LSAT Keys to Success: Pacing Yourself

The LSAT Is All About Pacing

In an earlier blog, I wrote about the crucial importance of timing yourself when preparing for the LSAT. A companion strategy to timing is pacing. Once you get a sense of how quickly you have to work, develop a pacing plan that works for you.

The goal is to practice enough and take enough timed test sections that you are extremely comfortable when you open that book to each section. You know exactly how quickly you’ll have to work within each section. You know some will be harder and some will be easier, but you know how to pace yourself.

You will eventually develop a pacing strategy for each section:

• Logic Games/Analytical Reasoning -  Typically, one section will have four logic games. It’s a good idea to quickly flip through the section, and put an X over the game style that’s most difficult for you and save it for last.

There may be a time in the Games section where you cannot make any headway in one of the first three you’ve chosen. You’ll get that sinking feeling you chose the wrong game to save for last and panic wondering if you should stick with this one or abandon it. Use your timed practice to experiment how long it takes to move to a 4^th game and set it up.

• Reading Comprehension – This section is tricky, because passages that read easily and are about a topic you like can turn out to have the most difficult questions. It’s a good idea to use your timed practice tests to get a sense of how much time you have to start through a passage and figure out if you want to stay with it or skip it.

• Logical Reasoning – You must remember that on the logical reasoning section, every question is worth one point. Some you can read and solve quickly, some you can resolve with a little thinking. When you get stuck, train yourself while practicing to just move on. Make a guess and come back to it later if there’s time.

It might be a good idea to think about pacing when you need a break from the content. On one of those days when the reading comprehension passages no longer make any sense and you can’t look at another logic game, take a break and formalize your pacing strategies.