Those prospective law students who are taking the June LSAT are — probably painfully — aware that the test is two weeks from today. With these readers in mind, this week’s article will offer three key points for a successful test day experience as the June test approaches.
— Keep up with your routine: At this point you have hopefully established a routine for the past several weeks of taking between two and four full, timed practice tests per week. At this point, it will be difficult to learn and get comfortable with any new technique or strategy in time for the June exam, so you should instead focus on continuing to take practice tests.
Reviewing techniques you have already learned, especially for question types that continue to give you trouble, should be a part of your routine as well, but don’t try to incorporate any new techniques at this stage in the game.
At this point, if you have prepared well, you are also probably sick of taking practice tests and may just want to give yourself a few days off. Fight this desire!
Remember that you are close to finishing this part of the admissions process, and that you will be free in two short weeks.
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— Simulate an entire test at least once: One often overlooked element of test day is that the exam is significantly longer than the practice tests that most students take to prepare. The two things that students generally omit from their regular practice tests are the experimental section and the writing sample.
Most LSAT prep courses and the Law School Admission Council’s published books only contain the four scored sections and the writing sample, omitting the fifth experimental section. Although the experimental section does not count toward your numerical score, it will test your stamina by adding a section to the exam. In order to prepare yourself for this change, I recommend taking at least three practice tests with a fifth section from any of the older LSAT tests, anything before June 2007.
The writing sample is the least important part of the test and does not affect your numerical score, but it is important to at least familiarize yourself with it by completing the writing sample at the end of at least two tests.
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In addition to adding these two sections, you should try to take the test in conditions that are as similar to real testing conditions as possible, including time of day and day of the week. One of my past students even determined her test day breakfast and snacks in advance to help calm her nerves and leave nothing to chance for test day.
The June LSAT is unique in that it is administered on Monday at 12:30 p.m.; the October, December and February tests are offered on Saturdays at 8:30 a.m. except for Saturday Sabbath observers. Days for those test-takers can vary, though they too will take the test at 12:30 p.m.
If possible, take a complete practice test, including an experimental section and the writing sample, next Monday at 12:30 p.m. If you are unavailable on Monday, schedule a test for Saturday or Sunday at the same time.
[Here are five tips for the week leading up to the LSAT.]
— Relax: This is perhaps the most important and most difficult to implement advice at this stage in the game. Remember that it is totally normal to be nervous or anxious!
I often tell my students that if you are not a bit nervous in the few weeks before the test, you’re probably not taking the whole thing seriously enough. It is still important, though, to make sure that your nerves do not affect your performance and that you enter the exam with confidence and a clear head.
I encourage my students to try to detach themselves from their score, and detach their score from their chances of admission. The more you can practice focusing on the question, game or passage at hand, the more likely you’ll be to maximize your score.
Are you planning to take the June exam? Email me or tweet me.
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3 Preparation Keys for the June LSAT originally appeared on usnews.com
