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rfhassan wrote:Hi, so after prepping a few months in hopes of taking the september lsat, I decided to postpone to december since I am not quite where I want to be my lsat, (highest practice test 162) I am an african american female with a 4.0 gpa, and I really had my heart set on t14 schools. It is a really hard decision for me to postpone to december, but I don't want to risk a sub-par lsat performance. Is the december lsat too late for me? I really was looking specifically at Berkley and NYU, both schools being notorious for wanting early applicants. Postponing the lsat is giving me a lot of anxiety
Thank you!

You should be relatively okay due to decreasing apps.

No. Get that awesome LSAT and enjoy a great cycle.

A December LSAT is fine, being AA and having a 4.0 GPA make you very valuable to law schools. Focus on getting the best score you can on the LSAT. Also, don't be afraid to sit out an application cycle to retake the LSAT if you need to, as I'm sure everyone on this board will recommend that you combine a great LSAT with your URM status and GPA since you have the opportunity. Also not to be a jerk or anything but make sure you spell "Berkeley" correctly when you apply. Good luck!

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Better to postpone than to waste a test. The worst thing that happens is that you underperform your numbers and decide to reapply next cycle right at the beginning.

Depends. How hard have you been studying? If you actually have put in the time, done the reps, and gotten a 10 point increase from your initial diagnostic you may want to take the Sep test. Particularly if this is your first take and your PT scores have plateaued. However, if you're still increasing your score 1-2 points a week and feel you haven't really put in the work then wait, rock Dec and perhaps wait for next cycle. If you have a previous take under your belt then def wait until you feel ready.

When in doubt ask the teacher of your LSAT class for advice, at the end of the day we are all weirdos on an internet forum. The advice I got from my LSAT class teacher and others was that outside of HYS, T14 schools really just want your highest LSAT score, they say they consider both (NYU says they'll average), but that in this law market they want the high numbers. If you have a bad take, you just knock out an addendum saying you were "sick" day of test. Do NOT take if you're woefully unprepared, but at some point you have to pull the trigger and take the first step. Get the baseline score, a basement number so you can move forward with confidence. TLS forums are dominated by very vocal Harvard, Yale, Stanford alums w 170+ scores and their advice, although useful, tends to be more applicable for those fighting for top rung of T14. But if you haven't "cracked" the games section or truly applied yourself, wait. A 162 is not quite high enough, but you are totally within striking distance!!!

You can't get trapped into thinking about being ready for a specific test date or even being ready to apply this year. What you need to do is get the highest score you can possibly get. Do not take the LSAT until you feel that you can no longer improve. And if your score doesn't live up to your potential take it again. If it still doesn't live up to your potential, take it a 3rd time. Do not rush this process. Every LSAT point matters.