Low LSAT Score Retake Forum

[stealer98]

So, I recently got my June 2014 LSAT score back and scored horribly with an embarrassing 138. I hardly did any preparation and believe that to be the reason why my score is so low. I recently purchased all of the Powerscore bibles and plan to dedicate the next three months in hopes of significantly increasing my score. I hope to achieve a score of 150 to 155, which I am confident will be possible if I work my ass off AND I WILL. However, what worries me is that schools will see my 138 score and will not even consider me even if I increase the score significantly, for I have a feeling it is that bad. So my question is, is my initial score so low that third tier schools, like Duquesne (my target school), will not consider me even if I significantly increase my score? I appreciate any and all input on this matter. Thank you.

[dowu]

Your 138 will not matter because schools no longer average scores. Keep studying until you're practicing in at least the 160s. You can get there if you set your mind to it.

[gentlemanscholar]

Don't underestimate how much you can improve. Take every official released test you can find. They are sold in chunks of 10 on the LSAC website, and they are relatively cheap. Also, sometimes schools play coy about what they do with multiple test scores on an app. but since they are only required to publish the highest one, they will be happy to overlook a poor performance.

[meegee]

Most schools will only consider your highest LSAT score, so if you retake, your previous score of 138 will not adversely affect your application.

That being said, you should be aiming higher than the 150s. Also I'm not sure 3 months is enough time to allow the proper preparation required to score higher than the 150s.

Do some research on the legal market before committing to law school.

If I were you, I would aim for 165+

There have been people who went from 140s to 170+

Basically, this is what you should do
1) Research the state of the legal market. Hint: it sucks, do don't go to a shitty law school while taking on a lot of debt. The only way to avoid so is to have a good LSAT and GPA.
2) Read every single LSAT guide you can get your hands on. You should know how to move on from there.

[WaltGrace83]

I'd honestly rather get a 138 on the LSAT than a 155. The reason would be that I'd rather NOT go to law school rather than being forced to pay sticker (what we call it when you get no merit-based/need-based aid) at a shitty law school.

What is your GPA?

You absolutely need to do the following:
1) Research the legal market. What your parents would say about one becoming a lawyer is FALSE: a law degree will NOT let you do "anything," it will NOT be an easy way to get a job, and it will NOT make you a part of society's elite. Law degrees can ruin lives and I am not speaking from a melodramatic standpoint here. It is cold. hard. truth. If you don't believe me, you can ask a sibling of mine and his friends that graduated from a lower TT. Some of them are driving UPS trucks, many of them are working retail, and - oh by the way - they are paying off $250,000. Quite honestly, they will NEVER live comfortably again unless they got a job that pays $160,000+ (which won't be happening for 95% of the people from that school). Take your target school, you have a coin's flip chance at becoming a lawyer. A 155, paired with a decent GPA, still probably won't get you a full ride (these smaller schools typically don't have the means to do that as easily) but you might be able to get close to it? What are you losing though? You are losing at LEAST $30,000 (probably way more) just to live for three years during law school. Not worth it.

2) Forget this cycle. It is July. You took a test in the 130s. Now I want to clarify that you are NOT stupid, underachieving, unlikely to make it as a lawyer, etc. I am just saying that a 138 is an objectively a bad score. However, it is an okay starting point (not great, but definitely doable). I started out at a 151 diagnostic and I would probably be in the 166-169 now (hopefully going to get over that 170+ threshold soon). Your fundamentals aren't sound and so you are going to need a lot more time than three months, most likely. In six months or a year, you could be in the 170s though.

3) Realize that the LSAT is the MOST important test you will probably ever take. This goes with researching the legal market. LSAT score = the school you get into = the jobs you get = the pay you make = whether or not your debt is serviceable. The goal is not be crippled by debt for the rest of your life, and also to have a fulfilling career. These tend to go hand in hand though, I'd assume.

You got a lot of work to do but you'll totally get there! We have faith in you.

[Louis1127]

As everyone else has said, you CAN improve alot.

You probably rushed through the passages on RC without actually thinking about what you're reading for time purposes (as most people do their first time)

You probably thought lots of LR answer choices sounded like they were saying the same thing, and you probably were on number 13 when the proctor said there's 5 minutes remaining

you probably couldn't even do any games at all and could very well have just given up in the section

yea I know what it's like to get killed by the LSAT if you haven't looked at it before.

do NOT hold yourself to any timetable for improvement. that's the important thing. Even if you have to sit out a cycle.

Edit: It appears that I have been scooped by Mr. Grace

[kfb2112]

You should just write an addendum. A low score will be nbd really for most schools. Some decent advice can be found here:

http://www.top-law-schools.com/writing- ... endum.html

[stealer98]

Thank you all for your responses! All of your responses have changed my perspective and are very much appreciated! To answer a prior quester posted, I have 3.53 GPA from a well-respected private school in Pennsylvania named Washington & Jefferson college (idk if the prestige of the school makes a difference, but that's where I attend). And I plan on taking the test I again this September, but I know now, thanks to many responses that it is important to aim for the 160s to have a chance in the legal world it seems! Thanks again!

[WaltGrace83]

Thank you all for your responses! All of your responses have changed my perspective and are very much appreciated! To answer a prior quester posted, I have 3.53 GPA from a well-respected private school in Pennsylvania named Washington & Jefferson college (idk if the prestige of the school makes a difference, but that's where I attend). And I plan on taking the test I again this September, but I know now, thanks to many responses that it is important to aim for the 160s to have a chance in the legal world it seems! Thanks again!

Just remember to only PLAN on taking September. Don't have your heart absolutely 100% set on it. If you are not ready (and I mean 100% you feel like you can crush it) then DO NOT take the test. You have already "wasted" one of your takes (you only get 3 in 2 years) and you'll have a lot of stuff to cover in the next few months.

Good luck.

Also, hang around the "Choosing a Law School" sub-forum. You can get a lot of info on what is a "good" situation vs. a "bad" one there.