Avery: a live LSAT coaching session
This is what LSAT Unplugged coaching looks like. Avery came in at 169 on the November LSAT. Steve Schwartz coached her live for about 10 minutes on both, and the whole session and transcript are below.
The numbers here are where Avery started and the goal we set together in this session. Individual results vary.
- Student: Avery
- Score when recorded: 169
- Goal: Not stated
- Target test: November
- Situation: Full-time senior at UCLA, considering taking 3 classes instead of 4 to focus on LSAT prep, retaking after 2 practice tests of 176 and 171.
- Focus: both
- Worked on: parallel reasoning, technical science and philosophy stimuli, flagging and skipping hard questions, reading comprehension line referencing
What we fixed in this session
Every question on the LSAT is worth the same, but not all of them are of equal difficulty.
Steve Schwartz
This is one session, in the middle of the work. I've been coaching the LSAT since 2005, and every session runs the same way: find the real problem, fix the process, reset the plan.
I told her a lighter course load for one semester won't hurt her law school admissions. That matters because schools weigh undergraduate GPA and graduating on time, not per-semester credit count.
I reframed her timing variability, 5 minutes left in some sections and 1 minute in others, as a flag-skip-and-return problem rather than an accuracy problem.
The plan: I told her to drill her weak question types, like parallel reasoning and technical science passages, separately outside full exams to raise her baseline before tackling them inside a timed section.
If your prep looks like Avery's did, that's fixable in one session.
Book your free LSAT tutoring lesson
In Avery's words
I definitely see a difference in my score when I have a lot of time left versus no time left.
Avery
The questions that I do flag are usually the ones that I end up getting wrong.
Avery
I think so, not 100% confident on that, but for the most part, yes.
Avery
Questions people ask about LSAT Unplugged coaching
What happens in an LSAT Unplugged coaching session?
The coach finds the specific habit that's costing points, fixes the process, and sets the plan for the weeks ahead. In Avery's case: her a lighter course load for one semester won't hurt her law school admissions.
Who runs the sessions?
Steve Schwartz recorded this one. Every LSAT Unplugged coach scored 170 or higher on an official LSAT, and students are matched to a coach on learning style and weak areas.
Where can I see finished results?
On the student reviews page at unpluggedprep.com/reviews, with video interviews and official scores.
Learn the fixes yourself: Logical Reasoning timing, Reading Comprehension, passage structure.
Student reviews and finished results.
Full session transcript
Recorded December 2025.
Avery: My previous test score is 169. I'm retaking in November, and my last 2 practice tests were a 176 and a 171.
Steve: Nice, solid. You're in a pretty good place here, though there's some fluctuation. How many practice tests have you taken in the past month, let's say?
Avery: Past month, I've started studying like 3 weeks ago, so 2.
Steve: Okay. Your target test date again?
Avery: November.
Steve: November, okay. So we got a month and a half. What's your planned cadence of practice tests going forward?
Avery: For the next 2 weeks, one each, then the next week one, then 2 per week after that.
Steve: Okay. And what else do you have going on? Are you working, in school?
Avery: I'm in school.
Steve: Is it full time? Is your course load pretty busy?
Avery: It's full time, but shouldn't be too busy, since I tried to minimize extracurriculars, so it's not too heavy.
Steve: 2 exams a week is a lot, but with a strategic calendar you could squeeze them in. My concern is whether you'll have time to review as well as take them: each exam is 2 and a half hours, plus review time, plus coaching sessions and classes. Do you feel like you can handle all that?
Avery: You know, I actually had a question about that.
Steve: Yeah, sure.
Avery: How much does course load matter going into the first quarter of my senior year? I'm thinking of taking 3 classes instead of 4 to focus on the LSAT, but wondering if law schools really care about course load.
Steve: Good question. They care about your undergraduate GPA and that you earn your BA. But fewer credits one semester versus another, as long as you graduate on time, shouldn't matter.
Avery: Got it.
Steve: Are you still in a drop period, where dropping a class wouldn't be catastrophic?
Avery: Yeah, I go to UCLA, so actually my first class is today.
Steve: Oh, nice, cool.
Avery: Lots of time, yeah.
Steve: Appreciate you signing on despite a class at UCLA, probably pretty early for you. I think it's a good idea, to be frank, to take a lighter course load while studying for the LSAT, because the LSAT weighs more heavily than all of undergrad combined. So if that means taking one or 2 fewer classes for a semester,
Avery: yeah,
Steve: that's a pretty small percentage of your overall undergraduate career. And as a bonus, taking fewer classes will also help your GPA, and it'll help your LSAT score even more, which is what really matters.
Avery: Got it, okay. Thank you so much.
Steve: Yeah, for sure.
