Let me just say that the LSAT Strategy Prep course was fantastic, and please let me explain why. I enrolled in Strategy Prep with no prior knowledge of the LSAT. That's right, nothin'. No diagnostic, no prior reading of books, blogs...just perhaps perusing an LSAT review book for a few minutes, so I was really starting from scratch. That said, others in my class had already studied for, and taken the LSAT once already, so the student experience level was mixed, which was good.
The instructor is Ben Olson, who is an LSAT genius and genuine good person. He is also the owner of LSAT Strategy Prep, and has a vested interest in your success. This is in stark contrast to other big name test taking companies, like Kaplan, where I knew close friends who had taken prep classes.While their instructors were good, and enthusiastic, they did not have the passion for helping students that Ben has. This is Ben's own business, and he treats every student with respect, is willing to answer and entertain all questions, and go above and beyond in helping you out and making sure you are on the right path.
My particular course was offered at my workplace, as we work in the legal field and there are many employees interested in preparing for law school and taking the LSAT. I received a small discount, but would have gladly paid the full price, as it was more than worth it - especially the support after the class was over. More on that later.
The class lasted about 10 weeks, and we met for about 2.5 hrs/2x per week. That was the perfect length of time for someone like me, a f/t working professional. Ben maximized our time in the most efficient way possible. He begins with Logic Games, which is the area where most students can improve the most dramatically. And let me say this - without caveat - Ben is an INCREDIBLE Logic Games instructor. I actually found this part of the course to be the most helpful. LG can be extremely challenging and frustrating for people, especially if you have never done them before. Everything becomes easier over time, but the main thing, the MAIN thing I took away from this course, was how to set up Logic Games. Ben uses a very intuitive and easy to understand/remember coding system for writing down the Rules to each game, has plenty of tips for how to approach each style of game, and for improving in the games overall. I will not give them away here ;-) but let me say, I found them truly helpful. Both with calming the brain, and logically, coolly proceeding to solve each game in the best way possible. Note, this may not be the 'quickest' way at first, but if you adopt his approach and advice, you will speed up significantly with practice, and that's where his system really shines. It scales up nicely as one becomes more proficient with the games, and compared to other LG systems I knew and witnessed friends using first hand - it is far superior.
Regarding Logical Reasoning, this is an area where there the students also have lots of room for improvement, but is not quite as 'learnable' as the LG, since there is not as clear of a 'system' as there is in the LG game setup. That said, Ben drills in you all the question types, and has a core strategy to teach you. Lets just say it starts with the 'main conclusion' and 'finding the flaw'. I found this method VERY HELPFUL, and it taught me how to think deeply about the LR questions. Importantly, as I improved, his strategy keeps working and demonstrates itself to be an excellent method for solving these and attempting to get in the test writer's head. Ben is truly an LSAT guru.
Finally, I will say that after the course, I delayed taking the test for approx. 6 months while I studied 3 hrs/2x per week with a study partner. This is where I implemented all the techniques I learned from Ben's class. I stayed in email contact with Ben, asking him occasional questions and sharing my long term study plan with him. He advised me all along the way, even though the class was long over, continuing to provide advice and encouragement. I truly believe this is what sets Ben and his course apart from other 'big box' prep courses - you get individual advice from a teacher who genuinely cares about your success and will provide you with advice, and online materials and access to his systems even after the course is over.
In conclusion, I will note my score improved dramatically, about 10 points from where I was scoring during my first 3 practice tests. I attribute this to my long slogging hours and hard work - however, all of that would have taken much, much longer and been far less effective if I didn't have all the training and knowledge provided by LSAT Strategy Prep. The teacher can't do the work for you, but he/she can show you the best way to do it.
Highly recommend. read more
