If you have cancelled in the past..please share Forum

[lawschoolisfun2012]

I'm considering a cancel, but I am having a lot of trouble deciding. For those who have cancelled, did you regret it?

I guess what I am really looking for is 4 or 5 weeks after the cancel when you are studying for your next test, do you wish you had not cancelled? Obviously, there are some cases where a cancel is a clear cut choice, but what about those cases where you are not sure or you blew one game and it kind of messed up rhythm for the test or section? I'm not talking 180s or 170s...more low 160s or high 150s.

[St.Remy]

I'm considering a cancel, but I am having a lot of trouble deciding. For those who have cancelled, did you regret it?

I guess what I am really looking for is 4 or 5 weeks after the cancel when you are studying for your next test, do you wish you had not cancelled? Obviously, there are some cases where a cancel is a clear cut choice, but what about those cases where you are not sure or you blew one game and it kind of messed up rhythm for the test or section? I'm not talking 180s or 170s...more low 160s or high 150s.

I think most people who respond to this question will answer based on what they got on subsequent tests. Since you never get a score from a canceled test it's impossible to know if it was the right decision for certain (unless it's one of those walking out of the room after two sections situation). My guess is all the people who canceled and then got a score they were happy with think they made the right call, while the people who canceled and then had a poor showing on a later test are more likely to regret it. Neither of these situations means that canceling or not canceling was the right decision from a numbers perspective, though it might be the right decision from a personal comfort perspective (and if it comes down to a question of personal comfort, well that's sort of something only you can decide about).

[northwood]

your target is 160's and your currently in the 150's?? I say keep the score, take some time off to regroup, and prep for december

having more than 1 score hurts at T 14. If your aim is lower, keep the scores, and be ready to explain any jump over 3 points. ( didnt study, then studied.... was feeeling ill day of test, had to poo during section 2.... almost got into an accident on my way there, or whatever story you are going to write)

[Rand M.]

Cancelled June; took September. No regrets. It all worked out alright. My entire first experience was thrown off by an early section, and I knew I did horribly, so it was a real no brainer. I walked out pretty certain I was going to cancel. At first it is daunting to start the studying all over again, but that fades once you realize how important it is. Good luck.

[kilgoretrout103]

My thoughts: Law schools have to report exactly one LSAT score for every person they admit. I think that this could be the result from any one test, an average, or possibly some other crazy formula. But the point is, law schools have a clear incentive to take only your highest score, especially if there's a huge discrepancy between each test.

So I say, cancel only if you're completely, 100% sure you bombed it. You can always retake later for a better score, and your bad one probably won't hurt you. And who knows, maybe you did better than you thought.

[lawschoolisfun2012]

is it okay to explain a 3 points jump as: I just screwed up the first game and it messed me up? re took it and rocked it? I guess we will find out....

[kilgoretrout103]

I think there's no need to "explain" a 3-point jump. The school will figure it out.

[geminivegitarian]

I cancelled Dec. 09 a few days after the exam but it was pretty much a clear cut decision for me. I screwed up during the LG section (which was section 2), ran out of time which forced me to frantically bubble in C for the ones I didn't get to, subsequently leading me to freak out and panic during the following sections. It was a horrible day and I was basically running on no sleep from the night before due to nerves and unnecessary anxiety.

If you don't relate to what I just described up there, I wouldn't recommend cancelling.

IMO, the "to cancel or not to cancel" decision should be pretty clear cut. If you studied and are worried about regretting cancelling a score, don't do it and don't worry, it's not the end of the world. Most law schools take your highest score anyway

[novab]

I cancelled June 2010. If you were to tell me before the test that I would be cancelling my score I would have told you you were insane. I live in FL and I took it on a 94 degree day, was in a small classroom with about 25 other students and the air conditioning was turned off and no windows were open. I was sitting next to the thermostat and the temp climbed to over 80 degrees in the room. Everyone was sweating and it smelled, the girl next to me freaked out during the second section and started crying and then the lawn crew was at the school I took it at and started up the leaf blower right outside our door (we were on a first floor building where there was a courtyard in the middle of the square (all of the rooms were on the outside on two walls). In addition, the week before my mom called me to say that my dad had not been feeling well for months and that after some tests the doctors thought he may have liver cancer - thankfully we found out he did not (two weeks after the test) but I was obviously stressed out about that too.

I was so distracted and freaked out during the Logic Games section (which is the section that i typically get every single question right and have between 5-10 minutes to spare). It was a horrible experience and kind of embarrassing to cancel, but at that point I knew it was my only option. I took three days to calm down and think about it and talk it over with my parent, co-workers (I work at a law firm) and some law school friends.

Do what you think is right. if you think you blew a few questions, i would say dont do it, but if you botched a whole LG, or RC passage, or had to guess a bunch of questions at the end of an LR section, then its something to consider.

[niederbomb]

Do what you think is right. if you think you blew a few questions, i would say dont do it, but if you botched a whole LG, or RC passage, or had to guess a bunch of questions at the end of an LR section, then its something to consider.

How about 3.5 at the end of an LG section?

[novab]

Quote:
Do what you think is right. if you think you blew a few questions, i would say dont do it, but if you botched a whole LG, or RC passage, or had to guess a bunch of questions at the end of an LR section, then its something to consider.


How about 3.5 at the end of an LG section?

