Is this a realistic goal for LSAT score? Forum

[CPAlawHopefu]

Hello forum!

Just registered today. I look forward to becoming a part of the family here!

Long story short, I have decided to pursue law after trying out a career in accounting (licensed CPA). I find accounting to be extremely dull and repetitive and don't find it all that great as I thought it would be.

I took 2 cold diagnostics this week, back-to-back on Tuesday and Wednesday, and received 145 and 149, respectively. On both exams I consistently scored around 60% on LR and 70% on RC. On the AR, however, the first time around I only got 3/23 right. second time, I got 13/23. Too big of a discrepancy to know where my actual skill lies.

I've been scoping around various message boards and the general consensus seemed to be that the diagnostic score is somewhat correlated with what my actual LSAT score would be (the lower I score, the lower my final score will be). I don't want this discouraging this too much.

Here are the minigoals I set for myself:

March 2015 (Practice Exam): 160
June 2015 (Actual LSAT): 165
October 2015 (Actual LSAT): 172

My undergrad GPA is sub-par (3.2) so it is critical that I score in the top 25th percentile for LSAT, which seem to be over 172. I heard going from 149 to 172 in a period of less than a year is possible but uncommon. Some people even say that improving by no more than 20 points is probably the realistic maximum one should expect.

I will be taking Blueprint online course starting February (for some reason, they don't let me sign up for the study materials aimed for the June exam right now), and until that time, I will be self-studying to get basics out of the way. After the June exam, I will be focusing on practicing with the past LSAT exams every week until the October exam.

Is my goal realistic? Or am I just flying in the cloud of pipe dreams?

Looking forward to your feedbacks!

[umichman]

definitely possible. It a super learnable test. But don't take it until you are sure that you are at the best you can be. So don't plan on getting a 165 then a 172. Just take it when you think you can get a 172.

[GreenTee]

definitely possible. It a super learnable test. But don't take it until you are sure that you are at the best you can be. So don't plan on getting a 165 then a 172. Just take it when you think you can get a 172.

Cosigned. Never plan for a retake. Be open to the possibility, since shit happens on test day more often than not. But never sit for the test until you know you're capable of hitting your target score.

e: And yes, going from a 140s diag to a 170s score is possible, but it's going to take a metric fuckton more work that you expect it to. Imagine the absolute most work you think you're capable of doing to prepare for this test in the time you have. Now triple it. That's what you'll need to be willing to do in order to get there.

[nlee10]

Your timeline is more than possible. In fact, if you have ample time to study from now until June, you may be able to hit 170+ by June. Your best section is in RC which is great because that gives a lot of people trouble.

I recommend checking out the 7Sage online course. I believe there is a free trial you can use to see whether you like it. I'm coming out of a BP live course and finding 7Sage more useful...but that is just my experience.

[CPAlawHopefu]

Thanks for the advice!

The only reason why I plan to sit for the June exam is because many people recommend that I try out the test first in an actual testing hall to familiarize myself with the environment and such. I heard this will help lower my anxiety in October. Do you think this is a waste of time?


nlee10: That is definitely encouraging. One thing is that I actually work full time right now and will only be able to commit no more than 2-3 hours on the weekdays to studying. Vast majority of my preparation will take place on the weekend, so that is a slight time constraint.

I will definitely check out the 7sage online course!

[GreenTee]

Thanks for the advice!

The only reason why I plan to sit for the June exam is because many people recommend that I try out the test first in an actual testing hall to familiarize myself with the environment and such. I heard this will help lower my anxiety in October. Do you think this is a waste of time?


nlee10: That is definitely encouraging. One thing is that I actually work full time right now and will only be able to commit no more than 2-3 hours on the weekdays to studying. Vast majority of my preparation will take place on the weekend, so that is a slight time constraint.

I will definitely check out the 7sage online course!

As long as you actually do put in 3 hours every workday and at least 5 hours each on Saturday/Sunday, you might be able to pull it off. Again, it's going to take a lot more work than you're anticipating. I was working full time while studying for the LSAT, and I spent 15 months prepping. My diag was a 149 (in Sept 2013), I choked on my first take in September 2014 and scored a 166 (PT average was around 171). Waiting for my December retake score right now (PT average was 177.5 across 18 tests, all retakes).

Over the course of those 15 months, I drilled every single released LSAT question from 1-38 twice. I took all timed sections from 39 - 51. I took all full PTs from 52 - 73 under timed conditions (with experimental sections or back to back) twice.

tl;dr - It's going to be hard.

