How to Prepare for the LSAT
As we approach the October LSAT, many prospective students anxiously trudge through prep work to achieve the best score possible. Here are some tips for you brave souls:
- Familiarize yourself with the questions. Nothing is better than walking into the testing center knowing what to expect.
- Know how you study best. If you do best studying alone, then do not force yourself into a prep course. If you need more structure, then a weekend or semester course might be a good option. If it’s not broken, don’t change it!
- Take your time on the analytical (logic games) section but allocate it appropriately! Know where you can cut some corners and where you can’t. This is best gauged through practice, time yourself once you start taking full practice tests.
- Take as many practice tests as you can – Widener Law offers free simulated testing four times this year. Visit http://law.widener.edu/Spiffs/WidenerLawHighlightsII/LSATPracticeExams.aspx for more information.
There are many options out there, do your research. Along with the test prep companies, some local colleges offer weekend courses or provide personal tutors. Although prep can be an expensive endeavor, remember that it holds significant weight in the Admissions process. A high score can even place you in consideration for merit scholarships – is a $1,000 course worth a full scholarship to law school? That’s a rhetorical question.
For those of you retaking the LSAT, each law school has its own standards for considering multiple scores. Widener Law considers all LSAT scores, along with the average, but places greater emphasis on the high score.
As always, please feel free to email asdelpuerto@mail.widener.edu if you have any questions. Happy testing!
Are there any local private tutors at Widener? I am not good at test taking and need help retaking the LSATs.
Hi Talat,
Sorry about my delayed response! Just realized I never replied. Widener Law does not offer private tutoring (although a few of our professors, such as Kenneth Gross, have offered their services in the past).
Kaplan and Princeton Review are popular choices for test prep. They can be expensive so research the different options. They have weekend and semester long courses and online prep. Local colleges may offer weekend courses as well, James Yoho is a popular instructor for college prep courses. I found a copy online of his syllabus:http://www.shu.edu/academics/setonworldwide/upload/CEPS-LSAT_Prep_Course_Syllabus.pdf.
If you contact local colleges, look online for a pre-law advisor or chair of the political science/social science department. They usually teach students interested in law school and may have excellent suggestions for you.
Please note that Widener does not endorse any company in particular, these are just my suggestions.