For me it would totally depend on how I felt with the rest of the test. I personally am shooting for a 167-170 and I think I probably got 3-5 wrong on the games and that was alone enough for me to cancel...only because thats the section that I am so comfortable with and I bank on getting -0 wrong on that section. If you are comfortable with how you did on the rest of the test then dont cancel.

What score are you hoping for? if you are hoping for low 170s or higher then it would be something to think about. 3.5 questions are a lot in that case

[CanadianWolf]

@geminivegitarian: Did you obtain a copy of the cancelled December test to estimate your score ?

[niederbomb]

niederbomb wrote:
Quote:
Do what you think is right. if you think you blew a few questions, i would say dont do it, but if you botched a whole LG, or RC passage, or had to guess a bunch of questions at the end of an LR section, then its something to consider.


How about 3.5 at the end of an LG section?




For me it would totally depend on how I felt with the rest of the test. I personally am shooting for a 167-170 and I think I probably got 3-5 wrong on the games and that was alone enough for me to cancel...only because thats the section that I am so comfortable with and I bank on getting -0 wrong on that section. If you are comfortable with how you did on the rest of the test then dont cancel.

What score are you hoping for? if you are hoping for low 170s or higher then it would be something to think about. 3.5 questions are a lot in that case

Target Score: 172

LG is always my worst section, and I've scored over 170 on PT's while missing most of the last game, so I'm still not sure.

[lennonist]

cancelled twice. regrets = none.

the principle behind canceling the first time was "when you're not ready, you're not ready."
the second time: "damn you, mulches" (misread the LG rule)

it's not about the cancellations you should worry about but about scoring high on the test you don't cancel.

[moxiepostulate]

Like several other folks, I canceled June and retook in October. As soon as I determined which was the experimental LG section I pretty much knew I hadn't made it above a 170. That was my magic mental line in the sand, a few too many points below practice test avg. Obviously everyone has their own scale based on the schools they're set on and individual avgs.

A big part of it for me was weighing how much worse my test experience was than my avg PT. I barely finished several sections in June, so once I committed to canceling I knew I had to work on two things: timing and not being a neurotic stress case.

I still don't know exactly how PT61 went for me, but the experience was miles away from June and I feel relatively confident that I won't need to retake in December. I practiced with 30/32 minute sections and I also practiced a lot less and didn't force myself to do any studying that wigged me out. Overall, there was definitely a feeling of starting all over again, but I didn't find using old tests to be a problem. I think it depends on what are the specific issues that caught you up.

But as to cancel or just accept the score? For me, it was easier to cancel because October still allows me to get my apps in fairly early. Waiting for december with a canceled score might make me feel more nervous, so it depends on how you feel...

I'm sure you'll make the right choice, just trust yourself and stay positive either way.

[cinephile]

I cancelled in Dec. 09 and it was definitely a good choice for me. My decision was based on several factors, the first being that I was stressed and running on little sleep -- had to travel to another country to take the exam (studying abroad), spent the night before in a youth hostel, etc. I have no idea how I did under these conditions, but the real problem for me was that if I had done poorly, I wouldn't have another opportunity to retake and still apply for the fall of 2010. So I just put my applications off for a year and retook this June.

You still have the opportunity to take again in December, but if for some reason you have to cancel that score you'd have to wait for the next application cycle.

[tootrue]

My thoughts: Law schools have to report exactly one LSAT score for every person they admit. I think that this could be the result from any one test, an average, or possibly some other crazy formula. But the point is, law schools have a clear incentive to take only your highest score, especially if there's a huge discrepancy between each test.

I've seen this idea expressed before, and I'm confused. To whom does the law school have to report exactly one score? By reporting an applicant's highest score, is the LS representing or verifying that it did not consider any other scores? That makes no sense to me. An adcom may be influenced by multiple scores even if the policy is to consider only the highest, or the average, or whatever. What am I missing?

[Patriot1208]

My thoughts: Law schools have to report exactly one LSAT score for every person they admit. I think that this could be the result from any one test, an average, or possibly some other crazy formula. But the point is, law schools have a clear incentive to take only your highest score, especially if there's a huge discrepancy between each test.

I've seen this idea expressed before, and I'm confused. To whom does the law school have to report exactly one score? By reporting an applicant's highest score, is the LS representing or verifying that it did not consider any other scores? That makes no sense to me. An adcom may be influenced by multiple scores even if the policy is to consider only the highest, or the average, or whatever. What am I missing?

US news, which is the only thing that matters to schools.

[tootrue]

US news, which is the only thing that matters to schools

I wasn't really interested in the recipient of the score, but in the conclusion that if only one of multiple scores is reported, the adcom can't or won't consider the other scores.

[geminivegitarian]

@geminivegitarian: Did you obtain a copy of the cancelled December test to estimate your score ?

I didn't because I couldn't exactly remember which ones I answered correctly. Though I knew I blew the LG section.

[glewz]

I cancelled, and I'm happy about it. I was confident walking out of the test that I seriously messed up; and it was a good decision. Think about it strategically: schools would rather see a Cancel & a Great score versus a Bad Score + Great Score. If you're not confident you did poorly, don't cancel.

How do you figure out whether you did poorly or not? After each of your practice tests, try to predict your score before you actually grade your test. After a while, you should get decently good at predicting them.


Don't go into the test thinking about cancelling though.

[treeborn]

I canceled my June 2010 score, and was completely satisfied with my decision. I knew that I bombed 2 games, and with that I could not come close to my desired score.