Do you think I could go from a 160-170 in 3 weeks? Forum

[fsugirl824]

Hello!

I posted this over in Law School Admissions thinking they might know more about the Fulbright/outside of US test locations.

I've taken the LSAT once and I got a 160. I'm registered to retake the LSAT in June, but I'm not getting anywhere near a 170 yet.

Should I postpone to October? Do you think its possible to go up 7-10 points in three weeks?

If I do this, I'd have to register to take it out of the country. Is that easy to do?

And...I've heard the June LSAT is usually easier. Is there any truth to that?

I'd appreciate any honest advice!

[traehekat]

Not possible to gain 10 points in 3 weeks, especially in the 160-170 range (diminishing marginal returns).
Take it in June and see what happens. If you are unhappy, retake in October.
Why do you have to register out of the country? Are you going to be out of the country in October? I don't think this is difficult to do, but being out of the country may add to the stress of taking the LSAT (another reason you should just go head and take it in June).
June LSAT is not easier.

Good luck. You said you have only taken the LSAT once? What were your study methods like? How about now? Make sure you have gone through AT LEAST the LG Bible (preferably the LR Bible, as well) and you are taking plenty of practice exams under timed conditions and doing a lot of logic games.

[bk1]

If you aren't getting near 170 I doubt that your odds of getting 170 in June are good. That being said, as traehekat noted, you can always take both.

[shoop]

To get from 150 to 160 is much easier than getting from 160 to 170. That said, I was hitting mid-160s a month ago (before I'd gotten through the whole LG bible) and I've gotten 2 176s in the last week (PT every 3 days until June 4, baby).

What were your section breakdowns on the test you scored 160 on? If you're losing most of your points on Reading Comp, that's going to be harder to improve (especially in 3 weeks) than if you're losing points on LGs. You can cover a lot of ground in 3 weeks on LG if you're willing to put in 3-4 hours per night reading the LG bible and drilling individual games until you can do anything in 8 minutes or less. LG is the most learn-able section.

[traehekat]

To get from 150 to 160 is much easier than getting from 160 to 170. That said, I was hitting mid-160s a month ago (before I'd gotten through the whole LG bible) and I've gotten 2 176s in the last week (PT every 3 days until June 4, baby).

What were your section breakdowns on the test you scored 160 on? If you're losing most of your points on Reading Comp, that's going to be harder to improve (especially in 3 weeks) than if you're losing points on LGs. You can cover a lot of ground in 3 weeks on LG if you're willing to put in 3-4 hours per night reading the LG bible and drilling individual games until you can do anything in 8 minutes or less. LG is the most learn-able section.

+1. If you are struggling with LG, then you can probably make some considerable gains there. If it is LR or RC, that will be tougher in 3 weeks.

[kittenmittons]

No

[fsugirl824]

Thank you all for your responses!

I do think that I lost a lot of points on LG. I freaked out test day and didn't map the way I did during practice. Do you think it will look bad if I take it 3 times?

[dakatz]

I've seen tons of people start at 160 and not reach 170 after 3 months of studying. So 3 weeks? 99.999% No.

[TCScrutinizer]

Thank you all for your responses!

I do think that I lost a lot of points on LG. I freaked out test day and didn't map the way I did during practice. Do you think it will look bad if I take it 3 times?

I doubt it would look bad. More than three times would probably be positive evidence of neurosis, though. If you lost a lot of points on LG, as an above poster said, then it's quite possible to move up that much if you are diligent and have a good system for identifying and correcting common errors.

[dwoof]

I went from a 158 to a 170 in 3 weeks. It can be done, but I also studied about 4-6 hours every day about 5-6 days a weeks.

[traehekat]

I went from a 158 to a 170 in 3 weeks. It can be done, but I also studied about 4-6 hours every day about 5-6 days a weeks.

Epic. Was the 170 an actual administration of the LSAT or just a practice exam? I went from a 158 to a few 171's before the December test, but this was in the course of like, 5 or 6 weeks, and I ended up with a 164 on the actual December administration.

[JWicker10]

I think it is difficult but not impossible to go from low 160s to 170 ish in 3 weeks. I went from a 165 to a 174 in about that amount of time. However, if you aren't scoring in that range by about a week out, I'd cancel and take it in October. Taking the LSAT 3 times looks really bad to most adcoms. I wouldn't recommend it. A 170 on the third try with 2 previous scores that are substantially lower is probably only equivalent to a mid 160s in their eyes anyways.

Take PTs, lots of them. In the last 3 weeks I took 10. Also, focus on whatever sections you're having most trouble with (obviously). What I mean by that is to literally take the section you're having trouble with (i.e. Reading Comp) and do an entire timed test of them. Maybe more than one. This strategy also worked well for me. I went from missing 4-5 on LG to 0 in 2 days with this strategy.

[No1ustad]

it depends...

are you missing all your points in logic games? if so, it's possible. are your wrong answers scattered evenly across the board? not possible.

miracles do happen... but if you've never received a 167+ on a practice test, don't count on it.

[iwanta170]

It's possible..

