Last minute LSAT tips — October 2011 edition
Posted by Diane on September 25th, 2011
Many of you are taking the LSAT this coming Saturday, and I wanted to offer both my best wishes, as well as a few last minute tips.
- First off, it’s time to taper off from studying — there’s not much more that studying and/or practice can do for you now except make you more stressed out and tired. Rather, it’s time to get your mind and body in shape. In particular, be cautious about taking any more practice tests this week — stress and anxiety make a lot of “one more practice tests” during this last week come out worse than prior testing, which of course creates more stress and anxiety. Don’t do that to yourself.
- No more alcohol for the week! (yes, that includes thirsty Thursday!)
- Get plenty of sleep.
- Eat well (but nothing you haven’t tried before that might upset your stomach). Have breakfast Saturday morning, and bring a snack for the break. Don’t forget to hydrate — this is a physical endurance event almost as much as a mental one, and your body needs fluids.
- If you’re not a regular coffee drinker, Saturday is not the time to start! Shaky hands aren’t good during the exam. (This goes for other artificial stimulants as well.)
- Make sure you know in advance exactly where you need to be on Saturday and how you’re getting there (and where you’ll park, if applicable). These are not things you want to worry about on the day of the test.
- Don’t forget to breathe. I mean this literally. During the exam, tension can make your breathing patterns irregular, and interrupt the normal oxygen flow to your brain. Every 15 minutes or so, take a quick break to breathe deeply a few times and get your body back on track.
- Stretch. See above – this will get the oxygen and blood flowing again.
- Relax. I know you’re rolling your eyes at this one. But the truth is, this test does not determine the outcome of the rest of your life. At most, it helps determine which law schools you have a likelihood of getting admitted to. All 200 of the ABA-accredited law schools are good schools that will give you the education necessary to go on to be successful attorneys.
- No, I really mean it, relax. The other thing you need to relax about right now is the rest of the application process. By taking the October LSAT, you are right on track, and you’ll have time to focus on the rest of your application in October.
Good luck to all of you!