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Hello TLS community,

I direly need advice after a few days of sleepless nights. I am debating whether I should take lsat this year and apply for 2020 admission or wait till next year for 2021 admission. Currently, my goal is 165 in the October test. My decision to go to law school was made quite recently. I started studying about two months ago having in mind that I should apply to some regular law schools. However, as the study went on, I started feeling that I deeply wanted to excel on this test and think that if I had more time to study and more time to prep my application I may stand for a better chance.

However, that will mean a two-year gap in my career from now (studying in 2020 and having to wait in 2021). Speaking a little more about myself, I am turning 25 in a few months, graduated from a mediocre college with a GPA 3.9 in B.M. Music Performance. I don't have impressive internship experience except working as a stage manager for a few months and probably no chance of getting such internship given the nature of my major. Plus, because I am an international student, I will have to go back to my country during the study, having to stay away for a few years from where I've belonged for almost half of my life and from my boyfriend (haha) whom I want to marry. On the bright sides, though not financially super comfortable, my parents said that they are willing to support me and that will put a great burden off from having to work (on OPT now for those who are curious) and cook/rent/etc, so an environment where I can fully commit to my study about 40+hr/week for another six months or 8 months if necessary.

So, will it be wise to wait another year? I can't see what would be better for my future. Should I study another year despite some life constraints but possibly manageable, or better off to an okay law school where it grants a feeling of security instantly next year?

Study another year and go to a better school.

Also, do not live off your parents for a year. Do some kind of a job - it doesn’t have to relate to law or your major; it just looks much much better to work than do nothing but study, and you will benefit much more from it personally. (I’m assuming you can work on OPT, as I’m pretty sure I know people who have.)

(Just reread and realized you’d go back home. I realize that’s a drag, but I think it’s better. Still think you should work though.)

nixy wrote:Study another year and go to a better school.

Also, do not live off your parents for a year. Do some kind of a job - it doesn’t have to relate to law or your major; it just looks much much better to work than do nothing but study, and you will benefit much more from it personally. (I’m assuming you can work on OPT, as I’m pretty sure I know people who have.)

(Just reread and realized you’d go back home. I realize that’s a drag, but I think it’s better. Still think you should work though.)

Thank you for your advice.
I have two questions. First, would an unprofessional setting such as teaching music to children be something I can put on my resume? Also, as you mentioned that I should still work, would doing a part-time job be better than not having any? Not sure yet what I can do with my degree back at home.

Secondly, would the score I get in the October test work adversely later in my application if I get higher score next year? I am wondering if I should cancel the upcoming test if that might be the case.

Thank you again.

The LSAT is so important in the law admissions process and going to a top school is so important in the legal world, that I would also strongly recommend that you wait until you are very confident you can get the score you want. If you really want to be a lawyer (not sure what type of law you want to practice), going to a top school will just open more doors in any direction. You should be getting LSAT practice score several points above your real score target because the real test is going to be a very different experience. Do not rush to take the test when you are not ready. That is the worst thing you could do.

I also strongly agree with the prior responder that it is essential you don't do nothing during your time away from school. Yes, you want to focus on mastering the LSAT and that does take time and dedication, but you should utilize this time to build not only your resume, but also your life experiences so that you can have some compelling things to talk about in your personal statement/diversity statement. Part-time work would be a great way to balance your time and still gain useful experience. Teaching music to kids is a totally OK thing to have on your resume, but you can do things beyond what you majored in in college. Seek out an internship with a government agency, company or legal services organization where your home is (if this is possible). This would give you experience in a professional/office work environment and could provide you with some really interesting world perspectives that schools will place value on.

Most schools take the highest LSAT score you get, so if you took the LSAT in October and then got a higher score later, the October score wouldn't have much impact at all. BUT, you can't bank on the fact that your first test following your extra year of study will go as planned and you may need to retake at that time, so just bear that in mind. But I don't see too much of a downside to taking the October test and may provide you with some helpful information about taking the actual test that you could use during your extra year of preparation.

For your consideration. I know of someone who had the theory that graduating college with 2 degrees was better than graduating with one degree, when it came time to apply to law school. So he went to the university every summer to get the 2 degrees.

He then had the genius idea of waiting and getting a 3rd degree prior to applying to law school, after all, 3 degrees must be better than 2.

We later concluded that the law school admissions committees viewed this as silly "credentialism", mindlessly accumulating degrees only to impress an admissions committee.

It didn't end well for him.

The admissions committees would have probably been more impressed with the guy if he flipped burgers in a 100 degree McDonald's kitchen for minimum wage and contributed to the cost of his education.