LSAT Preparation and Study Group

It’s clear that students who are physically and mentally prepared for the stresses associated with test day have a great advantage over those who do not. For many students, this is hard-won experience: their first test goes poorly due to stress or lack of preparation.

One strategy that I’m increasingly recommending is for students to plan to take a real LSAT and to immediately cancel the score in order to gain test-day experience. What are the pros and cons of this approach?

Pros

• Understand the test day process. Since you likely took your practice tests in a quiet, comfortable and familiar spot, you may not be prepared for the carnival-esque atmosphere of hundreds of nervous type-A’s registering and then waiting, often for a long time
• Reveal your test anxiety. Students often are surprised by their own level of nerves while taking the exam. A practice run gives you a better understanding of how you’ll react. If nerves impact your performance
• There’s no admissions downside. Canceled scores really have no impact on your admissions process at all

Cons

• You’re out $132. However, this is an extremely small price to pay for even a point or two on the test. See here and here for why effective LSAT prep is an amazing financial investment. If you’re worried about the cost, just think of it as a fraction of a percent of the cost of your legal education. (Scary.)
• You’ll need to extend your LSAT prep. It’s not worth sitting for a real LSAT if you haven’t done any prep, so to use this strategy you need to be studying 1-2 months before your practice LSAT. This strategy works a bit better, therefore, for December and February takers who have a test application just a few months beforehand. This would work least well for June takers, who would have to start prepping in January.

All in all I think this is a very good way to get some real-world practice. This method is certainly better than getting a sub-optimal score and having to retake. If you’re at all concerned about test anxiety or you are taking the test in December or February, I’d recommend considering this strategy.

John Rood is the Academic Director at Next Step Test Preparation, which provides one-on-one tutoring services for the LSAT. Contact John here.