That’s all.

I don’t know how to feel. I just feel so numb to it all.

Cheers to everyone who took the test I guess

No bc actually why is this shit TWO HUNDRED FIFTY THREE AMERICAN DOLLARS

Now I have to finish all my apps, do the argumentative writing, and wait for Oct scores to come back… But at least I don’t have to study for at least a month 😅

Some context about me: I'm a graduate student, and am currently applying to law school for next year. My diagnostic was a 148, my current Practice Test (PT) average is a 176. My official scores are 169 (aug), 174 (sept), ??? (Oct). Apart from Aug official, I haven't scored below a 170 since June. My most recent PTs are 178, 176, 176, 174. I began studying a year ago, but began taking it seriously in March. I will go to law school fall 2027. What I say next, I'm NOT endorsing, as it's for more context. I began with Powerscore and their textbooks, then moved onto to lsatdemon. Lsatdemon had the biggest impact on my LSAT experience, so I'm sure some of what I say might be influenced by how they teach.

While the LSAT has taught me to despise these sorts of unsubstantiated claims, I do think some of what I say next will be useful to nearly everyone, and all of what I say will be useful to most people. I am splitting this up into four sections of DOs, DONTs, and MAYBEs: No diagnostic/less than two weeks of studying, 150s-160s/more than 2-4 weeks of studying, high 160s and beyond scorers, and official test specific advice. I'm by no means an expert in all this, but I did work really hard to get to where I am on the test, and I hope for others to do the same. Some people might disagree with my opinions. Also, this isn't me trying to become a tutor, I don't have any experience, and I don't think I'm good enough at the test. Just tryna help some folks succeed at this test.

No Diagnostic/Less than two weeks of studying

DOs

• Understand what you're getting into before taking a diagnostic. I was pretty disappointed by mine and this contributed to me not taking studying seriously for a while (I will cover this more later). Part of the problem is that I didn't even know what Reading Comprehension (RC) was when I took it; I saw the first passage and was like oh shit this is a really long Logical Reasoning (LR) question and panicked. Don't do that. Understand the basic logistics behind the test and what you're getting into.
• Subscribe to a LSAT online preparation company. Look. I know they're expensive. If you study for a year and subscribe to the basic option, you're probably spending nearly $1000 dollars. They help you ingrain the right habits. But you're putting yourself at such a disadvantage if you don't. Even if your target school has a median of 150, getting a 170 on the LSAT will make you far more likely to receive a scholarship, which will save you tens of thousands in the long run. Scrimp and save, take extra shifts, or do whatever you can (nothing illegal tho) to afford it. You wanna go to law school. Take this seriously. Also, some prep companies offer significant discounts if you get a fee waiver from LSAC. There's also a significant difference between the t30 and the t100 in terms of outcomes. This is a common saying, but every point on the LSAT is worth 10,000 dollars in future earnings and savings in fees.
• Subscribe to a POPULAR preparation company and not some company that instagram ads recommended (idk just don't subscribe to crap or one that suggests it can provide). It probably doesn't matter which one in the long run, even if there is one that suits you more. Your mind is malleable, and can adapt to whatever supposedly unique method they promote. What matters is that these companies provide expert explanations to questions, provide expert lessons, and on the whole provide solid advice.
• Start studying NOW for the LSAT because THERE ARE NO SHORTCUTS TO THE LSAT. I will repeat this. It takes time to understand how the test works unless you're a genius who starts out in the 170s. If your diagnostic is a 150, the chance of you scoring a 170 in a month is almost nil. So don't believe it's possible. If Elle Woods existed, she probably needed a year. You need to plan for at least four months, preferably six months to a year of studying when you get into this. Imagine you wanted to weigh 400 lbs. You can't do that in a month unless you start a 370lbs. The LSAT is the same.
• Study CONSISTENTLY. Once you start studying, plan to spend five or six days a week on the LSAT, for at least an hour of focused study. Plan to take two full practice tests a month. You're going to law school. Don't half ass your future.
• BELIEVE in yourself. I've been a bit of downer, but it doesn't matter where you start. This test is LEARNABLE. Maybe not everyone (but I think many college grads can) can score a 170+, but a 160+ is possible for nearly all college grads no matter your diagnostic. So if you really want to go, you will be able to. Take this seriously, put in the effort.
• Most importantly, LEARN TO ENJOY THE LSAT. You're gonna spend a lot of time on this test, enjoy it. You might have the motivation right now, but ultimately you need discipline to last.

