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Hey all,

I've been lurking for a little while and I have been pretty hesitant to post. I just retook my LSAT after getting a 158 in September and I am relatively confident I am in the 168-172 window. I'd be pretty surprised if I dipped below 168. I also have a 3.2 GPA in bio.

Anyway, quick background. My wife is applying to D.O. Schools and I am applying to Law Schools basically in bubbles around where she is applying. So my first choice is largely irrelevant as it is going to solidly depend on where she gets in. Ideally I'd stay in MA and move back to the Boston area. I was in at Suffolk with my last LSAT score without a problem, as well as UME and I expect UNH. I will be applying to BC, BU, and NEU with my new LSAT score.

Our more realistic potential areas are going to be Virginia (Roanoke/Lynchburg), Atlanta, or outside Philly. I am very interested in Washington and Lee and I think I have a good shot there, and UVA is a top choice though I understand it to be a reach. In Atlanta I am looking at Emory and UGA, and in PA I am looking at Temple and Penn as my super-reach. I ultimately do intend to move back to Massachusetts so I am trying to keep that in mind.

I am discouraged about my chances at some of these schools, but I am hoping that if I can at least get them to open my app by way of being a splitter I can up my chances. I am a relatively non-traditional student. I have pretty solid softs including being an OEF Vet/former Sergeant in the USMC, which I hope will help out a bit. I also have been politically active, and started a pretty big student organization during my undergrad. I have some varied civilian work experience, and legal non-profit volunteer experience as well.

Are there any schools in these areas I am missing? Should I count on my softs at all? How accurate is that "law school predictor" thing? I figure even if it puts me in the 25th percentile... that is where the softs come in.

Thanks all,

Mike

What are your career goals?

I have an interest in IP and intend to take the patent bar this summer, and I have a strong interest in litigation, probably beyond IP issues and into civil and criminal matters.

Mike

mylsn.info is a better predictor for splitters (high LSAT, low GPA). If you get a 172, I think you have a decent shot at UVA and Penn, considering your softs and presumably hard science/engineering undergrad.

mike0331 wrote:Hey all,

I've been lurking for a little while and I have been pretty hesitant to post. I just retook my LSAT after getting a 158 in September and I am relatively confident I am in the 168-172 window. I'd be pretty surprised if I dipped below 168. I also have a 3.2 GPA in bio.

Anyway, quick background. My wife is applying to D.O. Schools and I am applying to Law Schools basically in bubbles around where she is applying. So my first choice is largely irrelevant as it is going to solidly depend on where she gets in. Ideally I'd stay in MA and move back to the Boston area. I was in at Suffolk with my last LSAT score without a problem, as well as UME and I expect UNH. I will be applying to BC, BU, and NEU with my new LSAT score.

Our more realistic potential areas are going to be Virginia (Roanoke/Lynchburg), Atlanta, or outside Philly. I am very interested in Washington and Lee and I think I have a good shot there, and UVA is a top choice though I understand it to be a reach. In Atlanta I am looking at Emory and UGA, and in PA I am looking at Temple and Penn as my super-reach. I ultimately do intend to move back to Massachusetts so I am trying to keep that in mind.

I am discouraged about my chances at some of these schools, but I am hoping that if I can at least get them to open my app by way of being a splitter I can up my chances. I am a relatively non-traditional student. I have pretty solid softs including being an OEF Vet/former Sergeant in the USMC, which I hope will help out a bit. I also have been politically active, and started a pretty big student organization during my undergrad. I have some varied civilian work experience, and legal non-profit volunteer experience as well.

Are there any schools in these areas I am missing? Should I count on my softs at all? How accurate is that "law school predictor" thing? I figure even if it puts me in the 25th percentile... that is where the softs come in.

Thanks all,

Mike

Off topic here, but I also scored a 158 back in June, retook and got a 163 in Sept, and that was after a ton of PTs and studying. What was your key to going up ~10 points?

And also does anyone know how the admission index formula works here? It's GPA x 10 + LSAT. So OPs would be 3.2x10 (32) + 168 = 200. Mine would be 3.8x10 (38) + 163 = 201. However, I'm sure OP will get into higher ranked schools because of emphasis on LSAT. Don't understand this formula...

Thanks for the replies...

As far as the LSATs go, I took the first one at a somewhat inopportune time. I basically crammed for a week (10 hour days) as I had just gotten back from my honeymoon. I was averaging 161-163 on the PTs, and then came out of the test with a 158. I dropped 11 points on the LGs, 5 and 7 on the LRs, and 7 on the RC. I signed up for the retake the hour scores dropped, thinking I could at least get a 163. It may actually have been a blessing in disguise because based off the LSAT class I decided 162 would be my no retake point. From there I just started studying in more bite size amounts. I went through the Kaplan books I had and did almost every practice section, and carefully analyzed where I was screwing up. I was pretty annoyed as my diagnostic was low 150s so I saw almost no improvement after sitting through the classes with an obnoxious instructor.

I also tossed some of the "Kaplan" method. The LRs I got better at by just doing what probably was THOUSANDS of questions. Sooner or later it becomes obvious which ones are right and which are wrong, and which ones they are using tricks in. For anyone who took this last LSAT, you know there was a block of 5 or so questions that were really rough, but I had time to go back through and think I got at least half of them. The LGs are the money maker, however. I have a very good memory, and I realized that drawing out the diagrams for SOME of the questions was a waste of time and somewhat confusing. I'd write out a few notes as to the rules, and then try to look at the questions more abstractly. I was consistently -3 to -0, which is why I'm pissed about this last test. I don't think its likely I dropped any more than 6 on the LGs in yesterdays test, but I shouldn't have dropped any, and I realize the little mistake I made with a minute or so to spare. If I wasn't in the 170s, this is why.

With reading comprehension, I have been making a concerted effort to read books the last couple months, and I also have been proofing Amicus briefs and reading over MTDs, etc for the non-profit I work for. Also, I started reading the questions quickly before reading the passages in RC so that I knew what key words I should be paying attention to, and which paragraphs I should summarize as I went. My RCs went from -7 to -12, to -2 to -5. So the last 2 full length practice tests my overall score was -12 and -8, with the majority of lost points usually coming from RC. I actually felt pretty good about the RC on this LSAT so if I only dropped 3-4 there that may have saved me.

I guess there is no use stressing about it, I will not be retaking again, and I am hopeful that what I got will get me into W&L, Emory, Temple, BC and BU. If we can't make Boston work my order of living preference goes Atlanta, VA, PA, though I am willing to make exceptions for UVA and Penn should that work out. All that said, it depends on where my wife gets into med school... so far she only has an interview at Liberty, but we expect to hear back from PCOMs PA and Atlanta campuses.

On a side note, anyone have any good recommendations for Patent Bar study material. I was thinking of going with the cheaper Bullseye stuff as people seem to insist it works. I am currently a mechanic working 8-10 hours a day and a good amount of that is just down time (hourly, so I don't care) and I could probably get a few hours of studying in a day at work, though it wouldn't be at a desk. I want to take the patent bar before I start law school to help with scoring summer internships.

Mike