Significant Score Drop Forum

[ryan864]

Anybody have experience with a significant drop on a retake? I went down 10 points from 166 (Dec) to 156 (June) Will schools that say they only consider the higher score just disregard the drop and only look at the first test.

[mukol]

That is out of the score band and you'll probably want to have a decent explanation.

Or retake.

[Fantasyfreak294]

Anybody have experience with a significant drop on a retake? I went down 10 points from 166 (Dec) to 156 (June) Will schools that say they only consider the higher score just disregard the drop and only look at the first test.

Do you have any idea what that happened? Was your first test significantly higher than your PT avg/median? Nerves the second time? Weird passage or pattern game? No offense, but that's my biggest fear regarding retaking. I'd just like to know if you have any insight as to why that occurred in your particular scenario.

[Blueprint Mithun]

Anybody have experience with a significant drop on a retake? I went down 10 points from 166 (Dec) to 156 (June) Will schools that say they only consider the higher score just disregard the drop and only look at the first test.

While that's unfortunate and maddening, the answer to your second question should give you comfort. Schools that are interested in your highest score aren't just being charitable. It's the only one they have to report to the ABA. So, even though the average of your two scores is 161, schools that are concerned about their numbers will still like you better than a 161 scorer. (Or a 165, for that matter.)

That said, law school admissions is a two step process. Your raw numbers get your foot in the door, and, at that stage, they'll just be looking at your 166 (assuming it's a school that doesn't average scores). However, once you pass that test, the admissions committee will give your application package a holistic look. They will notice ten point drop, and it's likely to give them some concern.

If you have a reasonable explanation for what happened, then you should write an explanatory essay. There are a few considerations, though. Is it a good reason? I'm not sure nerves will cut it. More importantly, is there a reason for them to think that this is a one time deal? Because that's the punchline of the explanatory essay. If there's every reason to think that this was not an anomaly, then explaining doesn't do you any good, and you're better off just letting the chips fall where they may.

[bmathers]

UTK admissions called me the other morning because they received my recent LSAT score and liked it a lot better than my first score. I told the admissions lady that I'm withdrawing my application from this cycle/retake in September and asked her if it would be looked badly upon if I blew my retake and scored lower. Without hesitation, she said "not at all" since they only report the highest to the ABA. That's a T1/T2 borderline school. I can't speak for T14 or T6

[ryan864]

[vine][/vine]

UTK admissions called me the other morning because they received my recent LSAT score and liked it a lot better than my first score. I told the admissions lady that I'm withdrawing my application from this cycle/retake in September and asked her if it would be looked badly upon if I blew my retake and scored lower. Without hesitation, she said "not at all" since they only report the highest to the ABA. That's a T1/T2 borderline school. I can't speak for T14 or T6

That's where I'm looking too - I retook to see if it could help generate some movement on wait lists. In the T14, Harvard, UC-B, NU, and Georgetown claim to consider the highest on their websites. I guess the best thing would be to just call and directly ask.

[ryan864]

Anybody have experience with a significant drop on a retake? I went down 10 points from 166 (Dec) to 156 (June) Will schools that say they only consider the higher score just disregard the drop and only look at the first test.

Do you have any idea what that happened? Was your first test significantly higher than your PT avg/median? Nerves the second time? Weird passage or pattern game? No offense, but that's my biggest fear regarding retaking. I'd just like to know if you have any insight as to why that occurred in your particular scenario.

I honestly think I just rushed into it. Decided to retake so I could still go this cycle and opted for June when I probably should have held off. Took a five week online prep class and abandoned a lot of what I did well on the first time. This was definitely an outlier - it was 6 points lower than the diagnostic I took almost cold when I first began. In short, I guess I thought that because I had done it before and did well that the second time would somehow be easier. Lesson learned. Feel free to PM if you want more specific insight.

[jaysan150]

I was told they don't average them . They only take the higher score