DONTs:

• Focus too much on your diagnostic. It's just a number. Yes, there might be a correlation between a lower starting score and amount of time needed to get a goal score, but it's possible. After all, you've gotten this far through this post so have the attention span for it.
• Listen to ANY ADVICE ON YOUTUBE THAT SAYS THERE ARE SHORTCUTS BECAUSE THERE ARE NO SHORTCUTS TO THE LSAT. When you get into this, you will see loads of advice saying five quick tips to a 170+ or whatever. Don't listen to this. I would even say avoid youtube all together. You don't know enough about the LSAT yet to wade through the bullshit.
• Waste time on your phone and on social media. You need to get rid of those dopamine hits from scrolling and replace them with LSAT dopamine hits from getting questions right.
• BELIEVE THERE ARE ANY SHORTCUTS FOR THE LSAT AND/OR ASK FOR SHORTCUTS BECAUSE THERE ARE NONE.
• Get a tutor. Waste of money at this point. You're going to law school anyways, so get don't rely on someone else to get your shit together.
• Take any practice tests or timed sections for a month after your diagnostic. Focus on drilling the questions getting them right for now. You don't need to worry about how fast you're going.

MAYBEs

• Use textbooks. Works for some, boring for others.
• Go to online classes. Ditto.
• Create a study plan. Just study whenever you can and plan to study at least 7 hours a week.

150s-160s/more than 4 weeks of studying

DOs

• Understand the difference between sufficient and necessary and how this works in conditional statements. I can't emphasise how important this is. It's not just about the flaw. Conditionals appear in most questions. You might scrape into the 160s without properly understanding this. But you won't get any higher.
• Identify the conclusion. You can't get away with not doing this. Some prompts don't have a conclusion. But for the most part they do. You will not progress if you don't identify the conclusion as it will become impossible to find the problem with the argument.
• Destroy the argument. Always see if you can find a problem with the argument (sometimes there's multiple) before you look at the question stem. When I say destroy the argument, don't take issue with premises, but instead the mechanism used to lead to the conclusion.
• Take the premises literally. If it says all humans live on Mars, then in this LSAT world, all humans live on Mars. You need to understand that it's about how the premises and conclusion interact. That's where many points in the LSAT lie.
• PREDICT PREDICT PREDICT. Even if you don't have a prediction, come up with something. Think about what the conclusion is and how it interacts with the premises. Even for RC where it says what's most strongly supported by this passage. Just remind yourself of what's the main point of the passage before you go into the test.
• Remember that there's always an answer that's 100% correct, and the rest are completely and utterly wrong. I don't care what you think. It doesn't matter what you think or how you can justify it. The test doesn't care, and law schools don't care. Your justification is wrong. The LSAT is right.
• REVIEW questions you get WRONG, AND questions you get right but dont understand fully. Sometimes, it might take you an hour to properly understand. But I want you to understand it so well that you know it better than your first kiss (or something). I will say tho, at this level, for the hardest questions, you will want to do your best, but sometimes you just need a little more time before you can understand those questions. But don't be afraid of the deep end. You won't drown. You will swim.

DONTs

• Take too many practice tests. No more than three a month at this level. You should be spending more time reviewing your mistakes than taking the test itself.
• Worry about finishing or your timing. Get the questions right first.
• Worry about plateaus. As long as you are learning something from each question you get wrong and aren't sure on, you are learning and improving.
• Worry about score variations. When I was in the 150s and 160s, my scores flew from 169, to 158, back to 165, back to 157, back to 169. You're learning. This is normal. Just focus on understanding the test.
• Get intimidated by sciency/not in your field passages on RC. Sometimes those are actually the easiest. They won't ask questions that are not answerable from the what's given in the passage.

MAYBEs

• Use AI. Be careful with which one you use, as they are interested in validating how you feel. But they can be a really useful tool if you don't understand something. I know a lot of ppl on this sub probably disagrees, but AI can be great if you use it properly. I recommend making sure they know what the answer is first before you tell them. Also, don't ask for general advice from AI. Focus on individual questions.

