33 days 'til LSAT

Today I took my first thorough practice test, whose results predicted a score of 171. Coupled with my 2.85 GPA, this gives me a 90% chance of getting into the U of M. My constant Analytical Reasoning studying has really paid off--I scored higher in that section than Logical Reasoning, which was originally my strong suit.

44 days 'til LSAT

Rose-colored score projection: 177

There are six different types of problems in the Analytical Reasoning section of the LSAT:

• Sequencing
• Strict Sequencing
• Selection
• Distribution
• Matching
• Hybrids

Within each type of problem, there are 5 - 8 related questions which are written from four basic models:

• Acceptability
• Complete and Accurate List
• New ""If"" questions
• Could vs. Must

As I progress through my Logic Games Workbook, I feel that the problems and associated questions are getting more difficult; however, my accuracy is steadily improving. Last night's study session (in Matching) yielded my best results ever, with 80% accuracy. Of the three questions I answered incorrectly last night, I had flagged two as "unsure." I ran a stopwatch for this session and found that I actually had six minutes to spare, in which I could have reviewed the two I got wrong. Unfortunately, my math skills are lacking and I thought I was several minutes over, rather than several minutes under, and called it quits.

Tonight I tackle Hybrid questions, which I suspect are more difficult.

My study plan is constantly evolving, but right now the plan is as follows:

Aug 7	Overview
Aug 8	Analytical Reasoning Overview
Aug 9	Analytical Reasoning Overview
Aug 10	Sequencing
Aug 11	Strict Sequencing
Aug 12	Selection
Aug 13	Analytical Reasoning Review
Aug 14	Distribution
Aug 15	Matching
Aug 16	Hybrids
Aug 17	Practice Test
Aug 18	Analytical Reasoning Review
Aug 19	Analytical Reasoning Review
Aug 20	Practice Test
Aug 21	Practice Test
Aug 22	Practice Test
Aug 23	Practice Test
Aug 24	Practice Test
Aug 25	Analytical Reasoning Review
Aug 26	Analytical Reasoning Review
Aug 27	Practice Test
Aug 28	Practice Test
Aug 29	Practice Test
Aug 30	Practice Test
Aug 31	Practice Test
Sep 1	Analytical Reasoning Review
Sep 2	Analytical Reasoning Review
Sep 3	Practice Test
Sep 4	Practice Test
Sep 5	Practice Test
Sep 6	Practice Test
Sep 7	Practice Test
Sep 8	Analytical Reasoning Review
Sep 9	Analytical Reasoning Review
Sep 10	Practice Test
Sep 11	Practice Test
Sep 12	Practice Test
Sep 13	Practice Test
Sep 14	Practice Test
Sep 15	Analytical Reasoning Review
Sep 16	Analytical Reasoning Review
Sep 17	Practice Test
Sep 18	Practice Test
Sep 19	Practice Test
Sep 20	Practice Test
Sep 21	Practice Test
Sep 22	Analytical Reasoning Review
Sep 23	Analytical Reasoning Review
Sep 24	Practice Test
Sep 25	Practice Test
Sep 26	Practice Test
Sep 27	Practice Test
Sep 28	General Review
Sep 29	Test Day

Other preparatory measures I am taking:

• Testing a variety of #2 pencils to select the brand with which I'm most comfortable. I will be testing for comfort, lead-lasting power, and eraser effectiveness. Once I've selected a brand of pencils, I will buy them en masse, sharpen them, and continue my practice exams with them. (My beloved mechanical pencils are forbidden.)
• Practice writing for extended periods of time. I very rarely pick up a writing instrument, much less handle it for hours on end and then torture myself with an essay. These practice exams should be a good work-out for me, but I'm going to start penning letters to old friends and family to prepare my hand and wrist for the impending torture.
  

45 days 'til LSAT

Rose-colored score projection: 175

Last night's Analytical Reasoning study session yielded 75% accurate results. According to my practice exams, I would currently be achieving an LSAT score of approximately 175. Prior to studying, I would only have achieved a 161, which is not embarrassing, but certainly would not make up for my 2.85 GPA.

