Self-Isolation Study Guide
Okay, raise your hand if you suddenly have a lot of âsitting around at homeâ to do.
Now wash that hand and use it to pick up a PrepTest or two.
This is your chance, pals - if youâve got a little free time youâd otherwise be using at a restaurant or the gym (remember that? We used to go out and be around people...it was kinda terrible at the time, but we miss it now), why not devote it to LSAT prep? Real talk: millions of people are quarantined or self-isolating right now, and thousands of them are studying for the LSAT. If you arenât using this time to kick some LSAT butt, others are, and theyâre going to kick your butt in turn when it comes to the next admissions cycle.Â
See, itâs like a butt-kicking carousel. Either kick the LSATâs butt or have your own kicked.
So hereâs a potential study schedule Iâd like you to try and let me know how it goes. This is assuming youâve got an hour a day, plus 4 hours once a week, to devote to studying.
DISCLAIMER: I know a lot of you genuinely donât have that time. If thatâs you, donât feel bad about it, just pare this down to the time you do have and make it work. On the other hand, if youâre telling me you donât have time while youâre binging the Office for the eighteenth time, get ready to be the butt kickee, not the butt kicker. Get in contact with me if you want a personalized study schedule!
Okay, letâs try this on for size. It doesnât matter what day of the week youâre starting, so Iâve just numbered the days. All that does matter is that you start now.
Day 1:
PrepTest (any test will do) Section 1 - Timed section 1
Whenever youâre completing a âtimed section,â I want you to set two timers on your phone or whatever. One will be for 30 minutes to serve as your 5-minute warning, and the second will be for 35 minutes to tell you when youâre really done. At the five-minute warning, fill in the rest of the answer choices with the same letter (there is no advantage to any particular letter; just use the same one to simplify your life), then go back to whatever question you left off at and try to answer a few more.
When youâve finished the time, mark how many questions you actually answered (for example, you might make a line under #21 if that was the last one you completed), and go through and try all the rest of them, untimed. These questions wonât count toward your score for the section, but youâd be crazy to miss out on the practice they can give you!
Now score the section, only counting the questions youâd actually attempted in the 35 minutes. You can see how many you magically guessed right for fun, but donât count those as points you earned. Unfortunately, you only have a 20% each question when you guess (which is still a hell of a lot better than 0%), so I donât want you counting those toward your score since you canât really depend on those points.
Do NOT mark the correct answers as you score the section, only mark the ones you got wrong. Circle the number or whatever, just donât write in the correct answer. If you knew what the answer was supposed to be, itâd really shoot you in the foot for the next step, which is reviewing your answers.
Go back to all the questions you got wrong and try them again. Often, youâll be able to noodle your way to the right answer now that the pressureâs off. Great! Ask yourself: do I understand why this was wrong? If you donât get why your answer was wrong and canât find the correct answer, thatâs where a tutor like me comes in. The LSAT isnât easy, folks, and you canât be surprised when some of the questions throw you for a loop! As a tutor, I can help you work through those questions and see what youâre missing.
Since a section will take at least 35 minutes to complete (and often much longer, if youâre taking your time to answer questions you didnât get through in the 35 minutes), plus at least 5 minutes or so grading, plus at least 15 minutes or so reviewing incorrect answers, one hour is a conservative estimate for how long a timed section should really take you.
However, doing full sections and seriously reviewing them is the best way for you to gain the two biggest strengths youâll need on the LSAT: comprehension of the material and mental stamina.
Okay, so thatâs Day 1. Guess what youâre doing on Day 2:
Day 2:
Section 2 of yesterdayâs PrepTest - timed section and review
Day 3:Â
Section 3 of PrepTest - timed section and review
Day 4:
Section 4 of PrepTest - timed section and review
After this section, you can score the whole test to see how you did overall. You should record your scores somewhere so you can see your trends as you study! I provide my tutoring students with a handy spreadsheet they can plug their scores into.
Day 5: Drill, listen to podcast, etc.Â
If youâve subscribed to something awesome like the LSAT Demon, you can spend some time just drilling the sections or question types you know you struggle with. Listen to a podcast episode, etc. Donât do nothing today, but take it easy for a day.
Day 6:
Full test, timed (at least 2.5 hours).
Same idea as before - set your 30- and 35-minute timers, and mark what questions youâve actually finished at the end of 35 minutes, then attempt the rest untimed for practice.
But donât review in the middle of the test - donât check your answers or anything, just move on to the next section. If possible, donât take a break between sections 1 & 2 and sections 3 & 4 to somewhat simulate the reality of test day where youâll be stuck except for a 15-minute break in between (feel free to break for 15 minutes between sections 2 & 3).
When youâve finished all four sections, score the whole test. If you have time today, itâs great to review while the questions are still fresher in your mind. If you canât, which I donât find hard to believe with busy at-home work schedules and whatnot, make sure you review tomorrow so youâre not coming back to the questions totally cold. When you go back to the questions quickly, you can remember what you were thinking and perhaps how you made the mistakes that lead you to the wrong answer. However, Iâd take cold review over no review, so Iâm not gonna get too picky.
Day 7:Â
Review from the day before if necessary, or take another ârest dayâ where you drill questions or listen to a podcast episode.Â
This is just a basic schedule I want you to try. Itâs not magic. Itâs not guaranteed to raise your score by 15 points in 2 months. Itâs just based on what I know really, really works: intentional, frequent practice and meaningful review.
You can do it! Now get to work.

















