Here are the free LSAT events we’re holding this week.

10/8/12 – Online – Online LSAT Workshop – 8:00-10:00 PM

10/9/12 – Online – Game Intensive Trial Class – 8:00-11:00 PM

10/14/12 – Austin, TX – Free Trial Class – 5:30-8:30 PM

10/14/12 – Santa Clara, CA – Free Trial Class – 1:30-4:30 PM

Looking for more free events? Check out our Free Events Listings Page.

Annnnnnd we’re off! Well, almost. The October LSAT is Saturday, and for those of you wondering how to spend the next few days, here are some tips:

DO get to sleep early—and wake up early—this week. You’re going to have to do it on Saturday, so it’s good to get your body on schedule now.

DON’T go to your buddy’s bachelor party Friday night. He will be fine without you (and maybe better off?).

DO continue to do timed, mixed practice through Thursday.

DON’T work hard on Friday. If the idea of taking the day off to eat cherries while watching reruns of Curb Your Enthusiasm panics you, read over your notes or do a game or two, maybe a few hard logical reasoning questions you’ve done before. But it’s not the day to take a full-length test.

DO get a passport-size photo of yourself this week if you haven’t already. (This is in addition to your identification. See the email you recently received from LSAC for details.)

DON’T dwell on what you wish you’d done differently over the last few months. To do so is a waste of critical energy at this point, and your mind should be focused on…

DO think positively. It’s as true as it is cliché. Listen: someone is going to teach this test who’s boss, and it’s not Tony Danza. It’s you. YOU. I can’t stress this one enough. If you don’t believe you’re going to do your best, you’re less likely to. If you do, you’re more likely to. And if you can see that those two statements are not contrapositives, give yourself a high-five right now, please.

DON’T forget your analogue (big hand, small hand) watch. (Bonus tip: set it to 12 o’clock at the beginning of each section so you can easily track your 35 minutes without arithmetic.)

DO take a snack.

DON’T mistake the LSAT for a mythical tool that measures your self-worth. It’s just a test, y’all. Plus, you have more friends than it, and they’re cooler.

Now go put those red and blue and yellow balls in order like you’ve never put them in order before.

Here are the free LSAT events we’re holding this week.

10/3/12 – Washington, D.C. – Free Trial Class – 6:30-9:30 PM

10/3/12 – Los Angeles, CA – Free Trial Class – 6:30-9:30 PM

10/3/12 – Irvine, CA – Free Trial Class – 6:30-9:30 PM

10/4/12 – New York, NY – Free Trial Class – 6:30-9:30 PM

10/4/12 – Los Angeles, CA – Free Trial Class – 6:30-9:30 PM

10/4/12 – San Diego, CA – Free Trial Class – 6:30-9:30 PM

10/4/12 – Online – Free Trial Class – 6:30-9:30 PM

Looking for more free events? Check out our Free Events Listings Page.

Set the LSAT prep books aside for a minute or two and catch up on some of this week’s news about law school and the legal profession. Happy Friday!

Study from Nerd Wallet Finds Law School Still Worth Attending (JD Journal)

According to a new study from Nerd Wallet, paying top dollar for tuition is justifiable if you’re studying at a top-ranked law school.

The Economics of Law School (New York Times)

The New York Times takes a magnifying glass to the economics of law school to get a closer look at reform propositions, tuition, salary stats, and more.
Read more

Yes, I'm a cardinal and yes, I rule. Your point?

Recall the cardinal rule of assumptions: they are unstated. If a question is quoting a portion of text to you, that portion is stated. It cannot, therefore, be an assumption.

These questions that ask you to identify the function or role of a phrase or statement are pretty efficient to answer if you know what you’re looking for. If you identify the quoted phrase as a conclusion, you can knock out any answer choice that calls it premise, no matter how accurate anything else in that answer choice is. Likewise, if it’s a premise, you can get rid of any answer choice that calls it a conclusion.

But regardless of its role, you can always get rid of “assumption” answer choices for one reason: since it’s quoted, that’s impossible.