It's truly amazing how far I've come in just one week of moderate studying. 45 - 60 minutes a day is proving to be an effective study schedule for me. Once I complete the prep book I am currently working on, I will have Dan proctor my 30 practice exams to me (one per weekday, six per weekend), to ensure that I can appropriately manage the time limitations. I have no doubt I will be able to manage the time limitations for Reading Comprehension and Logical Reasoning, but I do know that I am currently taking a few minutes longer than allowed for Analytical Reasoning and will need to learn how to shave this time down.

After each practice exam, I will review my two prep books (LSAT for Dummies and Kaplan Logic Games) to learn why I am failing in certain areas and rework all of the problems I got wrong. Once I've completed this intensive run of practice exams, I will dig into my LSAT 180 prep book to work on more difficult sample problems.

Once that's all said and done, I will do a few practice Writing Samples. I'm confident I can write an adequate essay, but I am concerned my writing hand, accustomed to alternating between keyboard and mouse, will not be able to handle the intensive pressure of several hours filling in circles plus a writing sample. Maybe I should be doing hand exercises to prepare... I'll have to check with my physical therapist the next time I pay her office a visit.

48 days 'til LSAT

Rose-colored score projection: 172

The LSAT has six 35-minute sections. Five are multiple choice sections, one of which is an unscored experimental section; one section is a writing sample. Of the four scored multiple choice sections, there are two Logical Reasoning sections, one Reading Comprehension section, and one Analytical Reasoning section.

When I took my first practice exam, I missed only a few in Logical Reasoning, aced Reading Comprehension, and bombed Analytical Reasoning, as noted the other day. Since then, I have been working at least an hour a day on Analytical Reasoning problems. Rating myself on a scale of 1 - 10, I started out as a 0, improved to a .5 after one day of studying. After four days of studying, I am consistently getting about 60% of the problems correct, so I'm giving myself a 6.

Based on my current results, if I were to take the LSAT tomorrow, I'd score about 172. Dan worries that a high LSAT paired with my low GPA will imply a lack of work ethic, but I'm hopeful that my success with my employer (and the rave reviews they will give me in their reference letters) will indicate otherwise.

I plan to continue focusing my study efforts on Analytical Reasoning problems, studying at least an hour every day. A friend currently attending my first choice school (University of Minnesota Law School) promises to tutor me in the upcoming weeks as I prepare for my September 29th LSAT.

How high does my LSAT need to be to offset my unimpressive 2.85 GPA? According to LSAC's UPGA Search, a 172 should put me back in the running for University of Minnesota Law School. Hopefully, I'll score even higher or my personal statement will cover the additional ground lost.

53 days 'til LSAT

Rose-colored score projection: 161

I paid a visit to Barnes & Noble last night and made a bee-line for the test prep section. Unsure of exactly what to get, I picked up three of the recommended officially LSAC books of actual previous exams, a workbook of just Analytical Reasoning problems (i.e. "logic games"), and LSAT For Dummies. I've never even picked up a For Dummies book before, but I figured it best to assume myself a dummy from the get-go.

As I sheepishly pushed my stack of books across the cash wrap, the cashier asked me, "Did you find everything you need?"

"I certainly hope so," I prayed.

I drove up to the Minneapolis library to follow through on my original planned research of Maslow's hierarchy of needs, as per my mother's suggestion, but after flipping through some of the LSAT For Dummies, I was hooked. I ended up spending the next several hours pouring over the Analytical Reasoning section. My assumption was right--I am most definitely an Analytical Reasoning "dummy."

Here is an example I gleaned from ExamCram:

Charles has to put together a roster for his company's annual softball game against their cross-town rival. He's got eight healthy people that want to bat for the team: Corwin, Dorian, Hal, Joseph, Kamal, Peter, Ralph, and Seth. He's allowed to submit five names for his roster. However, there are some things to take into consideration:

• If Ralph plays, Hal must play immediately after Ralph on the roster.
• Two of the three managers, Dorian, Kamal, and Ralph, have to be on the team.
• Corwin and Seth can't be next to each other on the roster.
• If Kamal is on the team, then Joseph can't be picked.
• Peter has to play either first or second.