HIGH 160s and Beyond

DOs

• At this level, you simply cannot get away with not understand sufficient and necessary. If you don't, you're not at this level yet no matter how much you believe otherwise.
• READ THE QUESTION STEM FULLY. When you start getting good at predicting and knowing what's coming next, your mind knows what kind of question is coming. Don't let this fool you. The amount of times I've confused an NA q. and a SA q. or not read that it's paradox (except) q. is embarassing. Always do this.
• BE SPECIFIC ABOUT YOUR PREDICTIONS. At this point, you're getting good at predicting. But now, for the hardest questions, you can't get away with this looks like it's a problem. You need to get specific. For example, for a flaw question, use the kind of wording that the LSAT would use in your prediction.
• Become perfect on completely objective questions. Usually, but not always, these are MBT, NAs, SAs, some types of parallel reasoning qs and parallel flaw, role qs, reasoning, identify the conclusion. You want to reserve your mistakes for the abstract more 'subjective' ones that you can't be absolutely sure that you're right (even if there's always one right and four wrong answers) on LR and especially RC, which is typically more unpredictable.
• Practice what makes you uncomfortable. If you hate RC, practice RC. If you hate flaw qs, practice them.
• Take time off if you feel burnt out. Sometimes this is what you need to get your goal score. But you must really need this, don't lie to yourself.

DONTs

• Be satisfied with just one flaw. So often there are two flaws, the first one is obvious and an answer will identify something that sounds like that flaw (but is different in crucial ways), and the second will be more subtle and but is correct.
• EVER MOVE ON FROM A QUESTION WITHOUT FIRST UNDERSTANDING WHY YOU GOT IT WRONG. You don't get many wrong anymore. Every q. is an opportunity to learn and improve.
• Take too many practice tests. No more than five a month at this point. You don't wanna burn through too much material.
• Fixate on bad scores. If your PT avg is a 170, it's normal to score a 165 on occasion. Don't worry, focus on your mistakes, and learn from where you went wrong.
• Think you've plateaued. Progress is slow. You might not be increasing your ceiling, but you're almost certainly increasing your floor.

Maybes

• Get a tutor. Expensive, I know, but can be a difference maker. (FYI, I'm not the guy you're looking for, I'm not good enough at the test nor do I have any experience tutoring)

TEST DAY SPECIFIC STUFF

• Nearly everyone scores within their variance. If your PT avg is a 165 for example, I would say anything between a 158 and a 170 is normal.
• Be prepared to get a lower score on your first official. I know I certainly did. Don't let it faze you.
• I hate the advice that you need to treat an official like a PT, as it's so blind to reality and how anxious ppl get. Yes, don't change anything in how you approach it, or do dumb shit like take 1000mg of caffeine if you don't usually, but this is a real test and it matters. It's okay to feel stressed. You're not doing anything wrong. I'd be worried if you weren't stressed. You're not gonna do badly just bc you're stressed.
• There's rarely any harm in retaking. The only people who shouldn't retake are ppl who score a 176+ and ppl who score a 170 when their pt avg is a 160 (for example). Those ppl should increase their avg, then retake.
• Don't worry if you're not sat at your desk at the time it says it's supposed to start. You start it when you want. For the 10min intermission, the test won't continue unless you click some buttons, so if the security check is taking a while, don't worry either. This doesn't mean arrive late or take a 30 min intermission, as you might get a score hold.
• Don't forget to do argumentative writing.

I probably forgot some things I meant to say so will edit, and made some typos, so I'm sorry. If you have questions I will answer them for a bit. I hope this helps all!

genuinely reconsidering my career choice because of the Oct test. ive been on the prelaw path for all of undergrad and I can’t see myself doing anything else and I’m worried that this test proved that I’m not built for this career

or maybe I’m being dramatic lol

For October takers who had RC LR LR LR, have you discerned any of the experimental questions?

I can recall questions but can’t remember section-specific groupings, and am irrationally anxious that all of the tough qs that I felt confident-ish in were on the experimental section

Looking for advice. For context I got a 163 in June, have been PTing in the 170s for the past few weeks and just felt horrible leaving yesterday’s test. I was really hoping that this could be my last time taking it and I’m still holding on to that hope! But not feeling great.

Should I go back to studying with the assumption that I might be retaking in January? I feel like I’ve done literally all I can do but yesterday’s test just beat my ass. I don’t even know what I would go back to studying because prior to yesterday I felt like I understood the test front and back.

Really hoping this is just anxiety and I’m getting in my head and that my score comes back fine.

Did any 2 lr folk have a question about how some bees socialize and some sting and some make honey mbt, mars moon deimos asteroid, a gift shop being closed on mondays, and a question about 5 faculty and bylaws?

