I need some guidance Forum

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vayze

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I need some guidance

Post by vayze » Thu Jan 03, 2013 3:10 am

Well, to start off. I spent 2 months preparing for the LSAT in December. My practice tests were ranging in the 162's-168's. Upon taking the actual LSAT I received a 151. Of course I am not satisfied with this score, but here is my dilemma. Any advice would be great and very appreciated.

I submitted my law school application to the University of Tennessee before I took the December LSAT. Now that I received a poor score and it will probably hold me back from admissions, I would like to know what my options are. I would like to retake the LSAT in June and prep for the next 5 months, but I am not sure of three things:
- If rejected, can I reapply for admission to the same term: Fall 2013, or must I wait for the next cycle.
- Would it be better to go to a lower school that would accept my score and transfer out to the University of Tennessee or would it be better to delay my education another year?
- Is it normal for actual scores to have such a high disparity when compared to practice scores? I have been using only the Official PrepTests for sale by LSAC.

Thank you for the help.

God Bless

nickb285

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Joined: Mon Jul 16, 2012 4:25 pm

Re: I need some guidance

Post by nickb285 » Thu Jan 03, 2013 3:50 am

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Last edited by nickb285 on Sun Jul 16, 2017 5:41 pm, edited 1 time in total.

lawschoolsuccess

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Re: I need some guidance

Post by lawschoolsuccess » Thu Jan 03, 2013 5:51 pm

vayze wrote:Well, to start off. I spent 2 months preparing for the LSAT in December. My practice tests were ranging in the 162's-168's. Upon taking the actual LSAT I received a 151. Of course I am not satisfied with this score, but here is my dilemma. Any advice would be great and very appreciated.

I submitted my law school application to the University of Tennessee before I took the December LSAT. Now that I received a poor score and it will probably hold me back from admissions, I would like to know what my options are. I would like to retake the LSAT in June and prep for the next 5 months, but I am not sure of three things:
- If rejected, can I reapply for admission to the same term: Fall 2013, or must I wait for the next cycle.
- Would it be better to go to a lower school that would accept my score and transfer out to the University of Tennessee or would it be better to delay my education another year?
- Is it normal for actual scores to have such a high disparity when compared to practice scores? I have been using only the Official PrepTests for sale by LSAC.

Thank you for the help.

God Bless
1) If you're rejected, then you must apply for the next term.

2) Taking the LSAT twice is a risk as many schools will average your two scores in determining your LSAT score. If we take your situation as an example, your current score is 151. If you have a great test day and your second LSAT performance lands you a 168 (the high end of your practice range), you'll still only have an average of 159 for schools that will take the mean of your two scores. Double check your list of schools that you want to apply to - contact the admissions to confirm if they average multiple LSAT scores of if they take the highest one. That should give you some guidance as to whether you should put yourself through that exam again.

3) Going to a lower ranked school has its advantages and disadvantages. Generally, regional schools will have very close ties to its local legal community. For instance, University of Memphis School of Law will have excellent networking opportunities for students who attend Memphis and plan on practicing in that area. As of this writing, Memphis states that its median LSAT score is 154 (http://www.memphis.edu/law/futurestuden ... onsfaq.php). If you're pretty sure as to where you want to eventually practice, I suggest looking into some schools in the area that you are interested in. Keep in mind that once you decide on a law school, it's difficult to transfer to another because: i) you need excellent grades to transfer up to a higher ranked school; ii) you are now competing against hundreds of other talented students so getting those excellent grades is difficult; iii) not all credits transfer.

Feel free to PM me if you have more questions. Best of luck to you.

nickb285

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Joined: Mon Jul 16, 2012 4:25 pm

Re: I need some guidance

Post by nickb285 » Thu Jan 03, 2013 6:00 pm

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Last edited by nickb285 on Sun Jul 16, 2017 5:42 pm, edited 2 times in total.

