LSAT Forum

[Bbbrian]

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[fliptrip]

I would definitely not call them up expecting to have a conversation with anyone about your LSAT score. I'd simply email a short addendum to the general admissions email. They will attach it to your file.

[GreatBraffsby]

I would just send a brief paragraph (3-5 sentences) highlighting your academic achievement and past negative experiences with standardized tests if there are any. This is a busy time for admissions offices, so I don't think they want a 3 page report on how your life story affected a change in your LSAT score. Also, try not to make excuses and emphasize your strengths/accomplishments that your test score doesn't communicate. Most importantly, be positive and confident while avoiding an arrogant or entitled tone.

[BigZuck]

Given this:

I'm not a minority, but I was raised in a low-income household and have amazing work experience.

I don't really trust your judgment or your ability to pull this off in a way that helps you.

I wouldn't write an addendum, you don't really have a good excuse for your LSAT being what it is and they've heard it all before, I'm sure. If you want to get in, retake.

[Bbbrian]

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[L’Étranger]

Go for it. It can't hurt right?

...but in all likelihood you're going to need to retake. Law school admissions is really all about numbers, even at B.

[rpupkin]

Given this:

I'm not a minority, but I was raised in a low-income household and have amazing work experience.

I don't really trust your judgment or your ability to pull this off in a way that helps you.

I wouldn't write an addendum, you don't really have a good excuse for your LSAT being what it is and they've heard it all before, I'm sure. If you want to get in, retake.

Harsh, but accurate.

[JazzyMac]

Given this:

I'm not a minority, but I was raised in a low-income household and have amazing work experience.

I don't really trust your judgment or your ability to pull this off in a way that helps you.

I wouldn't write an addendum, you don't really have a good excuse for your LSAT being what it is and they've heard it all before, I'm sure. If you want to get in, retake.

I don't care whether you trust my judgement BigZuck. You lost all credibility the moment you advised me to not write an addendum. I spoke with the admissions office today, explained my situation, and they said that my situation was exactly the circumstance to write an addendum. I'm an older student with a much higher level of work experience than my younger counterparts. I've worked at the top ranks of a Fortune 500 company and have extraordinary work experience that these kids fresh out of college just don't have. Believe it or not, high-level work experience for a Fortune 500 company is considered valuable.

Awesome answer! Great on you for remaining persistent and resilient. I hope things work out for you!

[rpupkin]

Given this:

I'm not a minority, but I was raised in a low-income household and have amazing work experience.

I don't really trust your judgment or your ability to pull this off in a way that helps you.

I wouldn't write an addendum, you don't really have a good excuse for your LSAT being what it is and they've heard it all before, I'm sure. If you want to get in, retake.

I don't care whether you trust my judgement BigZuck. You lost all credibility the moment you advised me to not write an addendum. I spoke with the admissions office today, explained my situation, and they said that my situation was exactly the circumstance to write an addendum. I'm an older student with a much higher level of work experience than my younger counterparts. I've worked at the top ranks of a Fortune 500 company and have extraordinary work experience that these kids fresh out of college just don't have. Believe it or not, high-level work experience for a Fortune 500 company is considered valuable.

If your addendum reflects the can-do attitude and self-confidence that oozes out of this post, the world is your oyster! You may have only scored around the 80th percentile in the LSAT, but you've scored in the 99th percentile in life!! Go get'em!!!

[GreatBraffsby]

Given this:

I'm not a minority, but I was raised in a low-income household and have amazing work experience.

I don't really trust your judgment or your ability to pull this off in a way that helps you.

I wouldn't write an addendum, you don't really have a good excuse for your LSAT being what it is and they've heard it all before, I'm sure. If you want to get in, retake.

I don't care whether you trust my judgement BigZuck. You lost all credibility the moment you advised me to not write an addendum. I spoke with the admissions office today, explained my situation, and they said that my situation was exactly the circumstance to write an addendum. I'm an older student with a much higher level of work experience than my younger counterparts. I've worked at the top ranks of a Fortune 500 company and have extraordinary work experience that these kids fresh out of college just don't have. Believe it or not, high-level work experience for a Fortune 500 company is considered valuable.

All of that should be covered under your resume so I don't understand why it needs a separate addendum. From this exchange, I'd be very wary of writing an annendum that appears defensive or entitled if I was the OP. Obviously you will write differently on an anonymous forum than on an application, but keep it in mind.

Also, LSAT addenda are typically along the lines of "I have a doctor's note that I took the test with strep throat" or "my grandmother died the night before the test". The school already knows your background, both professional and personal. Why give them more material to read? It's their job to weigh your work experience against the higher LSAT scores of the "kids" who outperformed you.

[Clearly]

Given this:

I'm not a minority, but I was raised in a low-income household and have amazing work experience.

I don't really trust your judgment or your ability to pull this off in a way that helps you.

I wouldn't write an addendum, you don't really have a good excuse for your LSAT being what it is and they've heard it all before, I'm sure. If you want to get in, retake.