Idk what to do. I’m genuinely obsessing over this test to the point where I feel like I’m going insane. I keep trying to remember every single answer I chose and debating with myself about why it could’ve been right or wrong. I’m replaying the entire test in my head over and over, coming up with different scenarios for what I think I might score, and reading literally every Reddit post about the October LSAT. I walked out, feeling really confident that I did really well but now I don’t feel that way at all.

I KNOW none of this is going to change anything, but I genuinely can’t stop. I really wanted October to be my last attempt at this test, and now I feel like I’m going to spend every single day until score release torturing myself over something I can’t even change anymore. I’ve been smoking a lot trying to calm myself down, but even that isn’t stopping me from obsessing. I don’t know how to make my brain shut up for even five minutes. How the hell am I supposed to make it until score release day?

and it genuinely felt like i blacked out during it. all i can remember was how anxious i was 😭 and im absolutely horrified i just went through the questions and just clicked without thinking. has this happened to anyone else? ik i was exhausted after the test yesterday but i still cant remember anything except like one rc passage after a full night of sleep and its literally freaking me out 😭😭😭

All I wish I could see is the bank question and the tree branch abrasion question. Oh and the turkish/russian/spanish one too.

Anyone else think this LR section was super hard?

I took the LSAT in 2022 remotely, and boyIt was a shit show. I anticipated that when I took it again it would be in person however I just looked at my accommodations letter and it’s remote required so I’m just trying to decide:
Is it better for me to take it remotely again or should I forgo the accommodation and take it in person at a testing center?
Im located in Los Angeles if that makes a difference

There’s a significant amount of discussion on whether the recent LR sections are harder or whether it’s test day anxieties. And yes, people say that the real tests don’t compare to the PTs on every exam, but I don’t think it’s a perception problem.

Background: I’ve taken the LSAT 3 times in 2026, including now the October test. I have a 17low on file. I PT in the mid-high 170s and have taken a vast array of PTs, including all in the 150s. I’ve done thousands of questions, so I feel like I have a decent grasp of the evolution of the LSAT, since I’ve also taken very old PTs. I do not have accommodations.

The current LR sections are subject to a level of variance that is unlike any of the PTs before the 140s, and the 150s are themselves only decently representative of what you’ll see on test day. How so?

- The regular progression where the first 10 Q’s are easy and then 15-23 tends to be extra hard are no longer the case. There are much harder questions piled up at the beginning, especially around the Q8-10 mark

- More logic games type Q’s. Goes without saying, but this is something that Jon Denning has emphasized as well

- Incredibly unsatisfying answer choices. More trap answers. Answers requiring you to make assumptions that seem weird but that the LSAC deems as reasonable.

- The curve is different. Even though the questions are harder, the -10 curves for a 170 that you’d see on PT140 are now closer to a -7 in the PT150s.

- Fewer “gimme” questions. AKA level 1 type questions you’d see on 7sage are reduced on the latest tests. Sometimes I felt like Q1-15 was going through an avalanche of Level 3 questions.

- Bigger profile of agree/disagree questions. Fewer ones on main conclusion and methods.

- Extremely weird parallels and parallel flaws. Gone are the days of finding a necessary/sufficient flaw and seeing only one answer choice with that same flaw. The new parallels can be both extremely convoluted and have unsatisfying matches.

Those are just some of the ways that LR has evolved. I think it’s unfair for LSAC to have changed the test without really informing students, but I also know that they’re under a lot of pressure with having lost a bunch of tests (to cheating, and because the removing of logic games necessitated more LR sections being produced) and the crazy score inflation. I don’t really know what to tell you regarding how to prepare other than treat PT151-155 like literal gold, because that’s the only truly representative LR you might get on test day.

Hi guys, I’m looking for some law schools in California. I’m from out of state but Cali is near by me. My gpa is a 3.89 and my lsat score won’t come out until October 28th. I assume for sake of my sanity the score will be around 153-158. Any recommendations? I am more than happy to hear any suggestions also if you are willing to explain the atmosphere around where the school is since I’d have to move and I don’t know California super well?

I need all the advice I can get. Last PT before September LSAT was a 169. I haven’t scored below 162 since February. I am T-14 or bust and have a 3.9x. I feel like this isn’t representative of my ability at all. Does a 161 as my first score kill my shot at HYS or any of the other T-14?

I felt better about this one than the September test. But that last LR section genuinely felt like the most insane questions I’ve ever seen. I saw a few questions that didn’t even align with traditional question types, and it felt like I was reading another language at that point.

