What is/are the best self prep guides for the LSAT?

Answer 1

The very best thing you can do is take the REAL LSATs under realistic conditions. If you do this though, start with the most recent ones and work backwards. I started with the oldest ones and worked forward. I never got to the most recent ones and the test has changed subtiley. It used to be that the games were the toughest part and the Reading Comprehension was easier. So, I boned up on games. It turns out that with guides like "The Games Bible" (which, incidentally you should get), the LSAT people decided that people had "cracked" the games. Now the games section is easier (not easy, but easier) and the Reading Comprehension is an absolute BEAR.

If you buy another of the resources, there are a couple of books that explain each of the answers on the REAL LSATS.

Kaplan probably has the best of the "explaining" guides. I hated the REA guides.

Are you taking the October LSAT? Good luck.

Answer 2

In my opinion - as someone having taught the LSAT for over 15 years - there are many people that can prepare for the LSAT on their own and get the score they need.

How do you know if you are one of them? Take an LSAT mock test ASAP using actual LSAT materials (not simulated tests from a commercial book). If you get about 10% above where you'd like to be, you are probably ok.

If you get right around where you'd like to be, work really hard for a month practicing with actual LSAT materials and then retest. If you haven't gotten to 10% above your goal, you will probably not make more progress on your own.

If you start out more than a few points below where you'd like to be, you can try what is mentioned in the above paragraph if you have enough time. Otherwise, get help right away to avoid having to wait an extra year.

Basically the people who will do well prepping on their own are usually the people who are already doing well. If you do prep on your own, any commercial book is probably ok but don't expect them to give you any real substantial insights into the test.

Do be sure to practice with actual LSAT materials, as there are certain patterns to the test that you need to learn which are not captured in simulated materials.

The biggest obstacle in improving on the LSAT is what to do when you are down to two answers. It turns out that it is not that one answer is better than the other. One of those answers is dead wrong. You can learn to spot this with some expert help.

The biggest complaint I hear from students who have already taken one of the commercial prep courses is that the instructor cannot explain why one answer is right and the other is wrong. The instructors usually don't have the years of experience to understand this.

Best wishes,

Jay Cutts
Cutts Personal LSAT Tutorial
http://www.cuttsreviews.com/jcutts/lsat/