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Retaking LSAT in Feb for 3rd time (for $$)

Posted: Wed Jan 03, 2018 2:21 pm
by jgs
Hi everyone,

I've only seen one other topic on this question, and I wanted to confirm my thinking before registering.

I took the LSAT in June and Sept. and got a 164 and 165. However, on the second test, I underperformed on my average PT by about 7-8 points (I had the flu and am generally test-anxious). My gpa is 3.9+ so I know if I had hit my average that I'd be looking at some solid good options, making this decision fairly difficult.

I applied to most of the schools I'm targeting in late October and have several acceptances—my concern isn't about getting into school, rather it's about improving my chances of getting scholarship money. So my questions are: will registering for the February LSAT to try to hit my average 1) slow the review of my existing applications (including those I just interviewed for), 2) be worth it to negotiate a higher scholarship total, 3) would a lower score hurt my existing applications, 4) would bailing and withdrawing a week before look bad if I'm not feeling that all will go well?

In all honesty, I wouldn't be studying as hard for this test because my main issue is nerves on test day, which I imagine should be alleviated now that I'm already sitting in a decent place. Does this thinking make sense?

Thanks!

Re: Retaking LSAT in Feb for 3rd time (for $$)

Posted: Wed Jan 03, 2018 2:52 pm
by personpitch
jgs wrote: I applied to most of the schools I'm targeting in late October and have several acceptances—my concern isn't about getting into school, rather it's about improving my chances of getting scholarship money. So my questions are: will registering for the February LSAT to try to hit my average 1) slow the review of my existing applications (including those I just interviewed for), 2) be worth it to negotiate a higher scholarship total, 3) would a lower score hurt my existing applications, 4) would bailing and withdrawing a week before look bad if I'm not feeling that all will go well?

In all honesty, I wouldn't be studying as hard for this test because my main issue is nerves on test day, which I imagine should be alleviated now that I'm already sitting in a decent place. Does this thinking make sense?
Re: 1) I don't think taking the Feb. exam would slow down your acceptances. Here's my thinking: If a school is going to admit you with your current stats, it doesn't make much sense for them to wait for your new score since, even if for some reason it's lower than 165, you would still be a 165-admit in terms of what they have to report to the ABA. On the other hand, if they are going to hold your app until the end of the cycle anyway, then waiting for the results would not add any additional delay here. The only delay would be if you are currently going to be denied. The school might still deny you without waiting for Feb. results, or they might wait to see them, in which case you might still get denied or eke out an acceptance (compared with being denied earlier).

[This is just my thinking--empirical results could very well prove me wrong.]

Re: 2) I'm not too well versed on negotiating scholarships, but from what I've read, a higher LSAT score can definitely yield more $$, so it could be worth it for that.

Re: 3) As I mentioned in my response to 1), a lower LSAT score probably won't hurt you since the vast majority of schools only care about your highest score. (If you score drastically lower, then that might give them pause, but scoring, say, 160 would not be a blow to your app.)

Re: 4) Probably not. Withdrawals do not show up on your LSAT history, and a school that's going to admit you with your current stats won't change their mind due to a withdrawal.

That said, it's still a good idea to take this exam seriously and study accordingly. Although taking multiple practice exams while simulating test-day conditions won't completely eliminate test-day nerves, it can certainly help. Good luck and congrats on your acceptances thus far! :D

Re: Retaking LSAT in Feb for 3rd time (for $$)

Posted: Sun Mar 25, 2018 10:03 pm
by jgs
So I wanted to update my post with the results of my February LSAT, where I jumped from my 165 to a 170! My outcomes are absolutely indicative of the wisdom of "retake, retake, retake" in that my scholarship to WashU was increased from 105k to a full ride with stipend, and I was then awarded the Dillard scholarship to UVA. If you're considering retaking and believe you can do better, do it; for me, it was the difference of small scholarship to UVA and the Dillard (approximately 140k different). Thank you, above, for the reassurance months ago.

Re: Retaking LSAT in Feb for 3rd time (for $$)

Posted: Sun Mar 25, 2018 11:10 pm
by andrewhl
jgs wrote:So I wanted to update my post with the results of my February LSAT, where I jumped from my 165 to a 170! My outcomes are absolutely indicative of the wisdom of "retake, retake, retake" in that my scholarship to WashU was increased from 105k to a full ride with stipend, and I was then awarded the Dillard scholarship to UVA. If you're considering retaking and believe you can do better, do it; for me, it was the difference of small scholarship to UVA and the Dillard (approximately 140k different). Thank you, above, for the reassurance months ago.
Congrats!
Care to share your experience about how to improve from 165-170?
I scored 164 in Feb and was looking for 170 in June/July test.

Cheers