How to Level Up Your LSAT

Have you seen improvement in your LSAT practice test scores, but now you’ve reached a plateau?

In this article, we’re sharing our response to a question submitted to our LSAT Demon Daily podcast. The listener, Jaden, started with a diagnostic score of 142 and has been steadily working on his accuracy. He now consistently answers the first 12 to 13 questions correctly in timed Logical Reasoning sections, but struggles with the more difficult questions later in the section. 

Here's what we suggest to take your LSAT test-taking performance to the next level.

Focus on Individual Mistakes, Not Broad Patterns

If you’re not already thoroughly reviewing your individual mistakes, start there. Searching for overarching patterns or trends in your performance isn’t the best technique to improve. Instead, you need to drill down into each question you miss. 

Focus on why you chose the wrong answer and why you didn’t pick the correct one. Explaining the question to yourself in detail, as if you’re teaching someone else, can help solidify your understanding.

Incremental Progress is Key

It’s easy to set a high goal for the LSAT, like scoring a 175. But if you want to avoid getting frustrated or burned out, you should focus on smaller, achievable milestones. To get to 170, for instance, you’ll need to first hit 160 and then 165. 

The same is true for questions. If, like Jaden, you only get to 12 or 13 questions but you answer all of them correctly, that’s a great place to be. It’s better to do that than answer 20 questions and get half of them wrong because you’re going too fast. 

By focusing on accuracy for every question you attempt, your speed will naturally improve over time. Eventually you’ll start answering 14 or 15 questions, then 19 or 20—and you’ll get all of them right. At that point, with a few guesses at the end, you’ll be getting close to the 170s. 

Use Resources to Understand Your Mistakes

Make sure to use all available tools to address any confusion you might have. Different ways to review your missed questions include watching videos, reading written explanations, and asking tutors for help if necessary. 

Your goal is to deeply understand the question. Every time you miss a question, you’re making two errors — picking the wrong answer and not choosing the right one. You want to understand both elements of the question completely. If that means you need to read or watch multiple explanations to the question, you should. 

Reviewing why the right answer is right and the wrong answers are wrong in detail will improve your accuracy going forward. And the more accurate you are, the faster you’ll ultimately get.

Stay Patient and Consistent

The main takeaway here is to focus on accuracy and not speed. 

Consistent, thorough practice will enable you to improve gradually in your speed and overall performance. When you focus on accuracy, reviewing each mistake in detail, you’ll be well on your way to reaching your target score.

Checkout LSAT Demon Daily, Episode 842 where Ben helped Jayden on how to approach the LSAT as a new student.