3.4/140 Forum

[lawguy12]

I am new to the forum, but have been browsing other posts and searching through the archives to find others who have/had similar numbers to mine.

I took the October LSAT and unfortunately only scored a 140. I attend a university ranked within the top 100 schools nationwide, been told by an adviser I have a "good" resume, and a member of a national honor society.

I am wondering my prospects for fall 2011 admission, if I any school will even accept my numbers. I am searching for advice if I should retake the exam in December, wait until the next cycle, or should I reconsider applying to law school all together?

Also, any recommendations for ABA approved law schools that may consider me for application would be appreciated.

Thanks for the help

[homestyle28]

there are definitely some tier 4 schools that would take you, but you do need to do more research about law school, legal job prospects, etc., to make the decision about whether or not it's worth it for you (the overwhelming consensus here is that it's not). You probably should say some more about your 140 so people can weigh in on your retake prospects.

[Grizz]

Can't get into any schools worth going (job prospects v. debt). Retake bro.

[DukeCornell]

Retake in December. If the numbers are looking the same…rethink LS. How much effort did you put into preparing?

[lawguy12]

Thank you for the reply, Homestyle.

I had taken a few diagnostic tests through Kaplan, with the first starting at a 138, and my best being a 145. I would say I had approximately 2 months of serious studying, a few hours a day/night, with the Kaplan class.

I do not have any reason to add an addendum to my applications, if anything I would say my testing conditions were near ideal and not a reason for the low score. The only reason I could come up with is I am not a good standardized test taker, but I would think that law school would neither care, or have heard that reason before.

Also, This is the first time I have a recorded LSAT score, I will be graduating with my B.A in May 2011.

[beachbum]

Retake. You need a jump of at least 20 points before you can start looking at schools that are worth looking at.

Edit: Your score suggests you still don't have a good grasp of the fundamental skills tested by the LSAT. Consider retaking in June to give yourself enough time to improve your understanding and performance and to get your apps in early.

[dtubin]

I would look into alternative study materials. Kaplan is piss poor from what everyone says and scores with them.

[Patriot1208]

I would look into alternative study materials. Kaplan is piss poor from what everyone says and scores with them.

I didn't mind Kaplan, but I used it in conjunction with my own self study. This may just be a function of the undergrad I go to but of the 8 people in my summer long course (it was done on my campus) I know for sure that 3 scored 172+ and i scored a 169. Not sure about the other 4 though.

[tttlllsss]

I am new to the forum, but have been browsing other posts and searching through the archives to find others who have/had similar numbers to mine.

I took the October LSAT and unfortunately only scored a 140. I attend a university ranked within the top 100 schools nationwide, been told by an adviser I have a "good" resume, and a member of a national honor society.

I am wondering my prospects for fall 2011 admission, if I any school will even accept my numbers. I am searching for advice if I should retake the exam in December, wait until the next cycle, or should I reconsider applying to law school all together?

Also, any recommendations for ABA approved law schools that may consider me for application would be appreciated.

Thanks for the help

The fact that you put in 2 mos of studying (incl. about 2 hrs / day) under professional guidance raises serious doubts about your natural ability to earn a respectable score. As you stand, you won't get into a law school worth going to. You need to raise your score at least 15 pts to look at schools that are arguably worth going to, and 25 points to start looking at "top schools". Keep in mind that a 25-pt jump is fantastically rare, if not impossible.

I'm not trying to diminish your dreams. If you really want to be a lawyer, you need to start by focusing on the fundamental problem you have with the way you're taking the LSAT.

[thwalls]

Dump kaplan. Start with the easy points and get the Games and LR Bibles, work through them and start going back through the exams from the beginning. Part of doing decently on the exam is studying properly. You can study day and night, and if you're not doing it the right way you're just wasting your time.

Start with those books and if you don't have a lot of time, a simple way to proceed is just taking the sections and breaking them up into ten problems each (not including the Reading Comp section). Then work 10 problems and finish them in 10 minutes or less. Next, for every problem you get wrong find the answer key, and completely understand where your reasoning is flawed compared to the correct answer. If you do that every day, in addition to reading the Bibles, you'd be amazed at how much you can improve.

I would say to start there and then see where you end up in a few months. But I feel that if you just take the December exam you're just shooting yourself in the foot. I would definitely plan for June.

[Jack Smirks]

Work hard and try to get that score up to 142 or 143.

[lzyovrachievr]

Work hard and try to get that score up to 142 or 143.

-1

Though I found it to be kinda funny.

[2Serious4Numbers]

I would look into alternative study materials. Kaplan is piss poor from what everyone says and scores with them.

I have to disagree as I made a +11 off my cold diag to become a top scorer with kaplan. Kaplan can work, but I will admit they teach a "one size fits all" approach. Its also about the teacher -- if you decide to repeat, ask around if there are any elite teachers in your area as they are preferable

[MrPapagiorgio]

Work hard and try to get that score up to 142 or 143.

A 145 ought to do the trick

[4102011]

Work hard and try to get that score up to 142 or 143.

-1

Though I found it to be kinda funny.

TITCR <3

[lawguy12]

So I have decided to retake the test. I think I will try the powerscore bibles and try for some major improvement.

But, in general, applying this cycle at best would put me into a 4th tier school, which typically is not recommended'?

[Patriot1208]

So I have decided to retake the test. I think I will try the powerscore bibles and try for some major improvement.

But, in general, applying this cycle at best would put me into a 4th tier school, which typically is not recommended'?

A 4th tier school will cost the same amount as any other school (50k per year or more with living expenses) and will not even land most of its graduates into legal jobs. Those that don't find legal jobs will have a hard time getting other jobs because they will be seen as overqualified. And, the small select few who get legal jobs will be doing document review (shifting through long boring documents just making sure they are ok) for around 35-40k per year in a major market. Unless that is what you want to do, then yes, you should not go to a 4th tier school.

[Grizz]

So I have decided to retake the test. I think I will try the powerscore bibles and try for some major improvement.

But, in general, applying this cycle at best would put me into a 4th tier school, which typically is not recommended'?

Yep.