I got a 159 on a practice test...3 days later i got a 164 on one...and 4 days after that (yesterday) I got a 171.

[JasonR]

Taking the LSAT 3 times looks really bad to most adcoms. I wouldn't recommend it. A 170 on the third try with 2 previous scores that are substantially lower is probably only equivalent to a mid 160s in their eyes anyways.

Entirely incorrect. Don't listen to this.

[09042014]

I went from 165 to 175 in about 15 PTs, over three weeks. But that was entirely figuring out timing, and getting used to questions.

[traehekat]

Taking the LSAT 3 times looks really bad to most adcoms. I wouldn't recommend it. A 170 on the third try with 2 previous scores that are substantially lower is probably only equivalent to a mid 160s in their eyes anyways.

No.

[dt22]

Taking the LSAT 3 times looks really bad to most adcoms. I wouldn't recommend it. A 170 on the third try with 2 previous scores that are substantially lower is probably only equivalent to a mid 160s in their eyes anyways.

No.

actually agree with jwicker, even through traehekat is my comrade ....i took it thrice. from my acceptances, i got the feeling that adcomms averaged them out (i realize there are many other factors involved but still). they can say that they don't average, but if you're in their shoes and have a candidate with 160, 162 and 170 and another with 160 and 170, which one wins the score game in your mind (all else constant)? top schools are blatantly honest about looking at all scores and not the highest also. i had the same exact thought process as you. wish i wouldn't have taken my second one and just studied longer and better for the third (aka switched from kaplan to powerscore earlier).

[Miracle]

Why don't you just take the LSAT in October with the rest of the people, and study throughout summer. You really won't have an early advantage if that's what you're aiming for with the June LSAT. June, and October LSAT scores carry almost the same weight. If you have everything ready apply In September-October take the LSAT in October, you will be way ahead of the game.

[johnnytall]

Positive answer that I would love to give: Go for it! If you work hard for three straight weeks you can do it.

Realistic answer: No. You probably won't achieve your goal and there is no good reason NOT to put in the extra few months and take in October. You can have your application ready and still apply early enough to get ahead of the after-Christmas-rush of applications.

[Miracle]

Positive answer that I would love to give: Go for it! If you work hard for three straight weeks you can do it.

Realistic answer: No. You probably won't achieve your goal and there is no good reason NOT to put in the extra few months and take in October. You can have your application ready and still apply early enough to get ahead of the after-Christmas-rush of applications.

+1

That's when the most applications go out. Then you'll have a bunch that will not be satisfied with their October score, and will take the December LSAT to improve thir score-If he puts in 110% throughout summer-studies hard, and sees his October test as the only option, he really has nothing to worry about.

[gobears09]

You can absolutely go up 10 points in three weeks if you take at least 12 (4/week) practice tests until the test date. Take them under real conditions and completely pick apart every question you miss and figure out why your answer was wrong.

[BigA]

I think it is difficult but not impossible to go from low 160s to 170 ish in 3 weeks. I went from a 165 to a 174 in about that amount of time. However, if you aren't scoring in that range by about a week out, I'd cancel and take it in October. Taking the LSAT 3 times looks really bad to most adcoms. I wouldn't recommend it. A 170 on the third try with 2 previous scores that are substantially lower is probably only equivalent to a mid 160s in their eyes anyways.

would like to know your source on that.

[traehekat]

Taking the LSAT 3 times looks really bad to most adcoms. I wouldn't recommend it. A 170 on the third try with 2 previous scores that are substantially lower is probably only equivalent to a mid 160s in their eyes anyways.

No.

actually agree with jwicker, even through traehekat is my comrade ....i took it thrice. from my acceptances, i got the feeling that adcomms averaged them out (i realize there are many other factors involved but still). they can say that they don't average, but if you're in their shoes and have a candidate with 160, 162 and 170 and another with 160 and 170, which one wins the score game in your mind (all else constant)? top schools are blatantly honest about looking at all scores and not the highest also. i had the same exact thought process as you. wish i wouldn't have taken my second one and just studied longer and better for the third (aka switched from kaplan to powerscore earlier).

My own flesh and blood! (metaphorically speaking, of course) ... I also took it three times, and I didn't really get a sense my scores were averaged. I totally understand the logic that if you have to choose between someone with a 158, 162, and a 170 versus someone with a 170, you would just go with the person who has the one score of 170. In reality though, that choice never actually has to be made - they are both just admitted or rejected. If the person with the three scores IS denied while the other is accepted, it is because something was either wrong with their application or fantastic about the other person's application. I also had a different experience speaking with schools regarding taking the LSAT three times - almost all of them said they flat out take the highest. I think only like, two or three schools (and you can guess which ones) actually average. A lot of them say they look at and consider all scores, but I think that is just more of a "politically correct" thing to say.

[fsugirl824]

The reason I'm avoiding the October exam is because I have a Fulbright for the following year in Bangladesh; they don't offer the LSAT there, so the closest place I could take it is in India. I'd have to obtain permission from my Fulbright director, but it could be done.

Do you all think it would/could be worth it?