This PowerScore LSAT Forum Post of the Day comes from this past weekend (found here). One of our students posted a second draft of her personal statement, and PowerScore LSAT Bible author Dave Killoran weighed in on that draft in detail (and lots of it!). The link above leads to her second draft, and Dave’s extended comments immediately follow her post. If you are working on your personal statement or your applications in general, his post gives … [Read more...]
How to Guess Like a Pro on the LSAT Part II: Logical Reasoning
As you know, there is no penalty for guessing on the LSAT. So, it goes without saying that you shouldn't leave any questions blank. If you are running out of time, make sure to guess on any unanswered question. Because some answer choices are more likely to occur than others, you should not guess randomly. Precisely how you guess, however, depends on how strong of a test-taker you are, and which questions you need to guess on. Let's … [Read more...]
Should I Study Formal Logic in College to Prep for the LSAT?
Given the emphasis on Logical Reasoning on the LSAT, students often wonder if they are missing out by not taking formal (or deductive) logic in college. Deductive Logic in Courses Granted, some exposure to deductive logic doesn't hurt. At their best, such courses will:Teach you the fundamental concepts of symbolic logic. Help you understand the difference between valid and invalid arguments. Train you to use symbolic language to … [Read more...]
I Messed Up One Semester… Can I Still Get into Law School?
We get a lot of questions from students on our forum and in our law school admissions counseling programs. Many of these questions sound something like this. My freshman year of college I had a 3.87 GPA. Then, my first semester of sophomore year, my grades suffered and I ended up with a 2.73 for the semester. If I were to achieve great grades (straight As) for the rest of my undergraduate career, would I still have a shot at a decent law … [Read more...]
What Are My Law School Admissions Chances?
A genie appears and grants a law school applicant one wish. What do they wish for? Chances are, wanting to know their chances of getting into a certain law school is near the top. It’s likely followed by having a stellar GPA, LSAT score, and personal statement. Unfortunately, there isn’t a magical genie that can help you figure out your chances. Although it’s almost impossible to predict with any certainty your chances, there are things you can … [Read more...]
Taking the LSAT in Germany
Are you taking the LSAT in Germany? Students take the LSAT if they plan to attend law schools in the US and Canada. However, the test administers across the globe. Check out this post about taking the LSAT abroad.In Germany, two locations offer the in-person LSAT: Kolpinghaus and Technische Universitat Munchen in Munich. You can find a complete list of test dates and deadlines here. Students should know that testing center locations are … [Read more...]
The LSAT: Why Those 3 Sections?
When students begin their preparations for the LSAT, their questions generally concern how to go about maximizing their scores. Given the importance of the LSAT in their law school applications, this is completely understandable. But it can be worthwhile to understand the perspective of the test makers. Let's talk about why you're working so hard to break down the complexities of this test. Reading Comprehension Reading Comprehension is perhaps … [Read more...]
5 Steps to Approaching the Answer Choices in Logical Reasoning Questions
1: Determine Know what the question stem is asking you to do. Although there are a myriad ways to ask the same question, there are only 13 basic question types on the LSAT. Take a look at the following example—all the question stems listed below belong to the same type of LSAT Logical Reasoning question (Justify the Conclusion), requiring you to identify an answer choice that proves conclusion of the argument:Which one of the following, if … [Read more...]
Taking the LSAT in Ukraine
Are you taking the LSAT in Ukraine? Students take the LSAT if they plan to attend law schools in the US and Canada. However, the test administers across the globe. Check out this post about taking the LSAT abroad.In Ukraine, only one location offers the LSAT: Kiev, American Councils for International Education. They administer it once a year in September/October. You can find a complete list of test dates and deadlines here. Students should … [Read more...]
Passage Diagramming and Notation on the Reading Comprehension Section
Diagramming and notation can play a vital role in a strong performance on the Reading Comprehension section of the LSAT. The ideal approach to effectively breaking down the passages, however, can be different for each student. Unlike Logic Games, when it comes to Reading Comprehension passages there is no single best way to diagram or notate. There are, however, several diagramming options from which to choose. Basic Underlining This is the … [Read more...]
What to Do When You’re Feeling Defeated by LSAT Prep
Our free to use LSAT Discussion Forum is a tremendous resource for any student gearing up to take the LSAT and apply to law school, and while I'm sure the majority of our blog readers frequent the Forum and participate, it's easy for helpful posts there to slip through the cracks. In an effort to help our readers here stay fully informed, we occasionally have highlights of common questions we encounter in the forum. Two things first:Go use … [Read more...]
Get a Grip on your LSAT Prep
It's fair to say that we generally think of friction as a negative thing. That's basically an accurate view in the context of personal and societal relationships. But, friction can also be very useful, even necessary, in other settings. For example, LSAT prep. We're going to go into how you can adapt the concept of friction to grain traction in your prep and accelerate past the plateau you may be on. How Friction it Works In case you need a … [Read more...]
Negating Conditional Statements
Most Logical Reasoning questions with conditional reasoning won’t require you to negate the conditional relationships in them. You will certainly need to know what the contrapositive is, and—if there are multiple conditional relationships—you need to know how to form a conclusion by combining them into a chain (aka the “law of syllogism”). Occasionally, in Justify questions, you will need to establish a logical link between the premises and the … [Read more...]
Taking the LSAT in France
Are you taking the LSAT in France? Students take the LSAT if they plan to attend law schools in the US and Canada. However, the test administers across the globe. Check out this post about taking the LSAT abroad.In France, only one location offers the LSAT: Paris, Eurosites Paris La Chapelle. While there is just one location option, it occurs four times per year: February, June, September/October, and December. You can find a complete list of … [Read more...]