Check out PT64, S1, Q14 for an example.

Here are the free LSAT events we’re holding this week.

9/24/12 – New Haven, CT – Free Trial Class – 6:30-9:30 PM

9/30/12 – Santa Clara, CA – Free Trial Class – 10:00 AM-1:00 PM

Looking for more free events? Check out our Free Events Listings Page.

The October LSAT is just over two weeks away! Keep up your motivation with a few of this week’s top stories about life as a law student.

How Much Time Should You Spend Preparing for Class as a 1L? (The Girl’s Guide To Law School)

Doing the readings and prepping for class is only one piece of the puzzle. Here is some great advice for planning your daily schedule and handling your 1L workload.

Sleep and Grad School: How Important Is It For Students? (Psychology Today)

According to Psychology Today, sleep is the single most important health behavior we can engage in. Find out just how many hours you need per night and why your weekend sleep patterns may be hurting your cognitive performance.
Read more

Confession: last week in class, I nearly strangled a student. I leaned forward, pretended to put my hands around his neck, and then trembled in a strange way.*

Moments before, we’d had this conversation:

Homer Simpson does not have the LSAT score to teach for Manhattan LSAT

Mary: Why not (E), Sam?

Sam: I felt like it was already stated in the argument.

Mary: But it’s an inference question.

Sam: Yeah, but (E) was pretty much told to us already.

Mary: [Stared at him blankly.]

Sam: It’s like… right there in the argument already. Seemed too obvious.

Mary: [Kept staring.]

Sam: Is that… wrong?

Mary: EVERYBODY, SAM’S ANSWER IS (E), HE JUST DIDN’T REALIZE IT BEFORE.

Luckily, Sam and I are friends. (He’s reading this going, “not anymore.”)

Guys. Please listen. Do not eliminate an answer choice to an inference question because you think it was already stated in the argument. That’s like eliminating a strengthen answer choice because it strengthens too much, or an assumption answer choice because it was unstated. (If you just gasped at the idea of either of those, that’s a good sign.)

Your ideal inference answer choice? An exact replica of a sentence in the argument. Think about it: you’re trying to figure out what must be true. What must be true more than something you’ve been told word for word is true?

Of course, you will probably never see your ideal answer choice… you’ll have to settle for a close match with a synonym or two. But now that you know what you’re going for in a perfect world, no more “we already know that” as a reason for eliminating anything on inference questions, okay?

*True.

Here are the free LSAT events we’re holding this week.

9/19/12 – Online – Zen and the Art of LSAT – 8:00-10:00 PM

9/23/12 – New York, NY – Free Trial Class – 5:30-8:30 PM

9/23/12 – Online – Free Trial Class – 6:00-9:00 PM

Looking for more free events? Check out our Free Events Listings Page.

Have your days been filled with prep work for the October LSAT? If so, it’s time to take a quick break and treat yourself to some of this week’s top articles about law school and the legal profession.

What Most Law Students Forget to Do: Think About the Material (Law School Toolbox)

Spending your time typing, copying, and pasting will keep you busy but will not help you really know or understand the material in law school. Law School Toolbox offers some more efficient ways to prep for class, take class notes, and create study materials.

Fall Frenzy: Law Students Elbow for Summer Shot at Big Law Gig (The Wall Street Journal Law Blog)

Find out why good grades are no longer enough to guarantee 2L’s a job next summer in BigLaw.

What No One Tells You Before You Go To Law School: They Really Are Speaking Greek (Okay, Latin) (Ms. JD)

Alison Monahan, founder of The Girl’s Guide to Law School, explains why law school is a lot like foreign language immersion. When entering law school, expect to be exposed to a whole new language and a whole new culture.

Get Paid and Published for Law School Writings (Law Student Ally)

Maximize your law school experience by taking the opportunity to get your papers published while you’re still earning your J.D.

Telling Your Story: Include Emotional Thinking (jdMission)

As you’re drafting your law school personal statement, be sure to include emotional reflections and not just factual reports about what happened.