When is a retake a reasonable undertaking? Forum

[TheDapperDruid]

Hey everyone,

So I'm quite determined to attend Cornell, but I've been waitlisted at Georgetown, which doesn't bode well, at least from my perspective, for my acceptance at Cornell.

I graduated from undergrad in May of 2015. After 6 months of doing nothing but studying and some minor part time work, I scored a 167 on the December LSAT and applied in late January. I was originally going to take the October LSAT, but I was PTing around 158/159 by test time, and I decided to postpone for the December LSAT. My highest PrepTest was a 165, and the last 5 PrepTests before the December exam went something like: 163, 163, 165, 163, 163. I prepped with the Logic Games Bible and a private tutor (I have the RC and LR bibles, but I didn't make full use of them because I preferred my tutor's methodology). My first timed PrepTest was a 151.

On the December LSAT, I went -5 on RC, -4 on LR, -2 on LG, and -5 on LR.

I also have a LSDAS GPA of 3.7.

I'm hesitant to seriously consider retaking and re-applying next cycle or maybe leveraging a June LSAT, if that's even possible, because I've burned through the majority, if not all, of the more recent tests and my PrepTest scores were below what I scored on the actual test.

I am, or at least was, anticipating that I have a good chance at getting into Cornell, but, if I do get in, I likely won't receive as much scholarship money as would make me very comfortable with the assumed cost. Thus, my options seem to be either retake and re-apply; retake in June and leverage the results, if possible; suck it up and take the plunge with a small scholarship, if available; or attend a lower ranked school such as Fordham, BC, or BU with a reasonably sized scholarship (only heard back from BC so far with $93k, yet to negotiate). I've been accepted at Emory with $108k, but I have no interest in living or working in Georgia. I've gotten full rides at Cardozo and St. John's, and BLS gave me $120k. However, just looking at their stats makes me uncomfortable, and so they're likely out of the running.

Also, I am not a URM.

What are your thoughts or recommendations?

[TLSModBot]

When people say 'retake,' what they really mean is 'improve/add onto your study habits and then retake.'

So do that. Find a LSAT mentor or program that works better for you. Read up on LSAT strategy etc. Lurk these fora and get ideas/recommendations. Then retake. If you can break 170 you'll be in the money at the lower T14 (at least a little), and if you get a lower score no one will care - your original will still be good.

There is literally no downside to retaking here.

[TheDapperDruid]

If I were to take the June LSAT, would I be able to leverage it in this cycle? Would it be unwise of me to do so rather than applying early in the cycle next year?

[Nebby]

If I were to take the June LSAT, would I be able to leverage it in this cycle? Would it be unwise of me to do so rather than applying early in the cycle next year?

It would be unwise to do so and applying early next cycle would be better, if you take the June LSAT and improve your score

[TheDapperDruid]

Okay, so, with this considered, I would likely accept an offer from this cycle and then take the June LSAT. If I were to get a better score, say 2+ points higher, then I would reapply early next cycle. However, am I able to withdraw after I've accepted an offer? Do I defer? How does all of that work?

I apologize if this has become a thread more appropriate for a different section...

[Nebby]

Okay, so, with this considered, I would likely accept an offer from this cycle and then take the June LSAT. If I were to get a better score, say 2+ points higher, then I would reapply early next cycle. However, am I able to withdraw after I've accepted an offer? Do I defer? How does all of that work?

I apologize if this has become a thread more appropriate for a different section...

I honestly do not know, but you're able to rescind your acceptance at any time. So say you take June, get a better score in July, then I believe you can contact the school and tell them that you're rescinding your acceptance because you've decided not to go to law school this year

[Blueprint Mithun]

Okay, so, with this considered, I would likely accept an offer from this cycle and then take the June LSAT. If I were to get a better score, say 2+ points higher, then I would reapply early next cycle. However, am I able to withdraw after I've accepted an offer? Do I defer? How does all of that work?

I apologize if this has become a thread more appropriate for a different section...

You are able to rescind your application at any point, as an earlier poster said. However, to hold your spot at a school that far along in the summer, you'll probably need to pay the deposit for whichever school you want to save your seat at, so make sure you're aware of the deadlines.

If you're serious about doing better on the June LSAT, be prepared to give it your all. Score increases come fewer and are harder-earned once you near the 170 range. Spend some time refreshing your knowledge, but be prepared to do something new in your prepping this time around. Getting an LSAT tutor from a reputable prep company, someone who's scored above 170 and has taught the test for a while, would be your best bet. If you can come to that person and be specific about where your imperfections on the test are, they'll be able to point you in the right direction.


Also, Georgetown, despite being ranked lower than Cornell, is known for being surprisingly selective among T14 schools. I had the same GPA as you and a 175 LSAT, and I got wait-listed at Georgetown as well. Cornell, which I didn't apply to, sent me one of those big packets encouraging me to apply. So, while you definitely shouldn't count on anything, don't lose all hope just yet.

[TheDapperDruid]

Okay, so, with this considered, I would likely accept an offer from this cycle and then take the June LSAT. If I were to get a better score, say 2+ points higher, then I would reapply early next cycle. However, am I able to withdraw after I've accepted an offer? Do I defer? How does all of that work?

I apologize if this has become a thread more appropriate for a different section...

You are able to rescind your application at any point, as an earlier poster said. However, to hold your spot at a school that far along in the summer, you'll probably need to pay the deposit for whichever school you want to save your seat at, so make sure you're aware of the deadlines.

If you're serious about doing better on the June LSAT, be prepared to give it your all. Score increases come fewer and are harder-earned once you near the 170 range. Spend some time refreshing your knowledge, but be prepared to do something new in your prepping this time around. Getting an LSAT tutor from a reputable prep company, someone who's scored above 170 and has taught the test for a while, would be your best bet. If you can come to that person and be specific about where your imperfections on the test are, they'll be able to point you in the right direction.


Also, Georgetown, despite being ranked lower than Cornell, is known for being surprisingly selective among T14 schools. I had the same GPA as you and a 175 LSAT, and I got wait-listed at Georgetown as well. Cornell, which I didn't apply to, sent me one of those big packets encouraging me to apply. So, while you definitely shouldn't count on anything, don't lose all hope just yet.

Thanks for the advice and the anecdote, it's much appreciated.