[peppermint]

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[CPAlawHopefu]

Thanks for the advice!

The only reason why I plan to sit for the June exam is because many people recommend that I try out the test first in an actual testing hall to familiarize myself with the environment and such. I heard this will help lower my anxiety in October. Do you think this is a waste of time?


nlee10: That is definitely encouraging. One thing is that I actually work full time right now and will only be able to commit no more than 2-3 hours on the weekdays to studying. Vast majority of my preparation will take place on the weekend, so that is a slight time constraint.

I will definitely check out the 7sage online course!

As long as you actually do put in 3 hours every workday and at least 5 hours each on Saturday/Sunday, you might be able to pull it off. Again, it's going to take a lot more work than you're anticipating. I was working full time while studying for the LSAT, and I spent 15 months prepping. My diag was a 149 (in Sept 2013), I choked on my first take in September 2014 and scored a 166 (PT average was around 171). Waiting for my December retake score right now (PT average was 177.5 across 18 tests, all retakes).

Over the course of those 15 months, I drilled every single released LSAT question from 1-38 twice. I took all timed sections from 39 - 51. I took all full PTs from 52 - 73 under timed conditions (with experimental sections or back to back) twice.

tl;dr - It's going to be hard.

Wow. 149 diagnostics to 177 PT? Jesus Christ, I can already sense the blood and sweat that you've spilled in the past 15 months. Really wishing you luck to achieve it. We seem to have a similar starting point, so I'm counting on you to set an example for me

BTW, you should write this on the law application. Definitely shows a lot about your work ethics.

[GreenTee]

Wow. 149 diagnostics to 177 PT? Jesus Christ, I can already sense the blood and sweat that you've spilled in the past 15 months. Really wishing you luck to achieve it. We seem to have a similar starting point, so I'm counting on you to set an example for me

Thanks, CPA! I really wish someone had told me how difficult it was going to be when I started. I was planning to sit for June '14, and when I started studying, it seemed like an impossibly long way away. But nearly everyone underestimates how much time and effort it takes to make a massive jump like that. You can't just learn about the test. You have to literally transform the way your brain functions, and that means a lot of headaches and a ton of time. But it isn't impossible. Stick with it, and don't give up when things get difficult.

[jepper]

My diagnostic was 148 in Jan 2014. Took the June 2014 scored 170. So, yes, you definitely can do it.

[Johann]

Hello forum!

I find accounting to be extremely dull and repetitive and don't find it all that great as I thought it would be.

What's your salary? Law is usually really repetitive - most jobs are. If you work for Big 4 you need to network and get the hell out of there and in house as like a financial planner/analyst/ or acct.

[CPAlawHopefu]

Hello forum!

I find accounting to be extremely dull and repetitive and don't find it all that great as I thought it would be.

What's your salary? Law is usually really repetitive - most jobs are. If you work for Big 4 you need to network and get the hell out of there and in house as like a financial planner/analyst/ or acct.

Worked at PWC for 5 years before transferring out as an in-house acct at a manufacturer doing mostly cost analysis. Current salary is in the mid-70k. Looking for a major boost in salary, but I'm changing career mostly due to the fact how CPAs are treated in the real world.

In the corporate world, lawyers still win in the prestige game. CPAs are treated like petty servants doing mostly bitch work that no one wants to do and are probably the most under-appreciated in the professional world, unless you become a partner, which will most likely not happen to 95% of accountants out there. Lawyers are still lawyers, they are viewed as the experts and advisers, regardless how they're actually paid.

[musedreverie]

My undergrad GPA is sub-par (3.2) so it is critical that I score in the top 25th percentile for LSAT, which seem to be over 172. I heard going from 149 to 172 in a period of less than a year is possible but uncommon. Some people even say that improving by no more than 20 points is probably the realistic maximum one should expect.

Huh? 172+ is the 99th percentile (i.e. top 1%), not the 75th. 172 is most top law schools' 75th percentile mark (i.e. top 25% of those who enrolled in these schools have achieved 172 or more on their LSATs.)

I think given that you have slightly over 10 months to prepare for the exams, you are on a pretty good starting point. But you have to be prepared to work hard. The silver lining of your starting point is that you are quite good at RC, which is the hardest to improve on and bad at Games (AR), which is the easiest to improve on.

Look into using LSAT Trainer by Mike Kim,, Cambridge packets, all the PTs from 1-72 and 7sage explanations (for games) to study for the LSATs.

Good luck

[WhiskeyAndCupcakes]

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