Avery: Can you also look over personal statements, talk about resumes? I was a little confused what this time was for.
Steve: Yeah, we could talk about that also. Tell me your questions. We can't go over a draft right now, but if you want to talk it through, we can.
Avery: Yeah, definitely. My first line is, "In an effort to fight climate injustice, I went undercover at a commercial real estate firm." I talk about an experience of being more of an advocate, talking to representatives, advocating for a certain act, and I go into the storytelling of that. Then I talk about how going into college with peers and professors exposed the limitations of my perspective, and the example of climate gentrification, where the injustice was obvious but the mechanisms were not. That led me down the path of trying to understand finance, since it was so connected to climate gentrification. I joked with a friend, "what if I worked in commercial real estate?" and eventually I did, and it changed my mind about how the financial system connects with social and environmental issues. The regulatory side of that is what inspires me to go to law school.
Steve: Got it, that sounds like a really fun story. Are you able to stick around another half hour or so, Avery?
Avery: Yes, I was planning on it.
Steve: Awesome, our next guest is coming on and I think she'll get a kick out of your question. My quick take: the undercover story has quite a bit of drama, which could be fun. I'm curious to get Ann's take when she joins, but you've probably got the makings of something there. Let's bring it back to the LSAT for a moment, since we have more time on you. What's your ultimate goal score specifically? You're at 169 now, and your two practice test scores are 171 and 176.
Avery: Yes.
Steve: And you're taking it in November. You've got a full course load, but you're looking to lighten it a little. What's your biggest struggle right now on the LSAT side of things?
Avery: I would definitely say, do you mean in terms of the actual questions and wrong answer patterns, or more just general broad issues with my LSAT studying?
Steve: Any of the above, really. What's the biggest barrier to you getting the next 5 to 10 points?
Avery: I think variability within my timing, because there are some tests where I have like 5 minutes left in some sections, and other sections where I have like 1 minute left, and I definitely see a difference in my score when I have a lot of time left versus no time left.
Steve: Okay, so we gotta think about what causes you to run out of time within certain sections. Do you get bogged down, or do you get stuck? Are you able to recognize when you encounter a question whether you can hammer away at it for another minute and get clarity, or whether you're just spiraling and can't move on?
Avery: Yeah.
Steve: Can you recognize when you've got to flag it, skip it, come back later? Certain question types, like lengthy parallels toward the end of the section, or technically worded stimuli on natural science or philosophy, where you should just pause and flag it? Can you recognize quickly what you don't like to deal with?
Avery: I think so. Not 100% confident on that, but for the most part, yes.
Steve: Okay. So the first step is recognizing it. The second part is actually doing it.
Avery: Because I think what ends up happening is the questions I do flag are usually the ones I end up getting wrong. So I know that in me it recognizes I have a hard time with it.
Steve: Okay, good, so you probably already know what you're prone to struggle with. My recommendation from a time management perspective: first, know what you don't like to deal with. Second, actually flag it. Third, move on and don't spend more time on it, don't throw good time after bad. Complete the section, then and only then come back. That way you've locked up the easier points, built momentum, and have a time bank to tackle the tougher ones later, with the security of knowing you've finished the section.
Avery: Right, okay.
Steve: Go ahead.
Avery: Oh, no, I was going to ask about reading comprehension. For top test takers, once they read the passage, how much time do they spend going back and rereading versus just working the questions?
Steve: They don't go back and reread a lot, but they go back strategically to target specific lines and confirm particular answer choices. Some open-ended questions give you no choice but to go back, unless you can hold the entire passage in your head, which is a pretty tall order.
Avery: Uh-huh.
Steve: One last thing on the logical reasoning side: the question types that give you the most struggle are the ones you're most prone to flagging and skipping. My last recommendation is to work on your weak areas outside the context of a full exam, drilling parallel reasoning or technical science passages separately to raise your overall understanding, so when you come back to them in a section you can adequately tackle them.
Avery: Got it, okay. That makes sense.
Steve: Yeah, of course. And Avery, please stick around. If you could write up a quick summary of your personal statement question, we could probably talk about it a bit more in a bit.
Avery: Okay, thank you.
Steve: Yeah, of course. For folks just joining the September LSAT scores live stream, drop your score in the comments, whether you're planning a retake, and when you're taking it, and we can give you advice for retake prep.
More coaching sessions: Zabdi, 141 to 155, Abigail, 147 to 160, Leah, 153 to 170, Dominic, Alina, 157 to 170. Student results and reviews.
I've written free explanations for every question in LSAT PrepTest 159, 158, 157, 156, 155 and 154, with the right answer and why each wrong answer fails. All LSAT explanations are here.
Enough reading. Try a question. Free LSAT drills, 1 at a time, explained the second you answer. Start free drills
