Mr. S Posted June 2, 2006 Share Posted June 2, 2006 I am planning on taking the LSAT's in september/october ( I think the date is september 30th). I am wondering how people studed for the LSAT? Is it worth taking a prep course like kaplan, or better to study on your own. Also, what are some good studying books to study on my own? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iheartskins Posted June 2, 2006 Share Posted June 2, 2006 I took Kaplan--it was probably worth it. Take as many tests as you can. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EersSkins05 Posted June 2, 2006 Share Posted June 2, 2006 I took Kaplan--it was probably worth it. Take as many tests as you can. I agree. The courses themselves don't really help all that much with anything other than the logic games. But they teach you some useful tricks to handling them that can save time when you actually take the test. Take the test a bunch of times, figure out why you were right and why you were wrong on each answer, and you'll be fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EersSkins05 Posted June 2, 2006 Share Posted June 2, 2006 Oh yeah, even if you take the course, I suggest getting the book: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0743265467/sr=8-1/qid=1149275837/ref=pd_bbs_1/103-5900766-1511010?%5Fencoding=UTF8 5 practice exams, a program giving you practice questions, can't go wrong here. (only 23 bucks too) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redskin56 Posted June 2, 2006 Share Posted June 2, 2006 I never took a course. I contacted LSAT and purchased as many of the past tests I could get my hands on. I think I took 5 or 6 of them. Take them under the same timed conditions you will experience in the exam and correct them afterword. Take the time to figure out why you answered the way you did and why a different answer is correct (especially in the games section). I'm sure the courses have their pluses; however, I don't think you can prepare any better than by practicing with actual tests that were administered previously. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Air Force Cane Posted June 2, 2006 Share Posted June 2, 2006 spend the thousand bucks for kaplan- and of course you will be studying on your own as well 8 hours a day. my session in MD had a 67% pass rate.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DjTj Posted June 2, 2006 Share Posted June 2, 2006 I am planning on taking the LSAT's in september/october ( I think the date is september 30th). I am wondering how people studed for the LSAT? Is it worth taking a prep course like kaplan, or better to study on your own. Also, what are some good studying books to study on my own? Thanks!It's always better to take a course - otherwise they wouldn't be able to charge all that money for it ... I personally never took a course because I was pretty busy during the fall of my senior year of college, but I bought a book, did most of teh exercises, and took a few practice tests.The LSAT is all about thinking, so it's not something where you need to spend a lot of time memorizing things. It's good to get some practice, and there are some tricks, which Kaplan can help with, but you can also figure out a lot of that stuff on your own. I remember when I took the SAT's I took a Kaplan course and my scores on the practice tests at the beginning and the end differed by like 10 points. That didn't really inspire me to go back to Kaplan for the LSAT. I think it really depends on the person - if you're someone that responds well to prep courses, then by all means do it ... if you're someone who has gotten by without that kind of structure, then you can save some money. However, your LSAT score is REALLY important for getting into good law schools, so however you decide to prepare, take it seriously. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prosperity Posted June 2, 2006 Share Posted June 2, 2006 Advice that no one seems to have mentioned: Take it if you think you are ready, if you are sick or think you aren't prepared then don't rush to take it because law schools will either take your worst LSAT score or average the LSAT scores. Either way, don't take it if you think under the conditions you will bomb it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bearrock Posted June 3, 2006 Share Posted June 3, 2006 Instead of taking any courses, I bought and took all the practice test I could get my hands on (over 30). I also did my practice tests at 8:30 in the morning so that I would be in the habit of thinking in the morning (I'm not a morning person). The main thing, however, is to do what you are comfortable with. In my opinion, confidence is as big a factor as any other. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. S Posted June 3, 2006 Author Share Posted June 3, 2006 yeh, I took kaplan for the SAT's, and due to my laziness and lack of caring, my score maybe went up 50 points. I should have studied more, yes. However, I am more driven to do the LSAT then I was the SAT by far. I figger if I just buy the kaplan or princeton review books and study those 2 hours a day on my own or so, I should be fine. I was also gonna buy the books published by LSAC, like the 10 practice LSAT series, they have 3 books, with 10 LSAT's in each. There is also this book: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/097212960X/sr=8-3/qid=1149305104/ref=pd_bbs_3/104-1774304-0551947?%5Fencoding=UTF8 it seems to be rated pretty well by users. I think Ill try to study a few weeks on my own, and if it fails, just sign up for kaplan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChiefBigMeat Posted June 3, 2006 Share Posted June 3, 2006 In addition to the good advice offered by others, I would add that you should start now. Gather all the practice tests you can and take several to determine where your weak spots are. (Mine was def. the logic games) Try to improve in those areas and if you are still not where you would like to be, then consider getting outside help. One other thing ... IMHO the Princeton books were MUCH better than the Kaplan. Get one of those "how to" books along with as many practice tests you can get your hands on. Also: You might want to talk to some lawyers and sit in on some law classes before you really get into this. The application process is expensive and time consuming, so you should make an effort to be sure it's something you really want to do before you really get into it. I spent about $600 and I didn't even take one of the classes. A trip to George Mason and some good advice from a professor helped me decide that it wasn't for me, so I became a newspaper editor instead - and I'm very thankful I took the time to really consider my options. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. S Posted June 3, 2006 Author Share Posted June 3, 2006 Thanks, maybe I will do that, you think it is possible to just sit in at a GMU course? Or do you need some kind of permission for that? Maybe Ill try to do that this week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoCalSkins Posted June 3, 2006 Share Posted June 3, 2006 spend the thousand bucks for kaplan- and of course you will be studying on your own as well 8 hours a day.my session in MD had a 67% pass rate.. There is no pass/fail on the LSAT. Even if you take Kaplan/Princeton review, buy the actual LSAT test books. They have a couple of books with 10 past tests in each book. They are published by the people who conduct the LSAT. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChiefBigMeat Posted June 4, 2006 Share Posted June 4, 2006 Thanks, maybe I will do that, you think it is possible to just sit in at a GMU course? Or do you need some kind of permission for that? Maybe Ill try to do that this week. You just have to call the admissions office and ask them for a tour. It's no big deal. They have a few students who are always on stand-by to show people around. You could luck-out like me and be assigned a cutie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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