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High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 7:24 pm
by hopefullaw
Hello everyone, I hope this isn't a hassle but I could really use your help.

I currently have a >3.80 GPA and I will be graduating with full honors at a state school. My major is Political Science.

In terms of community service and recommendations, I think I have it in the bag.

The issue came with my LSAT which I received a 150.
I had taken the diagnostic lsat with kaplan and recieved a 155. Judging from my mistakes, a large chunk of my score was due to the logic games.

Therefore, when I studied for the LSAT, I studied only logic games, but barely.

I am 100% certain I could have studied and done a lot better instead of actually winging it.

I know what I did was absolutely stupid, but what can I do now?

My options are:
-After graduation, spend time studying for the LSAT and actually study. Then apply next cycle
-Go to OU law, perform to the best I can, and then apply for transfer


TL;DR: >3.80 Full honors GPA, 150 LSAT...messed up

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 7:25 pm
by t-14orbust
hopefullaw wrote:Hello everyone, I hope this isn't a hassle but I could really use your help.

I currently have a >3.80 GPA and I will be graduating with full honors at a state school. My major is Political Science.

In terms of community service and recommendations, I think I have it in the bag.

The issue came with my LSAT which I received a 150.
I had taken the diagnostic lsat with kaplan and recieved a 155. Judging from my mistakes, a large chunk of my score was due to the logic games.

Therefore, when I studied for the LSAT, I studied only logic games, but barely.

I am 100% certain I could have studied and done a lot better instead of actually winging it.

I know what I did was absolutely stupid, but what can I do now?

My options are:
-After graduation, spend time studying for the LSAT and actually study. Then apply next cycle
-Go to OU law, perform to the best I can, and then apply for transfer


TL;DR: >3.80 Full honors GPA, 150 LSAT...messed up
you tried that hard in school but twiddled your thumbs for the LSAT? retake dude

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 7:26 pm
by Winston1984
Retake and reapply. No other possible answer.

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 7:26 pm
by hopefullaw
t-14orbust wrote:
hopefullaw wrote:Hello everyone, I hope this isn't a hassle but I could really use your help.

I currently have a >3.80 GPA and I will be graduating with full honors at a state school. My major is Political Science.

In terms of community service and recommendations, I think I have it in the bag.

The issue came with my LSAT which I received a 150.
I had taken the diagnostic lsat with kaplan and recieved a 155. Judging from my mistakes, a large chunk of my score was due to the logic games.

Therefore, when I studied for the LSAT, I studied only logic games, but barely.

I am 100% certain I could have studied and done a lot better instead of actually winging it.

I know what I did was absolutely stupid, but what can I do now?

My options are:
-After graduation, spend time studying for the LSAT and actually study. Then apply next cycle
-Go to OU law, perform to the best I can, and then apply for transfer


TL;DR: >3.80 Full honors GPA, 150 LSAT...messed up
you tried that hard in school but twiddled your thumbs for the LSAT? retake dude
Yea. I've always been a procrastinator and it worked for me quite well in undergrad (well besides freshman year).

Thank you for your input, although I hate to tell my parents that I ****'d up and need to take a year off, I have to.

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 7:28 pm
by Attax
Retaking is TCR, even for sooners.

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 7:29 pm
by hopefullaw
Attax wrote:Retaking is TCR, even for sooners.
What does TCR mean? The correct route?

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 7:30 pm
by heythatslife
The only right thing to do in your case is to retake. 170+ would be good, but even with high 160s you may be able to snag a few T14 schools with that GPA.

TCR is "the credited response."

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 7:30 pm
by Chriz
Retake.

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 7:31 pm
by hopefullaw
heythatslife wrote:The only right thing to do in your case is to retake. 170+ would be good, but even with high 160s you may be able to snag a few T14 schools with that GPA.

TCR is "the credited response."
Thank you.

I'm so disappointed in myself, so I read your username and got uplifted a bit.

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 7:32 pm
by t-14orbust
if you studied for the LSAT you'd know what TCR meant lol. Not to be a dick, I just found it funny

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 7:32 pm
by hopefullaw
t-14orbust wrote:if you studied for the LSAT you'd know what TCR meant lol. Not to be a dick, I just found it funny
Just go to show how badly i screwed up :[

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 7:33 pm
by t-14orbust
actually I was wrong. It's an acronym so there was no way to know. my b

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 7:34 pm
by hopefullaw
t-14orbust wrote:actually I was wrong. It's an acronym so there was no way to know. my b
Still, you brought up a valid point, if I had studied then my initial reaction to TCR would have been the one based on the LSAT books!

