Wait another year or bite the bullet and try a transfer? Forum

[Jerzeegirl]

You know better than anyone else if you have the potential to do well on a retake. There are people who consistently score high on PT's but will never do well when they sit down to take the real thing because they aren't good test takers. If this is you (and you would know because you took the SAT in high school and would have had similar issues) then there's your answer. I chose not to retake because I'm terrible at these types of tests and my score wouldn't have changed. There are tons of people here who are in the same boat. It is definitely possible to be a great student and suck at standardized tests. If you can retake in June to get a better idea of your ability, do it. You have a few months to study and you've already gotten in somewhere. Just send in a seat deposit. If your score doesn't change then you know not to wait.

[blsingindisguise]

Never count on transfer

Never count on your LSAT increasing either. You have way more control in allowing yourself to transfer by working your butt off and transfering after your first year. From what I have researched (and from what I have learned from 3 people who transfered after their first year) you need to be in the top 15% of your class after the first year.

This is so massively wrong - improving your LSAT is MUCH easier than guaranteeing transfer-quality 1L grades. Besides, if she tries and doesn't improve she still has the same score and same admissions chances and can still go for transfer if she wants.

[hellokitty]

I'm in the same situation. As much as I don't want to, I'm going to wait a year and retake. I feel like I'll probably regret it in the long run if I don't. I'll always wonder what if, you know? As far as transferring goes, that would be awesome IF it were something that could be easily done or almost guaranteed, but it's not.

So, if I were you, I'd wait a year. I've always felt like people should follow their dreams and law school is no exception. Give yourself one more year and if you do well on the LSAT you could be watching your dreams come true this time next year.

[MrKappus]

Kappus, you seem a lot more rational than some of the others saying "screw it, go to law school" so i'll bite. Given the things mentioned. Why do you say that it is better to get you professional life under way than to take the extra time to get into a better school and/or get more scholarship money?

There may very well be situations in which it's advisable to retake. If there are significant discrepancies between your PT's and actual score (e.g., 15-20 pts), then maybe you owe it to yourself to give it another shot. But too many people on this site treat the LSAT as something that one will master if they just spend enough time on it. If you were PTing in the high 160s and got a 159, maybe a retake's not the answer. Maybe you don't handle pressure well. Maybe the test center's too quiet. Maybe any one of a hundred things means standardized testing under real conditions isn't your thing.

I guess all I'm saying is it seems just as rational to think a person can excel during his/her 1L year w/ the work that others are saying will lead to LSAT success. If you do, then transferring is your best option, and you can show that evil LSAT once and for all. But if you can't achieve that level of performance during 1L, then I don't see why it's any more likely that your blood/sweat/tears would have led to a drastically different LSAT outcome. In that case, you might just be at the right school, and you're one year closer to beginning the rise to seniority in a legal position. Just my .02...who knows.

[rando]

Fair enough.

[half_farang]

Kappus, you seem a lot more rational than some of the others saying "screw it, go to law school" so i'll bite. Given the things mentioned. Why do you say that it is better to get you professional life under way than to take the extra time to get into a better school and/or get more scholarship money?

There may very well be situations in which it's advisable to retake. If there are significant discrepancies between your PT's and actual score (e.g., 15-20 pts), then maybe you owe it to yourself to give it another shot. But too many people on this site treat the LSAT as something that one will master if they just spend enough time on it. If you were PTing in the high 160s and got a 159, maybe a retake's not the answer. Maybe you don't handle pressure well. Maybe the test center's too quiet. Maybe any one of a hundred things means standardized testing under real conditions isn't your thing.

I guess all I'm saying is it seems just as rational to think a person can excel during his/her 1L year w/ the work that others are saying will lead to LSAT success. If you do, then transferring is your best option, and you can show that evil LSAT once and for all. But if you can't achieve that level of performance during 1L, then I don't see why it's any more likely that your blood/sweat/tears would have led to a drastically different LSAT outcome. In that case, you might just be at the right school, and you're one year closer to beginning the rise to seniority in a legal position. Just my .02...who knows.

This has been some pretty great advice. I'd say that overall, it seems like the smart thing to do is the wait the year.

But, there are a lot of reasons why retaking doesn't make sense.

1. My highest score during PTs was a 159, and I got a 159. I could probably study more (I was pretty busy at the time) and maybe get a 163, but thats probably as high as it will get for me.

2. I am currently in Thailand (I spent a year after UG teaching English), so I can't take the June LSAT, which means I would have to take the October LSAT.

3. I already turned down a great job in the nonprofit sector back home, and now they already hired someone else to fill my spot

4. I am looking at a bunch of fellowship programs for next year, and EVERY single one I am looking at, besides a ridiculously low pay americorps deal, are already passed the application deadlines.

5. I might shoot myself if I have to go back to my part-time retail job.

Reasons to retake.

1. Biggest is the possibility for more money. I already mentioned that I would be happy at the schools I go into, but its the $$$. I plan to go into public interest and am scared shit less about being 120,000 dollars in debt.



Well. That's basically it.

Thanks so much for the advice. I'll probably put a seat deposit down for USD or Santa Clara. I'm still waiting for 2 more schools though. UC Davis and UA. I think I'm going to ask Santa Clara to up my scholarship a bit. I got 8,000 from DePaul. Maybe they will match it.

[Richie Tenenbaum]

This has been some pretty great advice. I'd say that overall, it seems like the smart thing to do is the wait the year.

But, there are a lot of reasons why retaking doesn't make sense.

1. My highest score during PTs was a 159, and I got a 159. I could probably study more (I was pretty busy at the time) and maybe get a 163, but thats probably as high as it will get for me.

2. I am currently in Thailand (I spent a year after UG teaching English), so I can't take the June LSAT, which means I would have to take the October LSAT.

3. I already turned down a great job in the nonprofit sector back home, and now they already hired someone else to fill my spot

4. I am looking at a bunch of fellowship programs for next year, and EVERY single one I am looking at, besides a ridiculously low pay americorps deal, are already passed the application deadlines.

5. I might shoot myself if I have to go back to my part-time retail job.

Reasons to retake.

1. Biggest is the possibility for more money. I already mentioned that I would be happy at the schools I go into, but its the $$$. I plan to go into public interest and am scared shit less about being 120,000 dollars in debt.



Well. That's basically it.

Thanks so much for the advice. I'll probably put a seat deposit down for USD or Santa Clara. I'm still waiting for 2 more schools though. UC Davis and UA. I think I'm going to ask Santa Clara to up my scholarship a bit. I got 8,000 from DePaul. Maybe they will match it.

I might be on the overly-positive/naive side of the spectrum as an LSAT instructor when it comes to score improvement, but I have a hard time believing the bolded. I was able to power my way up 19 points from my diagnostic. I've worked with a student who had taken multiple LSAT classes and seemed stuck in the high 150's and ended up with a 167 on test day. How many PT's did you take, how many hours did you study before taking the first time? You should still have a decent amount of room to improve. Keep in mind too- 3-4 points higher can easily translate into thousands of dollars (and I mean amounts like $50,000+ for the combined three years). There's no need to rush life and get stuck into a path where it will take you years to dig yourself out of. That's just one man's opinion though.