Is there any statistical significance between a 153 & 156? Forum

[masterthearts]

I took the kaplan course during my spring semester at college (I go to an Ivy League university) and couldn't get higher than 153.
I am re-enrolled in Kaplan and the only thing I am doing this summer is studying. I got a 156 now. Is the difference between 153 and 156 statistically insignificant?
I plan to devote at least 5 hours each and every day this summer to preparing for the lsat.
I am hoping to get in the mid-160's, but don't know if that will even be possible, based on my low starting scores. I am hoping my 3.88 GPA in Govt. at my Ivy League univ. will count for something!
Any statistical significance between 153 and 156. I realize that even with a 156 I am out of the league for a top law school. I am URM, though.

[dspit]

take the lsat again

[miamiman]

Guess: you go to dartmouth?

[KMaine]

Your plan is good. I am not sure why you are concerned with statistical significance, the point is whehter that score could get you into a better school, or whether you could replicate it on an actual test. With your URM status and Ivy League school, if you can get up to the 160s I predict good things for your cycle.

[masterthearts]

No, not dartmouth. I said Ivy university. Dartmouth is a college.
I researched lower tier schools and saw that many of people with ivy degrees are also represented at lower tier schools. My thoughts are that either the lsat or gpa was low for these students, and that's why they had to attend a lower tier school, or the money was too good to pass up.

[lawschoollll]

No, not dartmouth. I said Ivy university. Dartmouth is a college.
I researched lower tier schools and saw that many of people with ivy degrees are also represented at lower tier schools. My thoughts are that either the lsat or gpa was low for these students, and that's why they had to attend a lower tier school, or the money was too good to pass up.

[cinefile 17]

No, not dartmouth. I said Ivy university. Dartmouth is a college.
I researched lower tier schools and saw that many of people with ivy degrees are also represented at lower tier schools. My thoughts are that either the lsat or gpa was low for these students, and that's why they had to attend a lower tier school, or the money was too good to pass up.

Or your undergrad university doesn't matter much at all in law school admissions.

GPA/LSAT is all that matters.

[Teoeo]

I hope this is a flame, although it probably isn't. FYI, no one cares that you went to an ivy league school....

edit: and by no one I mean adcomms (they might care SLIGHTLY if you went to HYP, but even then not much)

[merichard87]

Studying 5 hours a day is only going to burn you out. 2 to 3 hours for 3 to 5 days a week should be sufficient but you must remember everyone is not capable of everything. You are only required to do your best, not everyone elses.

And yea that ivy league isn't gonna mean much during the application process.

Also, what kind of URM? If AA, NA, PR or Mex you will get a boost so your numbers can be lower than median and still give you a good shot.

[JOThompson]

I maxed out at 156 with Kaplan too after a second prep course with them. Try PowerScore, I found their strategies to be much more helpful.

[mst]

You act like if you're in the Ivy league, you can basically go to a good law school unless you screw up. This is completely and utterly wrong, sir. Sorry to burst your bubble here, but law schools don't really give 2 shits.

Sure, when it comes down to choosing between you and another guy with the same GPA, they'll pick you. But that's where any advantage stops. Law schools care about 3 things:

*LSAT
*GPA
*Softs (Employment, Involvement, Internships, Personal Shit)... and not nearly as much as LSAT and GPA.

Be realistic about what law schools you're going to get into. With a 156 you will NOT go to a T20 school, and probably not a T50 either. If you expect to go to a school as good as your UG (Top 20) then you'll need somewhere close to a 163-4 (considering you are a URM).

A 153 and a 156 are not statistically different (LSAC attaches a standard error of +-3 points to each score report they give to schools), but schools care a LOT about small score differences, so it doesn't really matter how statistically significant it is. Take it again.

[JOThompson]

You act like if you're in the Ivy league, you can basically go to a good law school unless you screw up. This is completely and utterly wrong, sir. Sorry to burst your bubble here, but law schools don't really give 2 shits.

Sure, when it comes down to choosing between you and another guy with the same GPA, they'll pick you. But that's where any advantage stops. Law schools care about 3 things:

*LSAT
*GPA
*Softs (Employment, Involvement, Internships, Personal Shit)... and not nearly as much as LSAT and GPA.

Be realistic about what law schools you're going to get into. With a 156 you will NOT go to a T20 school, and probably not a T50 either. If you expect to go to a school as good as your UG (Top 20) then you'll need somewhere close to a 163-4 (considering you are a URM).

A 153 and a 156 are not statistically different (LSAC attaches a standard error of +-3 points to each score report they give to schools), but schools care a LOT about small score differences, so it doesn't really matter how statistically significant it is. Take it again.

I know a 153 URM with stellar softs who was accepted to Berkeley and Cornell. Clearly the exception, but it's not impossible.

[masterthearts]

Well, if you read the website for UNC Chapel Hill, they tell you that one of the factors they take into consideration is the undergrad school you attended.
Also, a friend of the family is an attorney who graduated from GW Law School (in the 80's). During job recruitment time, the recruiters were very interested in one of his classmates who graduated from Columbia undergrad, even though he was not a stellar law school student. Apparently, the recruiters were very interested in him because he had gone to Columbia. The legal profession is impressed with superficial things like that..

[mst]

We're not really talking about profession. Nobody in their right minds thinks IVY means anything other than a few tenths of a point advantage when comparing GPA's, when it comes to admissions.

[fenderjsm88]

A 153 and 156 are only different if you go to an Ivy League university. You don't happen to go to an Ivy League University, do you? Talk to us when you go to an Ivy League university.

[rayiner]

Kaplan sucks. Do PowerScore.

With your GPA at an Ivy (which *will* help considering you have a high GPA and are URM), a score in the low 160s (which should be doable) will get you interest from the T14.

[ca$hmoney69]

if you don't have a good enough GPA AND LSAT score then they won't even look at what undergrad school you went to...

[dspit]

10 hours a day should be suffice.

[ggocat]

Well, if you read the website for UNC Chapel Hill, they tell you that one of the factors they take into consideration is the undergrad school you attended.

And apparently, high fructose corn syrup isn't bad for you. It has the same nutritional value as sugar, and it's made from corn, a major staple of the American agricultural industry.

[Scallywaggums]

Well, if you read the website for UNC Chapel Hill, they tell you that one of the factors they take into consideration is the undergrad school you attended.

And apparently, high fructose corn syrup isn't bad for you. It has the same nutritional value as sugar, and it's made from corn, a major staple of the American agricultural industry.

In related news, Maureen Storey, senior vice president for science policy at the American Beverage Association, suggests that Soda is a great way for schoolkids to get more water
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/stor ... =126511372

[nonpareilpearl]

It seems to be the consensus on the forum (I've seen it in several threads) that Kaplan is good for pulling you up, maybe, to somewhere in the 160s. Most people recommend PowerScore, TestMasters, or Princeton Review to get you to the high-160s or 170s. Either that or a lot of self-prep if you're motivated.

I haven't taken a course, but I do know that thus far I've found PowerScore's LRB and LGB to be really helpful. Do you have any prep books outside of what the Kaplan course provided? Are these scores actual scores or are they scores that you received on preptests?

[094320]

..

[kk19131]

LOL @ "Dartmouth is a college"

[094320]

..

[HeelsforHoos]

I am hoping my 3.88 GPA in Govt. at my Ivy League univ. will count for something!

Just joining the school guessing trend here. Is it Brown University?