post-mortem for the LSAT

disclaimer
I am not the most well-prepared test taker, in fact I only made the decision to apply to law school on Apr 24, had my diagnostic test on Apr 29 and got a 160 (without being timed, took about 45 minutes to complete each section). Have I started preparation earlier, I do believe I could get a better score, but I am satisfied with an over 10 point jump in just 7 weeks
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study material
1) powerscore bibles (LG, LR, RC)
2) The Official LSAT SuperPrep
3) 10 Actual, Official LSAT PrepTests
4) The Next 10 Actual, Official LSAT PrepTests
5) 10 More Actual, Official LSAT PrepTests
6) 10 New Actual, Official LSAT PrepTests
7) Prep Test 62 - 65
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my time line
after the disgnostic test, I gave myself 3 weeks to finish the 3 powerscore bibles. During that 3 weeks, I also used 10 Actual, Official LSAT PrepTests as workbooks for the powerscore bibles. I wrote down answers to each LR question, analyzing the question type and each answer option; diagrammed every RC article, and LG games
finished the semester on 20 May, started timed PTs on that day (3 - 4 PTs every day until one day before the test day) was able to practice each PT at least twice
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my strategy
after the diagnostic test, I realized my strength is definitely with the LG, and although my LR was a disaster, it could be improved within a short period of time.
As for RC, timing was my main problem. Like most ESL takers, my reading speed is slower than most native speakers--when first started, it took me about 6 minutes to read each article; on the test day I averaged about 4 minutes per article.
Giving the time constraints, I knew I couldn't have everything well seasoned. I felt LG and LR are the sections that can be improved most easily. Considering LR and LG sections accounts for almost 75% of the raw score, I felt it was justified to devote most of my time to study the LG and LR.
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LG
powerscore bible is a great starting point to know the game types, and also a great resource to identify your weakness.
I was having some problem with sequencing problems, and after some practice I realized it was because the diagram introduced by the powerscore bible (the trees and branches) appears counter intuitive and messy
so I figured out a way which I can diagram every piece of information provided and I am most comfortable with
for example:
 
                
                
with this kind of diagram, the relationship bewteen each piece of information is clear and I was able to improve my speed with sequencing games tremendously
so while the LG bible is a good starting point, I guess it is more important to find the kind of diagram and notations that work the best to one's advantage
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LR
To many ESL takers including myself, the LR section could be very confusing at first. The unfamilarity with English, adds to the already convoluted phrasing of LR questions can make it particularly hard.
I mainly used the powerscore bible system when attacking LT questions, but there are some mathematics tools I also found particularly useful in helping my understanding many crucial concepts.
the use of Venn diagrams
the concept of necessary condition and sufficient condition was particularly hard for me initially. it took me a week to finally realize "sufficient conditions do not cause necessary conditions to happen"
I found it was easier to translate the relationship of necessary condition and sufficient condition to the set language
i.e.
necessary condition is a subset of sufficient condition
it can also be shown in the following Venn diagram
                
                
using this the concept of contrapositive is straight forward
i.e. if you are outside the sufficient condition set, you are naturally out of the necessary condition set
another example:
Salesperson: When a salesperson is successful... if using powerscore's diagrmming, it should look something like this:
premise:
success --> strong client base
>=3 yr to develop client base --> comfortable living in sales (existence of a strong client base)
conclusion:
success --> >= 3 yr
just by looking at this diagram, it's not exactly straight forward to see the right answer
with a Venn diagram on another hand, it is quite clear that the question has ignored the possibility of the shaded region
                
                
i.e. some salesperson succeeded with less than 3 years of experience, they also have a strong client base "some salespeople require fewer than 3 years in which to develop a strong client base."
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I also find a Venn diagram can be very helpful with some/most questions
for example: PT 62 S2 Q19
In West Calverton, most pet stores sell exotic birds...
                
                
it will be so much easier to use a Venn diagram to describe the question, and to see the right answer
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RC
Honestly I am at no place to discuss my “strategies” with RC section. I do find that studying the LR section helped my understanding of the LSAT writers a little better. I should have put in more effort in this section.
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Endurance
When first started, I do find that my level of concentration started falling after 3 sections, error rate started shooting up. So when I started PTing on May 20, I followed the following schedule to train my endurance
-- Morning, 5 section timed practice with some PTs already studied
-- After lunch, 5 section timed practice with some new PTs, and another timed section on a PT already done (personally I found it very important to sync one’s time with the actual LSAT test time. I tend to fall asleep in the afternoon, and with three weeks of intensive training, I was able to stay focused and have a sharp mind after lunch)
-- After dinner, 5 section timed practice
So on average I do 4 PTs every day. This is not a very sustainable strategy though--I was seriously burned out when the test approaches. But it did allow me to go over almost 50 PTs twice within such a short period of time. It also gave me an advantage with endurance. I guess if you start earlier than I did, doing two 5-section PTs every day should be sufficient.
That’s about everything I have to share
Good luck with the cycle/future tests everyone!