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BullShitWithBravado

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Re: I need some guidance

Post by BullShitWithBravado » Thu Jan 03, 2013 6:30 pm

nickb285 wrote:
lawschoolsuccess wrote:2) Taking the LSAT twice is a risk as many schools will average your two scores in determining your LSAT score. If we take your situation as an example, your current score is 151. If you have a great test day and your second LSAT performance lands you a 168 (the high end of your practice range), you'll still only have an average of 159 for schools that will take the mean of your two scores. Double check your list of schools that you want to apply to - contact the admissions to confirm if they average multiple LSAT scores of if they take the highest one. That should give you some guidance as to whether you should put yourself through that exam again.
DO NOT FUCKING LISTEN TO THIS

Now that law schools only have to report the highest LSAT for rankings, almost none of them average scores--and even among those that claim to do so, there's anecdotal evidence that they "average scores" the same way that they "consider all applications holistically;" that is to say, they consider it, but it will not matter nearly as much as your highest score.

Furthermore, even if the schools did average scores, which do you think is more likely to get you admission and/or scholarship--A 151 or a 159?

Eight or ten or twenty points on an LSAT can mean a difference of tens if not hundreds of thousands of dollars of debt, not to mention the ability to go to a school that otherwise would not have been an option.

Do not listen to this person. Retake the LSAT, and study for it like you're getting paid--because, in a very real sense, you are.

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vayze

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Re: I need some guidance

Post by vayze » Thu Jan 03, 2013 11:38 pm

Do not listen to this person. Retake the LSAT, and study for it like you're getting paid--because, in a very real sense, you are.
Very true. thanks everyone for the advice. To update my status I talked with the law schools I am applying to and I had them place my application on hold. I will be retaking the February LSAT and they will consider the higher of the two.

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dingbat

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Re: I need some guidance

Post by dingbat » Thu Jan 03, 2013 11:41 pm

lawschoolsuccess wrote:
vayze wrote:Well, to start off. I spent 2 months preparing for the LSAT in December. My practice tests were ranging in the 162's-168's. Upon taking the actual LSAT I received a 151. Of course I am not satisfied with this score, but here is my dilemma. Any advice would be great and very appreciated.

I submitted my law school application to the University of Tennessee before I took the December LSAT. Now that I received a poor score and it will probably hold me back from admissions, I would like to know what my options are. I would like to retake the LSAT in June and prep for the next 5 months, but I am not sure of three things:
- If rejected, can I reapply for admission to the same term: Fall 2013, or must I wait for the next cycle.
- Would it be better to go to a lower school that would accept my score and transfer out to the University of Tennessee or would it be better to delay my education another year?
- Is it normal for actual scores to have such a high disparity when compared to practice scores? I have been using only the Official PrepTests for sale by LSAC.

Thank you for the help.

God Bless
1) If you're rejected, then you must apply for the next term.

2) Taking the LSAT twice is a risk as many schools will average your two scores in determining your LSAT score. If we take your situation as an example, your current score is 151. If you have a great test day and your second LSAT performance lands you a 168 (the high end of your practice range), you'll still only have an average of 159 for schools that will take the mean of your two scores. Double check your list of schools that you want to apply to - contact the admissions to confirm if they average multiple LSAT scores of if they take the highest one. That should give you some guidance as to whether you should put yourself through that exam again.

3) Going to a lower ranked school has its advantages and disadvantages. Generally, regional schools will have very close ties to its local legal community. For instance, University of Memphis School of Law will have excellent networking opportunities for students who attend Memphis and plan on practicing in that area. As of this writing, Memphis states that its median LSAT score is 154 (http://www.memphis.edu/law/futurestuden ... onsfaq.php). If you're pretty sure as to where you want to eventually practice, I suggest looking into some schools in the area that you are interested in. Keep in mind that once you decide on a law school, it's difficult to transfer to another because: i) you need excellent grades to transfer up to a higher ranked school; ii) you are now competing against hundreds of other talented students so getting those excellent grades is difficult; iii) not all credits transfer.

Feel free to PM me if you have more questions. Best of luck to you.
Hell, this person says that you shouldn't retake because at best your average LSAT will be 159, then tells you about a wonderful school whose median is 154 and tells you to apply there with a 151. can you see the logic fail? (if not, don't go into any profession that requires a brain)

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