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 7:44 pm
by Nova

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 7:47 pm
by hopefullaw
Is june a good time to retake? I still have my finals coming up in may so perhaps and august test is better?

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 7:49 pm
by t-14orbust
hopefullaw wrote:
Is june a good time to retake? I still have my finals coming up in may so perhaps and august test is better?
A good time to retake is when you're PTing at 165+ if not 170+

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 7:50 pm
by patogordo
hopefullaw wrote:Thank you for your input, although I hate to tell my parents that I ****'d up and need to take a year off, I have to.
there's no rule that you have to go straight from undergrad to law school. in fact most would say it's better to take some time off and get some work experience or w/e.

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 7:50 pm
by rebexness
hopefullaw wrote:
Is june a good time to retake? I still have my finals coming up in may so perhaps and august test is better?
Well, the next test isn't til late September.
If you can devote your summer (May-Sept) to the LSAT, Sept is a great choice.

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 7:55 pm
by hopefullaw
rebexness wrote:
hopefullaw wrote:
Is june a good time to retake? I still have my finals coming up in may so perhaps and august test is better?
Well, the next test isn't til late September.
If you can devote your summer (May-Sept) to the LSAT, Sept is a great choice.
I can devote my entire summer to it.
I noticed that the link I was given before The NoodleyOne's Foolproof Guide to a 179 for Retakers, is for retakers.

For my situation, I would say I'm not an actual retaker, but more of a beginner, starting at 150 and wanting to go high 160-170s.
I saw a reddit thread earlier and saw a link to http://lawschooli.com/lsat-study-schedule/ where it lists all the books and such.

However, I noticed there weren't any test question explanations. Are these available anywhere?

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 8:03 pm
by rebexness
hopefullaw wrote:
However, I noticed there weren't any test question explanations. Are these available anywhere?
http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... =6&t=41657

This is a good starter guide.

You can purchase explanations- however, many people use the free forums on the Manhattan website where instructors/people basically hash out the answers to almost all of the PTs.

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 8:21 pm
by Nova
hopefullaw wrote: I noticed that the link I was given before The NoodleyOne's Foolproof Guide to a 179 for Retakers, is for retakers.

For my situation, I would say I'm not an actual retaker, but more of a beginner, starting at 150 and wanting to go high 160-170s.
I saw a reddit thread earlier and saw a link to http://lawschooli.com/lsat-study-schedule/ where it lists all the books and such.

However, I noticed there weren't any test question explanations. Are these available anywhere?
The materials that noodley recommends are highly recommended generally on TLS, and are for everyone (not just retakers).

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 8:22 pm
by Nova
t-14orbust wrote:
hopefullaw wrote:
Is june a good time to retake? I still have my finals coming up in may so perhaps and august test is better?
A good time to retake is when you're PTing at 165+ if not 170+
Yeah. Whenever youre ready.

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Wed Mar 05, 2014 4:00 pm
by Sam_Spade
see this why I'm glad the LSAT is 60 to 80% of the admission package.

not to rain on your parade, but >3.80 at a state school in a fairly easy major shouldn't be treated the same as a 3.0 at a t25 undergraduate program in chemistry, physics, biology, ect.

not all undergraduates schools are equal

how do i know this? well i transferred around myself and saw how easier one school can be compared to another. it's black vs. white in most cases.

if you got a 150 on the LSAT and have that high of a GPA obviously the law school admissions counselors know what kind of undergraduate institution you attended.
hopefullaw wrote: I currently have a >3.80 GPA and I will be graduating with full honors at a state school. My major is Political Science.
TL;DR: >3.80 Full honors GPA, 150 LSAT...messed up

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Wed Mar 05, 2014 4:07 pm
by Nova
Sam_Spade wrote: 1. not to rain on your parade, but >3.80 at a state school in a fairly easy major shouldn't be treated the same as a 3.0 at a t25 undergraduate program in chemistry, physics, biology, ect.

not all undergraduates schools are equal

how do i know this? well i transferred around myself and saw how easier one school can be compared to another. it's black vs. white in most cases.

if you got a 150 on the LSAT and have that high of a GPA obviously the law school admissions counselors know what kind of undergraduate institution you attended.
:roll: :roll:

Re: High GPA / Extremely low LSAT

Posted: Wed Mar 05, 2014 4:08 pm
by A. Nony Mouse
Of course, the >3.80 at the state school *is* valued way more highly in law school admissions than the 3.0 in whatever from wherever (t25? Okay).