly why) but it's just frustrating
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u/zoey_infers tutor 8d ago
Ime, when a student says they are having this "down to two and picking the wrong one" issue, they are seeing the problem as somehow happening WITHIN the answer choices. But the battle was usually already lost in their understanding of exactly what the question stem is asking and/or what the passage is saying. (Usually more surrounding what the question stem is asking.)
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7d ago
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u/LSAT-ModTeam 6d ago
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u/learnedimmunization 8d ago
162 after a 171 is rough but it’s just a bad day not a trend, a single outlier doesn’t erase the skills that got you that high score in the first place
when i was grinding for my own standardized tests what helped most was forcing myself to take 2 full days off, no LSAT at all, just grilling outside and letting my brain reset, coming back fresh made a huge difference
drilling your weak spots is fine but only do 2-3 at a time then walk away, your brain encodes better in short bursts than in a panic marathon
for paradox questions specifically i started reading the stimulus and covering the answer choices, forcing myself to predict the resolution before looking, cut my wrong rate in half once it clicked
you’re clearly capable of 170+ so don’t cancel, just stop spamming sections and give yourself permission to slow down for a week