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Hi all!

So I just found out yesterday that I got a 165, which is a 7 point increase from my 158 last October. My PT avg. was 168 so I am disappointed especially since I hit low 170's on a few occasions. BTW, gpa is 3.81. Do I retake December and hope to go up a few points, or just roll with what I have? All advice is appreciated!

Any thoughts out there?

Well, first off congrats, you did better than many. The only advice I can give is by asking what the minimum "happy" score would be 168? 169? 170? If you are only <4 points or so away from your "happy" score considering your excellent gpa I would roll with it and submit apps now and start planning for the future. 5-6 points away and you might want to carefully consider a retake if you're sure that you'll rock it on exam day. Best of luck.

Thanks Jato! I would say that my ideal happy place was between 168-170 so really only a few points off.

I feel that if I retake in December and get a 168, for example, adcomm's will look and say, "well, he studied an extra month, he should go up a few points"...might just roll with the 165 and let the rest of my application be strong.

FlowBro wrote:Thanks Jato! I would say that my ideal happy place was between 168-170 so really only a few points off.

I feel that if I retake in December and get a 168, for example, adcomm's will look and say, "well, he studied an extra month, he should go up a few points"...might just roll with the 165 and let the rest of my application be strong.

If you think you are capable of scoring 168-170, I would retake. With your GPA, a 168 will get you into several of the t14. With a 165, you really only have an outside shot at t14.

ALgooner wrote:

FlowBro wrote:Thanks Jato! I would say that my ideal happy place was between 168-170 so really only a few points off.

I feel that if I retake in December and get a 168, for example, adcomm's will look and say, "well, he studied an extra month, he should go up a few points"...might just roll with the 165 and let the rest of my application be strong.

If you think you are capable of scoring 168-170, I would retake. With your GPA, a 168 will get you into several of the t14. With a 165, you really only have an outside shot at t14.

I do think I am capable of 168—170. Obviously there is no guarantee I could walk in and get that...how bad would a third retake 166 look for example?

Retake. Why leave points on the table that could be had?

specialsnowflake wrote:Retake. Why leave points on the table that could be had?

Because a 3 point increase on an retake may be negligible... I feel like it would be 170 or bust. I might be wrong though.

FlowBro wrote:

specialsnowflake wrote:Retake. Why leave points on the table that could be had?

Because a 3 point increase on an retake may be negligible... I feel like it would be 170 or bust. I might be wrong though.

I don't think so... I would say 1 point increase would be negligible but from 165 to 167-168 I believe there is a big a difference. Schools might say all the want about averages and whatever but with a reduced pool of candidates almost everyone will be looking at the highest scores period....

FlowBro wrote:Hi all!

So I just found out yesterday that I got a 165, which is a 7 point increase from my 158 last October. My PT avg. was 168 so I am disappointed especially since I hit low 170's on a few occasions. BTW, gpa is 3.81. Do I retake December and hope to go up a few points, or just roll with what I have? All advice is appreciated!

For sure. My first score was 159, second was 165 (both two cycles ago). Worked for two years and took this past LSAT and scored a 169. A whole new range of schools opened up. 100% worth it bro.

FlowBro wrote:

ALgooner wrote:

FlowBro wrote:Thanks Jato! I would say that my ideal happy place was between 168-170 so really only a few points off.

I feel that if I retake in December and get a 168, for example, adcomm's will look and say, "well, he studied an extra month, he should go up a few points"...might just roll with the 165 and let the rest of my application be strong.

If you think you are capable of scoring 168-170, I would retake. With your GPA, a 168 will get you into several of the t14. With a 165, you really only have an outside shot at t14.

I do think I am capable of 168—170. Obviously there is no guarantee I could walk in and get that...how bad would a third retake 166 look for example?

I think even a 1 point increase would help.

So consensus opinion is to retake. So basically get right back to studying, sign up for December and submit apps early January as opposed to now.

Will applying in two months be a big detriment?

FlowBro wrote:So consensus opinion is to retake. So basically get right back to studying, sign up for December and submit apps early January as opposed to now.

Will applying in two months be a big detriment?

That's what I'm doing. Applying now would obviously be preferable to applying in early Jan, but if you raise your score by even 1 point I think it would be worth it. I've seen some TLSers suggest that with the decline in apps, applying later will not be that big of a deal.

Retake.

Good luck!

FlowBro wrote:So consensus opinion is to retake. So basically get right back to studying, sign up for December and submit apps early January as opposed to now.

Will applying in two months be a big detriment?

I'm doing this, also. While I obviously don't sit on the adcomms, common sense would say that a score that is good for a school is going to be good no matter when they see it (up to a certain point, but certainly later than January). Applying in January may hurt you somewhat for your reach schools, but if your scores put a big smile on the face of someone in admissions, they aren't going to look at a calendar to see what month it is.

Study your ass off for the next 4 weeks. Get a 167+. Profit.

FlowBro wrote:Hi all!

So I just found out yesterday that I got a 165, which is a 7 point increase from my 158 last October. My PT avg. was 168 so I am disappointed especially since I hit low 170's on a few occasions. BTW, gpa is 3.81. Do I retake December and hope to go up a few points, or just roll with what I have? All advice is appreciated!

Think over this very carefully! I had a similar situation. I went up by a large margin, practiced above the second score consistantly and thought a third retake was a no brainer. Took it the third time and actually dropped a bit. I'm shocked it happened. But, you should know that there is a reason you scored a 158 in the first place. There is a chance, no matter how unlikely, that you will go down again. I PT'ed 5+ points above what I got on my third try and yet it happened, and I like you thought I'd be satisfied with (and all I looked for was) a couple of points increase.