I don't care whether you trust my judgement BigZuck. You lost all credibility the moment you advised me to not write an addendum. I spoke with the admissions office today, explained my situation, and they said that my situation was exactly the circumstance to write an addendum. I'm an older student with a much higher level of work experience than my younger counterparts. I've worked at the top ranks of a Fortune 500 company and have extraordinary work experience that these kids fresh out of college just don't have. Believe it or not, high-level work experience for a Fortune 500 company is considered valuable.

Pro tip: the last group you should ever take admissions advice from is the school. They will ALWAYS tell you to write an addendum no matter what, not because it'll increase your chances, but because they'll always want more information for themselves, even if it hurts you. Seriously you can call a school and ask them the dumbest things and they'll always recommend it. To prove this point, call any school you want and ask how they would feel about a personal statement detailing your drug problem, I guarantee they say "write it!".

You and your school are both involved in this transaction and have very different incentives. For instance the more apps a school gets, and the more people they deny, the lower their acceptance rate. Acceptance rate is one factor that goes into the rankings, thus schools want to maximize apps, even if they know they'll deny them. Call a school and say you really want to go there but have a 2.7 and a 147. They'll say "well you certainly can't get in if you don't apply!"

Look I get that you have work experience and are old, that's fine, but try to remember you're on this site because you're entering a world we've already been through. You're already doing things that are highly not recommended like calling the school and expecting to chat about your lsat score, and writing addenda that in no way actually address why you did poorly on the lsat. I have work experience isn't an lsat addendum, that's material for a personal statement. From what I can tell you don't have a good reason for being bad at the lsat, so writing an addendum is out of place.

[Clearly]

Also, people are now being sarcastic towards you because you're acting like a stubborn fool who despite not knowing much about law school admissions, somehow knows more than all these people who already graduated from elite law schools...this site has a wealth of knowledge that you're shutting down because you think you know something...

[fliptrip]

Given this:

I'm not a minority, but I was raised in a low-income household and have amazing work experience.

I don't really trust your judgment or your ability to pull this off in a way that helps you.

I wouldn't write an addendum, you don't really have a good excuse for your LSAT being what it is and they've heard it all before, I'm sure. If you want to get in, retake.

I don't care whether you trust my judgement BigZuck. You lost all credibility the moment you advised me to not write an addendum. I spoke with the admissions office today, explained my situation, and they said that my situation was exactly the circumstance to write an addendum. I'm an older student with a much higher level of work experience than my younger counterparts. I've worked at the top ranks of a Fortune 500 company and have extraordinary work experience that these kids fresh out of college just don't have. Believe it or not, high-level work experience for a Fortune 500 company is considered valuable.

Awesome answer! Great on you for remaining persistent and resilient. I hope things work out for you!

Why is his answer awesome? He's writing with a lot of authority for someone who has not even been admitted to the school in question. Is it awesome because he's bucked the venal TLS conventional wisdom, which happens to be correct the vast majority of the time? OP, will you promise to report back here how this all works out? I'm very curious.

[rpupkin]

Given this:

I'm not a minority, but I was raised in a low-income household and have amazing work experience.

I don't really trust your judgment or your ability to pull this off in a way that helps you.

I wouldn't write an addendum, you don't really have a good excuse for your LSAT being what it is and they've heard it all before, I'm sure. If you want to get in, retake.

I don't care whether you trust my judgement BigZuck. You lost all credibility the moment you advised me to not write an addendum. I spoke with the admissions office today, explained my situation, and they said that my situation was exactly the circumstance to write an addendum. I'm an older student with a much higher level of work experience than my younger counterparts. I've worked at the top ranks of a Fortune 500 company and have extraordinary work experience that these kids fresh out of college just don't have. Believe it or not, high-level work experience for a Fortune 500 company is considered valuable.

Pro tip: the last group you should ever take admissions advice from is the school. They will ALWAYS tell you to write an addendum no matter what, not because it'll increase your chances, but because they'll always want more information for themselves, even if it hurts you. Seriously you can call a school and ask them the dumbest things and they'll always recommend it. To prove this point, call any school you want and ask how they would feel about a personal statement detailing your drug problem, I guarantee they say "write it!".

You and your school are both involved in this transaction and have very different incentives. For instance the more apps a school gets, and the more people they deny, the lower their acceptance rate. Acceptance rate is one factor that goes into the rankings, thus schools want to maximize apps, even if they know they'll deny them. Call a school and say you really want to go there but have a 2.7 and a 147. They'll say "well you certainly can't get in if you don't apply!"

Look I get that you have work experience and are old, that's fine, but try to remember you're on this site because you're entering a world we've already been through. You're already doing things that are highly not recommended like calling the school and expecting to chat about your lsat score, and writing addenda that in no way actually address why you did poorly on the lsat. I have work experience isn't an lsat addendum, that's material for a personal statement. From what I can tell you don't have a good reason for being bad at the lsat, so writing an addendum is out of place.

+1 Well said.

[GreatBraffsby]

Given this:

I'm not a minority, but I was raised in a low-income household and have amazing work experience.