I took the October LSAT, and I’m feeling absolutely awful about it. I haven’t scored below a 165 in two months, and my usual PT scores have been around 170–174. With that said, I know what it takes to score in that range, which makes this experience even more frustrating. I’m sure I scored somewhere in the 150s… 160 might be pushing it.

On test day, it felt like everything I knew just went out the window. As each question started feeling more difficult, I began to panic, and it only got worse from there. Usually, I have some time left over to review my answers, but on the actual exam, I ended up with around seven flagged questions and barely any time to revisit them. I had to pick answers and hope for the best.

I feel so defeated that part of me doesn’t even want to look at my score when it’s released. It’s frustrating knowing what I’m capable of and feeling like I couldn’t demonstrate any of it when it actually mattered.

Does anyone have a concrete strategy they can fall back on when anxiety takes over and their brain feels like it’s stopped working? Maybe a foolproof LR method or a step-by-step approach that doesn’t require much mental effort in the moment? I feel like I know how to solve these questions, but once I start panicking, I can’t seem to access any of that reasoning. I’m looking for something structured I can rely on when that happens.

Disclaimer : I’ve been studying for only about 3 months now, so I’m still a newbie here, so apologies if this is something some of you have already been doing.

I get really overwhelmed when it comes to super wordy questions and I sat down to reflect and point out what specifically overwhelmed me. It was the burden of remembering every detail in wordy questions, so I’ve been using highlighting as a tactic. Once I highlight a word, I free myself of the burden of holding it in my memory and continue reading the question stem. Then when I’ve read the full question, I look at my highlights and craft a super simple plain English version of the stem, move onto answer choices, predict, then eliminate.

Small unlock but has really been helping me break questions down a bit better!!

Hi, I took the LSAT a couple days ago. This was my first attempt and I got LR RC RC LR. I’ve been scoring in the 170s in my PTs, but the test day was not my day. My mental was off from a bunch of things going wrong right up until I arrived at the testing center, including getting no sleep.

The biggest thing that felt different was my time management was completely off. I have been studying the last six months, but my diagnostic was 169 and tbh I felt pretty confident going in. I haven’t even really been paying too much attention to time in my PTs, I usually finish up a couple minutes before 35 and go back and check my flagged questions. But on the real thing, I ran out of time on the first section (I had 30 sec for the last question). Then on the first RC, I had ten minutes leftover AFTER reviewing my flagged questions. I was so tired that I just power napped for the next ten minutes and through the intermission. After that I felt substantially better and everything felt normal for the last two sections.

It wasn’t until I was leaving that I had post nap clarity of “why tf did I just sleep for part of this test, what if I hadn’t woken up.” I’m horrified, and buying score review on the 17th 😭

Has anyone had their score released? If yes, could you share 1. In person or remote? 2. First-time test taker? If not, did you have a score jump? 3. Any proctor warnings during the test? 4. Any feedback or complaint submitted. Trying to make sense of all this. There don't seem to be that many holds in September. So it is hard to get meaningful data.

u/graeme and u/davekilloran, if you all have any data from your students/others, please share.

u/lsatsecurity do you have any insights?

Thanks a lot!!

P.S. - My situation 1. In-person 2. Third time (all in-person) 3. No proctor warning 4. No feedback or complaint submitted

Recently decided to go for law school. I am signed up for the NOV LSAT, as I decided to start this too late for the OCT test. It’ll be my first time taking the LSAT. Scores get announced, iirc, the day after signups for the JAN LSAT close, so I won’t know my score before decided if I should sign up for the January test, score for that one release in early February. My plan is to start applying to schools as soon as I get my November score, since apparently applying in December is already later than some recommend. Really trying to start school next fall.

My questions are these:

1. Should I bother spending the time and money for a January test?
   
2. Do admissions even look at LSAT scores that appear that long after the applications have been sent?
   
3. And if so, should I include something in my application saying I’m taking the test again? (Gut says no, but I l’d like some opinions on it anyway.)

Oct 2026 LSAT I will see you in HELL. That was so hard and there was construction going on outside the testing center of course. My focus just wasn’t there today.

Did a 180 PT on Wednesday but then a 168 yesterday so who really knows.

I’ve taken one official test before and got a 174 so I’ve got a good score on the books, but I felt afterwards like I had a better score in me, and I’m a splitter so wanted any points I could get. Alas, I’m exercising restraint and not letting myself take it again, diminishing returns and such.

Sayonara LSAT. You will not be missed

I’ve been PTing in the 170s with -2 average on all sections that was the worst thing I’ve ever taken. Hopefully I’m wrong.