Then the exam questions ask you to determine if Joseph likes ice cream, then "who's on first, what's on second, I don't know is on third..." (Abbott and Costello).

I do understand the skills this section is intended to gauge, but if this sort of analytical ability is really necessary for one to survive as an attorney, I have no idea how my father has managed to stay in business. I know he's intelligent, but try setting up a tent with him and tell me he's an Analytical Reasoning master.

Personal Statement: Importance of Being Earnest

What belongs in the Personal Statement of a law school application? The recommendations of each law school vary, but the overriding suggested themes are why I'm interested in pursuing a degree and career and how my unique abilities, experiences, and character set me apart as an exemplary candidate. Many schools' admissions guides urge me to write about hardships I've overcome, such as my race, culture, linguistic origins, or poverty. My husband told me about a female acquaintance whose law school application detailed how being a victim of rape inspired her to pursue a career in law. While I don't intend for this blog to become my personal soapbox or confessional, I had a similar experience (but a very different reaction!) and find it appalling that a woman could give another person--much less a rapist--that sort of power in her life.

My mother is a guidance counselor (and by proxy a career counselor). I phoned her during my morning commute and lamented to her that (1) my only hardship has been my lack of hardship (I don't think there are many scholarships for middle class Midwesterners of European descent) and (2) I don't have any sob stories from which to draw my excuse for wanting to go beyond my current plane. She pointed out that I don't need a sensational story to explain my intentions; I simply need to earnestly describe the motivation behind my decision to pursue a legal degree. I reluctantly explained to her the "true story," rather than the sob stories I had begun weaving. The truth is that I fear stagnation both in my personal life and in my ability to positively affect the lives of others. In my current job, I feel that I have reached a pinnacle. I'm twiddling my thumbs, wishing for a personal intellectual challenge and a more direct way to impact others.

I could hear my mother nodding on the other end of the line. She understood what I was thinking better than I myself understood, and she brought up Maslow's hierarchy of needs. "Maslow" was a more common name in our household than our beloved family dog, so I was familiar with his hierarchy of needs; however, whenever my brain finally starts to evict his little pyramid diagram, my mother finds a way to reintroduce the man and reapply his findings to the current events of my life. I'm happy to report I'm clipping away at a mother-approved pace, graduating up the hierarchy of needs. My need to avoid stagnation and pursue a higher intellectual plane fits right into Maslow's (and my mother's) master plan for my life.

My mother suggested I write my personal statement using Maslow's hierarchy of needs as my guide and, after the discussion with her and some preliminary research, I agree that it's both fitting and honest. It won't be a tear-jerker and it won't get made into a Hallmark movie, but it will be genuine.

"Be true! Be true! Be true! Show freely to the world, if not your worst, yet some trait whereby the worst may be inferred!" (From Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, one of my favorite novels.)

Personal Statement: Non Compos Mentis

I completed high school in three years (graduated in 2001) then went on to complete undergrad in three years (graduated in 2004). In 2005, I started a career with FindLaw (a Thomson West company). In under two years, I was promoted to Senior Web Producer, a distinction held by only one other employee whose tenure at Thomson is three times my own.

I consistently demonstrate a need to "go beyond" my current intellectual plane. This chronic condition results in a knack for climbing to a pinnacle, only to look up and discover a new mountain beckoning me. Today, I begin my journey toward a law degree and ultimately a career in law.

I'm going into this pursuit armed with my resilience in adversity, determination to never lose a war, ability to concede the occasional battle, partial financial assistance from my company, a network of supportive friends and family (with a fair share of both lawyers for mentorship and counselors for therapy), and--most importantly--a very understanding husband.

I will be hindered by the unimpressive GPA I gleaned while speeding through undergrad, the challenge of balancing my studies with a full-time career in which I hold a leadership position, and the fact that I have been in the workforce and out of the classroom for nearly three years.