I don't really trust your judgment or your ability to pull this off in a way that helps you.

I wouldn't write an addendum, you don't really have a good excuse for your LSAT being what it is and they've heard it all before, I'm sure. If you want to get in, retake.

I don't care whether you trust my judgement BigZuck. You lost all credibility the moment you advised me to not write an addendum. I spoke with the admissions office today, explained my situation, and they said that my situation was exactly the circumstance to write an addendum. I'm an older student with a much higher level of work experience than my younger counterparts. I've worked at the top ranks of a Fortune 500 company and have extraordinary work experience that these kids fresh out of college just don't have. Believe it or not, high-level work experience for a Fortune 500 company is considered valuable.

Awesome answer! Great on you for remaining persistent and resilient. I hope things work out for you!

Why is his answer awesome? He's writing with a lot of authority for someone who has not even been admitted to the school in question. Is it awesome because he's bucked the venal TLS conventional wisdom, which happens to be correct the vast majority of the time? OP, will you promise to report back here how this all works out? I'm very curious.

Most likely sarcasm.

[fliptrip]

No, not if I know JazzyMac the way I think I do.

[BigZuck]

Given this:

I'm not a minority, but I was raised in a low-income household and have amazing work experience.

I don't really trust your judgment or your ability to pull this off in a way that helps you.

I wouldn't write an addendum, you don't really have a good excuse for your LSAT being what it is and they've heard it all before, I'm sure. If you want to get in, retake.

I don't care whether you trust my judgement BigZuck. You lost all credibility the moment you advised me to not write an addendum. I spoke with the admissions office today, explained my situation, and they said that my situation was exactly the circumstance to write an addendum. I'm an older student with a much higher level of work experience than my younger counterparts. I've worked at the top ranks of a Fortune 500 company and have extraordinary work experience that these kids fresh out of college just don't have. Believe it or not, high-level work experience for a Fortune 500 company is considered valuable.

If you're putting my credibility up against Dean Tom's then I'm feeling pretty good. If you want to believe a man with two first names and no last name then be my guest. But that's on you.

As Clearly said, I wouldn't get into the habit of believing adcoms. It's easily in the top 2 biggest mistakes people repeatedly make when applying to law school (the other one is not retaking the LSAT). Berkeley is a magnet for all the reverse splitters of the world, like I said I'm sure they've heard it all before. But maybe you'll get in anyway, who knows with those goofballs? It's just that the addendum won't help in any way, shape or form IMO and it will potentially hurt if what you are in real life is anything like what you are projecting in internet life.

[Tls2016]

What exactly are you going to say in your addendum?
You got a poor LSAT score because you were low income growing up but overcame it. Or you got a poor LSAT score because your demanding high level job at a major company didn't allow you time to study ?

It sounds like you are telling two different stories here.

[JazzyMac]

Given this:

I'm not a minority, but I was raised in a low-income household and have amazing work experience.

I don't really trust your judgment or your ability to pull this off in a way that helps you.

I wouldn't write an addendum, you don't really have a good excuse for your LSAT being what it is and they've heard it all before, I'm sure. If you want to get in, retake.

I don't care whether you trust my judgement BigZuck. You lost all credibility the moment you advised me to not write an addendum. I spoke with the admissions office today, explained my situation, and they said that my situation was exactly the circumstance to write an addendum. I'm an older student with a much higher level of work experience than my younger counterparts. I've worked at the top ranks of a Fortune 500 company and have extraordinary work experience that these kids fresh out of college just don't have. Believe it or not, high-level work experience for a Fortune 500 company is considered valuable.

Awesome answer! Great on you for remaining persistent and resilient. I hope things work out for you!

Why is his answer awesome? He's writing with a lot of authority for someone who has not even been admitted to the school in question. Is it awesome because he's bucked the venal TLS conventional wisdom, which happens to be correct the vast majority of the time? OP, will you promise to report back here how this all works out? I'm very curious.

It was awesome because it could have been an immediate negative statement in response to the negativity received. No sarcasm at all (in that post).

[A. Nony Mouse]

I would like to know what the explanation for the LSAT score is and how it would help. "I have great work experience" doesn't explain an LSAT.

[arose928]

Given this:

I'm not a minority, but I was raised in a low-income household and have amazing work experience.

I don't really trust your judgment or your ability to pull this off in a way that helps you.

I wouldn't write an addendum, you don't really have a good excuse for your LSAT being what it is and they've heard it all before, I'm sure. If you want to get in, retake.

I don't care whether you trust my judgement BigZuck. You lost all credibility the moment you advised me to not write an addendum. I spoke with the admissions office today, explained my situation, and they said that my situation was exactly the circumstance to write an addendum. I'm an older student with a much higher level of work experience than my younger counterparts. I've worked at the top ranks of a Fortune 500 company and have extraordinary work experience that these kids fresh out of college just don't have. Believe it or not, high-level work experience for a Fortune 500 company is considered valuable.

Ew don't come here.