LSAT Retaker with a question Forum

[bobbybird]

Hi all, just wanted to clear something up (it may be a dumb question, but I want to be absolutely certain).

So I took this past June LSAT and scored a 168. I feel like I did alright, but really thought I could push myself into the 170 territory (I under-performed my average, and missed a lot on a difficult LG4) so I decided to sit for the September LSAT. I have studied these past two months and feel more confident in all the sections.

Here's my logic: If there is even a doubt that I will score below a 168, I will cancel my September score and apply with the 168. My question is simply: can I do that? Can I apply with my highest LSAT even if my most recent attempt is a cancellation? I was sure you could, but I thought I should make sure. As a secondary question, do you think this is a bad strategy? I just feel like the additional boost getting into the 170 territory could have for my cycle is worth the risk of having a 168 and a cancellation. Thanks to anyone who takes the time to read this.

[P.J.Fry]

Hi all, just wanted to clear something up (it may be a dumb question, but I want to be absolutely certain).

So I took this past June LSAT and scored a 168. I feel like I did alright, but really thought I could push myself into the 170 territory (I under-performed my average, and missed a lot on a difficult LG4) so I decided to sit for the September LSAT. I have studied these past two months and feel more confident in all the sections.

Here's my logic: If there is even a doubt that I will score below a 168, I will cancel my September score and apply with the 168. My question is simply: can I do that? Can I apply with my highest LSAT even if my most recent attempt is a cancellation? I was sure you could, but I thought I should make sure. As a secondary question, do you think this is a bad strategy? I just feel like the additional boost getting into the 170 territory could have for my cycle is worth the risk of having a 168 and a cancellation. Thanks to anyone who takes the time to read this.

Yes you can cancel and apply with your June score. It won't look great, but it would look better than a 162 or something I suppose, though only marginally so as almost every school considers only your highest score anyway. Either way, it won't really matter unless you are right at the margin.

I don't think it's a great strategy however, as you can't always predict with great accuracy what your scaled score will be. You could come out feeling not great, but have been lucky on your 50/50 guesses and/or faced a generous curve and still come out better than you thought. Cancelling that would be an awful idea. I'd really only recommend a cancel if you are certain beyond a doubt that you bombed it.

[Rigo]

I'd really only recommend a cancel if you are certain beyond a doubt that you bombed it.

This. Unless you were totally at a loss on logic games, it's often hard to tell how you did.

I commend you on retaking.

[lawyerxxx]

168 is good, but most places take the best of the score you have in the last 5 years. So, knowing that, go for it.

[bobbybird]

First off, thanks for the advice. It's surprising though, I was under the impression that a "168, 166" would be far worse for my chances than a "168, cancel". I felt as though a cancel could be anything, as in a bad testing center or some other unforeseen issue. A solid score lower than the 168 would give schools pause, especially the schools I'm on the cusp for currently (with a 3.63 GPA, I'm currently looking at Cornell, Georgetown, and maybe Northwestern/Michigan). Do you guys really think a "168, 166" would be better than a "168, cancel"

[lawyerxxx]

First off, thanks for the advice. It's surprising though, I was under the impression that a "168, 166" would be far worse for my chances than a "168, cancel". I felt as though a cancel could be anything, as in a bad testing center or some other unforeseen issue. A solid score lower than the 168 would give schools pause, especially the schools I'm on the cusp for currently (with a 3.63 GPA, I'm currently looking at Cornell, Georgetown, and maybe Northwestern/Michigan). Do you guys really think a "168, 166" would be better than a "168, cancel"

neutral

only the highest matters, you are overthinking this

[bobbybird]

First off, thanks for the advice. It's surprising though, I was under the impression that a "168, 166" would be far worse for my chances than a "168, cancel". I felt as though a cancel could be anything, as in a bad testing center or some other unforeseen issue. A solid score lower than the 168 would give schools pause, especially the schools I'm on the cusp for currently (with a 3.63 GPA, I'm currently looking at Cornell, Georgetown, and maybe Northwestern/Michigan). Do you guys really think a "168, 166" would be better than a "168, cancel"

neutral

only the highest matters, you are overthinking this

I wouldn't be surprised if I was. Thanks for the advice.

[dontdoitkid]

From what I've gathered here, all schools outside of HYS take the top score anyway so I'd think you are fine. Good for you on the retake - 168 is a score a lot of people would be happy with but it's definitely good to keep pushing yourself if you think you can. I wouldn't cancel unless you have a meltdown during the test (happened to me, I stared into space for ten minutes. Come a long way since then haha) because a lot of the time you really can never tell how well you did. Good luck!