Improving a 160? Forum

[Chriz]

I got a 160 on my first attempt and was planning on just attending law school with this because I can pretty much get into the schools I want, the University of Wisconsin and Marquette. I have recently been thinking that it would be better since I want to go to less prestigious schools anyway to attempt to get a better score so that I can get a better scholarship. How much do you think I could improve my score if I spent a few months not working and only focusing on studying for the LSAT? I will live with my parents and won't have to worry about a job just yet because of grace period on loans. Also, how would this look to law schools since I took a year off after school? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

[Easy-E]

How did you prepare for the 160? What materials? How many PTs? How long did you study for?

Taking a year off is 100% acceptable. Some people take much more, some take less or none. It can put distant between a sub-par GPA and yourself, and also gives you time to try and find some work experience, as difficult as that may be. Many prefer to just go straight from UG to law school. Point is, no penalty for taking the time off.

I am going to go ahead and assume that you are a WI resident and want to practice there?

[Chriz]

Well I read through a couple of short books on advice, and techniques for the LSAT. I also took a few practice tests... Maybe 5-10 I believe.. I can't really remember. I do remember that I spent a lot of time playing Call of Duty while I was going through my tests and I definitely did not dedicate my full attention to it most of the time and I only prepared for about a month beforehand and not many hours a day. I also was practice testing around 160 I believe so it is not as if I had an off test. I mean obviously I will be able to tell by taking practice tests whether I am improving or not before I decide to sign up to take it again but I was just wondering if it is worth my time to try to retake it or if I should just attend a school since I was accepted with a small scholarship.

[Chriz]

Also yes, Wisconsin resident and I want to practice in Wisconsin.

[Alan]

I would really suggest reading the entire (jk) how to score +160 thread that is stickied in this forum.

http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... ?f=6&t=396

It really helped me a lot to read what other high scores did as strategy. I ended up doing fairly well myself.

[Easy-E]

Well I read through a couple of short books on advice, and techniques for the LSAT. I also took a few practice tests... Maybe 5-10 I believe.. I can't really remember. I do remember that I spent a lot of time playing Call of Duty while I was going through my tests and I definitely did not dedicate my full attention to it most of the time and I only prepared for about a month beforehand and not many hours a day. I also was practice testing around 160 I believe so it is not as if I had an off test. I mean obviously I will be able to tell by taking practice tests whether I am improving or not before I decide to sign up to take it again but I was just wondering if it is worth my time to try to retake it or if I should just attend a school since I was accepted with a small scholarship.

Don't take this personally, but it sounds like you half-assed your prep, and my GUESS is that you could stand to improve your score. If you're set on living in WI and working there, my advice would be re-take and shoot for as high as possible. If you're going to be at home, you'll have plenty of time on your hands (trust me). I don't know the in-state tuition for either of the schools you mentioned or their tendencies towards giving $$$, but why not get the highest score you can, try and go to law school for as little as possible, come out with minimal or no debt, and not have to worry about finding a job that can cover your student loans (UG/law).

As far as the actual improving on the LSAT, do you think you can discipline yourself to study and put away the COD (I know it's difficult, I'm an xbox junkie)? Think about that when determining if you should go the self-prep route, take a live course, or find the middle ground by either taking a flexible online course or just following some kind of study schedule (pithypike's stickied one is tried and true, as well as Steve Schwartz's on the LSAT Blog).

I am by no means an expert on this, so if I'm totally off, someone let me know. Seems like anyone going to regional school should try and get every cent they can.




Side note: I am giving you this advice on the assumption you're a Packers fan. If this is not the case, do not read the above.

[Chriz]

I won't actually have COD once I head back home, or cable for that matter so I think I will be able to dedicate myself a lot more. I will also have a lot of time so I hope that putting in the time will help but... obviously I will know before I decide to retake whether I am improving or not based on practice tests but I really hope it is worth it and I can get a better score.

[Easy-E]

I won't actually have COD once I head back home, or cable for that matter so I think I will be able to dedicate myself a lot more. I will also have a lot of time so I hope that putting in the time will help but... obviously I will know before I decide to retake whether I am improving or not based on practice tests but I really hope it is worth it and I can get a better score.

My one tip is not to just jump right into full tests. Do some section work, practice and stuff, and start taking full tests. Like I mentioned, check out some study plans. None of them advise taking full PTs right off the bat, even if you are re-taking. I'm retaking from October, and my first 4 weeks of prep have been PT free.

[GSCgold]

I got a 160 first time around on the LSAT and improved it to a 164 in about 1 1/2 months.

I would normally advise what the above poster said about not jumping straight into more practice tests and instead find out "what went wrong" the first time. Particular sections, particular questions within a section, timing, not ready to do 5 sections vs. 4 you have been practicing with, etc. For me I took the February LSAT in 2011 and then again in 2012 so nothing is disclosed and I had no idea where I "went wrong" so I just took more practice tests. I took 15 more tests, about 2-3 a week. After I took one the next two days I spent checking them.

Checking, in my opinion, is the most important part. Strictly taking a test, seeing your score, then taking another one the next day does virtually nothing when your trying to improve aside from helping with timing. Check each question even the ones you got right and were no brainers. A lot of LSAT questions have very similar phrasing and even answer choices, so it is definitely helpful to be familiar with as much as you can and you will end up building your confidence while taking the test and will also save a few seconds here and there as you move through questions a bit quicker (which definitely adds up).

I didn't look at anything LSAT the 2 days prior to the test then the morning of glanced a few sections of tests I had already done just to get my mind warmed up.

Good luck!

[Chriz]

After doing some research on LSN, it seems like in order to even potentially get a scholarship at Wisconsin I would have to improve my score by a ridiculous amount. This has led me to believe that I should just go to Wisconsin if I am accepted and if not then I will retake for a better scholarship at Marquette/ admission to Wisconsin.