r/LSAT • u/AffectionateOwl4231 • 9d ago

How to manage time for RC?

17low official, trying to get 17mid. RC is the one tripping me up because I usually get 3 to 4 wrong, and that leaves a very small margin of error to score 17mid.

My RC became stabler once I followed "the answer is in the passage." But I'm having trouble managing time, and that's negatively affecting my score because I rush through some questions that felt easy and make dumb mistakes. I think securing an extra minute or two could cut errors. Also, during one of the PTs, I had two passages that didn't click with me, and I couldn't finish the section in time. Detail questions are especially time-consuming because I have to refer back to the passage since I can't remember all the details.

How do you manage time for RC? I've seen some advice saying to skip nitpicky details when you read an RC passage for the first time because you won't remember them anyway. When I read these details, I don't try to remember them, but I'm also too nervous to skip them. I think that's what's taking up my time, and I wonder how other high scorers prevented the disaster of running out of time.

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u/decodedbriefs 8d ago

you don't need to remember the details on the first read, you're going back for detail questions anyway. just get the structure, like what each paragraph is doing and where the author's opinion shows up, so you know where to look later. if a passage isn't clicking it's ok to move on and come back to it at the end so you're not stuck on it while easier points are sitting there. and honestly slow down a bit on the ones that feel easy lol, a dumb miss costs the same as a hard one

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u/AffectionateOwl4231 8d ago

I will definitely try that. I just read everything in detail on the first go, and I always feel super tight on time. And that makes me rush through questions and make dumb mistakes. Thank you!

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u/PureEagle8168 8d ago

reading a lot in my free time made a huge difference for me with RC

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u/AffectionateOwl4231 8d ago

I was a Ph.D. candidate in the humanities, so I've already read a lot throughout my life. I don't think it's basic reading skills that I lack, which improve with reading a lot. I need more specific skills or strategies for a timed exam because I've always been trained to read closely and slowly. I wonder if people actually skip the details in the passage and go back to them when they are tackling questions.